Monthly Archives: June 2013

Peach Honey Coconut Ice Cream

25 Tuesday Jun 2013

Posted by in dessert, DIY, gluten-free, homemade gifts, seasonal

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DSCN3062Love:

Well, I think it is safe to say it is summer! My lack of posting recipes is beacuse I am busy having lots of fun (follow me on intstagram @cosmohippiechef for extra food pics and adventures). Time to break out your ice cream makers and get busy making homemade ice cream, like this Peach Honey Coconut. You are probably thinking peaches? I haven’t seen peaches at the farmers market yet? You are right, I used my canned peaches that I canned last summer. After taking inventory of my canning pantry I realized I need to start using up those goodies I spent all that time last summer preserving. So I started with my canned peaches, this ice cream is creamy and lightly sweetened with local honey. This recipe makes a lot of ice cream so you’ll be stocked up for a while. One of my most important tips is, make sure the liquid mixture is cold before you pour it into the ice cream machine! You are ready to rock and roll, hurry and make a batch of this and then get back to soaking up summer. Enjoy!

Food:

Peach Honey Coconut Ice Cream- makes a lot!

2 c. whole milk (organic)

1 c. canned coconut milk (full fat)

1 quart size canned peaches, liquid drained

3/4 c. honey (local, I use Clifford Family Farms and I get it at the farmers market)

2 eggs, (local, I use Clifford Family Farms and I get it at the farmers market)

juice of one lemon

pinch of salt (I like Real Salt, local or Celtic Gray Salt)

Directions:

1. Using your standing mixer, crack and beat the two eggs until creamy and the color has changed to a lemony pale yellow, about 5 minutes. Turn the mixer down and add the honey slowly, it will stick to the sides so turn the mixer off and scrape down the sides and mix again.

2. Next, with the mixer on low add the whole milk and coconut milk. Add the lemon juice and a healthy pinch of salt.

3. Pour the drained peaches into food processor and pulse them down until they are saucy and no longer have any chunks. Add the pureed peaches to the milk mixture, stir to combine.

4. Place this mixture into the fridge overnight or at least 4 hours, this step is very important. You want your mixture to be very cold when adding it to the ice cream machine. I had to process mine in two batches, I have made the mistake of poring it all in at once and had major spillage!

5. Process according to your manufactures directions. Freeze for a couple of hours and then EAT!

*optional- I toasted unsweetened coconut flakes in a dry saute pan until lightly toasted and fragrant. Sprinkle on top of your ice cream.

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Here are some of my other favorite homemade ice creams:

Homemade Chocolate Ice Cream

Rhubarb Strawberry Buttermilk Ice Cream

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Easy Pea-sy Farmers Market Salad w/ Basil Miso Dressing and Rhubarb Granita

14 Friday Jun 2013

Posted by in dessert, dressing, gluten-free, salad, seasonal, vegan

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Food:

Easy Pea-sy Farmers Market Salad w/ Basil Miso Dressing– serves 6

For the salads-

6 c. spinach, 1 c. for each (FM)

1 1/2 avocado’s, 1/4 for each

1 container of Sunbridge pea greens, divided (local, find at Whole Foods or Good Earth)

1 lb. snap peas,  shelled and steamed, 1/4 c. for each (FM)

4 oz. Drake Family Farms goat cheese, divided (FM)

1 1/2 c. crispy garbanzo beans, 1/4 c. for each

1/2 asparagus, trimmed and steamed, divided (FM)

Lemons, salt and pepper

(FM)= Find at Farmers Market

Directions:

1. Divide all the ingredients into 6 glass containers, bowls or Tupperware with lids. (I made these for our lunches this week). Season with a squeeze of lemon and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.

2. Place containers in fridge and they are ready for lunches during the week!

Basil Miso Dressing- enough for 6 salads (2 T. each)

1/4 c. olive oil

1/4 c. apple cider vinegar or Slide Ridge Honey Vinegar (FM)

1/4 c. miso paste (I like chickpea miso)

2 T. water

2 T. Clifford Family Farm honey (FM)

1 T. fresh chives or spring onions,chopped (I used some from my garden)

1/4 c. fresh basil (garden or FM)

Directions:

1. Everything but the onion and the olive oil in the blender or food processor.Blend well, then stream in the olive oil and blend again. Add in onions. Refrigerate, divide into 6 containers to go with the salads. Enjoy!

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Food:

Rhubarb Granita- makes 3 c.

Adapted from Sunset Magazine June 2013

4 c. roughly chopped rhubarb (FM)

1 c. Clifford Family Farm honey

1/2 tsp. Real Salt

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Directions:

1. In a wide pot, cook rhubarb, honey, salt and 2 1/2 c. water over medium heat, stirring often and mashing with a spoon if needed, until rhubarb turns to mush.

2. Pour mixture through a strainer into a bowl and rub with the back of a ladle to push through as mush rhubarb as possible.

DSCN3031DSCN30373. Transfer to a shallow Pyrex dish and freeze until firm, stirring and scraping with a fork every hour if possible, about 4 hours total (stirring the mixture occasionally as it freezes creates large, slow melting ice crystals you want in a granita). Scrape up the granita with fork and spoon into bowls or your favorite vintage glasses. Eat!

Love:

This time of the year I let the Farmers Market dictate the menu at our house. My Easy Pea-sy Farmers Market Salad worked out perfect for our lunches and the Rhubarb Granita was just what the doctor ordered for dessert at the end of these hot days we’ve been having. Every Saturday is an adventure at the market to see what’s new and there is nothing better than having fresh, local seasonal food to play with in the kitchen. Can’t wait to see what will be on the menu next week, until then. Enjoy!

Asparagus Salmon Lemon Pasta w/Greens

07 Friday Jun 2013

Posted by in Fish, pasta, seasonal

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DSCN3020Food:

Asparagus Salmon Lemon Pasta w/Greens– serves 2 BIG dinner portions, or 4 starter courses

1/2 lb. good quality pasta (find at Caputo’s booth or market)

1/2 lb. Wild Salmon (find at Aquarius booth or market)

1/2 lb. asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces

2 c. early baby greens, chopped (baby arugula, spinach or kale work best)

1/4 c. parsley, chopped

1 T. chives or spring onions, chopped

3 lemons

1/3 c. olive oil (find at Caputo’s booth or market)

2 oz. Drake Family Farms Goat Cheese

Salt (about 1/2 tsp.) and pepper (about 1/2 tsp.)

Directions:

1. Start by pre-heating the oven to 400 degrees, I like to place my salmon on a wire rack over a pie pan, pour water in the bottom of the pie pan (this keeps the salmon moist). Line your pie pan for easy clean up. Season the salmon with your favorite seasoning, I use a cedar plank seasoning I picked up at the Boulder, CO farmers market but look for a new seasoning at our farmers market. Slice 1 lemon and lay it over the salmon, bake for 20 min or until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part reads 125 degrees. Remove from oven and let cool with you work on the rest of the dish.

2. Make the dressing- zest and juice the other 2 lemons, add the oil olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

3. Next bring a big pot of water to a boil over high heat, when the water comes to a boil salt the water and then add the pasta. Give the pasta a quick stir. Cook the pasta according to the directions. Test your pasta careful not to over cook, 3 mins before your pasta is done add the asparagus to the boiling water with the pasta. Drain both the pasta and the asparagus and then add it back to the pot.

4. Quickly add the chopped greens, chives and parsley (save a little parsley to garnish the top), give a toss, the heat from the pot and the pasta will wilt the greens just a bit. Next add the goat cheese and lemon/olive oil dressing, toss again until well mixed. Divide into bowls and garnish with parsley, EAT!

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This coming Saturday morning is the long-awaited opening of the Downtown Farmers Market! This year marks their 21st year at Pioneer Park and I was asked to share a recipe for the markets newsletter, I chose the following dish because you can find all the ingredients at the farmers market or just right across the street at Caputo’s and Aquarius. This dish is fresh, quick and takes advantage of early season crops such as baby greens, chives and asparagus, also its salmon season so it’s the perfect time to throw these seasonal beauties into a dish! The best part of this recipe is that it can be made vegetarian or vegan depending on your preference.

This is the time of year to get out of bed early on Saturday and show your support for all our local farmers and local food artisans bringing us their fresh, local, love filled food. I know at times the Downtown Farmers Market gets a bad rap due to all the people, strollers, and dogs but I am here to tell you that if you get there early it is easy to get a parking spot, grab some veggies, enjoy a coffee and pastry, and get out by 10:30! I have a love/hate relationship with the market because I would rather be sleeping, but like I tell my husband ‘if all those dedicated people are willing to show up, then so can we!’ If you have ever tried to grow your own food, than you know at times it can be a challenge and a labor of love. This is why I get up, put on a happy face and push my way through the people, strollers and dogs, because my weekly meal plan depends on it and I want to support the hard-working farmers/growers, food artisans that make it out every week come rain or shine. The relationships you gain at your local farmers markets are unlike any other, they bond you to your neighbor, community and most important the hard-working folks who make it possible for us to eat the freshest, seasonal local food around. Enjoy!

P.S. I want to give a shout out to the peeps behind the scenes that make these markets happen. Over the last couple of years I have gotten to know these local loving fools, I thought I was a dedicated lover of all things local, but these folks take the cake. Bravo, and I’m sure this year will be just as rad as the last 20. Let’s do this!

My “SLO” Salad w/Lemon Herb Tahini Dressing

03 Monday Jun 2013

Posted by in beans, dressing, gluten-free, salad, seasonal, vegan

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Love:

My husband and I recently took a trip up the California Coast for our wedding anniversary. One of our stops up highway 1 was San Luis Obispo (“SLO”), while we were there we ate at one of our favorite Cali eateries ‘The Natural Cafe’ (we think it is a California chain), it’s not a local restaurant but they have lots of veggie friendly options. I was instructed by a friend from home to try their ‘Village Salad’ which consists of romaine lettuce, tomatoes, avocado, brown rice, tofu and a little cheese. Nothing too out of the ordinary but the brown rice was my favorite part and I couldn’t wait to get home and make my own version.

This salad came together with what I had in the house and in the garden, nothing out of the ordinary, but when I posted this picture on Instagram (follow me @comsohippiechef) I got quite a few likes and thought it was worth sharing. Instead of tofu, I used crispy garbanzo beans which I started using last summer instead of croutons, definitely a favorite in our house. I also included the brown rice which is what I loved the most about the salad we ate while we were in SLO, but I was lucky to have greens from my garden as well as the flowers that were a result of my greens bolting a little to soon. The rest of the ingredients were left over from other meals. Feel free to use what you have but I do recommend that you try the brown rice and crispy garbanzo beans. I urge you to ‘slow’ down and Enjoy!

Food:

My SLO Salad– serves 2

4 c. greens of choice, divided (I used greens from my garden)

1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeds removed and diced, divided (I used one of those really long ones)

1 organic tomato, cut in quartered and diced, divide

1 lb. organic asparagus, tops only! Use the bottoms for the pasta dish I’ll be posting next.  (I roasted these in the oven with a little olive oil and salt and pepper @375 degrees for 10-15 min)

1 avocado, cut in half and sliced, half for each salad

1/2 c. cooked brown rice for each salad

1/4 c. crispy garbanzo beans for each salad (2c. fresh cooked, or canned chickpeas, toss with 2 tsp. olive oil 1/2 tsp. salt and 2 tsp. Toum (local garlic condiment)- bake 400 degrees for 30-45 min. or until cripsy)

edible flowers (if you have them), you could use sprouts instead

half a lemon

salt and pepper

Directions:

1. I start by placing the greens on the bottom of the bowl, I squeeze a little lemon over the greens and season with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.

2. Arrange the rest of the ingredients over the greens. I gave each ingredient its own space on the greens, I think it looks really pretty this way. Top with edible flowers.

3. Eat with you favorite dressing!

Lemon Herb Tahini Dressing- makes 1 c.

1/2 c. organic sesame tahini (usually by the nut butters)

1/4 c. water

1 organic lemon, zest and juice

2 T. vinegar, I used Slide Ridge Honey Wine Vinegar

2 T. organic tamari, you could use lite soy sauce or liquid amino’s

2 tsp. sesame oil

1/4 c. fresh herbs from garden (I used a combo of mint, basil, cilantro and parsley)

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Put all the ingredients in the food processor or blender. Blend until well mixed. Place in the fridge. (The dressing will thicken up in the fridge, so it is best used at room temperature.)

Nutrition:

Usually during the summer I lay off this segment, I want to have more time with friends and family while the weather is good. I hope you will understand. Spending time outdoors with the ones you love eating fresh, local and seasonal food is the best nutrition!