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Monday, 06 February 2012 19:27

Written by Doug Oster

Once a month I team up with my radio partner Jessica Walliser and we do a free gardening/cooking demonstration at all four Giant Eagle Market District stores. The Organic Gardeners Radio Show airs every Sunday at 7am EST on KDKA 1020 AM, it streams live here.

Fennel, Mushroom and Parmesan Cheese Salad

Dressing:

½ cup minus 1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

salt and ground white pepper

pinch fresh grated nutmeg

1 packed tbsp finely chopped fresh fennel leaves

For salad:

4 small bulbs (1/2 pound) fresh fennel, sliced paper thin on a mandolin

1 ounce Parmesan cheese, shaved paper thin

4 fresh mushrooms, mixed varieties, sliced paper think

Use a whisk to blend the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.

Combine the fennel and cheese in a mixing bowl and add ¼ cup of the dressing.  Blend carefully with your hands trying not to crumble the cheese.

Spread over four salad places and heap the mushroom slices over the fennel.  Whisk the dressing again and spoon a tbsp over the mushrooms on each plate.  Grind white pepper over each salad and serve immediately.

Creamy Chard, Tomatoes and Fresh Paprika Lasagna with Basil

1 box dry lasagna noodles cooked to package instructions or fresh lasagna noodles cooked to al dente

For the cream sauce:

6 tbsp unsalted butter

6 tbsp all purpose flour

½ cup chopped fresh scallions

3 cups milk

¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

¼ cup thin ribbons of fresh basil

pinch of fresh grated nutmeg

½ tsp ground paprika

For the filling:

10 cups Swiss chard leaves finely chopped into ½ inch pieces

1 cup ricotta cheese

2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted

1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

salt and pepper to taste

8 or 9 plum tomatoes, seeded and finely diced

a tsp of unsalted butter

a tsp of olive oil

½ pound shredded mozzarella cheese

To make the sauce, use a large saucepan over medium heat and melt the butter and whisk in the flour. Cook over low for 2 min, stirring occasionally then blend in the scallions.  Slowly whisk in the milk then continue whisking occasionally until it thickens.  Turn to low and cook for 5 min, stirring frequently.  Whisk in the parmesan, basil, nutmeg and paprika and stir until the cheese has melted.  Remove from the heat.

To make the filling, in a bowl combine the chard, ricotta, butter and lemon juice then add 1 cup of the finished cream sauce.  Cover.

Combine the tomatoes in a mixing bowl with ½ cup of the finished cream sauce.  Cover.

Assemble the lasagna by coating the bottom of a 9X13 baking dish with butter and olive oil.  Layer four pieces of pasta on the bottom, spread some the chard filling over the top then add some of the tomatoes and sprinkle with some of the mozzarella.  Continue layering until the dish is full.  Pour the remaining tomato mixture and cream sauce over the top and finish with the rest of the cheese.  Bake in a 375 degree oven until the top has browned, about 30 min.

Ginger Squash Cake with Lemon Icing

For the cake:

10 tbsp unsalted butter plus extra to grease the pan

½ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

½ cup light molasses

1/3 cup hot brewed coffee

2 large eggs, room temperature

2 cups all purpose flour

1 ½ tbsp ground fresh ginger

1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

2 cups of finely grated raw summer squash (zucchini)

For the icing:

3 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

6-8 tbsp fresh lemon juice to taste

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9X13 pan with butter.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter, turn off the heat and whisk in the brown sugar, molasses and coffee, then the eggs.  Sprinkle the flour, ginger, cocoa, cinnamon, baking soda and salt over the batter.   Whisk for a few min until lumps disappear.  Blend in the squash with a spoon.  Smooth into the pan.  Bake for about 35 min on the middle rack.

Cool cake completely before removing from the pan.

To make the icing combine the confectioners sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl and beat until smooth but don’t overdo it or it will get too thin.  Add more sugar if this happens or more lemon juice if it’s too thick to spread.  Frost the cooled cake with the icing.

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