Tatsoi is an asian green, also known as spinach mustard, spoon mustard, or rosette bok choy.  It has sturdy, crunchy stalks similar to bok choy, maing it ideal for stir frys.

Tatsoi’s dark green leaves are high in beta-carotene and Vitamins A, C, and K; they also have good amounts of calcium, potassium, phosphorous and iron (source: Tufts University Website).

Ideas for using Tatsoi

Raw in salad

stir fry

soup (see post for Mushroom and Tatsoi soup)

sauteed

added to rice dishes

cooked and tossed with pasta

This soup is perfect for the rainy days we have been having lately.  It would also be good with carrot strips added.

Ingredients and Preparation

This recipe serves one, but can easily be multiplied for more servings.

• 1 Tbsp olive oil

Heat in a soup pan over medium heat

• 1 tsp minced garlic

Saute for about 2 minutes until fragrant

• 1 cup mushrooms- sliced in half, then into thin pieces
• Stems of tatsoi leaves  (whatever is left from cutting one cup of tatsoi leaves)
• 1 tsp oregano
• Salt and pepper

Add mushrooms, tatsoi stems, oregano and S&P to the pan stir to coat in olive oil.  The mushrooms will soak up the oil, so stir them frequently to prevent burning.  Saute until the mushrooms have a nice golden brown color.

• 9 cubes homemade veggie stock (see previous post) or about 2 cups of non frozen stock
• 1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Add stock and vinegar, and bring to a simmer.  Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes.

• 1 cup tatsoi leaves, sliced into strips

Add the tatsoi leaves, recover and simmer for a few more minutes, until the leaves have wilted.  Your soup is ready to enjoy!

-Ellen

Welcome 2011 Shire Members!

For those of you who haven’t met me, I am Ellen O’Neill- a nutrition student at Colorado State.  My challenge for the summer is to provide ideas and recipes so you can put your Shire veggies to good use.  Be sure to check back here regularly for more posts.  I look forward to meeting you all on Thursdays and to hearing your ideas and feedback.  If you have a recipe you’d like to share, I’d love to post it!

-Ellen

Veggie Stock

A good way to make veggie stock is by saving all of the scraps you create when you are prepping for your meals.  Most vegetable scraps can be saved- onion roots and peels, garlic peels, carrot ends, squash pieces, celery ends, bits of herbs, kale stalks, etc.  At my house, I save all of the scraps in a plastic bag in the freezer until I have enough to make stock.

The easiest method is to use a crock pot: put the veggies in the crock pot on low with enough water to cover the scraps.  There is no need to thaw them first.  After about 6 hours, the stock can be strained and cooled.  The veggie scraps will be drained of their flavor, so they are ready for the compost bin if you have one.

If you don’t have a crock pot, you can simmer the vegetable stock on the stove for about an hour instead.

I like to pour the stock into ice cube trays, freeze it, then transfer the cubes to another plastic bag.  This way, when I only need a little stock, I can take out what I need.  Making stock this way prevents vegetable waste, and gives you a flavorful, low sodium stock to use in the recipe of your choosing.

-Ellen

The great thing about stuffed peppers is that you can put just about anything in them.  Its a great way to use leftover rice and whatever else you have on hand.

You can make the peppers stand up by cutting a level surface on the bottom, but they will turn out just fine on their sides as well.

Ingredients:

4-5 Bell peppers or any type of pepper large enough to stuff, tops cut off and seeds removed

1-2 teaspoons canola oil

1/2 pound ground beef

1 cup yellow squashed, diced into small cubes

1 cup cabbage, cut into small pieces

2 cups rice, preferably cold leftover rice

8 oz can tomato sauce

2 egg whites

1/2 tsp fennel seeds

1/4 tsp rosemary

2 tsp Italian seasoning

Preparation:

1) Preheat the oven to 350

2) Heat a skillet and oil over medium high heat.  Saute the ground beef with the fennel and rosemary until cooked about halfway through, breaking the meat into small pieces with a spatula.

3) Add the squash and cabbage and continue to saute until the meat is nearly cooked through.  Add the rice, tomato sauce and Italian seasoning to the skillet and stir together.

4) Remove from the heat and stir in the egg whites.

5) Stuff the peppers with the mixture

6) Place the peppers in an ovenproof dish with about a 1/4 inch of water in the bottom.  Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes or until the peppers are slightly tender.

A stir fry is a blank slate.  I turn to it when I have lots of fresh veggies and not a lot of time.

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon canola oil

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup soy sauce or tamari

2 teaspoon sesame oil

1 Tablespoon oyster sauce

1 small sliced onion

1 cup sliced assorted peppers

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon minced ginger

1/2 cup sliced eggplant

5 stalks bok choy, sliced (you can use the greens and the whites)

1 cup kale, sliced or torn

2-3 yellow and red tomatoes, diced

Preparation:

1. Heat canola oil in a large skillet or wok over medium high heat

2.  In a small bowl, whisk together the rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil and oyster sauce.  Set aside.

3.  Saute the peppers, onion, garlic and ginger until the onions begin to look translucent

3.  Add the eggplant, bok choy and kale to the pan.  Pour the sauce mixture over the stir fry and saute until the bok choy begins to get tender, about 5 minutes.

4.  Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped tomatoes.  Serve over rice or noodles.

Here are three variations on the classic vinegar, red onion and cucumber salad:  for each, simply combine all ingredients and let sit in the refrigerator for as long as you can.  If you eat them right away, they will still be good, but a few hours to overnight in the refrigerator will make them that much better.

Fennel and Dill Cucumber Salad

4 cups sliced cucumber

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

2 teaspoons crushed fennel seeds (if you don’t have a mortar and pestle, a rolling pin works just fine to crush the seeds)

1/4 cup Rice Vinegar

1/2 cup water

Red Wine Vinegar and Mint Cucumber Salad

4 cups sliced cucumbers

2 cups small Roma tomatoes, quartered

1 cup thinly sliced onion

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon crushed dried mint

pinch of salt and pepper to taste

Sesame Cucumber Salad

4 cups sliced cucumbers

1 Tablespoon and 1 teaspoon sesame oil

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1 Tablespoon sesame seeds

Ingredients:

4 slices bacon

3 cups mizuna leaves

4 cups cooked or canned black eyed peas (drained)

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup real maple syrup

Preparation:

1.  Cut the bacon into small pieces and cook in a large skillet over medium heat until lightly browned

2.   Add the mizuna, black eyed peas and chicken broth and simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes

3.  Remove from heat and add the maple syrup.  Season with salt and pepper to taste

Serves 4 as a side dish

Ingredients:

4-5 regular sized radishes

2 cloves garlic

1 package low fat (neufchatel) cream cheese

~2 sprigs of fresh dill

Preparation:

1.  If you have a food processor, this is extremely simple: pulse the radishes and garlic into a paste, then add the cream cheese and blend until smooth.

If you don’t have a food processor, simply mince the radishes and garlic as fine as you can, then mix with the cream cheese by hand.

2.  Pick the dill from the stalk stir it in to the spread by hand.

Season with black pepper if desired.

We all know that radishes are colorful, crunchy, spicy and delicious but what can you do with their leafy green tops?  Instead of throwing then in the trash or compost, try this quick and easy soup.  It only takes a couple of minutes to prep the ingredients, then you can focus your attention elsewhere as it simmers for about 30 minutes.  After it is done simmering, blend it until smooth and enjoy!  The soup is thick and creamy, perfect for when those chilly summer nights come around.

This simple soup could be spiced up any number of ways, I think some dried cumin would be fantastic, or try it with fresh herbs added just after blending.

-Ellen

Ingredients:

1 medium onion

2 Tbsp butter

2 large potatoes

4 cups of radish tops

4 cups chicken broth

Preparation:

1.  Dice the onion and melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion to the melted butter and saute until the onion is fragrant, about 3-5 minutes.

2.  Slice the potatoes- you can cut them any way you wish, but the smaller the pieces, the less time they will need to simmer.

3.  Add the potato slices and the radish tops to the saucepan and stir to coat.  Pour in the chicken broth.

4.  Bring the soup to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to simmer for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are soft.

5.  Blend the soup until smooth with an immersion blender, or if using a regular blender, allow the soup to cool a little before blending (to avoid unwanted burns in case of splatter or spillage)

I have been having so much fun experimenting with the mizuna from the garden.  The leaves work well in fried rice but don’t throw away those stalks! Instead, dip them in peanut sauce for a new take on celery and peanut butter.  I like peanut sauce from the grocery store, in the Asian foods aisle.

To julienne basil leaves, stack several leaves on top of each other and roll the wide end to get a basil “cigar”.  Then use a knife to slice the cigar into thin strips.  Then be sure to enjoy the smell of fresh basil in your kitchen and on your fingertips!

-Ellen

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp peanut oil

1 medium carrot diced

1/8 cup soy sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp minced ginger

1 tsp rice vinegar

4 cups cold, cooked rice

1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas

1 green onion, sliced thin

3 cups mizuna leaves

2 eggs

1/4 cup julienned basil

Preparation:

1.  Heat peanut oil in a large skillet over medium high heat

2.  Saute carrots until slightly tender, about 3 minutes.  Meanwhile, whisk together soy sauce, sesame oil, minced ginger and rice vinegar to form a sauce.

3.  Add the cold rice, peas,  green onion, and mizuna to the skillet and stir.   Pour the sauce over the rice and cook, stirring frequently, until rice is heated through.

4.  Beat the two eggs ina small bowl and drizzle over the rice.  Gently stir until the egg is cooked, about 3 minutes.

5.  Remove from heat and add the julienned basil.

Serves 3-4 as a side dish.