Alfresco

Recipes for homegrown goodness from the garden of Sara Sybesma Tolsma ’84

Summer Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

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In a pint jar, mix together olive oil and balsamic vinegar in approximately a 1:1 ratio. Add a few teaspoons of sugar; salt and pepper to taste. Shake well. (This keeps in the refrigerator for a week.)

Pick, sort and wash a variety of garden greens, like:

• spinach
• lettuces
• Swiss chard
• endive

Peel, seed, chop and toss in a variety of in-season garden veggies, like:

• tomatoes
• cucumbers
• zucchini
• broccoli
• cauliflower
• carrots
• peppers
• blanched snow peas and/or beans

Add crumbled goat cheese, blue cheese or feta cheese. Top with croutons. Just before serving, drizzle on balsamic vinegar and toss. To make it a meal, add grilled chicken or marinated steak.

Rhubarb Custard Dessert

Mix A:

• 3 tablespoons of flour
• 2 cups of sugar

Mix B:

• 6 eggs
• 8 cups of chopped rhubarb

Mix A and B together and put in a greased 9x13 glass dish.

For topping, mix together:

• 2 cups of flour
• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 1/2 cup of butter

When the mixture is crumbly, sprinkle on top of the rhubarb and bake 1 hr. at 425º. Serve warm, topped with vanilla ice cream.

Summer Garden Stew

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 6 carrots, peeled and sliced
• 3 onions, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 small head of cabbage, cut in 1-inch pieces
• 1 potato, peeled and diced
• 1 bag of dried soup beans, rinsed and sorted
• 8 cups of chicken broth (or water if you’re vegetarian)
• 1 cup of parsley, chopped
• 2 teaspoons of thyme
• 1 teaspoon of tarragon
• 4 zucchini, seeded and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 3/4 lb. of spinach, chopped
• 10 tomatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil; sauté carrots, onions and garlic. Fold in cabbage, potato and beans; cook 10 minutes. Add broth, parsley, herbs, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer until beans are tender (or place in a crock pot for several hours). Before serving, add zucchini; cook 15 minutes. Add spinach; cook 10 minutes. Add tomatoes; cook 5 minutes. Serves 8 to 10.

Green Beans with Lemon Vinaigrette

Shake together in a pint jar:

• 1/2 cup of vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon of Dijon-style mustard
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• Several twists of freshly ground pepper

Chill to blend flavors.

Blanch 1 lb. of fresh green beans by placing them in boiling water for exactly 4 minutes. Remove immediately and plunge into an ice-water bath. Drain on a kitchen towel. Just before serving, place blanched green beans in a serving dish, add a few thin slices of red onion, shake the lemon vinaigrette dressing well, and drizzle over the beans.