The Garden Apartment

The Amish Market Di(sh)patch: Ratatouille

This weekend I ventured out of northern Virginia to experience the Amish market in Charlotte Hall, Maryland. After bringing a remarkable amount of produce home, I made ratatouille. Read here about my experience at the market, or scroll down for the ratatouille recipe.

North St. Mary's County Farmers Market
37600 New Market Turner Road
Charlotte Hall MD 20622
301-475-4200 ext. 1404

Open Monday – Saturday, seasonally.  Produce, flowers, and Amish baked and canned goods.  Located in the parking lot of the Charlotte Hall Library.

Horse drawn buggies full of farm fresh produce clip-clopped into the Charlotte Hall, MD market. I had arrived at the Amish market. "This is the real deal," I commented to Mike and Bethany, friends who had suggested I join them on a trip to this remarkable place. These products were certainly farm fresh, transported from farms right down the road from the marketplace.

Despite the localness of the produce at this market, I had traveled much further than my usual Saturday morning trot into Old Town or Del Ray in Alexandria. In fact, I had been a little skeptical about making the forty minute drive out there. Once arriving, however, I knew it was well worth the drive just to experience such an authentic place.

 

One of many stands at the Amish market. In the background, a horse rests in the shade of trees.

Charlotte Hall, in Saint Mary's County, MD is home to many Amish families. Every day, Monday through Saturday, Amish families carry their produce to market by horse and buggy. 

In addition to the abundance of produce, one of the benefits of this market were beautiful baked goods, including pies, homemade noodles, and cakes. There was also homemade butter- mine was imprinted with a pretty floral design.

As a city-dweller shopping at urban farmers markets, an advantage of this market was the very low cost of buying vegetables. I spent $33 and was able to purchase about three times what I would normally buy at one of my regular markets. Of course, having a male friend willing to carry heavy bags of produce back to the car in between each stand also encouraged me to buy more. Most of what I bought is being frozen for the winter.

Here are some of the market highlights:

 Two types of eggplants- I bought one of each.

 

Corn was everywhere. This sweet corn had been picked just hours before I bought it.

Beautiful flowers. They also sold potted plants, including some large hydrangeas.

I brought home some enormous sunflowers, a combination of traditional yellow and red tinted.

In total I bought:

Fruit- cantaloupe, five peaches, and half of a sugar baby watermelon

Vegetables- baby tomatoes, two large tomatoes, a few pounds of pole beans, one extra-large red onion, two eggplants, three over-sized zucchinis, three green peppers, ten ears of corn

Other- a dozen eggs, homemade butter, homemade egg noodles, and a bundle of sunflowers.

I was recently given the River Cottage Cookbook, a wonderful cookbook for anyone trying to eat more seasonally. It also has great guidelines on gardening and how to sustainably raise different types of livestock. As I won't be raising- or butchering- any cows or chickens any time in the near future, I settled on making ratatouille with my market load.

I changed the recipe a little. River Cottage suggested cooking each vegetable separately in order to avoid some vegetables over cooking. I really didn't feel like washing four greasy pots and pans- and our kitchen is very small- so I settled on a different method. I simply started with the vegetables I knew would take the longest to cook, then added vegetables with shorter cook times toward the end.

Ratatouille

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces of eggplant, diced into one inch cubes
• 8 ounces of zucchini, thickly sliced
• 1/2 medium onion, thickly sliced
• 8 ounces cherry tomatoes, left whole
• 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
• olive oil
• a few basil leaves, torn
• salt and pepper

Directions

Heat a few TB of olive oil over medium heat in a large saute pan. Add eggplant and zuchhini. Saute until it starts to get tender. Increase heat a little to brown both vegetables. Add garlic and saute for about one minute.

Reduce heat back to medium. Add onion slices and remaining garlic. Cook until onion begins to soften, then add cherry tomatoes. Cook until the cherry tomatoes begin to wrinkle, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in basil leaves.

Add salt and pepper to taste.

Note: Throughout the cooking process, I continually added olive oil since the eggplant really soaked it all up.

The results:

I, singularly, really enjoyed the ratatouille. John dislikes eggplant and zucchini so this was difficult for him. In fact, he was so hungry after dinner that two scoops of ice cream were required to fill his belly. 

Some of you may consider me to be a mean wife forcing him to eat two vegetables he hates. I prefer the adjective optimistic, but in the future I'll prepare this when he's out of town.

 

Summer Salad Di(sh)patch

After being out of town for a week, I really anticipated Wednesday's Foggy Bottom market. My fridge was empty and I knew that July would bring a wider variety of produce selections.

D & S Farms had ripe peaches, delicious nectarines, raspberries, and enormous blackberries.

Freshly dug red, white, and blue potatoes from Quaker Valley Orchards. They also had delicious ripe bing cherries.

A new favorite vendor is Long Meadow Farms. One of the major appeals is that the produce is organic (non-certified, but they will happily talk to you about their practices). The farmer, Marvin, is usually at the booth with his sister. He's very friendly, helpful with recipe ideas, and seems to enjoy joking around with customers. For example:

Customer: What's the best way to take care of this basil?

Marvin: Use it all up and come back next week to buy some more.

He, of course, answered the question properly after his joke. I've found that their booth has interesting  variety, including heirloom varieties of tomatoes, various types of squash, and yellow pole beans (which have a more buttery flavor than green beans).

As usual, I was drawn to the Sunnyside Farms and Orchards stand. The folks there always have a good selection, meaning that my arms are overflowing with produce by the time I check out. I found two varieties of green beans: regular old green beans and their expensive sister haricots verts (which were about 5 times the price!). I bought the same cost value of both beans, meaning my bag of regular folks style green beans was much fuller. In addition they had tomatoes, onions, broccoli, cabbage, and much more. They also placed a very helpful warning by their blueberries: "Last Week for Blueberries!" Although my bag was too heavy for any more purchases at this point, their warning has inspired me to buy large quantities of blueberries for freezing this weekend.

After a quick stop for the necessary meat component at Smith Family Farms, and the corresponding bread from Atwaters, I headed home.

Here's (some of) what I brought home with me:

I wanted to do something simple after a long workday, so I put John to work recreating our sliders from a few weeks ago. With the intention of making something healthy to counterbalance the meat and cheese, I put together a summer salad.  You could do this with any variety of vegetables. Peppers or roasted eggplant would be a delicious addition/ replacement later in the summer. Here's what I did:

Summer Salad with an Herb Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup mixed pole beans (I used haricots verts and yellow pole beans), washed and steamed for 1-2 minutes
• 1 cup diced potatoes, boiled until just tender and immediately chilled (I used my multicolored variety)
• 1 cup tomato, cut into large sections (I used red and yellow tomatoes)
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 TB fresh basil, finely chopped
• 1 tsp fresh oregano
• 2 TB olive oil
• 1 TB red wine vinegar
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

In a large bowl, whisk olive oil, vinegar, shallots, garlic, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Add vegetables to the bowl and stir to mix. If desired, you can refrigerate the salad for 15-30 minutes prior to eating. It will help the flavors to marinate. Otherwise, serve immediately.

This made for a fairly healthy and light compliment to the less healthy sliders. However, when comparing the two side by side, my husband felt that the sliders had an unfair advantage of meat, cheese, and bread. I had to agree, but still enjoyed this colorful and tasty salad very much.

Mileage for this meal:

• Potatoes- Quaker Valley Orchards, 91.2 miles  
• Red tomato, scallion, and haricots verts- Sunnyside Farm and Orchard, 71 miles
• Yellow tomatoes and yellow pole beans- Long Meadow Farms, 90 miles
• Garlic- Sunnyside Farm and Orchard, 71 miles
• Basil and Oregano- my garden, 0 miles
• Not Local: oil, salt, pepper, vinegar

Eastern Market Di(sh)patch: Stuffed Squash Blossoms

And. . . Week Four of One Local Summer!

 

I've always been a big fan of Washington DC's historic Eastern Market, especially considering that you can arrive with the intention of buying vegetables and leave with an artwork, a dress, and some funky jewelry. Yesterday was no exception: I did in fact bring home a fashionable market abundance including a hot pink dress, several pairs of earrings, a few pieces of squash, some tomatoes, and some nectarines. For once, my market bag was not too heavy (grocery money = clothing money). In reality, this was money well spent since I will be on vacation next week.

Though I have shopped at Eastern Market countless times, this was the first time I really opened my eyes to how "local" the vendors were. When I saw one vendor selling olive oil with a Virginia label, I had to laugh out loud. I looked at him and said in disbelief: "Olive oil?" Ah, an import from California with a Virginia label. Perfect.

Okay, so I'd have to ask a lot of questions while I walked around. Sure enough, there were wholesalers selling produce from California and South Carolina.  But, there were also many vendors from southern Maryland and the Eastern panhandle area of West Virginia. I was very careful to buy only from these folks. Some of the highlights included:

Lettuce! Apparently lettuce is still available in some places. This vendor from southern Maryland had several interesting varieties including a beautiful gourmet mix with edible flowers. I also read in my Fresh Farms update that DuPont circle has greenhouse grown lettuce throughout the summer.

Squash was everywhere. These guys were all so cute that I couldn't resist a photo. Of course, by the end of the summer, I will probably not feel inspired to photograph (or eat) zucchini or squash.

One of the vendors made several varieties of homemade hommos, garden salsa, and black bean dip. The salsa was very good, and the garlic chive hommos was also very tasty. I look forward to returning and buying a few of their homemade goods.

The real excitement, however, was a vendor selling squash blossoms. I had heard about squash blossoms being used in Mediterranean cooking, but this was my first time actually seeing them sold at a market. I had to have them, and I was pretty sure I knew what to do with them.

Stuffed squash blossoms

 

• 6-8 large squash blossoms, rinsed and prepared*
• 1 TB olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1/4 cup diced onion
• 1 garlic clove, smashed and minced
• 1/4 cup diced zucchini or squash
• 1/4 cup diced tomatoes
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup feta cheese
• splash of white wine
• salt and pepper

* In order to make the stuffing process a little easier, I made a small slit down the squash blossom, and then twisted the ends of each blossom together once stuffed. I'm sure expert blossom chefs have a better technique, but this worked okay for me. . . they didn't really stay together very well, but their "bite size" was perfect, albeit a little messy.

Heat olive oil on medium heat. Saute onion, garlic, and zucchini until tender (about 5 minutes). Set aside and allow to cool off a little.

Add bread crumbs, tomato, white wine, feta, salt and pepper to the onion mixture. Scoop a spoonful of the stuffing into each blossom. Twist the ends of each blossom.

Return the blossoms to the saute pan and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Drizzle additional ollive oil if desired, and serve warm.

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

So, what did I think? Besides feeling slightly strange eating something I hadn't really considered food, these were pretty good. The blossoms had a mild and sweet flavor.

Other recommended cooking methods for these included stuffing them with sausage or a variety of cheeses; battering and deep frying them; or sauteeing them in an omelet or frittata.

Di(sh)patch of summer bounty AND Mini burger "Sliders"

Do you see all of the amazing vegetables and fruits pictured here? Now, do you see the package of ground beef in the bottom right corner? Call me a bad person if you like, but the idea of burgers on fresh baked rolls with juicy tomatoes was more tempting to me than anything else in my market bag (sorry vegetarians!)

Yesterday was a fantastic day at the Foggy Bottom market. I began at D & S Farms first. Ever since a disappointing experience with raspberries selling out, I always purchase my fruit first. Yesterday, I felt the need to rush for the peaches. Apparently my desire to hoard peaches was completely unfounded: Sue of D & S Farms informed me they will be in season until September. They also had raspberries, currants, blackberries, zucchini, and tomatoes. You can find them at the Del Ray market on Saturdays.

Next, I stopped by Sunnyside Farm and Orchard where I bought garlic, a large bunch of radishes, and beautiful purple kohlrabi (recipe coming soon!). . .

and a variety of different squashes. The patty-pans are from Long Meadow Farm.

After purchasing a pound of ground beef from Smith Family Farms, I wanted to buy hamburger buns.  Atwaters Bakery had really small rosemary herb dinner rolls. They were much too small for a real burger.  Sometimes when you shop at the farmers market you have to get a little creative with your options. Sliders anyone?

To make the sliders I simply made extra small burger patties (seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic powder). They were pan fried over medium- high heat. In the meantime, I toasted the rolls in the oven. For the toppings, I sauteed some sweet onions very slowly until they caramelized.  I sliced some Ugly tomatoes, tore up a little lettuce, and added the usual condiments.  Here's to a meal that made my meat-eating husband very happy!

The Last of the Lettuce Di(sh)patch: Locally Inspired Greek Salad

We are really big lettuce eaters in my house, so when I heard that this weekend marked the end of the local lettuce season, I knew I would need to buy a large quantity to satisfy my craving. This di(sh)patch pays tribute to lettuce with a recipe for a delicious locally inspired (with a little bit of help from the Mediterranean) Greek Salad. Read here about my trip to the farmer's market, or simply scroll down for the recipe and recipe adaptations.

It was wonderful to wake up early Saturday morning, embrace the beautiful day, and head straight to the Old Town Alexandria market with my friend. I've come to know the Old Town Market well, which is comforting, since I know which farmers and producers I can trust.

Most notably, this weekend marked the end of the lettuce season. It has gotten warmer over the last few weeks, and lettuce does not grow well in high temperatures. Spring Valley Farm and Orchards was selling large containers of a lovely lettuce mix, so I grabbed one as quickly as I could. 

In addition, they had lovely zucchinis and.  . . . 

. . . a variety of different beets.  I purchased the light red Chioggia beets.

I wandered off to the Blue Ridge Dairy Co. where I expanded my horizons beyond the buffalo style mozzarella and purchased a block of feta cheese. I also purchased two cartons of yogurt: one plain for a homemade cucumber dill dressing, and one "Honey Yo Fresh" yogurt which is great as a breakfast yogurt served with fresh fruit.

Finally, I stopped by to see my friends at Bigg Riggs Farm and bought two cartons of juicy cherries.

I have to pat myself on the back for just a moment and say that I really did a good job with managing the market this week, meaning that this was about all I needed to provide for a few days worth of good eating. I still had lovely baby yellow tomatoes, half of an Ugly tomato, fresh garlic, and scallions all hanging around in my kitchen. Combined with my market cucumber, lettuce, and feta cheese, all added up to one possibility: my favorite Greek Salad.

As much as I try to eat locally, there are simply some things I cannot and will not give up when it comes to food. At the top of the list are olives: joyous, delicious olives. Let's face it: a Greek Salad is not a Greek Salad without olives.

When John and I got married last summer, one of the best gifts we received was the Williams Sonoma Salads book. We have enjoyed countless recipes from this collection.  I have felt little need to change this, though I do sometimes adjust it for the ingredients that I have available. Following is a link to this recipe. 

Greek Salad Recipe Here

Here are my suggestions for using this recipe:

• Don't feel confined to the vegetables listed. I had no bell peppers to use since they are not in season yet. Instead I used two types of tomatoes: a red Mr. Ugly tomato, and several sweet yellow baby tomatoes. In the past, I've enjoyed chopping up a fennel bulb and adding it to the mixture. I've also enjoyed eating the mixture without lettuce.
• Use a quality olive oil. You won't regret it. I used Olav Organic which had a light citrus flavor which really complimented this salad.
• Marinate the vegetables in the dressing. After whisking the salad dressing, I always let the vegetable mixture soak up the flavors for at least 30 minutes. Then, I dump it on top of the lettuce and add the cheese. 
• Add fresh herbs into the lettuce mixture. I always add fresh dill and oregano into the lettuce leaves.
• Buy a block of feta and crumble it yourself. There's a big difference between this and the pre-crumbled stuff. It's fresher, has more moisture, and (in my experience), a much better flavor. Plus, you can make the chunks as huge as you want them!
  

        

  Mmm. . . now that's a satisfying salad.              

Di(sh)patch from Foggy Bottom: Plum and Mozzarella Crostinis

They have arrived!  By "they" I mean raspberries, of course.  I found a lovely bunch of raspberries yesterday at the D & S Farms booth at the Foggy Bottom Farmer's Market.  In addition to this much coveted fruit, D & S also had blackberries, some adorable yellow baby tomatoes, and zucchinis ranging in size from baby to freak of nature (I bought one of the latter-sized options).  Due to their extreme cuteness, I brought some of the baby tomatoes home as well.

Another highlight at today's market was the Quaker Valley Orchard stand. In addition to raspberries, they were also selling two varieties of cherries on the branch.  As tempting as that was, I opted for already picked box of Rainier cherries. 

After buying a few more items: a delicious baguette from Bonaparte Breads, eggs and a really good looking steak from Highfield Dairy, I headed home to ruminate over my bag of goodies.

Upon arriving at home, I noticed my West Virginia plums from the Saturday Alexandria Farmer's Market. They were starting to show some signs of withering, so it seemed as if dinner should somehow incorporate them.  And those adorable baby tomatoes!  I just had to use them too. Spying the baguette freshly purchased at the market, I got an idea for a rather unorthodox bruschetta-like creation: plum, tomato, and mozzarella crostini. 

This concoction may sound a bit odd, and I have to admit that I was worried about how it would be received when I brought it out for John to sample.  As for John, he looked nervous and perplexed when I presented the plate to him. After one bite, however, we both agreed that it was actually really very good: a nice combination of sweet and savory flavors combined with crunchy and smooth textures in every bite. 

And for the record, the pictures in this market di(sh)patch really don't do justice to the beauty of the creation, but I will post them anyway. 

Plum, Baby Tomato, and Mozzarella Crostini

Ingredients:

• 4-5 medium plums, pits removed and sliced into bite-size pieces
• 1/2 Cup baby tomatoes (any small sweet tomato would work well)
• 1 scallion, chopped into thin slices
• 1 1/2 TB balsamic vinegar
• 4 TB olive oil
• 2 TB fresh basil, finely chopped
• 1 clove of garlic, sliced
• 1 small twig of fresh rosemary
• 1/2 baguette
• about 4 ounces of buffalo mozzarella, sliced into bite size pieces
• salt and pepper

Instructions:

Pre-heat the oven to 425F.  Slice the baguette and place each piece on a foil-lined baking sheet.

In the meantime, whisk the balsamic vinegar, 2 TB olive oil, basil, and a little salt and pepper in a medium bowl.  Add the plums, tomatoes, and scallions.  Set aside.

Heat the remaining 2 TB of olive oil in a small saucepan.  Add the garlic and rosemary.  Simmer for a few minutes.  Do not allow the garlic or rosemary to burn; simply let their flavors release into the olive oil.

Place the baguette in the oven for about 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown.

Remove baguette from the oven and brush each slice generously with the flavored olive oil.  Place a spoonful of the plum and tomato mixture onto each slice.  If desired, drizzle each slice with any remaining flavored oil.  

Add the mozzarella slices to the top of each piece.  Place the crostinis into the broiler for about 2 minutes, until the mozzarella just melts.

Serve immediately.

Di(sh)patch from Old Town: Mozzarella omelet with fresh herbs

My trip to the Old Town Alexandria market yesterday was richly rewarded with new treats from some of my favorite vendors. Read on to hear more about Bigg Riggs Farm, Spring Valley Farm and Orchard, Blue Ridge Dairy, and Babes in the Wood.  My recipe for Mozzarella Omelet with fresh herbs is at the end of this market di(sh)patch.

I had only planned to drop by the Old Town market yesterday morning before heading up to Del Ray on my constant quest for local raspberries.  My plan was to purchase some of that Big Riggs ramp mustard I raved about a few weeks ago.  My mother-in-law has been asking for some so that she could try my ramp mustard roasted potatoes. 

When I arrived at the Bigg Riggs stand, I was amazed to see the amount of fantastic produce available: beautiful cherries, fresh salad greens, scallions, strawberries, and new potatoes.  I snatched up most of the above mentioned along with my Ramp Mustard.  I stopped to chat with Calvin of Bigg Riggs about the burst of fruits and vegetables at their stand. Since I visited their stand throughout the winter, I have become accustomed to the sight of all their wonderful jams, jellies, and other preserved goods. Yesterday, I took note of a recent addition at their stand-- strawberry daiquiri mix! After a long chat, he invited me to come out to their West Virginia farm sometime this summer. I look forward to visiting and seeing how things operate out there. 

I was so inspired by the abundance of produce at the Bigg Riggs stand that I decided to venture on throughout the Old Town market to see what the other producers were offering. I will point out again that you should ask a lot of questions when shopping at the Old Town farmers market since some of the vendors do not make or grow their own products.  Everyone I mention in this di(sh)patch is a producer and sells only products produced on their farms.

As I walked through the market, I was delighted to see the Blue Ridge Dairy-- whose products I have enjoyed in the past purchased at the Sunday DuPont Circle market.  I picked up some of their buffalo style mozzarella.  I also bought some of their Honey Yo yogurt-- which would go really nicely with the cherries from Bigg Riggs.

When I arrived at Spring Valley Farm and Orchardstand my jaw may have actually fell open.  They had piles full of bright gold and neon purple cauliflower.  I had never seen anything quite like it. They also had baby zucchini, baby squash, radishes, bunches of multi-colored beets, baby cucumbers, and much more. 

How incredible are these cauliflowers? Apparently these are not the result of any sort of genetic engineering, but rather the result of selective breeding.  And, not surprisingly, studies show these varieties to have higher concentrations of vitamins and nutrients. The orange cauliflower may have up to 25 times the concentration of the white varieties! This is a good example of how accustomed we get to standardized vegetables (tomato= red, carrot= orange, cauliflower= white).  In reality, there are many varieties of vegetables.  I can't wait to try out my rainbow of cauliflower.

At this point, I decided the Old Town market had really satisfied my need for produce, and knew I had better get some meat for the week. I went to Babes in the Wood-- one of my favorite places to purchase pork. I selected a rack of baby back ribs, a product I've really enjoyed in the past. Babes in the Woods goes well beyond the concept of free range. Their pigs are "forest fed" and live in a pigs most natural habitat. They allow no more than 2-3 pigs per acre, which means that their pigs get plenty of exercise. Additionally, their farm has a very low environmental impact because it is not overcrowded like most factory farms. Visitors are welcome at the farm, which is about 40 miles south of Charlottesville. Apparently, most visitors are surprised when they pull in the farm's driveway because the pigs tend to run alongside their cars! Now that's something I have to see!   

When I arrived home, it struck me that I had everything I needed to make a (relatively) local breakfast for this week's One Local Summer challenge. I'm a little over the 100 mile mark with a few of these, but here it goes:

Mozzarella Omelet with fresh herbs

• Three eggs-- Highfield Dairy (120 miles)
• 1 clove of garlic, crushed-- Sunnyside Farm and Orchard (71 miles)
• Fresh basil-- my backyard (0 miles)
• Fresh oregano-- my backyard (0 miles)
• Fresh mozzarella-- Blue Ridge Dairy (44 miles)
• Half of a tomato, diced-- southern MD (35-40 miles)
• Salt, pepper, oil-- not local

Heat the oil in a medium frying pan.  Add crushed garlic and saute for 1-2 minutes. In the meantime, whisk the eggs with a little salt and pepper.  Pour the eggs into the frying pan and add the fresh herbs and tomatoes.When the mixture begins to cook, add small slices of mozzarella.  Cover until egg is completely cooked.  Fold in half and serve.

I served the omelet with cherries from Bigg Riggs Farm and Honey Yo Yogurt from the Blue Ridge Dairy.

A delicious breakfast.  Now, what to do with the rest of the wonderful produce I bought?

Di(sh)patch from Foggy Bottom, Gai Lan (Chinese broccoli)

What looks sort of like mini broccoli with white flower buds on the top?  Gai Lan, a Chinese vegetable I found at the Sunnyside Farm and Orchards stand at the Foggy Bottom Market on Wednesday.  I couldn't resist asking what it was and, of course, trying some out. The folks at Sunnyside Farm and Orchards were "really excited" about this little vegetable. As it turns out, Gai Lan is not acutally classified as broccoli. Alternately called "kai lin," "Chinese kale," or "Chinese broccoli," it's a vegetable traditionally eaten in many Asian countries.  A quick search on it's nutritional value determined that it's very high in folate (great for pregnant women), calcium, and very low in calories. 

The recommended way to prepare this was a simple stir fry in some oil, garlic, lemon juice and a little salt and pepper.  It was delicious prepared in this simple manner.  The leaves have a slightly bitter flavor (sort of like kale), while the florets have a sweeter flavor.  The texture was nice and cruchy, also.  I do think that if I was to prepare this again, I would try a more savory recipe.  I found an excellent sounding "Gai Lin with Oyster Sauce" recipe at Steamy Kitchen featuring garlic, ginger, sherry, and oyster sauce.  For the time being, the simple stirfry proved to be a quick and tasty side dish served along with some leftover frittata (check out the Houndstooth Gourmet's great recipe) and a light dessert of fresh cherries and strawberries-- all locally sourced.

Now, for the market update. . . .

D&S Farms did have raspberries on Thursday, but I narrowly missed the last bunch by one customer. In all fairness (or rather, unfairness to me) the customer in front of me bought a whole box of raspberries. Sue did tell me that she will have more raspberries at Del Ray tomorrow, as well as blackberries!  She also had several different varieties of cherries.  I bought a delicious bright red variety which was both sweet and tart.  I will be very sad when cherries are no longer in season. 

Highfield Dairy had some delicious looking potato tarts in addition to their goat cheese tarts (which are amazing).  Given that I already had plans to make a potato frittata, I settled on a dozen of their rainbow eggs-- bringing home a carton mixed with brown, light blue, and white eggs. This completely astounded my husband who never realized there were eggs any other color than white or brown.  Different breeds of chickens lay different colored eggs, but the inside of the egg is essentially the same.  I was also informed that Highfield Dairy will be selling fruit sorbet this weekend at the DuPont Circle market.  As a word of warning, it apparently sells out very quickly.

I'm looking forward to a weekend visiting various markets in the area.  There is so much great produce this time of the year that I am feeling very fortunate to be a Washingtonian.

A Rainy Dishpatch: Bok Choy Stirfry

When the skies darkened at 3:00 Wednesday, I watched from my downtown office as people raced through Lafayette Park looking for cover.  The heavy rain and strong winds made my heart sink with fear that the Wednesday Foggy Bottom market would shut down.  I had just read in my Fresh Farms newsletter that cherries (and maybe even raspberries-- raspberries!) would be at market. Forget fears about bad weather, my greatest fear was that I wouldn't get any delicious fresh fruit.

At 5:00 the skies seemed a little bit better, so I decided to take a risk and meander off to Foggy Bottom to scope out the situation. As I approached the metro station, I could see the white tents in the distance. The farmers had toughed out the storm. The thunder rumbled in the distance, and I dashed around grabbing up my favortites, also taking note of the newcomers. 

At D & S Farms I found butter lettuce with the roots still on. Apparently it can last up to three weeks kept in water, but I think I will be eating mine within a few days.  I also picked up some more of those Mr. Ugly tomatoes I raved about this weekend. As I was about to pay for my produce I spotted three containers of sweet cherries. Sweet cherries!  Without a second thought, I grabbed a box.  Sue (of D & S Farms) told me that the sweet cherries won't be around for very long, but that she should have them again on Saturday at Del Ray.  She said that it's possible some of the Pennsylvania farms will have them after our immediate area is finished with them. After taking the cherries home, it was proven that cherries don't last long in my house.  We have already eaten all of them.  I will have to buy a few cartons this weekend. 

Next I got my favorite goat cheese spread from Highfield Dairy, a garlic flavored goat cheese that is delicious with raw veggies or fresh bread. As the rain started to pound down on me again, I ran under the tent of Sunnyside Farm and quickly grabbed several things that looked good: bok choy, fresh garlic, scallions, and new potatoes. Finally, I spotted a vendor with one box of sugar snap peas left while running towards the metro. I quickly paid for them in the pouring rain, then ran to catch my train.

This may seem like a lot to go through for a few bags of fresh veggies and fruit.  I even wondered if I was reaching new levels of ridiculousness. . . . That is, until I got home and began to cook.  I know I preach the "eat local" mantra plenty already.  However, I must tell you: the items I bought at the market Wednesday were some of the freshest and tastiest ingredients I have ever used in my kitchen.  If I did pay more for them than I would at the grocery store (which I'm fairly certain the prices were close), it was completely worth it.

  

Pictured here is my market abundance from today.

When I got home it seemed natural to throw together the bok choy and sugar snap peas into a nice stirfry.  I began by chopping up some of the scallions and garlic.  This garlic-- with the greens still attached-- was by far the freshest garlic I have ever purchased.  The outer skins were barely papery and the inside flesh was actually fleshy and creamy white-- not rubbery and yellow like some of the garlic I've bought from the grocery store. As I was mincing the garlic, John yelled from the living room that he could actually smell it. Depending on your tolerance for garlic, this may or may not convince you to shop at the farmers market.

As I was sauteeing the various ingredients for the stir fry, I grabbed a sugar snap pea out of my wok.  It would not be an exaggeration to say that I was astounded by its sweet flavor and crisp texture.  Clearly these ingredients were about as fresh as you could find without actually growing them in your own backyard (or lack of, as we have already established).  Similarly, the bok choy was very tender and had a slightly peppery flavor. My adventure through the torrential downpour resulted in a very satisfying dinner.

All told, it only took about 20-30 minutes to make this delicious meal.  And just like some of the other recipes you'll find here, the best thing about it was the wonderfully fresh flavors of good quality food.

Without further ado, here's the recipe:

Stirfry with Bok Choy and Sugar Snap Peas

Prep time: 5 minutes ---  Cook Time: 15 minutes--- Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2-3 TB vegetable oil
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, smashed and minced
• 3 scallions, roughly chopped into half inch pieces (set aside green parts)
• One pound of chicken, sliced into thin pieces (chicken is optional: this meal would be delicious vegetarian)
• One Cup of sugar snap peas
• One small head of bok choy, roughly chopped (chop the leaves separately and set aside)
• 2-3 TB soy sauce
• dash of white wine
• salt and pepper to taste

Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Put 1 TB of the oil in a wok.  Sautee the scallions over medium heat for about 3 minutes.  Add 1 TB of soy sauce and the garlic to the wok. Saute for an addional minute.  Remove. This allows the oil to pick up the flavors from the garlic and the scallions before you cook the chicken. This will give the chicken more flavor.

Add more oil to the wok if necessary.  Sear the chicken pieces for 2-3 minutes on each side until the chicken in nicely browned.  Return the garlic and scallion mixture to the wok.  Add the sugar snap peas, one more TB of soy sauce, and a dash of white wine.  Cover and cook for 1-2 minutes. 

Next, add the chopped bok choy slices.  Cook covered for about two minutes and then add the bok choy leaves.  If you would like, you can add the green parts of the scallions at this time also.  In addition, I put some of the green stems from my fresh garlic into the mixture.  You can also add more soy sauce, if you desire a little more seasoning. Cover and cook for about two more minutes until the bok choy leaves are bright green.

Remove mixture from the wok and serve over rice.  Enjoy!

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This was my first time cooking bok choy.  It was so simple to make and delicious served in a stir fry.  I still have one head of bok choy left.  If anyone has suggestions on how to prepare it, I would love to hear from you.

Old Town Di(sh)patch: Grilled Steak with Argula Pesto sauce and Roasted Potatoes with Ramp Mustard and Spring Onions

I became wary of the Old Town Alexandria Farmer's Market in early springtime.  The first annoyance was a booth that was selling produce from California.  The second turnoff occurred when a vendor claimed to be selling me "just picked" asparagus. I returned home to unwrap my local asparagus only to discover rubber bands stating clearly "Produce of Mexico."  Ugh.  Maybe he just had those rubber bands laying around before he bundled the asparagus. Right.

The other markets I frequent are all run by the Fresh Farms non-profit which ensures producer only markets. This morning I decided to give Old Town another chance.  This time I was determined to be selective about my purchases and to ask a lot of questions. I was reminded that despite a few booths like the above mentioned, there are some fantastic producers selling unique and authentically local goods in Old Town.

One of my favorites is the Bigg Riggs Farm booth. They produce everything they sell on their family farm.  Their West Virginia farm has been there for five generations, but the idea to turn their fruit products into a year round product (jams, jellies, apple butters) came when one family member (the young man who you'll usually find running the booth) was deployed in Iraq in 2003.  His fellow marines encouraged him to expand the family business to a wider regional audience.  You can usually find farm fresh eggs at their booth, and now that the weather is turning warm, fruits and vegetables will emerge soon.  Their hot pepper jelly is incredible served alone or mixed with cream cheese. 

Today I bought the Ramp Mustard.  The taste is phenomenal-- like a gourmet mustard you'd find at a specialty store.  It was recommended as a pretzel dip.  This di(sh)patch recipe will feature the mustard in roasted potatoes.

After finding the mustard, I was off to look for something to grill. I've had great products from the Virginia forest fed pork producer Babes in the Wood this winter, but my pork intake has been a little too high lately, so I made a healthy choice and headed off to buy some red meat. 

I ventured on to the Smith Family Farm booth.    As I waited for my grass-fed Porterhouse steak, I was informed about their 5th generation family farm in Gainesville, Virginia. Since the 1980s, developers have been pressuring them to sell the farm.  The family has been tenaciously holding on to their land while housing developments have cropped up all around them on former farmland.  It is one thing to read the statistic that two acres of farm land disappear every minute.  It's quite another experience to talk to a farmer facing this and know that the money paid for his products is helping a family to carry on their livelihood.

With these purchases, I had just what I needed for tonight's dinner.  I already had some fresh arugula, basil, new potatoes, and spring onions at home. 

Gorgeous and Enormous Spring Onions

Following is my di(sh)patch recipe for: Grilled Porterhouse Steak with arugula pesto, served with a side of Roasted Potatoes with Ramp Mustard and Spring Onions.

Grilled Porterhouse Steak with Arugula Pesto Sauce

• 16 ounce Porterhouse (T-Bone) Steak

Rub the steak with salt and pepper.  Set aside for 30-45 minutes while the grill heats.

Prepare pesto and begin roasting potatoes at this time.  When potatoes are beginning to brown, place steak on grill.  Grill 6-7 minutes on each side. Serve with Basil-Arugula Pesto sauce drizzled on top.

Basil- Arugula Pesto (adapted from www.epicurious.com)

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 cups fresh basil leaves
• 1 cup arugula leaves
• 1/4 cup toasted walnuts or pinenuts
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 2 garlic cloves
• dash or two of lemon juice
• water (if needed)

In a food processor, pulse the first six ingredients.

Add a dash or two of lemon juice.  Pulse again.  If you'd like the consistency to be a little thinner, add some water.

For Steak Sauce:

Melt 1-2 TB butter.  Add a small amount of the Basil-Arugula pesto to the melted butter (to taste). 

* Note: You will have leftover pesto to serve up with bread, over pasta, or in future recipes.

Roasted Redskin Potatoes with Ramp Mustard and Spring Onions

• 1 lb redskin potatoes (skins on), chopped into 1 inch pieces
• 2 TB Ramp Mustard (any mustard of choice would work; whole grain mustards are great with potatoes also)
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 tsp butter, melted
• 1-2 tsp white wine
• 1-2 tsp honey
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 spring onion chopped
• sprig of fresh oregano (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 425 F.  Place foil over a cookie sheet and set aside. 

Whisk mustard, olive oil, butter, white wine, honey, garlic, and oregano together in a large bowl.  Add potatoes to the bowl and toss until evenly coated.  Pour potatoes onto the cookie sheet.  Salt and pepper.

Place in oven and bake on top rack for 20-25 minutes.  Remove from oven and turn potatoes.  Toss chopped spring onion on top. 

Return to lower rack of the oven for another 20-25 minutes, until potatoes are browned and crispy on the outside.

Serve potatoes with fresh oregano on top (optional).

Grilled Steak with Arugula Pesto and roasted potatoes with Ramp Mustard