Drying Strawberries

Drying fruit at home is easy and rewarding, and the end product is invariably excellent. Among all the strawberries we put into the freezer at this time of year, we always make sure to dry a load or two as well. We enjoy them in our oatmeal all winter long. (Other good local fruit candidates for drying are peaches and apples and pears. Tomatoes are easy and good too, if you like "sun-dried" tomatoes.)

Wash and hull the strawberries and cut off any bad spots. Try to choose berries of approximately similar size, to the extent possible - this will help them dry more evenly. Cut small and medium berries in half lenthwise; larger specimens can be cut into thirds or even quarters if very big.

Spread the berries on the dehydrator trays. You can crowd them in pretty close so long as they are not actually on top of each other; they will shrink considerably as they dry.

In my dehydrator, I find it takes around 10-14 hours to dry strawberries. I start checking after 10 hours and remove any that are fully dried. I check about every hour or so. You can do this on a weekend, or if you are home in the morning, start them overnight so they are ready for you to begin checking on them in the morning.

Parmesan Spinach Bulgur

Sneak some spinach-y goodness into a nice whole grain side dish. I served this warm, but it could work cold, too.

1 cup bulgur wheat
2 cups water or chicken stock
4-5 ounces spinach, stemmed
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine the bulgur and water or stock in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat until tender. Drain off any excess liquid if needed.

While the bulgur cooks, lightly steam the spinach (I find one minute on high in the microwave in a covered glass bowl is about right) then puree it or chop it very finely.

When the bulgur is cooked, stir in the spinach and Parmesan, then add salt and pepper to taste.

Serves 4-6.

Creamy Pasta with Early Summer Garden Veggies and Bacon

This was absolutely divine. I love it when a recipe idea turns out even better than it was in my head.

Feel free to mix and match vegetables. I really liked the snap peas in this, but you could use chopped spinach, early zucchini, or whatever else sounds good. I threw in some chopped leftover grilled chicken as well, but it's definitely optional. If you're vegetarian and want to skip the bacon, you can and it will still be good - but of course it won't be the same. In that case, I suggest adding some grated Parmesan.

1 lb cut pasta such as shells or penne rigate
1 Tbsp butter
2-3 cups snap peas (diced), fava beans, shell peas, or combination
1 bunch scallions (including green part), chopped (about 2 cups)
1 cup heavy cream
6 ounces bacon, cooked and chopped
1 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water. Drain when done, drizzle lightly with oil, and toss to coat.

While the pasta cooks, prepare the sauce: Melt  the butter in a Dutch oven or other large saucepan. Add the scallions and snap peas or other vegetables. Saute over medium high heat for 3-5 minutes, until the scallion greens are wilted. Add the cream, then reduce heat and simmer for another 5 minutes or so. If using snap peas, they should be tender but still retain some crunch. Stir in the bacon and basil and simmer another minute or so. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Pour the veggie mixture over the sauce and toss to coat well. The cream will soak into the pasta after a while if you don't serve it immediately, but that's ok. Serve hot or warm.

Serves at about 6.

Celeriac Mashed Potatoes

It's well past celeriac season, but I had one lingering in the fridge and with the weather having taken a rather cold turn, mashed potatoes seems appealing (I served them with slow cooker braised beef shanks, yum!) The combined flavor of the potatoes and celeriac was pleasant, and as a bonus, my kids chowed down even though they normally reject celeriac.

Feel free to swap in other root vegetables for the celeriac if you like: parsnips, turnips, rutabaga, etc. Each will bring its own unique flavor to the mix.

1 large celeriac root, peeled and cubed
1 1/2 lbs potatoes, cubed (peel if you like; I don't)
Up to 1/2 cup milk
2-3 Tbsp butter
Salt and pepper to taste
Parsley to taste (fresh or dried; optional)

Cook the celeriac and potatoes in a large pot of salted boiling water for about 15 minutes or until tender. Drain and return to the pot.

Mash the celeriac and potatoes with a potato masher, adding milk and butter until desired consistency is reached. Add salt and pepper to taste, plus parsley if desired.

Serves 4-6.

Asparagus Pizza with Salami and Feta

If you slice it thin or use slender stalks, you can put raw asparagus on a pizza and it will come out of the oven done to perfection. Here it is nicely counterpointed by the rich saltiness of feta and salami. (Feel free to skip the salami for a still delicious vegetarian version.)

1 14-inch pizza crust
Olive oil
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/4 lb asparagus, slice in 1/8-1/4-inch rounds
2 stalks green garlic, thinly sliced (including greens)
2 ounces diced salami
2 ounces crumbled feta
2 ounces shredded mozzarella

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Lightly paint the pizza crust with olive oil.

Spread the tomato sauce over the crust. Distribute the asparagus, green garlic, salami, and feta over the crust, then top with mozzarella.

Bake for 15-18 minutes, until crust is done and cheese begins to brown.

Serves 3-4.

Noodles with Spinach Peanut Sauce

This is a great dish for hot weather. I have made peanut noodles before, but I wanted to try the idea of getting some vegetables worked right into the sauce, and this worked really well. Plus my kids loved it. You can dress it up by adding tofu, meat, and raw vegetables if you like - later in the summer I'll be adding snap peas, carrots, and eventually red peppers.

1/2 lb spinach, stemmed and washed
2 stalks green garlic (or substitute scapes or garlic cloves)
2-3 Tbsp ginger root, coarsely chopped or grated
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup canola or peanut oil
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 cup natural peanut butter
1 Tbsp honey or brown sugar
Salt to taste
1 lb linguine or other noodles

Lightly steam the spinach, then immerse it in a bowl of cold water to cool it off.

Combine the spinach with the green garlic, soy sauce, oil, vinegar, peanut butter, and honey or brown sugar in the blender and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. Set aside (chill if you like).

Cook the noodles in a large pot of salted boiling water. Drain when done, then rinse with cold water until thoroughly cooled. Drain again.

Combine the noodles with the sauce in a large bowl. Serve cold or room temperature.

Serves 4-6.

Chimichurri Sauce

This is a classic Argentine sauce, often served with steak - but it's great with grilled ham or chicken, too. And it was very satisfying to make with parsley and oregano from my garden. Later in the season, substitute scapes and eventually garlic cloves for the green garlic. You can mix it up a little with the recipe, too - parsley is a must, but you can try thyme instead of oregano, white wine vinegar or lemon juice instead of the red vinegar, etc.

1/4 cup oregano leaves, loosely packed
1 1/2 cups parsley leaves, loosely packed
2 stalks green garlic (including greens), coarsely chopped
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
Red pepper flakes to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in the blender and blend until fairly smooth. Serve immediately, or keep for several days in the refrigerator.

Makes a little over 1 cup, enough to provide plentiful sauce for meat serving 6-8.