Sofrito
Sofrito is a delicious flavoring substance that is classic in Puerto Rican cooking. You add it to anything from rice and beans, to soups and slow cooker dishes, to omlettes, to sauces for meat dishes. Once made, sofrito freezes really well in ice cube trays or other portion-sized containers for winter! It will also keep well in the refrigerator for about 3 weeks.
1 onion
1 green pepper
2-3 cloves garlic
1 bunch cilantro leaves
1/4 tsp oregano (more if fresh)
2-4 tbs olive oil
salt to taste
1 tsp capers (opt.)
1-3 hot peppers (opt.)
1-2 roasted red peppers (opt.)
a few to a bunch of pitted olives (opt.)
Other optionals: black pepper, cayenne, paste tomatoes, cumin, culantro, annatto, celery, parsley, and many more!
No hard and fast recipe here! Something to play with! Multiply recipe for winter freezing. Wash, deseed, trim as needed. Chop into large chunks. Put all in blender, in batches if need be. I like to blend not as far as puree, but stop while there are still little bits of things, like tiny pieces of pepper and onion, discernible shards of herbs.
Mix everything in a bowl at the end if you did batches. Then refrigerate and freeze for later use. Or use some now!
To use, put some in a pan with oil and saute to meld the flavors before adding rice to boil or whatever it’s in your plans to make.
Lovely with red peppers too!
Fresh Tomato-Corn Salsa
From the contributor, CSA member Anna: “Thanks for the wonderful veggies that are coming in so far. I’m enjoying them very much. I wanted to share two recipes that I recently tried and love. I hope others will try and enjoy eating them as well.”
3 tomatoes, chopped
3 ears corn
1 onion, chopped
1 pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 hot pepper, minced, or 1 tsp cayenne pepper
1⁄4 cup lemon juice or vinegar
2 Tbs. olive oil
Salt to taste
3 Tbs. cilantro
Chop tomatoes, salt and let sit in a colander for 30 min. to drain off extra juice. In the meantime, cut kernels from corn (yep, it’s delicious raw) and mix in the rest of the ingredients, adding the drained tomatoes last and salting to taste.
Roasted Corn and Peach Salsa
4 ears corn
6 peaches
1 onion
1 pepper
5 tomatillos or 2 tomatoes (optional)
4 cloves garlic
¼ cup vinegar
1 hot pepper
salt to taste
Roast the corn under the broil in the oven or on a grill. Cut from cobs. Dice or food process peaches, mix with corn, minced onion, tomatillos or tomatoes if you’re using them, pepper, minced garlic and hot pepper. Add vinegar and salt to taste.
Let it sit for an hour to let the flavors blend.
Gazpacho
1 red onion
3 Red Fire Farm tomatoes
½ medium cucumber
½ green pepper
½ red pepper
1 clove garlic, crushed
3 ½ cups tomato juice
½ teaspoon sugar
salt and pepper
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup white wine vinegar
Garlic Croutons
6 slices bread
¼ cup olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
Finely chop the onion, tomatoes, cucumber and peppers. Place in a large bowl with garlic.
Stir in the juice, sugar, salt and pepper, and combined oil and vinegar and mix well. Refrigerate. Serve soup cold, with a bowl of garlic croutons.
To make Garlic Croutons: Preheat the oven to moderate. Trim the crusts from the bread and cut the bread into cubes. Drizzle with combined oil and garlic and mix well. Spread on baking tray. Bake for 10-15 minutes, turning twice, or until golden brown.
Spaghetti Squash with Fresh Tomato Sauce
1 large spaghetti squash
2 onions, chopped
5 tomatoes, chopped
2 cloves garlic
1 red or green bell pepper, chopped
1 bunch of basil
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
grated Parmesan cheese
Cut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Place face down on a pan with ¼ inch of water and bake for 40 minutes at 350˚.
While baking start the sauce. Sauté onions and garlic and peppers for 5 min on medium heat. Add tomatoes salt and pepper to taste and simmer for the remainder of the squash prep time. Remove squash from the oven and stick a fork into the cut side. The fork should go in easily, but it should not be mushy.
Cool for 5 minutes and using the fork, scrape the strands of squash from the skin, trying to keep them intact. Serve immediately topped with the sauce, the fresh chopped basil and cheese.
Summer Medley Quiche
Quiche for dinner is yummy! You can substitute any vegetables for the ones called for depending on what’s in your fridge.
1 pie shell
5 eggs
1 cup whole milk or cream
½ cup grated cheese of choice
2 Tbs. Olive oil or butter
2 ½ cup sautéed vegetables (onion, summer squash/zuke, pepper, kale, fresh herbs like savory or sage)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 sprig basil chopped (opt)
1 tomato sliced (opt)
In a large frying pan with the olive oil or butter, start with the onions and then add the summer squash or zucchini, pepper, fresh herbs, kale, and garlic last. When all veggies are tender, drain off any liquid and spread out on the bottom of the crust. Sprinkle the cheese over the top.
Wisk the eggs with the milk and add ½ tsp salt and pepper and pour over the veggies. Top with the basil and tomato if you like and bake until puffed and brown at 375˚ (about 30 min). Enjoy hot or cold.
