Cylindrical Red Beets with Lemon Basil and Walnut Vinaigrette

Whenever we get beets in our CSA box I think of Danuta, a lovely and talented baker at Deer Valley. Dana is from Poland, in fact she spends every summer there. Dana once commented that the beets here in the US don’t taste very good—but that’s because she is buying her American beets at the grocery store and not from Ranui Gardens. John’s beets are very sweet and taste like they are supposed to and red cylindrical beets have a reputation of being the sweetest of them all.

I prefer to roast beets in the oven—as opposed to boiling them. I think it keeps more flavor inside the beet. Just trim all but one inch of the tail, and put them in a covered casserole with a bit of water at 350 degrees. While you are at it roast a head of garlic as well.

Once the beets are tender when poked with a fork, let them cool, then slip the peel away under running water. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.

Many weeks, we kind of hoard our beets, slicing just one on top of the Ranui lettuce mix.

Here is a lovely dressing for such a salad.

Lemon Basil and Walnut Vinaigrette 

1/4 cup good-quality red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup lightly toasted walnuts, chopped

1/4 cup chopped lemon basil

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Mix the vinegar, mustard, garlic and salt with a whisk in a bowl. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking to incorporate. Stir in the walnuts, chopped basil and pepper.

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Gwen’s Parmesan Vinaigrette with Heirloom Tomatoes

Gwen is my foodie and hiking friend who lives in Carefree Arizona. She publishes her own cookbooks and a writes a blog called penandfork. In fact, she set up muffintalk at wordpress.com after she heard how my husband calls it “talking muffin” when he notices me yakking about recipes and bakeries etc. with fellow pastry chefs and other food-minded folk.

I gleaned this recipe from Gwen’s website, also Pen and Fork, in 2003, and I fed Gwen and her fly-fisherman husband heirloom tomatoes with vinaigrette when they came for dinner last month.

Ranui Gardens heirloom tomatoes this year have been prolific, for which we are grateful. I remember years when we were lucky to get 2 tomatoes all season and they’ve been in our box the last 5 weeks!

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 teaspoon Real Salt

2 teaspoons minced red onion

2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

2 teaspoons chopped fresh herbs (rosemary, oregano, parsley, etc.)

Pinch freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Put vinegar, mustard, garlic, salt, onion, Parmesan cheese, herbs and black pepper in a blender and whir until creamy, about 20 seconds. With the motor running, pouring through the top, slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Add more salt and pepper, to taste. Pour over lovingly sliced heirloom tomatoes.

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My Mom’s Potato Salad

There are many potato salad recipes out there and many of them short on flavor. But how do you get flavor into potato salad—so it tastes as good as sweet memories? I follow my mother’s technique. She cut the potatoes while they were still warm, and poured a simple vinaigrette over, so they marinated as they cooled, absorbing the acidity of the dressing. Sometimes these potatoes would rest in the fridge for a few hours, but if she was in a hurry, the marinating time would only be as long as it took to prepare the rest of the ingredients. Be sure to boil the potatoes in amply salted water—potatoes love salt and if you salt early, you won’t want to keep adding salt at the ‘season to taste’ part of the recipe.

2 pounds red waxy potatoes, All Red potatoes, or any potato for that matter

1 clove garlic, minced

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Pinch cayenne pepper

2 or 3 stalks celery, cut in 1/4-inch slices

1/2 cup mayonnaise

3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves

2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped in 1/2-inch pieces, optional

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Bring a pot of water to a boil, enough water to cover the potatoes by an inch or so. Salt the water, about a teaspoon per quart of water. Add the potatoes and simmer, partially covered, with the lid ajar, until they are just tender, about 20 minutes. Drain.

Make a vinaigrette dressing: whisk the garlic and mustard with the vinegar. Drizzle in the olive oil, whisking, and season with the salt and cayenne.

While the potatoes are still hot, but cool enough to handle, cut into 3/4-inch chunks. Toss them with the vinaigrette to coat and allow to marinate, covered and refrigerated, for 2 hours or even overnight.

Add the celery, mayonnaise and basil to the potatoes and stir all together. Stir in the eggs, if using. Season to taste with more salt and plenty of freshly ground pepper.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

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