First Market Trip

Last Saturday we went to Bloomington, IN with friends to go to the farmer's market, hit Farm Bloomington for brunch and of course pop into Target. There were so many delicious things at the market! I bought baby squash, baby sweet potatoes, salad greens, asparagus, tomatoes and cherries.

I made a delicious market salad with some of the produce...

...and used some of leftovers for a 'hippie' lunch with tofu and quinoa.

So very glad summer (and cherry season!) is here. And also happy to have friends who like to shop, eat and cook.

You Say Tomato...

It arrived. The first tomato of summer from the farm. Big and purplish, slightly sweet and the perfect texture I should have sliced it, sprinkled it with salt and gobbled it up as quickly as possible. But there was only one. One beautiful specimen.

So I diced it up and scattered it over port and mushroom tortellini which was served on top of spinach pesto, also from farm. Delicious. Point, counterpoint.

I also made a summery cucumber salad for the side. A simple combination of English cucumbers sliced pretty thick, some onions sliced pretty thin (also from the farm), a little sour cream, a little sherry vinegar and the best dried dill you can buy from Penzey's spices. All it needs is a little salt, and perfection. More on cucumber salad later...

Mangez!

Love the Farm!

Tonight I tossed some of the fresh salad greens in a homemade lemon vinaigrette I made using my lovely new lemon reamer. I topped the greens with fresh asparagus, also from the farm, that I pan fried for a few minutes before steaming in the fry pan (my favorite way to prepare asparagus.) and some lemon-pepper baked tofu. The lemon, greens and asparagus combo was fresh and springy.

Mangez!

From the Farm

Last week I picked up the first delivery from Hairston Creek Farm, our CSA. It was filled with wonderful goodies like asparagus, salad greens, root vegetables and a bunch of chard. I have never prepared chard before, but was very intrigued by the possibilities, so I dug out this recipe from Deborah Madison and have it a shot on Monday night. The result was delicious and satisfying, perfect on a rainy evening. The chard gave the whole dish a silky, buttery taste that was simple and delicious. Try it, you'll like it.

Recipe: Chickpeas and Chard

You don't have to use a mortar and pestle to mash together the garlic and herbs, but it feels and smells great.

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 large onion, finely diced

pinch or 2 of saffron threads

2 garlic cloves

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1 cup cilantro leaves

1/4 cup parsley leaves

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

2 tsp. tomato paste

2 medium bunches of chard leave, with stems

2 15-oz cans chickpeas (drained and rinsed)

Heat one tbsp of oil in a wide skillet, then add onion and saffron. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 12-15 minutes . While it cooks, pound the garlic with 1/2 tsp. salt, cilantro, parsley and cumin into a rough paste. (Or you could use the food processor.) When the onions are golden and soft (they'll be VERY yellow from the saffron, so golden is judgement call) add the herb mixture to the pan with the tomato paste and work into the onions.

Slice the chard leaves off their stems and cook in a pot with two cups of water for about 10 minutes. Move to a colander, leaving water in pot. Trip the chard stems to even lengths, then chop to a fine dice and cook in the reserved water for 10-15 minutes.

Add the chickpeas to the onion mixture with 1 cup vegetable stock or water. Coarsely chop the chard leaves and to the mixture, simmer for 10 minutes and add stems. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve with pieces of naan or pita.

Mangez!

First Box of Organic Love

Today I picked up my first box from the Hairston Creek Farms CSA. It was chocked full of organic, delicious goodness: tomatoes, small onions, new potatoes, Japanese eggplant, small bell peppers, hot peppers, okra, cucumber, squash and a cantaloupe. So what did I create with it? What any good, southern boy raised eating out of the garden would cook:



-A tomato salad with onion dressed with a little pomegranate vinegar, a drizzle of olive oil and some blue cheese to sprinkle on top.
-Steamed new potatoes with a little butter and some dill.
-Oklahoma hushpuppies a.k.a. okra pancakes. Fried and fried.

I bought some popcorn tofu from Wheatsville Co-op earlier this week and it was the perfect accompaniment to the fresh veggies. It was all delicious and I can't wait to cook and eat the rest of the box.

Mangez!

CSA

What is a CSA? Community Supported Agriculture. It's basically a subscription for food. You pay a small farmer a certain amount and in return receive a share of the harvest. Its like going to the farmers market, BUT you don't have to go to the farmers market. Instead, you pick up your weekly or bi-weekly share at a neighborhood location. Some even deliver. Its good for the farmers because they have guaranteed income. It's good for you because most are organic and you're eating seasonally and locally. What could be better?

I've been reading about CSAs for a while now, but Michael Pollen had a link to Local Harvest in one of his blogs for the New York Times. Local Harvest was started by Guillermo Payet, featured in this months Gourmet in an article about Peru and its return to native foods. (More about Local Harvest here.) You can search for stores, farmers markets or CSAs in your area by zip code. Easy!

From the site, I found several CSAs in the Austin area and corresponded with one to work out the details of a subscription. Next Wednesday, I pick up my first box from Hairston Creek Farms. They've been growing organic certified produce since 1993 and it sounds wonderful. I'll keep you posted not only on what is included, but also what I make with it. Can't wait!

Mangez!