Sauteed Pick-Your-Own Veggies with Herb Butter

  Thanks to much rain and some long-overdue sunshine, the veggie garden at Eckert’s is exploding with flavor!

Guests on the farm celebrated the holiday weekend by picking tomatoes, corn, peppers, squash, onions and green beans from our fields. Fun was had by all, especially the kids! I saw quite a few smiles on little faces as our pint-sized guests marched proudly through the farm with baskets of freshly harvested veggies. And I know from experience that nothing makes mom and dad prouder than seeing kids excited about vegetables!

My goal this week was to create a recipe including all of our veggies and I am thrilled to have perfected one, Pick-Your-Own Veggies with Herb Butter.  The key to this recipe is adding the vegetables to the pot at different times based on their ideal cook times. The outcome is a masterpiece of veggies cooked to the perfect texture.

I used some herb butter from my freezer to punch up the flavor but plain butter is delicious as well. If you want to preserve some of your pickin’s for later, simply cool this dish in the refrigerator before transferring it to air tight containers. Date the containers and freeze them for up 6 months.

I invite you to come out to our veggies fields here at Eckert’s in Belleville and pick a little of everything. Take it home and celebrate your bounty with my Sauteed Pick-Your-Own Veggie recipe. Your taste buds will be astounded by fresh-picked flavors!

Ingredients

Herb Butter (plain butter can be substituted)

• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 tsp. lemon zest
• 1/4 cup mixed herb leaves, firmly packed

  Veggies

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• 8 oz green beans, trimmed and cut in half
• 1 small yellow squash, sliced into rounds then quartered
• 1 small zucchini, sliced into rounds then quartered
• 1 large tomato, seeded and chopped
• 4 ears of corn, kernels cut from the cob
• Kosher salt and pepper to taste
   

Instructions

1. To make herb butter, process softened butter, garlic and lemon zest in a food processor until smooth. Add herb leaves (we recommend a mixture of herbs such as basil, thyme, chives etc.). Pulse 3 to 4 times or until finely chopped. Transfer to a small bowl and store in refrigerator for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 3 months.
2. In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat, add onion, garlic and green pepper. Saute for 2-3 minutes, add ½ cup warm water and the green beans. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Add squash and tomato to the skillet and stir to incorporate. Cover and simmer for 5 more minutes. Stir corn into the veggie mixture, cover and simmer another 3 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Pour off cooking juices from the pot. Season veggies with 2 tablespoons of herb butter and salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately or cool and freeze in air tight containers or zip top bags for up to 6 months.
3. Makes 8-10 servings.