Slow Cooked Green Beans and Tomatoes with Chicken

I made this in my crockpot, using beans and tomatoes from the garden. But you could also do it on the stove. In that case, I would roast the chicken separately. Use paste tomatoes so the end product is not too watery. If using the crockpot, you can put frozen chicken directly in at the beginning of the day.

Olive oil
1 shallot, minced
1 lb green beans, stemmed
4-5 cups chopped tomatoes
2 Tbsp marsala
3-4 cloves garlic, skins still on, partially crushed
1-2 large sprigs rosemary
6 chicken thighs (or equivalent)
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat a little olive oil in a small skillet and saute the shallot until translucent.

To make this in the crockpot, place beans in the bottom of the pot, then add tomatoes, shallots, marsala, garlic, and rosemary. Place the chicken on top of the veggies. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Cook on Low for 7-8 hours. Remove garlic and rosemary before serving. Add more salt and pepper if needed.

To make on the stove top, use a large skillet or dutch oven for the vegetables. After sauteing the shallot, add the beans, tomatoes, marsala, garlic, and rosemary and simmer gently until the beans are very tender and the tomatoes are sauce. Add salt and pepper to taste. While making the beans, roast the chicken in the oven.

Serves 3-4.

Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Muffins

And while I'm on the subject of blueberry muffins...this is another favorite recipe. Again, you can use fresh or frozen berries, but frozen actually work a bit better.

1 cup white flour
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Preheat the oven to 400°. Grease muffin tins to make 12 muffins.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the white flour, whole wheat pastry flour, sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Add the lemon juice, vegetable oil, and yogurt to the dry ingredients and combine thoroughly. Stir in the blueberries. Do not overmix. The batter will be fairly thick and slightly spongy.

Spoon the batter into the muffin tins. You can fill them fairly full.

Bake for about 14 minutes, until the muffins turn golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Makes 12 muffins.

Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins

Blueberry season will be ending before long, but if you're like me, you have stockpiled berries in the freezer to use through the long winter. I find that frozen berries actually often work better than fresh in muffins and other baked goods, which is a happy coincidence since summer is not prime baking season. I love the blueberry cinnamon combination in these muffins, which also give you a good dose of whole grains. If you have fresh buttermilk available, you can use it in place of some or all of the milk.

1 generous cup rolled oats
1 generous cup milk
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
2 large eggs, well-beaten
1 tsp vanilla (optional)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 Tbsp powdered buttermilk (optional)
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 400˚. Grease muffins tins to make 12 large or 18 medium muffins.

Mix the rolled oats and milk together in a large mixing bowl. Let stand for 5-10 minutes.

Stir the eggs, vanilla (if using), vegetable oil, and brown sugar into the oatmeal and milk mixture.

In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, powdered buttermilk (if using), cinnamon, and salt. Add to the oatmeal mixture and mix until well blended. If using fresh or frozen blueberries, stir them into the batter.

Spoon the batter into muffin tins, filling them about three-quarters of the way. Bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the muffins comes out clean.

Makes about 12 large or 18 medium muffins.

Filling the Freezer

In the last week or two, culinary creativity has been taking a back seat to getting the harvest bounty into the freezer (and to a lesser extent the dehydrator). We have frozen and dried 24 quarts of peaches from Clarkdale and 40 pounds of tomatoes--with 20 more in a box on the dining room table, where they are ripening up a little more before processing, probably this weekend. I have frozen quarts of green beans and the first several bell peppers, as well as whole paste tomatoes from the garden. Now the freezer is filling up, and I think from here we need to be more strategic about what else goes in. We are expecting 20 pounds or so of beef later this month, from a share in a cow that we bought last spring, so we had better save room for that. And we definitely need more peppers. A few other odds and ends will find room--a bit more shredded zucchini, a couple bags of kale, some more pesto--but I think we are going to reach capacity. It will be the first time we have done so since acquiring the freezer late last October, too late for many crops we would have wanted. I am very curious to see how the winter goes with our more extensive stocks, and of course I will be posting recipes here based on frozen ingredients as well as updates on what we've run out of and what we can freeze less of next year (if anything!). Please feel free to post comments with your own experiences and tips!

Pizza with Corn, Tomatoes, and Basil

Another simple recipe to use what's abundantly in season right now... Use plum tomatoes if you can because they are not as juicy as other varieties. If you want to use very juicy tomatoes, try to drain them a bit first or your pizza will be soggy.

1 14-inch pizza crust
olive oil
2 cups chopped seeded tomatoes
1 1/2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 1 ear, 2 if small)
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh basil (loosely packed)
Salt and pepper to taste
2-3 oz. shredded mozzarella

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Paint the pizza crust with olive oil, then pre-bake for about 7 minutes.

After pre-baking the crust, remove it from the oven and spread the tomatoes, corn, and basil on top. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then top with mozzarella. Bake for another 10-12 minutes, until crust is done and cheese begins to brown.

Serves 3-4.

Double (or Triple) Corn Cornbread

This is adapted from a recipe in Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook--I love the texture of cornbread made with yogurt. Fresh corn kernels are a marvelous addition at this time of year. I made this as triple corn cornbread by using ground dried sweet corn for the cornmeal in addition to standard cornmeal. I got the dried sweet corn from Crabapple Farm at the Greenfield Farmers Market earlier this season. Not something all that easy to come by, but if you do happen on it at some point, try some. (You can also cook it as you would dried beans--perhaps with dried beans, something I have done with tasty results.)

1 cup cornmeal (sweet, standard, or combination)
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup plain yogurt
2 tsp cider vinegar or white wine vinegar
3 Tbsp sugar or honey
3 Tbsp canola oil
1 cup fresh corn kernels

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8x8-inch baking pan.

Combine the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.

Combine the yogurt, vinegar, sugar or honey, and canola oil in a small bowl.

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined. The batter will be thick and sticky. Stir in the corn kernels.

Spread the batter into the baking pan. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until done in the center and lightly golden on top.

Serves about 4.

Variations: You can add other things along with the fresh corn if you like. Try chopped scallions, a minced chipotle pepper, or a chopped fresh jalapeno.

Spicy Corn Chowder with Cilantro

I adore corn chowder and at this time of year, the only question is which variation to make each time. The bolting cilantro in the garden inspired this one.

2-3 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 lbs new potatoes, cubed
1/4 cup white flour
4 cups corn kernels (from around 5 ears; scrape the cobs to get all the juice)
1-2 hot peppers, seeded and minced
2 cups whole milk
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot. At the onion and saute for 2-3 minutes, then add the potatoes. Saute for another few minutes, then add the flour and stir to form a roux. Continue to cook over reduced heat for a couple minutes, stirring frequently, then add enough water to just cover the potatoes. Stir to blend the roux into the liquid, then partially cover and cook over medium-high heat until potatoes are tender (15 minutes or so).

When the potatoes are tender, add the corn and hot pepper and cook another few minutes. Add the milk, cilantro, salt, and pepper and remove from heat.

Serves 4-6.