Local Lunch:
Lunchbox Recipes from the Farmers Market
by Janna Morishima photographs by Kyo Morishima
10 Tips for Making Quick and Healthy Lunches 1.Make a list of your favorite healthy foods and post it in your kitchen so you always have ideas handy. 2.Write down the coming week's lunch menu and purchase everything you'll need in one shopping trip. 3.Every few days, prep an assortment of fresh veggies to include as side dishes in the lunchbox. Washed and dried veggies can be kept fresh wrapped in a barely damp towel in the refrigerator. Try veggies such as: - carrot, celery, and cucumber sticks - cherry tomatoes - blanched broccoli and cauliflower florets - sliced peppers - blanched asparagus and green beans 4.Make a large batch of a favorite dinner item and freeze leftovers in individual portions. 5.Freeze fruit such as grapes or berries by washing, allowing to dry completely on a tea towel, then placing in individual storage containers in the freezer.
Tips for Making Quick and Healthy Lunches, cont.
6. Freeze a loaf worth of sandwiches (after wrapping each sandwich, store in bread bag in the freezer). Put lettuce, tomato, and/or mayonaisse in the lunchbag to be added once the sandwich has thawed. Types of sandwiches that freeze well:- Peanut butter and nut butters- Canned tuna and salmon- Lunchmeat such as roast beef, turkey, and bologna- Hard and semi-hard cheeses 7. Don't forget soup. Soup can be made in large quantities in advance, frozen, thawed overnight, heated in the microwave, and kept warm in a thermos. 8. Add diced veggies, herbs, and olive oil or vinaigrette to leftover pasta, rice, couscous, quinoa, or other grains to make a salad that keeps well. 9. Keep a batch of hard-boiled eggs in the refrigerator. 10. Freeze healthy “desserts� such as muffins or yogurt.
List of Recipes A FARMERS MARKET SANDWICH LUNCH MENU Red pepper, tapenade, and goat cheese sandwich Caprese salad Green pesto quinoa salad Yogurt and fruit compote parfait
A FARMERS MARKET ASIAN LUNCH MENU Diced veggie meatballs Cucumber sushi rolls Soy-glazed winter squash
A FARMERS MARKET SNACK MENU Crudites with beet dip Chocolate-dipped pears
Roasted Red Peppers 8 bell peppers, washed Salt Olive oil Preheat the oven to 450째. Place peppers on a foil-lined pan. Roast up to one hour, turning occasionally as each side browns, until they are dark and collapsed. Fold up the foil around the peppers and let cool. Holding peppers under running water, remove skin, seeds, and stems. Slice peppers lengthwise into long strips. Place in a storage container, sprinkle with salt, and drizzle with olive oil.
Olive Tapenade 1 pint seedless Kalamata olives 1-2 garlic cloves Olive oil Chop olives coarsely, taking care to remove any stray pits. Chop garlic. Place olives and garlic in blender jar and add enough olive oil to half-cover the olives. Blend on medium speed, scrape down the sides of the blender, and repeat until the mixture is smooth. Add more olive oil if necessary.
Goat Cheese Spread
Green Pesto Quinoa Salad, cont.
½ a small goat cheese log 4 ounces whipped cream cheese chopped herbs to taste
1 cucumber, seeded, peeled, and diced ½ pint cherry tomatoes
Place goat cheese and whipped cream cheese in a bowl and mash until thoroughly mixed. Fold in chopped fresh herbs.
Caprese Salad 1 ripe tomato 1 small ball fresh mozzarella 1 bunch fresh basil leaves Salt and pepper Olive oil Slice tomato and mozzarella into thin slices. Layer tomato and mozzarella in alternating pattern, adding fresh basil leaves between each. Season with salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with olive oil.
Green Pesto Quinoa Salad 2 cups basil, coarsely chopped 2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped 1/3 cup pine nuts ½ cup olive oil 1/3 cup parmesan cheese, coarsely chopped 2 cups cooked quinoa
Place basil, garlic, pine nuts, olive oil, and parmesan in blender and whiz until pesto is smooth. Fold pesto into cooked quinoa. Add cucumber and cherry tomatoes. (Other potential additions include chopped red onion, bell pepper, chickpeas, feta, and grated lemon zest.)
Easy Fruit Compote 3 cups sliced fruit such as apples, pears, cranberries, rhubarb, peaches, nectarines, and/or berries ½ tsp cinnamon 3 tbsp brown sugar 2 tbsp diced cold butter, plus butter for greasing casserole Heat the oven to 400°. Grease small casserole dish with butter. Place fruit in casserole dish, sprinkle with brown sugar cinnamon, and diced butter, and toss gently. Bake 30 to 40 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the fruit is completely tender and bubbling.
Teriyaki sauce ½ cup mirin (Japanese rice cooking wine) ¼ cup soy sauce 1 tsp sugar Heat mirin in a small pan over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Add soy sauce and sugar and simmer another 1 to 2 minutes, until slightly syrupy.
Soy-glazed Sweet Potato or Kabocha 1 sweet potato or ¼ kabocha, cut into ½ inch chunks 3 tbsp teriyaki sauce Boil sweet potato in briskly simmering water until just tender. Drain. Heat teriyaki sauce to just boiling, add sweet potato, and stir until covered. Remove from heat.
Diced Veggie Meatballs 3 tbsp quick-cooking wholegrains such as oats 1/3 cup milk ½ medium onion ½ medium zucchini ½ medium bell pepper 1-2 leaves napa cabbage (continued on next page)
Diced Veggie Meatballs, cont.
Beet Dip
1-2 garlic cloves 1 pound ground meat 1 egg 1 tbsp ketchup 1 tbsp Worcester sauce 2 tsp soy sauce ¼ tsp salt and pepper to taste ½ tbsp oil 4-5 tbsp teriyaki sauce
1 roasted beet, peeled and chopped ¼ cup plain yogurt 2 tbsp lemon juice ½ garlic clove, chopped 1 tbsp tahini 2 tbsp soft goat cheese 3 tbsp olive oil
Place grains in a small bowl and add milk. Set aside until all liquid is absorbed. Finely chop onion, zucchini, bell pepper, cabbage, and garlic. Combine oats, vegetables, ground meat, egg, ketchup, Worcester sauce, soy sauce, salt, and pepper in bowl. Use your hands to mix well until sticky. Form into meatballs. Preheat the oven to 450°. Over medium heat, heat oil in a skillet that can go into the oven. Brown meatballs on all sides, then put in the oven and cool for 8-10 minutes, until done. Heat teriyaki sauce to a gentle simmer, pour over the meatballs and serve on a bed of vegetables.
Combine all ingredients in blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. Taste and adjust flavor as desired.
Chocolate Dip 2 ounces high quality dark chocolate, chopped fine 3 tbsp heavy cream Bring heavy cream just to a boil. Stir dark chocolate into cream until it has melted and they are thoroughly combined.
RECOMMENDED COOKBOOKS Andoh, Elizabeth. Washoku: Recipes from the Japanese Home Kitchen. Ten Speed Press, 2005. Bittman, Mark. Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating. Simon & Schuster, 2009. Kurihara, Harumi. Harumi's Japanese Home Cooking: Simple, Elegant Recipes for Contemporary Tastes. Penguin, 2007. ABOUT JANNA Janna lives in Metuchen with her husband, Kyo, and daughter, and is an avid, self-taught cook. Janna and Kyo own a photography business, Kyo Morishima Photography, specializing in documentarystyle weddings, portraits, and special events (and they photograph food, too!). Janna sometimes blogs about food and recipes on the company blog – find it at http://www.kyomorishima.com.