You Say Tomato, I Say Carrot
I am not great with a CSA. I’m easily overwhelmed by it, some weeks I go out a bunch and don’t cook, sometimes I have to text Mark pictures of things to ask him what they are (and once I do that, there’s a good chance I’ll be too tired or intimidated to figure out how to cook said vegetable), etc. What happens a lot of the time, which I’m sure plenty of you are familiar with, is that the vegetables sit and become either barely salvageable or trash-bound.
One year, I made the mistake of getting a winter CSA. I like root vegetables, but don’t love them, so you can figure out how that went.
So all this just means that I’ve committed to not getting a CSA and instead going to the farmers market as often as possible, even in the winter, when I’m ambivalent about the offerings.
Cooking in the winter can feel less exciting, too. Over the holidays, though, Nick and Holden and I went to my dad’s, and he made the most glorious, simple root vegetables (from his CSA, of course), and it made me feel sort of like, ok, maybe winter veggies can be my thing!
So I went through the books and found some winter vegetable recipes that I found inspiring, that made me want to scrub some dang potatoes.
Behold, and rejoice, below:
Chickpea and Carrot Salad with Warm Cumin Oil
Smoky Root Vegetable Soup
Beef Stew with Baked Potatoes
Beet and Lentil Burgers
Chickpea and Carrot Salad with Warm Cumin Oil
Makes: 4 servings
Time: about 30 minutes
An uncommon warm salad you can easily customize: Grating the vegetables in a food processor, rather than chopping them as in the recipe, makes the salad more like a slaw. I like the teeny surprise of cumin seeds, but if you prefer a smooth dressing, pour the oil through a strainer into the bowl before serving. Home-cooked chickpeas are always excellent here, as are cannellini beans. And toasted pita wedges are the perfect accompaniment no matter what tweaks you make to the recipe.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic
1 lemon
2 tablespoons cumin seeds
5 to 7 medium carrots (1 pound)
3 ½ cups cooked or canned chickpeas (two 15-ounce cans)
1 bunch fresh mint
Salt and pepper
Instructions:
1. Put 1/2 cup olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat.
Crush and peel 1 clove garlic; add it to the oil.
Zest the lemon directly into the oil. Refrigerate the fruit for another use.
2. Stir 2 tablespoons cumin seeds into the oil. Let the oil warm up slowly undisturbed until it starts to bubble steadily, 5 to 10 minutes.
Trim and peel the carrots; slice them into thin coins or half-moons. Put them in a large bowl.
If you’re using canned chickpeas, rinse and drain them. Add the chickpeas to the bowl.
Chop 1/2 cup mint leaves; add to the bowl.
3 When the oil is warm and slightly bubbling, discard the garlic and pour the oil over the chickpeas and carrots; stir to coat well. Sprinkle the mixture with salt and pepper and toss. Taste and adjust the seasoning, and serve.
— Recipe from How to Cook Everything Fast: Completely Revised and Updated
Smoky Root Vegetable Soup
Makes: 4 servings
Time: about 2 hours, mostly unattended