Summer flew by, but the season for farmers markets is not over. Keeping with the seasonal theme, I biked over to find some August inspiration at the Minneapolis Farmers Market the other week and lucked out with a cabbage bigger than my head and carrots with so many greens they stuck out of my backpack like a mini tree.
Carrots are familiar and easy. I prefer them raw with some hummus or chopped up in a salad, but they also have a natural sweetness that I like to bring out with other sweet ingredients, like roasting in honey or balsamic vinegar. As well acquainted as I am with carrots, I never tried working with those lush greens that stick out of the ground (or backpack). The top matches the bottom when it comes to nutrients, with both parts containing a healthy amount of iron, Vitamin A and C. The greens are tougher than kale, with pretty thick stems, so I don’t recommend throwing them raw into a salad.
I ended up blanching the greens to soften them up and wanted to try a take on creamed spinach. Everything's better with butter and cheese, right? After the indulgence though, there were still so many greens leftover. As I’ve mentioned, makeshift pesto is my forte, so naturally I had to try it with the carrot greens. Instead of putting it on pasta, I was feeling inspired by a quinoa tabbouleh my mom had made the last time she visited. Using a diced tomato from the garden and some leftover quinoa, I concocted an almost tabbouleh for a refreshing lunch. The rest of the pesto I’m freezing for future recipes, but until then, here are the recipes from my collection:
Creamed Carrot Greens
2 large handfulls of carrot greens, roughly chopped
1 cup milk (I used 1% that i had leftover from baking)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
¼ cup grated Parmesan
¼ cup mild cheese (I used cheddar)
1 clove of garlic
Bring heavily salted water to a boil. Blanch carrot greens for 3 minutes. Drain and immediately rinse with cold water. It is very important to squeeze and pat dry the greens dry after they're cool! If they're not dried off the excess water will not mix completely with the oil, and the same goes for the pesto recipe.
For the roux, mince garlic and saute in melted butter. After a few minutes add the flour while stirring. Keep an eye on the roux - they're temperamental. You want the taste of flour to be cooked out, but don’t want it to burn, just get a little golden brown. Keep the heat at a medium and after 3 minutes stir in the milk. Again, don’t leave the roux alone in this step either or the milk will scald quickly, and you don’t want that. Allow roux to thicken and add grated cheese. Salt and pepper to taste. Take a couple spoonfuls of the mixture and add to the blender with the greens to get them started. Once smooth, mix in the rest of the roux. Add some grated Parmesan on top to finish.
Carrot Top Pesto
3-4 large hand fulls of carrot greens (2 cups blanched)
1 1/2 cup olive oil
¼ cup packed basil
¼ cup pepitas
3 garlic cloves
Salt and pepper to taste
Bring heavily salted water to a boil. Blanch carrot greens for 3 minutes. Drain and immediately rinse with cold water, and then squeeze and pat dry. Blend carrot greens with 1/2 cup of olive oil to get them started. Add in the rest of the ingredients and slowly add the rest of the olive oil as you blend everything together.
* I don't recommend blanching all of the carrot greens from the bunch at once
Honey Roasted Carrots
1 bunch carrots (about 10)
½ tablespoon chopped rosem
⅛ cup honey
3 tablespoon olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Rinse carrots well, no need to peel. If you do, please be sure to compost the excess carrot! Place carrots on a sheet pan and drizzle oil, honey, salt and pepper onto the carrot and toss until covered. Chop rosemary and sprinkle over the carrots. Roast for 45 minutes at 350 degrees.
Raw, roasted or blanched, the entire carrot can work one way or another. What plants are people taking advantage of before the summer ends? I’ll be eager for recipes after a week of re-hydrating food on trail, and want to hear what everyone’s cooking with summer seasonal food.
Happy trails!
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