Sharebox week 1: Greens and shoots

The first sharebox of the season arrived today with early spring produce and herbs.

• In the box: scallions, lettuces, baby spinach, asparagus, radishes with their leaves

• Herbs: oregano, chives, lovage, apple mint, lamb’s quarters.

I love sharebox day. And as I unpack, I inhale the freshness and sharpness of these first spring shoots and leaves. I begin planning what I will cook, how I will use these ingredients to form my family’s meals for the week.  It has taken me a while to figure out how to use all the produce efficiently; for the first few shareboxes, I faced brown mushy unused greens and herbs in the bottom of my fridge at the end of each week.

These recipes and menu ideas may not always include specific amounts because the amount is what comes in the box, or what seems right to the cook. These meals all serve around 3 to 4 people, with leftovers.

Meal 1: Sautéed fresh vegetables and herbs with gnocchi and fried eggs.

This takes care of all the asparagus, and half of the scallions and radishes. I include  some oregano and chives and chive flowers.  I use the leaves from the radishes, dropping them in the water with the gnocchi during the last few seconds of cooking.  From my fridge, I add some snap peas and slivered almonds.  Slice all the vegetables into uniform, bite-size pieces before adding to the sauté pan.  I add the cooked gnocchi and radish greens to the rest of the vegetables sautéed in butter.  Toss and tip into a large serving dish. Then, for each serving, I fry an egg over easy and gently place the eggs on top of the whole thing and serve it family style.  As each person breaks their egg yolk, it creates a lovely sauce. You could omit the egg and substitute another type of pasta for the gnocchi, perhaps elbows or penne.

Meal 2: Huge green salad with roast turkey breast and herbed cheese muffins.

I love turkey, and turkey parts are much easier to use than a whole bird and provide leftovers for sandwiches for lunch or another meal. Roast a split turkey breast until the internal temperature is 165 degrees F. I coat mine with olive oil and rub poultry seasoning on all sizes, and then roast it in a 300-degree oven for about 100 minutes. Remember to save any bones for making stock later. Of course if you're pressed for time, you can pick up a rotisserie chicken or two at the grocery store.

While the turkey is resting, I adjust the oven temperature and bake the cheese muffins, which use a generous amount of chives and oregano in the batter.  Finally, I assemble the salad with lettuce, lamb’s quarters, chives, and the mint, topped with scallions, radishes, and (from the cupboard) dried cranberries.  I make a quick vinaigrette. To serve, for each plate, place a large amount of salad with the sliced turkey on top and a muffin on the side. Persons in my household do not like dressing on their salad, so I always serve that separately.

Meal 3:  Asian noodles with scallions and chives.

Cook your noodles (lo mein, linguine, or angle hair pasta) as directed and drain.  In a wok or large saute pan, I stir-fry the remaining scallions and chives in grapeseed oil until fragrant. Add a bit of soy sauce, then the noodles.  Toss until coated. I also add sesame oil just before serving.

Meal 4: Huge green salad number 2 with chili.

I use my remaining greens and herbs except for the mint and oregano in my salad: lettuce, baby spinach, lamb’s quarters, and lovage. Leftover salad goes on my ham and cheese sandwich that I make for lunch the next day.

What else: Orange-mint tea.

I steep the mint leaves in 3 or 4 cups boiled water for 15 minutes, then discard the mint. Add about 1/3 cup sugar to taste, mix until sugar dissolves, and allow to cool.  After the mint tea has cooled, add 1 cup orange juice and 1/2 cup lemon juice.  Serve over ice.

What’s left? After cooking all four meals and making the orange-mint tea, I still have some oregano.  I can use this with some sautéed mushrooms and on top of pizza.