Collards for New Year's Day

CSA Boxes this week will have some combination of the following items: Kumquats, Lettuce, Winter Squash, Collard Greens, Baby Broccoli, Parsnips, Sweet Potatoes, Arugula, Savoy Cabbage, and Swiss Chard. The fruit share will be Apples.

Eating collard greens and black-eyed peas on New Year's Day is a Southern tradition that is supposed to bring good luck and prosperity in the coming year. My favorite way to prepare them is to slice them into thin strips and braise them with onions, garlic, tomatoes, lite coconut milk, and lime juice. I like to use fresh tomatoes when they are in season or canned tomatoes in the Winter.

Collard Greens with Coconut Milk and Tomatoes
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1-2 small red chilies, seeded and minced or hot chili sauce
1 bunch of collards, thinly sliced with tough stems removed
1/2 cup lite coconut milk
1 large tomato (fresh or canned), chopped with the juices reserved
Juice from 1/2 of a lime
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic, onions, and red chilies (or hot chili sauce). Sauté until the chopped onion is soft and light brown. Add the collards and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the coconut milk, tomato, and lime juice; stir, put a lid on the pan, and let the collard mixture braise for 7-10 minutes until tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Sweet Potato Pancakes
Ingredients:
1 1/4 c. sweet potato puree*
3/4 c. whole-wheat flour
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 eggs
2 Tbsp packed brown sugar
1 1/2 c. milk

Sift together the whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add the butter and sweet potato puree into a food processor bowl and process until smooth. Add the eggs, brown sugar, and milk; blend until smooth. Add the dry ingredients and process briefly until combined (don't overprocess). Heat a skillet or griddle lightly coated with vegetable oil spray on medium heat. Drop heaping spoonfuls of batter onto the hot griddle. When pancakes start to bubble, flip and cook until golden. Serve with toasted pecans and your favorite syrup.
*To make sweet potato puree, pierce 2 medium sweet potatoes with a fork and microwave 5 to 7 minutes on high, until they are soft. Peel the skins off and measure out enough to make 1 1/4 cups.

Swiss Chard and Herb Tart
I have made this tart several times using different types of greens each time. My favorite is swiss chard, but feel free to use any type that you have on hand such as spinach, broccoli greens, kale, collards, etc.

Ingredients:
1 lb swiss chard, stems and ribs removed
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 (15 ounce) container ricotta cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
2 large egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp minced fresh thyme
1/4 tsp minced fresh oregano
1/8 tsp grated nutmeg
1 (17 oz) pkg frozen puff pastry, thawed (2 sheets)

Directions:

Cook chard in large pot of boiling salted water until just wilted, about 2 minutes. Drain. Squeeze out liquid and chop. Heat oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic; saute 1 minute. Add chard; sauté until excess liquid evaporates, about 5 minutes. Transfer chard mixture to large bowl. Cool slightly. Mix in ricotta and next 7 ingredients. Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 375°F. Roll out 1 pastry sheet on lightly floured surface into a 14-inch square. Transfer pastry to 9-inch-diameter tart pan. Trim edges, leaving 1-inch overhang. Fill pastry with chard mixture. Lightly brush pastry overhang with pastry brush dipped into water.Roll out second pastry sheet to 13-inch square. Using tart pan as guide, trim pastry square to 10-inch round. Drape over filling. Seal edges and fold inches. Bake until pastry is golden brown, about 40-45 minutes. Cool 10 minutes.Remove pan sides from tart. Transfer to platter. Cut into wedges and serve.

Kumquats, Sweet Potatoes, and Parsnips

Kumquats
Kumquats are unique in that the flesh inside is tart and the skins are sweet. You don't need to peel them because the skins are completely edible, but I suggest cutting them in half and popping out the seeds before eating. They also make great jams and relishes. Try out some of these great recipes from Epicurious.com

Orange Cheesecake with Candied Kumquats

Gingered Cranberry and Kumquat Relish

Hazelnut Crunch Cake with Honeyed Kumquats

Gingerbread Layer Cake with Candied Kumquats

Kumquat Compote with Sauternes and Ginger

Spiced Kumquat Chutney

Sweet Potato Biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour (about 9 ounces)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup pureed cooked sweet potatoes, cooled
1/3 cup fat-free milk
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400°. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Combine sweet potato and milk in a small bowl; add potato mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until moist.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead lightly 5 times. Roll dough to a 3/4-inch thickness; cut with a 2-inch biscuit cutter into 10 biscuits. Place biscuits on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Gather remaining dough. Roll to a 3/4-inch thickness. Cut with a 2-inch biscuit cutter into 6 biscuits. Place the biscuits on prepared baking sheet. Discard any remaining scraps.

Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from pan; cool 5 minutes on wire racks. Serve warm or at room temperature. 16 servings (serving size: 1 biscuit)

Sweet Potato Soufflés

Even people who dislike sweet potatoes will love these easy to make soufflés. If you have never made a soufflé before, don't worry these are easy to make and can be made up to 2 days ahead of time and kept in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake them. 8 servings.

Granulated sugar for coating ramekins
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 pound, 12 ounces)
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1/4 cup all-purpose flour (about 1 ounce)
1/2 cup half-and-half
1 tablespoon grated orange rind
1/3 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg yolks
5 large egg whites

Cooking spray
Chopped pecans for garnish

Preheat oven to 425°. Coat 8 ramekins with cooking spray and lightly coat with granulated sugar. Pierce sweet potatoes with a knife; arrange on paper towels in microwave oven. Microwave at high 7-10 minutes or until tender, rearranging potatoes after 5 minutes. Peel potatoes. Combine potatoes, butter, flour, half-and-half, and next 6 ingredients (through egg yolks) in a food processor; process until smooth. Transfer potato mixture to a large bowl.

Place egg whites in a large mixing bowl; beat at high speed with a mixer until soft peaks form. Add 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form (do not overbeat). Gently fold one-fourth of egg white mixture into potato mixture; gently fold in remaining egg white mixture. Gently spoon mixture into prepared ramekins. Place ramekins on a baking sheet; place baking sheet in a 425° oven. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 375° (do not remove soufflé from oven). Bake for ~25 minutes or until soufflé is puffy, golden, and set. Sprinkle with chopped pecans. These soufflés can be served immediately, but they are still excellent after they have cooled off for a few minutes and fallen.

Roasted Parsnips
These roasted parsnips have a nice crispy exterior and are soft inside. Simply peel the parsnips and cut into 1/2" dice. Place on a baking sheet lined with Aluminum foil and drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Roast at 425F for 25-30 minutes. Turn the parsnips over with a spatula after 15 minutes to ensure even cooking on both sides.