Green Beans with Bacon and Onion

Here's another recipe from my first favorite vegetable cookbook. Betsy has a glut of squash and I am at the beginning of the glut of snap beans at our place. As you can see, our beans aren't all green. I love the purple beans and would love it even more if they stayed that color when they are cooked. They are sturdy plants and productive and easy to see when I'm picking. 

  

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Green Beans with Bacon and Onion

Source:  Vegetables Every Day by Jack Bishop
Serves 5-6 as a side

1 pound snap beans, ends snapped off
salt
4 strips bacon, cut in 1/4 inch slices
1 medium onion, sliced
2 T minced fresh parsley
Freshly ground blac pepper

Bring 2 quarts water to boil in a large saucepan. Add the beans and 1 teas salt. Cook until the beans are tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside for up to several hours.

Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove from saucepan and drain. Spoon off all but one T of the bacon fat and add the onions. Cook until the onion begins to brown at the edges.

Add the beans and parsley to the pan. Toss and heat through. Top with the bacon and season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.

July 31 Harvest, sort of

Even though I didn't "plant" this butterfly, I have nurtured beds of dill and fennel and kept watch while multiple striped caterpillars chewed on the herbs knowing that this is where they were headed. This morning I found this beauty under my picnic table.

Zucchini Cheddar Corn Muffins

And now we return to your regularly scheduled program of zucchini recipes...

Michael and I visited Europe last summer, and my mom came to stay with the boys. She made these muffins and reports that the boys went crazy over them. They still like them. The muffins are best on the first day, but it helps to warm them up later. Also, they are divine with blackberry freezer jam.

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 Zucchini Cheddar Corn Muffins

Source: Two Peas and Their Pod
Yields 12 muffins

1 c all-purpose flour
1 c course ground yellow cornmeal
1/4 c granulated sugar
2 1/2 teas baking powder
1/4 teas baking soda
1/2 teas salt
1 c buttermilk
3 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 T vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1/2 c shredded zucchini, squeezed and drained on paper towels
1/2 c sweet corn kernels (you can use frozen)
1 c shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 400F. Spray a regular-size muffin pan with cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, sugar , baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk, melted butter, oil, and eggs until well blended. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix with a rubber spatula until combined. The batter will be lumpy. Fold in the zucchini, corn, and cheese. Divide the batter evenly in the muffin pan.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from pan and serve. 

Three Granitas

I suppose I first learned about a granita from Alton Brown's show Good Eats. A granita is an Italian frozen dessert and can be made of any number of sweetened liquids including juices, herbal teas, wine, and coffee. A granita is a cooling dessert in the summer but much more enjoyable than a snow cone, because one can avoid the heavy sweet syrup squirted on the ice. It is much more elegant (and flavorful) than a popsicle. Try one of these and if you like it, you can find many more recipes on the internet.

Note: the larger the pan you use, the shallower the liquid will be and the faster it will freeze, so if you use a 9X13 pan, check it earlier, rather than later. In addition, the pan can be glass, metal, or plastic, for that matter.
 
I found the following recipe in a book I picked up at a library sale. It allows me to enjoy the best part of a rootbeer float; the crystals last much longer than they do in a the rootbeer.

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Rootbeer Granita

 

Source:  Cakes and Cowpokes by Wayne Harley Brachman
Yield: lots, enough for a party, or keep covered in the freezer to enjoy over a month or so

1/4 c plus 2 T  (3/8 c) water
3/4 c sugar
3 12-oz bottles rootbeer or 36 ounces of rootbeer from a large bottle

Heat all ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Pour mixture into a 9X13 pan, and place in the freezer and let rest for about 45 minutes. Take a fork and scrape the frozen portions on the edge into the middle of the pan. Repeat scraping about every 30-45 minutes until all you have is frozen bits of rootbeer, rather flaky and grainy, hence the name granita. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

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If you want a less assertive and acidic flavor than you get from lemon juice or zest, use lemon verbena, an under-appreciated herb. It is a perennial in my garden, growing in a protected, warmer spot. It's leaves are so tough one can't really chop them like parsley, basil, or mint, but it's best to infuse their flavor in hot liquid. It also makes a great herbal tea, iced or hot.

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Lemon Verbena Granita

2 large handfuls lemon verbena leaves, rinsed clean
the peel of 1 lemon, removed with a vegetable peeler--just the yellow part
2/3 c sugar
1 1/2 c boiling water
6 ice cubes

Pour the water over the lemon verbena leaves, lemon peel and sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar and leave to steep for 15 minutes. Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer and stir in the ice cubes. When they have melted pour the liquid into an 8X8 or a 9X13 pan and place in the freezer. 

Allow to freeze for 45 minutes. Scrape frozen portion away from the sides into the center and replace in the freezer. Continue scraping every 30-45 minutes until there are no liquid portions. 

This can be served as is or with a dollop of creme fraiche or Greek yogurt, sweetened or plain.

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Coffee Granita

Adapted from:  Alton Brown's Good Eats
Serves 6

2 c lukewarm espresso or strong black coffee, decaf is fine
1/2 c sugar
1-2 T coffee flavored liqueur, optional
1 teas orange or lemon zest

Combine all ingredients and stir until sugar melts. Pour into a 9X13 pan and place in freezer. Using a fork, scrape the ice crystals that have formed on the sides of the pan and pull them to the center. Return to the freezer and repeat every 30-45 minutes until all is frozen. At that point, fluff the crystals with a fork and allow to "dry" in the freezer for another 30 minutes or so. Scoop into glass bowls or goblets and top with barely sweetened whipped cream with a few thin curls of lemon or orange zest, if desired. 

Warm Berry Sauce

In addition to zucchini and other squash, we've had a lot of these little gems around here lately.

This is the first year the berries have backed up in my fridge, the first year we haven't been able to just eat them all. And we do eat them! Off the bush, over yogurt, with cream, in brownie sundaes... and in this sauce. The recipe comes from Deborah Madison, one of my mom's favorite cookbook authors. It combines beautifully with a brown sugar cream cake, from the same book.

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Warm Berry Sauce

Source: Seasonal Fruit Desserts by Deborah Madison

1 T unsalted butter
3 c mixed berries or a single variety
3 T maple sugar or organic light brown sugar (I used regular brown sugar)
2 teas orange-flower water, Kirsch, or Grand Marnier (I used vanilla extract)

Melt the butter in a skillet or saucepan over medium heat. Add the berries, sprinkle on the sugar, and cook until the berries have released their juices and softened, after about 2 1/2 minutes. Toss them as they're cooking to distribute the sugar. Remove them from the heat and add any of the flavor additions, starting with 2 teas and then adding more to taste. As they sit, the juices will emerge more fully and intensify. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Brown Sugar Cream Cake

This delicious cake took me by surprise; it's sweet and pleasing. It serves as a tasty base for fruit, fresh or in a sauce, like warm berry sauce.

Brown Sugar Cream Cake with Warm Berry Sauce

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Brown Sugar Cream Cake

Source: Seasonal Fruit Desserts by Deborah Madison

3/4 c all-purpose flour
3/4 c cake flour
1 1/2 teas baking powder
1/4 teas salt
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 c heavy cream
1 c dark brown sugar (variations call for maple sugar or dark muscovado)
1 teas vanilla extract

Butter and flour a loaf pan or an 8-inch springform pan. If using a loaf pan, line the bottom and ends with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350F.

Combine the flours, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and whisk them together. Make a well in the middle.

Using the whisk attachment of an electric mixer, beat the eggs until foamy, then add the cream, sugar, and flavorings. Beat until you have what looks like soft whipped cream. (If using maple sugar, the cream may not thicken, but the cake will still work.) Pour the mixture into the center of the flour mixture and whisk together just until well combined and free of lumps. Scrape the batter into the pan and even it out.

Bake until a cake tester (or toothpick) comes out clean, 50-60 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes, then remove the rim or turn the cake out of the pan and remove the paper. Cool before slicing.

Note from Betsy: I don't have a whisk attachment for an electric mixer, so I used the whisks in my Bosch. I mixed on a high speed for several minutes; it didn't quite look like soft whipped cream, but the cake still worked.

Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

In a meeting the other day, my library director gave a presentation on decision-making. She used zucchini as an example: "you don't plant three zucchini plants without a plan." She then commented on how we have all been the beneficiaries or the victims of people who planted zucchinis without a plan. Well, we plant four zucchini plants every year, and here's my plan: Cook zucchini every day. Give away the extras, but only to people who truly want it. And, when it gets really bad, take it to the food bank or compost it.

Here's a recipe that is a key part of my plan. (I make it year round, as it works really well with frozen zucchini. Just pour off the liquid after it thaws and press.) I have tried some chocolate zucchini bread that is dry and tastes nothing like chocolate. But this one is moist and delectable. The espresso powder is optional, but does enhance the chocolate taste. And dark chocolate chips make it especially rich.

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Double Chocolate Zucchini Bread

Slightly adapted from King Arthur Flour
Yields one loaf

2 large eggs
1/3 c honey
1/2 c vegetable oil
1/2 c brown sugar
1 teas vanilla
1 teas salt
1/2 teas baking soda
1/2 teas baking powder
1/2 teas espresso powder, optional
1/3 c Dutch process cocoa
1 c whole wheat flour
2/3 c all purpose flour
2 c shredded zucchini, gently pressed between several layers of paper towels
1 c chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350F. Beat the eggs, honey, oil, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Add the salt, baking soda, baking powder, espresso powder, cocoa, and flour, mixing until well combined. Stir in the zucchini and chocolate chips. Pour the batter into a lightly greased 8.5 x 4.5 inch loaf pan.

Bake the bread for 65-75 minutes, until the loaf tests done (a toothpick inserted into the center will come out clean, save for perhaps a light smear of chocolate from the melted chips).  Remove the bread from the oven, and let it cool for 10-15 minutes before turning it out of the pan onto a rack. Cool completely before slicing.