Chocolate Apple Zucchini Picnic Cake and Oxbow Farm

I love supporting our local farms, shopping at farmers’ markets and seeking out locally grown produce in grocery stores. Among the best ways I’ve found to support our farmers is to participate in a CSA (community supported agriculture).  Joining a CSA ensures that you receive the freshest veggies in season each week, and also challenges you to use new produce that you might not normally pick up at the market.

Oxbow Farm is a marvelous farm here in Washington that offers tours, education and CSA membership in addition to growing their beautiful fruit and vegetables. This season they created The Oxbow Box Project and have invited local food writers and cooks to share how they are cooking with the farm’s bounty.  I am excited to join in the fun!

I picked up a complimentary box of produce (thank you, Oxbow!) and in it found carrots, Chioggia beets, fava beans, red cabbage, Jericho romaine lettuce, collard greens, Walla Walla sweet onions, zucchini and Pristine apples.  As I unpacked the box, various questions began floating around in my mind. Can I bake something? What to do with favas? How do I incorporate chocolate?

CSA boxes have pushed my cooking boundaries in new directions.  Last year, when I encountered fava beans, I tediously shelled, boiled, peeled and cooked the beans.  A lot of work for a few pounds of beans!  This summer, I’ve seen several references to roasting or grilling fava beans whole ... love this idea and that is what we did (think edamame on the barbecue).  This makes a wonderful, interactive appetizer in your backyard!  As we were also grilling hamburgers, some of the Walla Walla onions made their way to the toppings buffet (these onions are so sweet you could eat them like apples!). Another evening, I shredded the red cabbage and mixed it with sliced onions, honey, red wine vinegar and salt and let it sit to marinate for a few hours. A simple, refreshing slaw!

I also baked a chocolate cake.  I began by grating the zucchini and apples, then mixed in brown sugar, some whole wheat flour and olive oil.  Rather than adding cinnamon or nutmeg for a more traditional spice cake, I stirred in cocoa powder to create a dark, chocolaty batter.  I couldn’t decide if I was going for healthy or indulgent, so I decided to shoot for both and topped the cake with pepitas and chocolate chunks.  The cake emerged from the oven smelling divine.  It has a tender crumb, moist texture from apples and zucchini and light chocolate flavor. Neither heavy nor rich, it was quite welcome on a hot day.

Simply put, this is picnic cake, nothing fancy, no plates, forks or adornment needed.  Just grab a few napkins and start cutting.

Chocolate, Apple and Zucchini Picnic Cake
Makes 1 8x8 inch cake

1 cup (packed) shredded zucchini
1 cup (packed) shredded apples
2 eggs, lightly mixed
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup chocolate chunks
1/2 cup raw pepitas

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Butter an 8x8 inch cake pan and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the zucchini, apples, eggs, brown sugar, olive oil and vanilla.

In a smaller bowl, sift together the flours, cocoa powder, salt, baking soda and baking powder.  Gently stir this mixture into the zucchini and apple mixture until mixed.

Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pan.  Sprinkle the chocolate chunks and pepitas over the top.  Bake for 25 minutes, until a tester comes out clean.  Let cool before slicing.

Oxbow Farms provided me with a complimentary box in return for sharing my experiences using their produce. All photographs, recipes and opinions are my own. Stay tuned for Part Two!

A Ratatouille Gateau for Your Picnic

There’s still time for a summer picnic, which is good news since I have something rather shocking to tell you ... my family has not gone on one picnic yet this summer! Nope, not a one. We’ve had many al fresco meals in our backyard but for some reason haven’t pulled out the picnic basket. I’m rather bewildered thinking about this fact, but we’ll remedy it at once! I love our picnic basket. As I lift the lid to fill it, I see the perfectly arranged wine glasses, knives and forks strapped in to their spots (there’s even a cute little set of salt and pepper shakers) and recall fun memories of past picnics. Not that you need a basket to go on a picnic, just good food and a warm day. For our picnics, we enjoy heading to one of the beaches along Lake Washington. Trees and the sound of water provide a relaxing backdrop to our meal.

Our picnic food usually includes cheeses, breads, fruit, veggie sandwiches or quiche, perhaps deviled eggs and a sweet treat. Wanting a different type of veggie dish, I created this Ratatouille Gateau. Ratatouille, mixed veggies and basil mayo are layered between herbed crepes and stacked in a springform pan for easy transporting.

I am a big fan of ratatouille, especially since it's most flavorful if served room temperature (and tastes even better if made the day before). Lots of zucchini are growing right now, so this is a terrific way to use them. For this ratatouille, I roasted all the veggies in order to bring out more flavors. The crepes are adapted from a recipe in Gourmet magazine for homemade manicotti. I reverse the order of instructions for the ingredients (makes mixing easier and no need to push through a sieve) and add thyme.

All of the components can be prepared ahead of time and then the gateau assembled right before heading out the door. By the time you reach your picnic destination, the gateau will be room temperature and ready to enjoy. See you at the beach!

Ratatouille Gateau
Serves 6-8

Gateau Fillings (Ratatouille, Basil Mayo and Veggies)

Ratatouille
1 medium globe eggplant, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 zucchini, sliced lengthwise and chopped in 1-inch pieces
1 yellow pepper, roughly chopped
1 red pepper, roughly chopped
5 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 red onion, chopped into 1-inch pieces
10 cloves garlic, sliced lenthwise
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided plus more to drizzle
1/2 cup tomato puree
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle a little olive oil and use a pastry brush or paper towel to coat bottom. Spread the eggplant in a single layer. Give a quick drizzle of olive oil over the eggplant and toss a bit (or use a Misto sprayer). Roast the eggplant for about 20 minutes, until it is browning on the edges and soft. Pour eggplant into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

Add another light slick of olive oil to the bottom of the baking sheet and spread the peppers, zucchini and tomatoes on in a thick single layer. Drizzle a little olive oil and stir around. Roast the veggies for about 25 minutes, giving them a stir a couple of times. Add the veggies to the eggplant.

Again, add a little olive oil to coat the baking sheet and spread the onions and 10 sliced garlic cloves to pan. Roast for about 15-20 minutes, giving a stir and making sure garlic doesn't burn. Add to the mixing bowl with eggplant and other veggies.

Give all the ratatouille veggies a stir and mix in the tomato puree. Season with salt and pepper to taste. At this point, the ratatouille can be covered and chilled until ready to use.

Basil Mayo
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 cup mayonnaise (homemade is wonderful, but for this Vegenaise or Hellmans will do just fine)

To make the basil mayo, combine 2 tablespoons of olive oil, basil, lemon juice, 1 clove of garlic and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Whiz until smooth, scraping down the sides once. Add the mayo and pulse until combined. Chill until ready to use.

Veggies
1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced
1/2 pound asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces

In a medium saute pan, pour in 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat. Add the mushrooms, cover and steam for about 7 minutes until soft and liquid is released (turn down heat if mushrooms are sticking). Stir and add the asparagus. Stir, cover and steam for about 4-5 minutes until asparagus is soft. Remove from heat and set aside. You can chill these veggies, too, until ready to use.

Crepes
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine
Makes 6

1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 1/2 cup warm water
3 eggs, room temperature
Butter for making crepes

In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, salt and thyme and stir together. Slowly pour in warm water and stir until combined. Add the eggs one at a time and stir each one in until just combined.

Heat a 10-inch nonstick crepe pan or frying pan over medium high heat and brush with a little butter. Pour 1/2 cup measure of crepe batter in and tip pan to swirl and coat bottom. Cook for about 30 seconds until set then flip and cook the other side for about 30 seconds. Remove the crepe and make 5 more. Crepes can be stacked with parchment paper layered in between. Watch your heat while making and be prepared to turn down a little if the crepes are setting too quickly and you can't spread the batter thin enough.

To Assemble
Mix the basil mayo with the asparagus and mushrooms. Place a crepe in the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan. Spread 1/3 of the ratatouille on the bottom and top with a crepe. Spread 1/2 of the basil veggie mix on and top with a crepe. Spread the next 1/3 of ratatouille, top with crepe and then the last 1/2 of the basil mayo and veggies. Layer with a crepe, add the last 1/3 of the ratatouille and place final crepe on top. Wrap the springform pan tightly with foil to transport to your picnic. Once there, pop off the side, slice and serve.