ITEMS
Garlic Scapes
Baby Spinach
Cucumbers
Broccoli Rabe
Dozen Eggs
Bacon
PRODUCERS
Chance Farm - Bozeman
Gallatin Valley Botanical - Bozeman
Amaltheia Organic Produce - Bozeman
Harlequin Produce - Arlee
Dutch Girl Eggs - Manhattan
Daniels Meats - Bozeman
Sauteed Broccoli Rabe & Garlic Scapes
This is a simple and versatile way to cook Broccoli Rabe - pronounced "rob". Broccoli rabe is more closely related to turnips than broccoli, despite its broccoli-like inflorescence. The stems, leaves, and flowers are all edible, and best cooked.
1 1/2 Tbs olive oil
1 bunch broccoli rabe
~3 garlic scapes (sub 1-2 garlic cloves, chopped)
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
Trim the tough ends from the broccoli rabe stalks - the last inch or so - and discard. Roughly chop remaining parts into 1-inch pieces. Rinse well and drain in a colander. Slice the scapes crosswise into anywhere from thin slices to 1-inch pieces.
Heat the oil in a large pot or sauté pan with a lid, add the garlic scapes and red pepper flakes, cook over medium heat for a few seconds then add the broccoli rabe, salt and pepper. The residual water on the leaves will help cook the greens, but if the pan gets dry and starts to sizzle, add another small splash of water. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the stalks are tender or to your liking. Adjust seasoning as needed.
Serve this as a side dish, or as one element of a grain bowl, on top of a burger, or...
As a sandwich filling: lightly toast your preferred bread or roll, add sauteed broccoli rabe (maybe along with some sauteed mushrooms) and then a few slices of melty cheese, and broil until cheese is melted.
Add bacon and onion: Reduce oil by half and cook 2 slices of bacon, chopped small, in the oil until just browning. Remove bacon pieces to a paper towel, add a handful of thinly sliced onion and cook ~5 min, then add broccoli rabe, cooking and tossing with onions until just tender, as above, then stir bacon back in.
For pasta: cook 1/2 lb of italian sausage (bulk, or casings removed) in the pan until browned, add the garlic scapes and pepper flakes, then broccoli rabe and cook until tender. Meanwhile cook 1/2 lb of small pasta (penne, orecchiette, etc.) to al dente, reserving 1/2 C pasta water. Toss the drained pasta with the sausage mixture and up to 1/4 C grated parmesan, adding reserved pasta water as needed to nicely coat everything. Serves 2-3. Double recipe using kale, chard, spinach, or even turnip greens if you don't have more broccoli rabe.
Garlic Scapes:
Scapes are the flower stalk of the garlic plant. They're cut off before they bloom to encourage the plant to direct its energy into forming the bulb where the cloves are, instead of the flower and seeds. The whole scape is edible, it has a slightly milder garlic flavor than cloves, and a texture similar to green beans or small asparagus. You can use it in place of garlic cloves or scallions in almost any preparation.
Green Goddess Dressing
This dressing admittedly doesn't have many of the week's ingredients, but it's a great way to use up fresh herbs from your garden or past Farm Cart deliveries, and would be nice on a spinach salad with cucumber and cherry tomatoes, or as a dip for sliced veggies, or with grilled chicken or fish. From NYTimes Cooking.
1 tsp anchovy paste, or 2 fillets - (the paste comes in a tube that keeps in the fridge for almost forever, and is handy if you occasionally need anchovies for a dressing or pasta sauce. If you don't have any or want any, try blending up kalamata olives or capers, or sub Worcestershire)
1/2 C mayonnaise, store-bought or homemade
1/3 C plain yogurt
1/2 C parsley leaves, loosely packed
1/3 C basil leaves, loosely packed - sub spinach
1-2 garlic scapes, roughly chopped
1-2 Tbs lemon juice
2 Tbs fresh tarragon leaves, minced
3 Tbs chives, minced
Salt & Freshly ground black pepper to taste
In a food processor, combine the anchovy paste, mayonnaise, yogurt, parsley, basil, scapes, and 1 Tbs lemon juice. Process until smooth and uniformly green. Transfer to a lidded container, then stir in the minced tarragon and chives. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Play around with different herbs or greens, depending on what you have.
Additional Recipes & Suggestions
Frittatas are a simple and satisfying way to combine eggs and veggies (and cheese), and are infinitely adaptable. The best news is you don't have to flip them, just stick it under the broiler. Here are some in-depth directions with specific flavor combinations. And here's our Farm Cart recipe that you can easily adapt.
Don't want a creamy dressing? Here's a garlic vinaigrette instead. Use garlic scapes instead of green garlic.
Try smashed cucumber salad to accompany a rich, spicy dish or for a light meal with rice or noodles.
Looking for a light Mediterranean meal? Make some tzatziki sauce with your cucumber and scapes to accompany falafel, souflaki, or marinated lentils and pita.