Seasonal Cooking For June

Welcome to the second installment of our monthly seasonal cooking series! Visit the first one, Seasonal Cooking For May, for an introduction.

I had three recipes I wanted to try in May, one of which made it onto the blog, Fast and Easy Curried Red Lentil Soup with Spinach. Another one using asparagus needs to be tweaked- but I liked the dressing, just not the time-consuming cooking method, so you might be seeing that later here as my asparagus experiment continues.

And the third? I never got around to trying a slow cooker frittata even though I had it on the menu twice. I liked the idea of making it in a slow-cooker (think summer meals without heating the oven!) but was stalled at having to make a bisquick substitute. I have one, but it was just another excuse to make something faster! One day…

Remember that each installment of Seasonal Cooking will include what’s in season for the month, what we still have to use up in our freezer and pantry, some of our favorite recipes that we eat in that month, and finally a few new recipes to try this month.

Seasonal Produce for June (find recipes to use these items!):

• Asparagus
• Broccoli
• Cabbage (my Chinese cabbage is ready now!)
• Cauliflower
• Chard
• Green Onions
• Lettuce/Salad Greens
• Mushrooms
• Peas
• Potatoes
• Radishes
• Spinach
• Rhubarb
• Strawberries
• Blackberries & Raspberries (by the end of the month, hopefully!)

In the freezer and pantry:

• Roasted Tomato Sauce (4 freezer containers left)
  
• Canned Spaghetti Sauce (7 qts.)
• Salsa (lots left, thank goodness!)
  
• Frozen corn (1 bag left), green beans (two bags left)
• Frozen strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries (and freezer jams)-quite a few left, actually. Why do I never remember to use these up in the winter?
• Frugal Pesto (8 containers left)
  
• A couple bags of shredded zucchini
• Pickled beans, cucumbers, and asparagus
• Dried tomatoes
• Various chutneys and sauces (though only 2 Addictive Tomato Chutney left and nary a tomato in sight- whaaa! I’ve got to make more this year!)

Recipes for June:

Swiss Chard (or Spinach) & Sausage FrittataThis will use the spinach or the chard that is starting to produce in the garden right now

Greek-Style Shrimp and OrzoA yummy way to use up some spinach (Gee, do you think I should take a new picture? You can tell this was taken in the first days of blogging…*smile*)

Tuscan Bean SaladEven though our weather is not cooperating, I’m thinking of grilling some meat and veggies and serving them with this tasty salad which uses up some Roasted Red Peppers In Wine and dried tomatoes.

Roasted Beet Salad with Goat CheeseI could eat this a couple times a week, it’s so good. If you think you don’t like beets, this may be a way you will like them!

Strawberry Shortcake Made with Crunchy BiscuitsEven though our strawberries aren’t even thinking about turning red yet (thank you, wet spring!) hope springs eternal and these will definitely be on the menu the latter part of this month!
Recipes to try:

1. Sesame Pulled Pork Lettuce Wraps (the lettuce is one thing that loves this wet, cool weather!)
2. Asparagus Tagliatelle
3. Quick-Roasted Beet Slices
4. Sauteed Sugar Snaps with Salami Crisps
5. Rustic Three Berry Pie

What are some of your favorite dishes to make this month using what’s in season around your house? Let us know in the comments or head over to An Oregon Cottage’s Facebook page to talk about it!

–Jami

This is linked to:
Real Food Wednesday
Recipe Swap @ Prairie Story
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday
Tasty Tuesday