We have had plenty of signs that summer is upon us, but for me, the first week of my Community Shared Agriculture program at R & C Farms in Scituate confirms it — despite the rainy week we’ve had!
I picked up our full CSA share today, a crate stocked with three kinds of lettuce — red leaf, green leaf and iceberg — a BIG and medium-sized bok choy, four kohlrabi and a quart of picture perfect native strawberries.
To borrow a line from “Jaws,” I think I’m gonna need a bigger refrigerator.
The lettuce and vitamin-rich bok choy will be put to good use if only because they are taking up all the real estate in the fridge. And I began eating the strawberries in the car on the way home from the farm. But the kohlrabi?
Cindy Simons, who owns the farm with her husband, Ron, suggested roasting kohlrabi “french fries” in a 450-degree oven tossed with olive oil, salt, pepper and minced garlic for 15 to 20 minutes. When finished, Cindy said to sprinkle some parmesan cheese on the “fries” and return the pan to the oven for a minute or two.
“Think of them as healthy french fries,” she laughed.
Kohlrabi
Before I hit the kitchen, I Googled “kohlrabi recipes” and came up with lots of ways to fry kohlrabi which led me to believe it needed the oil, semolina flour and spices to make it edible. But what isn’t good dusted in flour and spices then fried???
In the end, I peeled two of the bulbs and opted for Cindy’s roasting recipe.
To prepare the dish, I tore off the kohlrabi bulbs’ leaves (yes, I know I should throw them in a stir fry, but I would rather feed them to my neighborhood rabbits).
After the veggie striptease, I pared the thick, green skin off the bulb, cut thick slices then further cut them into french fry shapes.
French fry-shaped kohlrabi
I tossed the “fries” in olive oil, salt and pepper then scattered shallot slices and crushed garlic over them. They baked in a 425-degree oven for 15 minutes.
The “healthy fries” — which I thought were mushy but tasty –were served to my hubby with a rib eye steak, salad (!) and a baguette from Olga’s.
“Ooooh, steak frites,” exclaimed my favorite Francophile.
Steak frites? Not exactly.
Hardly, mon cheri. But there are two kohlrabi left. I think a coating of semolina flour, spices and a pan fry next time. Ooh la la…
Tags: CSA, Farms, Kohlrabi, Laura Raposa, The Foodsmith, Vegetable Recipes
I’m definitely trying the fries the next time we get kohlrabi from our CSA. Had a hard time using that one. I’ve made butternut squash fries and found that the trick to get them crispy was to bake them on cooling racks (on top of baking sheets)….