Whole Circle Farm

We know how much our CSA members and farm friends love to cook. With new and exciting vegetable ingredients every week, there are lots of possibilities. Fortunately, between the harvesting and the weeding, we’ve found some time for cooking, eating, and updating our recipes!

To find the inspiration you’re looking for, click on Categories and choose Bountiful Cooking, or type your ingredient of choice (e.g., turnips) into the website’s search engine at the top of the page.

And if you have a favourite recipe, please share it with us too!

Happy cooking!

Rebecca’s Southern Style Tomato Pie

4-6 large tomatoes

1 onion, finely sliced

½ cup basil, chopped

½ cup mayonnaise

1 ¼ cup extra old cheddar cheese, grated (or any of your favourite cheeses)

One pie crust (I adapted The Joy of Cooking’s “Flaky Pastry Dough” with Spelt flour):

2 1/2 -2 3/4 cups spelt flour

1 tsp salt

3/4 cup butter

1/3 cup plus 1Tbsp ice water

Cut the butter into the dry ingredients by chopping vigorously with two knives. When the mixture is dry and powdery, add ice water, and mix together, and form two balls. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes. Sprinkle spelt flour on clean surface and on rolling pin, and roll dough with rolling pin. Fit into pie pan. Use any extra dough to form cut-outs for decoration, or save for another pie.

Peel and slice tomatoes. Place in a colander with a sprinkle of salt so juice can drain.

Pre-bake pastry crust for 10 minutes in 350 oven.

Combine mayonnaise and cheese.

Place a layer of basil, a layer of onions, and a layer of tomatoes in the pie crust. Top with half the cheese mixture. Repeat layers and top with remaining cheese mixture. Decorate with a few basil leaves and any pastry cutouts as desired. Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes. Allow to sit for about 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

I also made a great cheese-free version with only tomatoes, onions and basil. Let us know if you try this recipe with any other alternatives – nuts? tahini? eggs?

Seasonal Quinoa Root Vegetable Burgers, by CSA member Vicki

Ingredients:

2 cups seasonal root vegetables [beets, carrots, turnips, summer squash (okay, it’s not a root veggie, but it’s still delicious) and whatever veggies you love, grated or chopped in Food Processor]

3 to 4 cloves of fresh garlic or ½ cup garlic scapes

1 cup pumpkin seeds

Olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

1 cup quinoa, cooked

1 egg (or 1 tsp ground flax seed in 1 Tbs water) – optional

1 tsp ground cumin

Salt to taste

How to prepare:

Stir fry the veggies, garlic and pumpkin seeds in a bit of olive oil (or other favourite oil).

Blend mixture together in Food Processor. Pour into large mixing bowl. Add chopped onion, quinoa, and cumin and other seasonings. Add egg or flax seed mixture to help burgers hold together better.

Shape into patties and bake on a greased cooking sheet at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. Sprinkle with your favourite dried herbs. Enjoy!

You know it’s delicious as a snack, in all sorts of salads, and even as savoury cold soup, but have you tried cucumbers for dessert?!

2 large cucumbers, peeled and chopped

1-2 ripe bananas (preferably Fair Trade)

2 cups of raspberries, strawberries, or other summer fruit

About ½ cup of cold water (or try milk or almond milk), to achieve desired consistency

Combine chopped cucumbers and banana in blender or food processor. Add liquid and blend. Add raspberries. Blend till smooth. Chill before serving. Decorate with a few slices of cucumber or a handful of raspberries. Enjoy in a glass with a straw, or as an alternative to ice cream.

Garlic Scape Soup – a delicious answer to all those early summer garlic scapes!

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 dozen garlic scapes, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
3-4 scallions or onions, chopped
3 large russet potatoes, unpeeled and cut into 1/2–inch pieces
5 cups vegetable stock
3 large handfuls baby spinach leaves
juice of ½ a lemon
kosher salt and black pepper to taste
¼ cup light cream (optional)

1. Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat, then add the scapes and sauté for 2 minutes.  Add the garlic and scallions and sauté for 1 additional minute.

2. Add the potatoes and stock, bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through.

3. Remove from heat, add the spinach and puree using a hand blender. (A regular blender works too – Just make sure to process the soup in small batches, and hold the lid firmly in place, so the hot liquid doesn’t come squirting out and burn you.)

4. Season soup with lemon juice, salt and pepper.

5. Stir in the cream (if using).

6. Pour into bowls and serve!