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When it comes to cooking, it helps to follow the landscaper’s maxim: “Consult the genius of the place.” This is what Superabundant is all about — finding culinary inspiration from this region, this season and these times.
I admit, until the 11th hour, I had no idea what this week’s Superabundant recipe was going to be. It was a holiday on Monday, Rose Festival is going on, social commitments are littering the calendar (so many grads!) and the weather’s been equal parts soup and salad. That many variables can really blow my focus, so I did what any other writer with ADHD would do: I procrastinated.
Look, stepping outside is never not a good idea. There’s nothing like a stroll and a change of scenery to kick the dust off the ol’ hamster wheel. Shooting the breeze with randos (crows and dogs included) is scientifically proven to be good for you, and besides, puttering around in the garden isn’t really shirking your duties if you pull a few weeds while you’re out there.
And you know what? It totally helped. Once I saw that my onions and elephant garlic are gearing up to bloom, the peas need thinning, the lovage, salad burnet and borage are outgrowing their corners and the many, many weedy (but delicious!) herbs need aggressive culling, everything clicked into place — the obvious choice was a green sauce.
I make lots of green sauces of various persuasions, because they’re infinitely riffable and basically free. This time, I went for a slightly Slavic spin on a basic Italian pesto and added some little kotleti-like chicken meatballs — feel free to go off script and make this dish your own. Serves 4-6
Ingredients
Meatballs
Cooking oil or spray
1 pound ground chicken
1 egg, lightly beaten
½ cup dry breadcrumbs
½ cup crumbly farmer cheese, such as tvorog, queso fresco or cottage cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon mustard powder
½ teaspoon caraway seed, crushed
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning (or 1 teaspoon each oregano and thyme)
1 teaspoon dried dill or 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill
2 tablespoons minced parsley
A few fat pinches of salt and pepper
Green sauce
3 cups mixed greens and herbs*
¼ cup flavorful oil (a mix of olive and walnut is nice)
¼ cup buttermilk, sour cream or yogurt
¼ cup nuts (pistachios, hazelnuts or walnuts are perfect here)
A few fat pinches of salt and pepper
*in this case, 2 large garlic scapes, a handful of onion flower buds, a few sprigs of lovage, a tiny handful of garden cress, a couple scratchy borage leaves, a handful of the softest parts of salad burnet, a few garlic chives, a few mint leaves, parsley leaves and flowering tops, and a few sprigs of winter savory, oregano and thyme (my yard really needed attention, OK? 😅)
Pasta
1 pound dry long pasta (linguine, fettuccine, etc.)
Minced parsley and/or dill for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 F and line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Give the foil a drizzle or spritz of oil.
- Mix together the meatball ingredients until they’re well-combined, then use a portioner or two spoons to mete out as many meatballs as you can, spacing them about an inch apart on the foil. Give another drizzle or spritz of oil over the top of the meatballs and bake until cooked through (or a thermometer inserted in the middle reads 165 F), about 10-15 minutes.
- While the meatballs are cooking, puree the green sauce ingredients until smooth, then taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
- Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package, then toss in the finished green sauce until evenly coated. Plate the pasta, then roll the meatballs around in the saucy pot to coat before adding them to the pasta. Serve with a generous sprinkle of minced herbs.