No Wasting
In addition to being an avid believer of seasonal eating and homemade cooking, I am mostly passionate about using every part of everything. Not wasting a bit. It's partially why I promote hand-making everything.
A lot of my homemade food is a result of using things that would normally go to waste. The ricotta I make is from a lot of milk coming up on it's expiration date that would be thrown out if it's wasn't bought for drinking. The pestos come from wilted greens of all sorts and varieties that no one would buy based on aesthetics. It's remarkable how much food is thrown out or would be thrown out because of a silly expiration date or a blemish on the product itself.
I love to create things not only from scratch, but from the unwanted and discarded treasures that are normally overlooked. It's truly a devastating notion that so much food gets tossed out for ridiculous and illogical reasons. Whenever possible I will always salvage the trims of vegetables to make a stock or make a beautiful salad out of ugly avocados and other misfit vegetables. It still tastes amazing, and makes no difference whatsoever.
The following recipe is a result of some broccoli I found at a market, discounted because it was past it's prime and looking unfortunate. With a little extra labor trimming away at the less desirable parts, it's easy to doctor up an ingredient that still has so much potential, despite how it's accepted in today's society.
It's a wonderful excuse to use up random kitchen scraps as well as a means to save money. More often than not, these 'culled' vegetables and ingredients are at a very discounted price in markets and the stores that do offer discounted produce are really hoping they can get rid of them sooner than later. You save some money, and spend a little extra time cleaning and prepping the veggies of their blemishes and bruises--a price I'm more than willing to pay.
When I used to live in Berkeley, there are multiple markets that have discount produce shelves. Most of the time you can get a perfectly usable bag of cauliflower or broccoli heads for 99 cents. You know you've scored though when you find a bag of a half dozen avocados that are slightly bruised and soft, but when you open them, they are vibrant and green, and at their peek of ripeness.
Most of the time, the 'old' produce turns out the be the ripest and best tasting.
I would buy the big bags of old radishes and wilted greens and find a way to purpose them in the most sensible way possible, with just being one person. This would mean I would make endless amounts of different pickles to save these ingredients from being wasted, while also using them in a way that preserved them for indefinite amounts of time--since I wasn't about to use them all in one sitting.
That being said, I recently picked up a bunch of brassicas that were on sale at one of the Berkeley markets I mentioned. I bought a bag of broccoli that's florets were slightly yellowing and, in my honestly opinion, more than okay to eat. I also had some sad arugula that was on its way out and ready to be used up fast. I decided they were destined to be a simple, veggie-heavy casserole that's not the typical casserole saturated in preservatives.
Along with that rich dish I used up bits and pieces of leftover raw veg and some leftover garden greens to compose a simple side salad. If I don't have a salad with a meal, it's quite an unusual meal. I paired it with a dressing using Labne, a thick Lebanese yogurt that's a tarter version of cream cheese--as well as an awesome substitute.
Garden Greens | Vegetable | Labne Salad
makes a large bowl
3 cups mixed greens -- mustard, mizuna, baby kale, tatsoi, chard, and baby chicories
1 cup sugar snap peas, thinly sliced on the bias
2 baby artichokes, trimmed and peeled
1 cucumber, sliced into 2" matchsticks
1 zucchini, shredded and squeezed of excess water
1 cup canned chickpeas, washed and drained
1 cup walnuts, toasted
3 scallions, roughly chopped
1 avocado, cubed
1/4 cup sunflower seeds, toasted
1 cup homemade croutons (3 tbsp butter or oil, 1 cup cubed bread, 3 cloves garlic)
Dressing:
1/2 cup Labne yogurt
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp freshly cracked pepper
Begin by making the dressing in a small bowl in a jar.
In another large bowl, place the sliced baby artichokes with some of the dressing and mix in to prevent he artichokes from oxidizing. Next add the sugar snap peas and give a good toss.
Make the croutons by adding oil or butter to a skillet on medium high heat. Once the oil is sizzling toss in the bread cubes and the garlic cloves and toss around until well coated in the oil. Also, add a healthy dose of salt. Mix around until cubes brown and crisp up, then turn the heat off and set aside.
Ad the chickpeas, walnuts, cucumber, zucchini and scallions. When ready to serve, mix in the greens, avocado and remainder of the dressing. Mix well once more and serve.
Broccoli | Leek | Arugula Gratin
makes a large casserole dish
3 cups bite-sized broccoli florets and stems
1 large leek, roughly sliced
3-4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 cups arugula
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 cups whole milk
4 large whole eggs
2+ tbsp salt
1 tbsp chili powder
3 tbsp butter
2 tbsp cooking oil
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
Preheat the oven to 450-500 degrees F. Place the broccoli on a baking sheet with the cooking oil and some salt and into the oven for 15-20 minutes--just until caramelized and almost cooked through. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Simultaneously while the broccoli is roasting, prepare the leeks. Begin by placing the chopped leeks in a large bowl of water to soak and rid of dirt. If very dirty, vigorously shake the leeks and agitate them under the water. Once thoroughly cleaned, drain and dry.
Meanwhile heat 2 of the tbsp of butter in a skillet on medium high heat. Once sizzling, add the leeks and some salt and cook until the leeks have softened and caramelized--translucent and sticky.
Prepare a casserole dish with the remaining butter, spreading it evenly all over the surface area of the dish. Lower the oven to 350 degrees.
In a mixing bowl, combine the cheese, cream, eggs and whole milk. Season well with salt and pepper and beat until eggs are completely whipped. Once the broccoli and leeks have cooled off, combine them to the mix until well-coated.
To compose the casserole, place all of the arugula evenly on the bottom of the buttered dish. Then evenly pour the vegetable/cream mixture into the dish, making sure the broccoli is dispersed in every bite. Place in the oven, uncovered, for 20 minutes--just until everything has set and the egg has cooked through. Then sprinkle all of the Parmesan and breadcrumbs over the top and return to the oven for another 5 minutes--just until the top has melted and browned. Once done, let cool for 5 minutes longer before slicing and serving.
Leftovers are amazing and can easily be reheated!