Preserving Summer

As the summer continues forward, I'm quickly realizing that there is no way I can eat everything that arrives in my crate week after week. Meal after meal filled with fresh produce still doesn't seem to use up everything. I've only been eating out once or twice a week... Still, leftover veggies taunt me come week end.

So, I'm trying to find ways to preserve everything in a way that I can enjoy later in the year. Last night, I blanched some green beans and froze them in a vacuum sealed bag. I've made batch after batch of pasta sauce, with all sorts of greens. I still have a lot of research to do in order to figure out the rest.

Earlier this week, I did make some great "throw everything from the fridge in there" kind of things. Both turned out pretty good:

Curried Veggie Soup
Heat a couple T of olive oil in a stock pot. Cook some diced onion, till translucent. Throw in some shallots or garlic if you have them on hand. Add a cup of lentils and toss to cover in the oil/onion mix. Stir in 3 cups of water and bring to a boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Add a 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes. Bring back to a boil. Add some diced potatoes. Add water if everything isn't covered. When the lentils and potatoes are tender, add some spinach, swiss chard or whatever greens you have. Season with a couple t curry powder (to reach whatever spiciness level you like), salt and pepper.

Veggie & Quinoa Salad
Cook 1 c of quinoa in 2 c water. Bring to room temperature. Mix 1/4 c fresh lemon juice, 1/4 c olive oil and a bit of salt. Add some sliced fennel bulb, chopped swiss chard stalks, diced cucumber, diced tomatoes, chopped parsley, mint, whatever else you think will taste good. Mix the dressing and veggies with the quinoa and cool in the fridge.

Tonight, I grilled a piece of salmon and some zucchini. It was the first time I tried out my new mesh grille pan. It was definitely easier than trying to keep the zucchini spears I usually cut from falling down between the slats on the grill. (It's from Williams-Sonoma, in case you want to check it out.) Tossed with a bit of olive oil and some Adobo seasoning, they were great.