Friday, January 9, 2009

Garden of Eden Organics

This week marked the first of my weekly deliveries for the next three months from Garden of Eden Organics. Thanks to a friend and colleague at UC San Diego, I've joined my first CSA -- Community Supported Agriculture.

In this week's box:
1 Lemon
1 Avocado
3 Honey Crisp Apples
3 Clementines

1 Bag of Baby Spinach
1 Bag of Baby Kale
1 Bunch Broccoli Leaves
1 Head Green Leaf Lettuce

1 Bunch Carrots
1 Bunch Red Beets

Tonight I made my first-ever meal, courtesy of my CSA Produce!

Poached Eggs over Broccoli Greens

Olive oil
1 medium clove of garlic, minced
1 t. kosher salt
1 bunch of broccoli leaves, cleaned and trimmed
2 sprigs of fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried thyme
1 cup chicken broth
4 eggs
Zest of half a lemon
Parmiggiano-Reggiano cheese, grated
Black pepper, to taste
  • Heat oil over medium heat in a large saute pan, add garlic and salt and sweat for 30 seconds to a minute. If you're using dried thyme, toss it in with the garlic. The hot oil will help release flavor into the final dish.
  • Add broccoli leaves and fresh thyme and toss with the oil
  • Once the broccoli leaves have wilted slightly, add the chicken broth, reduce heat to medium-low and cover.
  • Allow the broccoli leaves to braise in the broth, tossing every 2 or 3 minutes. 
  • The broccoli leaves will take about 15 minutes to become tender, but may be as long as 25 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, bring 3-4 inches of water to a boil, add 1 T. kosher salt and a dash or two of distilled white or white wine vinegar.
  • Reduce heat to a gentle simmer, and give the water a stir so that it spins slowly
  • Crack eggs into a custard cup or small bowl, and drop one-at-a-time into the water.
  • Cook for 3-5 minutes, depending on your desired level of doneness.
  • To serve, place poached eggs on top of a bed of braised broccoli leaves.
  • Grate fresh lemon zest and parmiggiano-reggiano cheese, to taste.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

The other stuff you've cooked from the CSA has been just as good. I liked having kale in that soup last week...I'd never eaten kale before!

Frank-Joseph said...

I *love* your recipes!