Remembering our Special 2010 Earth Day Celebration

Step Up To The Plate
Choose Sustainability With Your Fork

Both the Sunday exhibits and the Wednesday dinner, followed by the Michael Pollan video and a talk by Mary Embleton, Executive Director of the Cascade Harvest Coalition, were very successful. Nearly fifty people came out to enjoy the sumptuous, locavore fare.

A number of people have asked for the recipes used for the Wednesday meal, so that they too can begin to prepare food that tastes good to the palate and is good for the earth. We're happy to oblige.

Alice Waters' Spring Minestrone
Adapted from The Art of Simple Food 
8 servings

A delicious budget minded one-pot main course meal. Feel free to substitute vegetables. 

In a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat:
1/2 cup olive oil
Add:
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 fennel bulb, cut into bite-sized pieces. 
Cook for 15 minutes, or until tender. 
Add:
4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped 
5 thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons salt
Cook for 5 minutes longer. 
Add, and bring to a boil:
3 cups water
When boiling, add:
2 small leeks, diced

Simmer for 10 minutes. Taste for salt and adjust as necessary, then add 3 cups of cooked beans---cannellini, white runner, Great Northern, or navy-- along with: 
1 cup shelled peas (from 1 pound in the pod) 
1/2 pound asparagus, trimmed and sliced on the diagonal into 1/2-inch pieces
Cook for 5 minutes, then add:
2 cups spinach leaves, coarsely chopped (about 1 pound)
Cook for 5 minutes. If the soup is too thick, add more water. Remove the bay leaf. 
Serve in bowls, each one garnished with:
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon or more grated Parmesan cheese

The meal was complemented by two delicious and healthy salads.

You can find theAsparagus - Pasta Salad recipe here.

The dessert was this wonderful Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp, with Hazelnut Crust recipe.

Filling

1/4 Cup granulated sugar

3/4 lb rhubarb

2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 Cups  Strawberry Halves

Topping

1/3 - Cup dry roasted hazelnuts (pistachios or almonds also work well)

3/4 - Cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 - Cup packed brown sugar

1/4 - Cup granulated sugar

6 - Tablespoons cold unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 375°F and butter a 2-quart shallow baking dish.

In a bowlstir together sugar and flour.

Trim rhubarb and cut enough of stalks into 1/2-inch pieces to measure 2 cups.

Add rhubarb and strawberries to sugar-mixture, tossing well and spread mixture in baking dish.

For the topping finely chop hazelnuts. In a bowl whisk together flour and sugars. Cut butter into 1/2-inch cubes and with your fingers or a pastry blender blend into flour mixture until mixture resembles coarse meal.

Add hazelnuts and toss well. Squeeze a handful of topping together and coarsely crumble in chunks over filling. Squeeze and evenIy crumble remaining topping over filling in same manner.

Bake crisp in upper third of oven until filling is bubbling and topping is crisp and golden, about 50 minutes. Serve crisp warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream.