Again this week, I’d like to honor our local farmers and farmers’ markets in Phoenix, Arizona who are continuing to bring our “essential” beautiful food to us during the Coronavirus Pandemic. We truly appreciate you.
As always, I am so honored to create recipes for the CSA at The Farm at South Mountain, a small urban farm about half a mile from my home in Phoenix, Arizona. In early May our farmers are transitioning from the “cooler” to “warmer” weather crops. So this week, many farmers are harvesting end of the Spring root veggies (carrots, beets), along with the early Summer veggies, like zucchini.
This week I was totally inspired by the beautiful 2 pound 5 ounce (yes, I weighed it) Costada Romanesco Zucchini. I intuitively created a simple Zucchini Salad with Cashew Cream featuring The Farm’s grapefruit and fresh mint and lemon basil. I invite you to use this recipe as a guide to create your own Zucchini Salad with a nut cream prepared with fresh herbs and citrus available at your local farmers’ market, farmers, or grocery stores. – Melanie Albert
Enjoy the video that showcases the steps to prepare the salad including how to:
- Prepare a refreshing Raw Cashew Cream.
- Spiralize zucchini.
- Peel carrots for salads.
- Mindfully plate with fresh veggies and edible flowers.
Let’s take a look at The Farm at South Mountain CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)
The May 2, 2020 CSA, with the transition from Spring to Summer:
- Roots: Beets, Carrots
- Greens: Glacier Lettuce, Salad Greens, Swiss Chard
- Veggies: Zucchini
- Citrus: Grapefruit
- Herbs: Lemon Basil, Mint, Sage
- Eggs
The Farm at South Mountain. Soil & Seed Garden CSA, May 1, 2020.
RECIPE: Raw Cashew Salad. Cashew Cream.
Ingredients: Zucchini Salad. Cashew Cream.
Serves 2
Cashew Herbal Cream
Inspired by The Farm’s grapefruit and fresh mint and lemon basil.
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water, 2-4 hours
- 2 TBSP grapefruit juice
- 1 TBSP grapefruit zest
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 2-3 stems of mint and lemon basil
- 2-3 onion green onions, sliced
- Pinch sea salt
Mise en Place: Cashew Cream.
SIMPLE STEPS
- Pre-soak cashews in water; rinse the cashews prior to using in the recipe.
- Place all ingredients into food processor.
- Process until smooth.
Spiralized Zucchini
Spiralize the zucchini and peel the carrots for the salad.
SIMPLE INGREDIENTS
- ¼ zucchini, spiralized
- 1 carrot
SIMPLE STEPS
- Spiralize the zucchini with a spiralizer.
- If you do not have a spiralizer, use a veggie peeler to thinly slice the zucchini.
- Slice the carrots with veggie peeler.
Costada Romanesco Zucchini. Spiralized.
Zucchini Salad
SIMPLE STEPS
- Toss the zucchini and carrots with the Cashew Cream.
SIMPLE PLATING
Ingredients
- Zucchini Salad
- 1 Swiss chard leaf
- 3-4 fresh herb leaves: mint, lemon basil
- 3-4 mini-tomatoes
- 1-2 green onions
Zucchini Salad: Plating Mise en Place.
Simple Steps
- Mindfully plate.
- Place Swiss chard onto the plate.
- Layer the tossed zucchini onto the Swiss chard.
- Add the garnish ingredients.
- Enjoy.
Enjoy a few plating views of this simple, delicious, beautiful “summer salad.”
Zucchini Salad. Sunflowers.
Zucchini Salad. In the Garden.
Zucchini Salad. On the Video Set.
Stay in Touch. Stay in touch with us on www.facebook.com/ExperienceNutritionAZ and Instagram @experiencenturitionaz and tag us #experiencenutrition on your plant-based culinary creations.
By Melanie Albert, Plant-Based Culinary Leader, Founder & CEO, Experience Nutrition in Phoenix, Arizona. Award-winning cookbook author, speaker, corporate wellness, team building, retreat leader, and caterer.
Please reach out if you are interested in future plant-based farm-to-table cooking experiences, or catering. Look forward to collaborating when “the time is right.”