Late Summer on a platter—that’s basically what the fields are serving up for us. Since the Romas and Cherry Tomatoes are still going strong, I’m keeping the party going with our Bulk Tomato Sale through Labor Day weekend too. So, come on by and stock up this week at the farm stand!
We’re also picking our first round of Wild Hare Organic Sweet Corn and an abundance of beautiful fresh Romano Beans. (We know you’ve been waiting:). As a refresher, Romanos are much bigger than your standard green bean, but they're still plenty tender and in my opinion, more versatile. They're large like a fava, but unlike those favas we enjoyed earlier this Summer, they're flat and you actually eat the whole pod. No shelling necessary! In many ways, they're like a standard green or wax bean--you can pop off the stem and prepare them as you would any other green bean. You can chop them down to your preferable size or leave them whole. If you're not ready to eat your share of them this week, they can be frozen or pickled to enjoy later on. My absolute favorite way to enjoy Romano Beans is stewed/braised with tomatoes and garlic, (like the comfort of a green bean casserole without the casserole). My recipe and method, inspired by an old Fine Cooking recipe is posted below, so scroll on down.
Thanks to some diligent weeding on our crew’s part, we’ve got a lovely bed of Escarole and Frisee to work with this week too. Both Frisee and Escarole can be enjoyed raw or cooked, and they’re kind of a “same vegetable, different font” sort of situation. It just depends on whether you want to work with a broad leaf or a frizzy one. Tomato Season might be a great reason to whip up a Frisee salad with Bacon Vinaigrette, or a nourishing bowl of Escarole and White Beans with fresh tomato sauce.
Cheers!
Katie
PS: We did a first little pick of our sweet little French Cantaloupes today, and we’ve come up with just enough for the Large CSA Shares so far. This year’s crop is later than last year for sure, but I’m crossing my fingers and toes that we’ll have more in the coming weeks.
IN THE FARMSHARES THIS WEEK:
Tomatoes (Cherries,
Slicers and/or Heirlooms)
Romano Beans
Sweet Corn
Cucumbers or Zucchini
Escarole or Frisee
Mini Cantaloupes (Large Shares Only)
RECIPES & SEASONAL TIPS
FARMER KATIE’S BRAISED ROMANO BEANS
2 T. olive oil
1 onion, yellow or sweet, sliced thin
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
1 lb. romano or green beans (trim the ends and leave them long or cut them into 2” segments–the choice is yours!)
3/4 cup dry white wine
1.5 lbs tomatoes, chopped, grated or sauced (or two 14.5-oz. cans stewed tomatoes)
1 pinch of chili pepper flakes
Kosher salt
2 T cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
Heat the olive oil in a deep sided skillet or pan over medium heat. (You’ll want a pan with a lid). Add onion and garlic and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the onions soften. Then, add the beans, chili flakes and a good pinch of salt. Saute for 2 minutes and then add the white wine to deglaze the pan, stirring things up and scraping up any browned bits. Stir in the tomatoes and any of their juices. Bring to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low once the pan starts to bubble. Cover and cook over low heat for 25 minutes. The beans should stew and soften during this time. Then remove the lid and increase the heat to medium or medium high, leaving the pan uncovered. The goal here is to bring the pan to enough of a simmer to thicken the sauce. It takes about 5 minutes, give or take, depending on the amount of liquid that your tomatoes give off. Once the sauce thickens, remove the pan from the heat and scatter the pieces of butter over the top of the pan, allowing it to melt a little before stirring it into the beans and sauce. Give it a taste, add salt and pepper to your liking. Enjoy!
ROASTED GREEN BEANS
WITH GARLIC, LEMON, PINE NUTS & PARMESAN
Once Upon a Chef
⅓ cup pine nuts
2 pounds fresh green beans, stem ends trimmed
¼ cup thinly sliced garlic, from 7 to 10 cloves, (a medium clove should yield 4 slices)
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1½ tablespoons lemon zest
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon sugar
1½ tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
6 tablespoons coarsely shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano
ROMANO BEAN SALAD
WITH CHERRY TOMATOES, SWEET CORN & FETA
Bojon Gourmet
1/2 pound green beans
1/2 pound yellow wax beans
1/2 pound romano beans
3 large ears corn
half of a small, fresh, shiny red onion
1 pint (scant) basket cherry tomatoes
a few handfuls basil leaves
3 tablespoons olive oil
juice from half to one lemon
salt and black pepper
4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
FARFALLE WITH WILTED FRISEE & BURST TOMATOES
Molly Stevens
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pints cherry tomatoes
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
2 large heads of frisée (about 1 pound), coarsely chopped
12 ounces farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
CHICKEN MILANESE & AN ESCAROLE SALAD
Smitten Kitchen —Deb Perelman says, “If you make nothing else, just make the salad. The salad has made me fall head over heels in love with escarole; I am rapidly making up for lost time with it. But really, you should make all of it. This dish is a perfect pairing and every guest cleaned their plate.”
For the Pickled Onions:
1/2 cup red wine vinegar (I swapped half with white vinegar; I was feeling stingy with my fancy red wine stuff)
1/2 cup cold water
2 tablespoons kosher salt (updated: 1 heaped tablespoon is a better amount here)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 to 3 really good shots hot sauce
1 red onion, sliced into very thin rings
For the Chicken Milanese:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten with 1 tablespoon of water
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated pamesan
4 small boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied and lightly pounded/flattened to 1/4-inch thick*
Kosher salt and pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil, for frying
For the Escarole Salad:
1/2 cup grated pecorino romano
1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts
2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley leaves
1 head escarole, washed, spun dry, cut into bite size pieces
High-quality extra-virgin olive oil