Roasted Pesto Mashed Potato Stuffed Peppers

 Stuffed peppers are just about the most perfect food.  Full of flavor, a little bit sweet, and a really savory kick when you roast it.  You can put almost anything in them, but I'll bet you never thought to stuff potato into them, so here we go!

The potato mix makes more than enough to stuff all of your peppers, large and small, and you can even boil a larger number of potatoes than you need and reserve some for plain mashed potatoes for tomorrow night's starch side dish.

The best part is the flavor absorption, which allows you to highlight the basil, making this a pesto-hybrid, combined with the roasted peppers, garlic, and onion and no doubt you'll lick the spoon, the plate, and the food processor clean (please restrain from licking the blade :) )

Serves 2 for dinner, or 6-8 as party finger food in the small peppers.

What you'll use from your bag:
3 large red peppers for stuffing
4 orange peppers for roasting
1 medium or 2 small onions
2 garlic cloves
all your basil
5 medium or 8-10 small potatoes

What else you'll need:
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup nutritional yeast
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup cashew milk
1/4 tsp sage powder
1 tsp tarragon leaves



First, you'll preheat the oven to 400 degrees
While the oven is preheating, add some salt to a large pot of water, and boil your potatoes. This takes approx. 25-30 minutes until they are soft.  (I keep my skins on, but feel free to peel)

Then, prepare your veggies to roast

Find the flat side of your large peppers, and slice a thing layer of the OPPOSITE side, exposing the hollow so you can remove the seeds.  Chop the thin layer.

Take your 4 small peppers, chop the ends, remove the seeds, and rough chop.

Rough chop the onion, and cut the ends off of the garlic, keeping them in the paper.

Toss them in a light amount of oil, and place them on a cookie sheet, for 10 minutes, then flip, and another 10 minutes.


Now, add the remaining ingredients into the food processor
When the roasted veggies are done, set the large peppers (or stuffing peppers) aside, and toss the remainder into the food processor with the basil, spices, oil, and cashew milk, making sure to squeeze the garlic out of the paper case.

Take the tender potatoes out of the boiling water, drain, and quarter them, and toss it into the food processor, and pulse to combine until desired consistency.

Scoop the filling into the empty roasted peppers, and dress with any stray basil leaves or pepper pieces.

Enjoy!

Snap Peas: We Can Pickle That! (2 ways)

No matter how much you love snap peas, sometimes you have to think of what to do with an entire pound of them.  Luckily, they make great snacks raw, and you can basically throw them into any salad or sandwich no problem... and we have covered at least a couple recipes this season with snap peas too, and just when you thought you had all you could manage for snap pea techniques down, you realized that I, and Portlandia, might have another idea:

WE CAN PICKLE THAT!

In this post, I will go over two different methods of pickling, one the lacto-fermented kind (despite the name, its definitely vegan, it is merely referring to the lactobacillus bacteria that is involved in all open air fermentation) and the other using vinegar.  The vinegar method is faster, but not as beneficial for your gut flora as the fermented kind, however the combination is ideal because the apple cider vinegar serves as a prebiotic while the fermented produces probiotics, and in both cases your radishes, turnips, sweet peas, and another other veggies laying around can live long past their peak time.  However, if you jealousy guard your snap pea population with your life, feel free to choose one method, or perhaps just pickle your radishes and turnips :)

What you'll use from your bag:

Snap Peas- I took the entire yield and split them between the two jars, it was the perfect amount.

Radishes- the entire yield split between the two

Turnips- 4-6, split between the two

Spring garlic, 1 bulb split between the two

What else you'll use:

Vinegar method:

Apple cider vinegar, 1 cup and 1 more to fill

Water, 1 cup

1Tbs sugar

1 Tbs salt

1 tsp black peppercorns, whole

1 tsp coriander seeds, whole

1 tsp mustard seeds, whole

1 tsp fennel seeds, whole

Fermented Method:

Water, 3 cups

1.5 Tbs Salt

1 tsp black peppercorns, whole

1 tsp coriander seeds, whole

1 tsp mustard seeds, whole

1 tsp caraway seeds, whole

( and in ~2 weeks, fresh dill, oregano, basil, rosemary, or any other fresh herb)

First, start with The Vinegar method:

Combine 1 cup vinegar and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat, add the water and let cool.

Next, prepare your veggies:

Yes, you'll want to take the strings out of the snap peas, and if doing both methods, you may as well sit down with a bowl and do them all at the same time.

Fill each jar about 1/2 way with peas, and the rest of the way with garlic, radishes, and turnips.  For the vinegar method, turnips are best sliced into discs, and for the fermented nice chunks work best.  Radishes for both, I just split into halves, the long way, when possible.  The garlic is great in thick discs, but a chunky chop is also good.

Then, cover your veggies in your brine:

Now that your jars are about 3/4 full with veg, separate your jars with labels and a date.  Pour the vinegar mixture over the veggies and pour in more uncooked vinegar until covered-- not to the top (usually about a cup if using quart sized mason jars) and then add the salt and spice, and shake well to combine.  

For the fermented, mix the salt, spices and water together in a bowl to combine and then pour over the veggies, adding additional water if necessary to cover, no where near the top).

Now, set them to store:

The vinegar pickles can go right in your fridge, and are ready to eat in 3-6 days.  Or, if you want them faster, leave them covered at room temperature for the first day, and then place them in the fridge to be ready immediately.

The fermented jar needs a bit more tending.  take a smaller jar, or a weight, and keep the veggies below the surface of the brine, in an uncovered jar.  You want the liquid to have air exposure, but not the veggies, in other words. Its hard to see, but the jar inside the jar is forcing the liquid in the larger jar to come all the way up to the very top of the large jar.  For this reason, I store mine in a bowl, and cover the entire thing with a dish cloth.

Now, set it aside, away from heat or light, for about two weeks, you can check on the acidity level for taste as you go, and when it's just about ready, plop your fresh herbs in, screw on the lid and put them in your fridge to be eaten at your own pace!

Enjoy!

Sesame Soba with Bok Choi and Chinese Broccoli

Soba is an earthy, traditionally gluten-free noodle, that is packed with anti-oxidant power from things like Manganese, and relatively low in carb while being high in fiber and protein, unlike our typical white refined pastas!

Bok Choi is the star of this show, providing bursts of fresh moisture, soft leaves, and a crunch, amidst the rich and creamy tahini sauce, while the meaty mushrooms satisfy our craving for a hearty bite.  Last but not least, the Chinese Broccoli (which likes to hide in the soba!) compliments these textures, adding a complex and nutrient dense element beneath the surface of the noodles.

Serves 4- Feel free to use all of the Choi from this shipment, or you can reserve some to steam or sauté on it's own with soy sauce, garlic and ginger.

What you'll use from your bag: 
Choi- 1/4 - 1/2 pound, halved with the base cut off
Chinese Broccoli - 1 plant, chopped into 2 inch long pieces
Spring Garlic - 2 stalks, chopped

What else you'll need:
Soba Noodles - 8-9 ounces (I used King Soba's Sweet Potato and Buckwheat)

Shitake Mushrooms - Sliced, fresh 1 8 oz pack, or 1 dry cup rehydrated
Tamari/Soy Sauce - 6 Tbs, 4 for the sautee and 2 reserved for the end
Rice Vinegar - 1 Tbs, in a pinch you may use white wine vinegar
Sesame Oil - 3 Tbs + 1.5 tsp,  may substitute avocado or safflower oil, but sesame is the best flavor
Tahini - 2 Tbs Tahini, one in the sautee, and one reserved for the end
Ginger - 1/2 tsp powder, or 1/2 inch fresh root minced
Vegetable broth - 1/3 cup, mushroom and onion broths especially work well here
Chinese 5 Spice Powder - 1/2 Tbs, in a pinch combine anise/fennel/tarragon, black pepper and cinnamon to a total of 1/2 Tbs to approximate the flavor
Toasted Sesame Seeds - For serving
Cayenne Pepper - 1/2 tsp, optional



First, set the Noodle to Boil:
--12 cups of water, seasoned with salt and 1 tsp of oil. Bring to a boil and then add noodles, and return to boil, 4 minutes. Drain, and toss with 1/2 tsp oil and set aside.

Next, Prep your sautee:

Sautee mixture
4 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
1 Tablespoon Rice Vinegar
3 Tablespoons Oil
1 Tablespoon Tahini
1/2 tsp or inch of Ginger
2 stalks Spring garlic, chopped

-- Heat the sautee pan or wok on medium heat. Whisk together the mixture vigorously and add to a hot pan. Once it bubbles at
the edges, add the mushrooms, and stir to coat. 2 minutes.

--Add 1/3 cup vegetable broth, and layer the choi and broccoli atop the liquid and cover, 2 minutes.  Stir mixture, and add 1/2 Tablespoon Chinese 5 Spice powder, and the optional cayenne pepper if desired.

--Once the Choi has wilted, and the broccoli has softened a bit, add in the noodles, another 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, and a tablespoon of tahini.






Garnish with toasted Sesame seeds, and your favorite hot sauce (such as Sriracha) if desired!