So many good vegetables, so little time. I am having a rough time keeping up on the great vegetables each week. I despise them going to waste so I am really making an effort to avoid that from happening. I had a ton of basil still left from last week’s box and I already have enough pesto in the freezer. I was thrilled to run across this basil hummus recipe, it is a great alternative to pesto for using up the abundance of basil. This was delicious appetizer and the leftovers will be great on tomato sandwiches during the week.
A new week, a new CSA box. Here is what we got…
Juliet Tomatoes
Slicing Tomatoes
Specialty Tomatoes
Sweet Peppers
Kale
Parsley
Glad to have kale again, I can eat this scrumptious kale apricot avocado salad. The peppers are just what I need for this homemade giardiniera. Speaking of, have you been watching the new Food Network Star’s new show The Sandwich King? I have been loving it, and not just becuase he is from my home town. The show is so well done with the local Chicago filming mixed in with him cooking in the kitchen. And the recipes look excellent, I can’t wait to get the Greek tacos into out taco Tuesday lineup. Check it out, glad to have a show on Food Network to enjoy.
My garden tomatoes were slow to ripen but now they are all turning red, but it is always great to get tomatoes in the weekly CSA box. They are the best tomatoes ever too! I made another tomato pie for an easy week night meal, this week I added some sauteed kale.
The unexpected star this week is the parsley. Honestly often when a recipe calls for fresh parsley I often just skip it. Who cares, does anyone notice the parsley is missing? Maybe not, but I am starting to notice when it IS present. In a good way. It adds a brightness to a dish without taking over all the flavors.
Chimichurri sauce is an easy recipe to use up large amounts of parsley. Though this weekend we decided on a bigger challenge. After making clams on the grill on our trip out East we were hooked. The parsley did not fail in this recipe with clams, chorizo, and fresh corn. Of course the recipe itself it great and the parsley was just a minor element, but it finished this grilled clam dish perfectly.
| Steamed Clams with Chorizo and Fresh Corn |
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 pound chorizo, sliced 1/4-inch thick
- 1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup fresh corn kernels
- 3 lbs. small clams
- Salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley
- Loaf of French bread, sliced 1/2-inch thick
- Grill chorizo about 4 minutes on each side to heat through and leave grill marks. Remove chorizo from heat and slice on a bias.
- Heat the oil in a medium stockpot over medium high heat on grill. Add the onions and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Add the white wine and reduce by half.
- Add clams* and cover. Cook about 10 minutes, until clams begin to open.
- Add the corn and chorizo, season with salt and pepper, and continue cooking until the clams are all open.
- Remove from the heat and add the parsley.
- Serve in bowls with slices of crusty bread.
*Grill clams on rack about 5 minutes before adding into pot if you prefer.
Adapted recipe from Bobby Flay
Success, what a great way to enjoy parsley. But for some reason I still can’t stand it in my salad, what is with that?
I made a parsley walnut pesto that was good! I keep little cubes of it in my freezer to add to soups or pasta.
Parsley walnut pesto sounds good, basil pesto is getting a bit old to me these days.
Jacky – you can always put veggies you can’t eat on my front porch! 🙂 Ha!
LOVE the sandwich king too. But of course we are biased since he’s local!
I am just starting to realize the impact of using fresh herbs – it does make a difference. Happy Cooking Jacky!
Deal on the veggies! I will let you know when I have too many to handle.
I still have the giardinera and Italian beef on my menu – Tony wasn’t feeling well, so the meat is in the freezer, hope to make it this weekend though. And I also love the idea of his Greek tacos!
Hope you have a great long weekend! 😀