Asparagus, Spinach, Hon Tsai Tai, OH MY!

Over the past few days, we've used up most of Box #4. Here are the results:

Grilled Pizza with Mushrooms, Green Garlic, Spinach and Goat Cheese

This was our first time grilling pizza and it was fantastic. I can't wait to do it again! We added some shredded mozzarella to hold everything together in addition to the goat cheese.



Asparagus and Mushroom Bread Pudding
Recipe courtesy Deborah Madison, Local Flavors (by way of Barbara Kingsolver's Book, Animal Vegetable Miracle)

This recipe is absolutely delicious. The original recipe calls for morel mushrooms. Unfortunately, we cannot afford to buy a pound of morel mushrooms at this moment but I can only imagine how wonderful it would be if we had used morels.





3 cups milk
1 cup chopped spring onions with green shoots
Add onions to milk in sauce pan and bring to a boil, set aside to steep

1 loaf stale or toasted multigrain bread broken into crouton sized crumbs
Pour milk over crumbs and allow bread to soak

1 lb. asparagus
Chop into ½ inch pieces and simmer in skillet full of boiling water until bright
green

2 tbs. butter
1 lb. morels (or other wild mushrooms)
Salt and pepper to taste
Melt butter in skillet, cook mushrooms until tender, add spices and set aside

4 eggs
1/3 cup chopped parsley
3 tbs. oregano
3 cups grated Swiss cheese
Break eggs and beat until smooth, add herbs and plenty of salt and pepper, add
bread crumbs with remaining milk, asparagus and mushrooms with their juices
and 2/3 of the cheese. Mix thoroughly and pour into a greased, 8x12 gratin,
sprinkle remaining cheese on top and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes (until
puffy and golden).


Flank Steak with Hon Tsai Tai
Recipe courtesy Harmony Valley Farm

Owen has been such a trooper with trying our new creations. He really liked this one, but picked out the Hon Tsai Tai (it's green!).



1 ½lb. Flank steak
1 stalk green garlic
1 bunch Hon Tsai Tai or 2 heads baby bok choi
Peanut Oil to taste (we left this out because Owen hasn't had peanuts yet)
Mirin, to taste
Juice from one lemon
¼ cup sesame seeds, toasted
Soy Sauce to taste
4 small dried chile peppers, chopped finely
1 cup mushrooms, washed, and sliced, stems removed (can save and add to a stock)
¾ of package Soba noodles
5 Carrots, peeled, lengthwise slices

--Marinate steak in equal parts mirin, soy sauce, peanut oil and juice from one lemon for 1 hour
--In a large sauté pan over medium high heat, heat 1 tbsp oil. Sear flank steak on both sides, then reduce heat and cooked to desired degree of doneness. Set aside and let rest for 15 minutes. Slice thinly on a bias.
--Prepare soba noodles according to package, drain and set aside.
--Saute mushrooms until soft and cooked down, add carrots, green garlic, chile peppers and sauté until carrots are tender.
--Add a light drizzle of peanut oil (1-2 tsp), a dash of mirin (2-3 tsp), and a splash of soy sauce (1-2 Tbsp) to desired taste and enough to just to coat veggies.
--Cut Hon Tsai Tai and/or bok choi into bite-sized pieces and add to veggies. Cook until the greens are wilted.
--Add soba noodles and flank steak—stir until well combined and heated through. Top with toasted sesame seeds and serve. Peanut Marinated Flank Steak with Hon Tsai Tai
Serves 4-6