Bountiful Baskets: Leeks

Potato Leek Soup Recipe

3 large leeks, cut lengthwise, separate, clean. Use only the white and pale green parts, chop.

To prepare leeks:
■Start by removing the outer layer of white (unless it is very fresh or from your own garden).


■Trim the base with a sharp paring knife to remove all the roots.

■Make an incision in the middle of the white stalk and cut toward the green tips, severing the leek in two, but with the bottom still intact.

■Wash well under cold running water, pulling the leaves apart to rinse well between them.

■Drain, green tips down, in a colander for a few minutes.

2 Tbsp butter
2 cups water

2 cups chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegetarian option)*

2 lbs potatoes, peeled, diced into 1/2 inch pieces

Marjoram - dash (or if you don't have, fist use oregano. If not that, other options are thyme, basil or sage)

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

Tabasco sauce or other red chili sauce

Salt & Pepper

*If cooking gluten-free, be sure to use gluten-free broth.

1 Cook leeks in butter with salt and pepper in a medium sized sauce pan. Cover pan, cook on low heat for 10 minutes. Check often. Do not brown leeks! Browning will give leeks a burnt taste.

2 Add water, broth, and potatoes. Bring to a low simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Scoop about half of the soup mixture into a blender, puree and return to pan. Add marjoram, parsley, and thyme. Add a few dashes of chili sauce to taste. Add some freshly ground pepper, 1-2 teaspoons salt or more to taste.

Yield: Serves 4-6.

Courtesy of http://www.simplyrecipes.com

Bountiful Baskets: Cabbage

Ok, first up: I am back after a long hiatus! Tristan eats wheat free, Asher is back to nothing bothering him, Josh "tries" to eat wheat free, and when he does, feels better, and our new baby seems to have a lot of tummy issues, so he is wheat and diary free!

I am now purchasing Bountiful Baskets and will use this forum to publish recipes to use with your basket. First up, because a lot of my friends have asked: CABBAGE

Chinese Chicken Cabbage Salad

1 head cabbage
1 bunch green onions
2 packages top Ramen noodles (discard seasoning) OR 2 packages of "like" Top Ramen from Trader Joe's Gluten FREE
1 package slivered almonds
1 can of fully cooked chicken (we like Costco's)

Sauce:
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup oil (can use olive or canola)
2 tsp soy sauce
1/2 cup sugar
** can vary these amounts to make it sweeter, spicier, etc

 1. wash and core cabbage. discard outer leaves

 2. slice sideways several times

 3. chop until it is shredded (as big or as little as you like the pieces). You can also run it through a salad spinner to dry it more.

4. put in large bowl with chopped green onion, and chicken, drained.
5. On stove top saute broken noodles along with almonds in a little butter or olive oil if you prefer. Brown but not overcooked. If you use GLUTEN-FREE, it is better to boil water, pour boiling water over noodles, and let stand for a few minutes. Then, drain water, and saute after. The noodles will not be as crunchy as the Ramen noodles, but taste just as good.
6. add noodle and almonds to bowl.
7. In separate shaker mix sauce ingredients above.
8. When ready to serve, pour over cabbage salad and shake it up (best if you use a bowl with a lid).
***Even better the next day as a left-over!

Cabbage Rolls (In Romania these are called Sarmale and they are served over rice or mashed potatoes with a cup of grape juice and fresh bread)

Cabbage
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup rice
1 onion
1 can tomato sauce
mushrooms, chopped **also in Bountiful basket this week
salt
pepper
garlic
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 tbsp cornstarch
water

1. Wash cabbage, discard outer leaves. Boil cabbage leaves, whole until soft. I sometimes put them in crockpot with a little beef stock and let cook for several hours on low.
2. Mix beef, rice, half the tomato sauce, salt pepper, onion, garlic and mushrooms in large bowl.
3. Take leaves out of crockpot/water and dry them slightly. Starting at end of leaf, put spoonful of mixture on leaf and roll up, tucking in the sides until you have formed a little cocoon.
4. Line up all cabbage rolls in casserole dish, side by side until filled. Cover with tomato sauce, sugar and lemon juice, mixed.
5.  Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 1 hour, or until beef is no longer pink.
6. Remove rolls from dish and put on platter. Put liquid from dish into pan on stovetop with extra water and cornstarch. Mix and boil 1 minute, then pour over the cabbage rolls. This will help hold them together.
**In Romania they sometimes use ground pork or Italian sausage. Also they drop the rolls into boiling water instead of baking them and then make the topping separate and pour over after they have been boiled. YUMMY!