Guacamole

Just a quick post today, the internet in my house has unfortunately gone out so I’m trying to quickly get all my internet use done in the library before I have to walk home in the dark! I love having guacamole any time of year but its especially nice for summer, hopefully we can get some more use out of the tomatoes in the community garden!

Ingredients

            2 avocados

1/4 large sweet onion or a whole small onion, chopped (Vidalia)

1/2 garlic clove (minced)

1 or 2 splashes hot sauce

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

fresh ground pepper

1/4  teaspoon agave nectar

1/2 bunch cilantro (washed and chopped)

1 large tomato (chopped)

1/2 teaspoon lime juice

½ red pepper  (chopped)

green onions (chopped)

*You can leave out the tomatoes, peppers, and green onions to simplify if desired

Preparation

1.     Prepare the salsa mixture (onions, garlic, hot sauce, salt, pepper, agave nectar, cilantro, tomato, lime juice, red pepper, and green onions)

2.     Essentially this is very similar to the previous fresh salsa recipe, start by peeling and dicing the avocados, then mash them (a fork works well) in a bowl

3.     Add in several tablespoons of the salsa and mix thoroughly

4.     Adding extra citrus (lemon or lime) juice can help it from going gray if you have leftovers, if there is extra salsa, it can be served with corn chips alongside the guacamole

Shopping list

2 avocados

1 bag corn chips

1 sweet onion (Vidalia)

Fresh garlic clove

Hot sauce

Sea salt

Ground pepper

Agave nectar

1 bunch fresh cilantro

3 large tomatoes

Lime juice

1 red pepper

1 green onion

Boneless chicken breasts

Corn or tortilla chips

Tortillas

Red Salad

 I made this with my mom the night before I left for school, and it was delicious. As the name suggests, this dish is made with primarily red ingredients so it looks pretty on the table, and I always like salads with a few sweet things mixed in (like the apple and craisins), so this is a favorite. Enjoy!

*This would also be nice with some of the red swiss chard that is growing in the community garden right now mixed in!

Ingredients:

red leaf lettuce or mixed greens (bite size pieces)

red onion (few thin slices, halved)

red cabbage (few thin slices, chopped)

cherry tomatoes (few, halved)

radishes (few, trimmed and thin sliced)

craisins (dried cranberries, ½ c.)

1 beet (peeled, trimmed and grated)

red apple (unpeeled, washed and grated)

Dressing:

3 T. olive oil

1 T. red wine vinegar

1 clove garlic (minced)

1 t. sea salt

fresh ground pepper

1/2 t. dried oregano

Directions:

1. Wash fruit and vegetables. Allow to drip dry while making dressing.
2. Peel, chop or grate ingredients as instructed above.
3. Marinate grated beet and apple in the dressing.
4. Assemble the lettuce and the rest of the ingredients in a salad bowl, reserving a bit of each (except lettuce) for garnish.
5. Drain/drizzle the dressing (now red in color) and about half of the grated mixture, over the salad and toss together.
6. Arrange the remaining grated mixture and reserved veggies to garnish top of salad. 

Shopping list

red leaf lettuce or mixed greens

red onion

red cabbage

cherry tomatoes

radishes

craisins

1 beet

red apple

olive oil

red wine vinegar

garlic

salt

pepper

dried oregano

*Don't forget to print and include a copy of the recipe with your donation!

Food Pantry of the Year!

Congratulations to the Chagrin Park Food Pantry on being named the 2012 food pantry of the year by the Cleveland Food Bank! Everyone at the Community Center and in the surrounding communities has done such a fantastic job, keep up the good work!

Helyne Walker keeps the Food Pantry top-notch

Fresh Salsa

The Chagrin Park Community Garden has lots of tomatoes ripening. This is a great recipe to take advantage of that! Serve it with grilled boneless chicken breasts wrapped in a tortilla or with chips for a snack or side dish.

Ingredients:

Fresh Salsa

½ large sweet onion or a whole small onion, chopped (Vidalia)

1 garlic clove (minced)

3 splashes hot sauce

1 teaspoon sea salt

fresh ground pepper

½ teaspoon agave nectar

1 bunch cilantro (washed and chopped)

3 large tomatoes (chopped)

1 teaspoon lime juice

red pepper  (chopped)

green onions (chopped)

Preparation:

1.     Do all your chopping and mixing of vegetables and herbs

2.     Mix together the salsa ingredients (super easy!)

3.     Serving suggestion, add some grilled, boneless chicken breasts and wrap them up in a tortilla with salsa, or serve it with corn/tortilla chips

 Remember to print a copy of the recipe if you plan to donate to the Chagrin Park Food Pantry!

Shopping list

1 sweet onion (Vidalia)

Fresh garlic clove

Hot sauce

Sea salt

Ground pepper

Agave nectar

1 bunch fresh cilantro

3 large tomatoes

Lime juice

1 red pepper

1 green onion

Boneless chicken breasts

Corn or tortilla chips

Tortillas

Thanks!

Fish Tacos with Coleslaw

A coleslaw recipe that can be served with any type of grilled, pan fried, or poached white fish in a fish taco.

Ingredients:

¼ to ½ cup mayo

¼ to ½ cup plain Greek yogurt

1 teaspoon powdered mustard (or two teaspoons regular mustard)

1/8 cup apple cider vinegar (Braggs is a good brand)

½ cabbage (shredded)

2-3 grated carrots

1 bunch cilantro (minced)

3-5 radishes (grated or minced)

1 red pepper (grated or minced)

½ sweet onion (ex. Walla Walla or Vidalia)
salt and pepper (to taste)

*note: if you have a food processor you can shred all the vegetables in it

Preparation:

1.     Mix together mayo, yogurt, mustard, and vinegar to make dressing

2.     Mix together shredded vegetables

3.     Stir dressing into shredded cabbage and carrots and salt and pepper to taste

4.     This coleslaw can be eaten by itself or with another dish but it is a nice topping for fish tacos. If desired, grill, pan fry, or poach any type of white fish in your favorite seasonings and serve in whole-grain tortillas with the coleslaw.

Shopping list for donations to Chagrin Falls Park Food Pantry (remember to print and include a copy of the recipe to include with your donations):

1 jar mayo

Plain Greek yogurt

Powdered or regular mustard

Apple cider vinegar

1 head of cabbage

2-3 carrots

3-5 radishes

1 red pepper
salt and pepper

1 sweet onion (such as Walla Walla or Vidalia)

Any type of white fish

Whole grain tortillas