This Week's Harvest

In my humble opinion, this week's harvest is pretty stellar, but I say that every week! There are some Vitamin C super foods in this share, which is perfect for us all in these cold and sniffly days of winter. Spinach, Swiss chard, broccoli, cabbage, and citrus are all Vit. C standouts. A perfect example of how seasonal eating helps our bodies stay strong and healthy!

Spinach
Lettuce Heads (baby romaine, tango and lola rosa)
Swiss Chard
Broccoli
Cabbage (green and purple)
Navel Oranges
Herbs (cilantro, parsley, dill)
Lemons

Wheat Berry Salad with Citrus, Garbanzos, Toasted Pine Nuts, Feta and Spinach

So, another wheat berry recipe. I can't help it, I really like them! And, at last week's pick-up I noticed the trade box was pretty full of these guys, so I'm assuming CSA peeps are a little unsure on how to cook and eat these delicious morsels. I made a delightful salad the other day and I wanted to share it with all you lovely readers.

Anyway, this is a recipe I modified from Heidi Swanson's cookbook Super Natural Cooking. I added chickpeas for some more protein, subbed I'itoi onion for the shallot, added garlic, and added some chopped sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil for some color and taste. I also chopped up half an avocado on top because I love avocado on most food, especially salads. The citrus dressing was okay. Her recipe didn't call for white wine vinegar, but it needed a little kick. She had called for some lemon juice in the dressing, but I didn't have one. This salad would probably be great with any simple vinaigrette you had lying around the house.

1 1/2 c. cooked wheat berries

1 c. cooked garbanzo beans (white beans might be nice too)

Citrus Dressing

Grated zest and juice of 1 orange (maybe use grapefruit for an interesting twist)

couple tablespoons of white wine vinegar

1 I'itoi onion, chopped

1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil

1 clove chopped garlic

salt and pepper

3 handfuls spinach

1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

sun dried tomatoes, chopped

avocado, chopped

You need to soak wheat berries overnight and cook them for about 90 min. to get them soft enough to eat. I used dried garbanzos, which also need to soak and cook for about 2 hours. You could use canned if you like. I ate the salad with warm wheat berries and beans, but it would be good cold as well. Mix up the dressing. Then, combine the dressing with the wheat berries, beans and the rest of the ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste.

In hindsight, I had leftovers and probably would have put the dressing on individually so it wouldn't get soggy in the fridge. These would feed about 3-4 as a main dish for lunch.

Heidi Swanson's Wheat Berry Breakfast Bowl

We are on a wheat berry roll here with the recipes! I just got this delightful recipe from 101 Cookbooks in my inbox and it sounded heavenly. Wheat berries for breakfast? Hadn't thought about it until this recipe showed me how good they could be--pears, cranberries and pecans mixed with wheat berries and topped with maple sweetened Greek yogurt. Yum. And sounds hearty and warming for our cold Flagstaff mornings. I haven't made this recipe yet, but wanted to share it with y'all. I'll post more once I cook it up sometime this week.

On another note, has anyone made something yummy with their spaghetti squash from a few weeks ago? Not sure how to prepare it and most recipes I have looked up haven't really piqued my interest. Yet, there the squash sits on my counter, mocking me, and my inability to transform it into food.

Happy Cooking!

Winter Wheat Soup

Winter wheat soup, another epicurious recipe, is a great way to use wheat berries and a lot of other veggies we get from CSA. You can spice it up however you like! I often tear up kale and mix it in, toss in a few cloves of garlic, and use veggie or chicken stock. This soup freezes very well and is perfect when you've got a cold.

• 1 cup (210 g) wheat berries or spelt
• 1 large carrot, peeled, halved lengthwise, and cut across into thin slices
• 2 medium parsnips, peeled, cut in half lengthwise and then across into 1/4-inch (.5-cm) slices
• 1 medium turnip, peeled and cut into thin wedges
• 2 large leeks, white part only, split in half lengthwise, washed well, and cut across into thin slices
• 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch (1-cm) cubes
• 3 medium ribs celery, peeled and cut across into thin slices
• 2 tablespoons coarse salt
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

In a medium stockpot, bring the wheat berries and 13 cups (3.25 liters) water to a boil [for added flavor, replace some or all of the water with Garlic Broth ]. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 50 minutes, or until the wheat berries are almost cooked through, but not mushy.

Stir in the carrot, parsnips, turnip, and leeks. Return to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Stir in the sweet potato and celery. Simmer for 10 more minutes.

Season with pepper.