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Last Monday I sat on a plane at Louis Armstrong International Airport, Brian’s hand in mine as we taxied down the runway and lifted off, on our way home to Charlottesville. Out the window I watched a city that I love dearly fall away, nostalgic and missing New Orleans already.
We’d arrived Friday morning to heat and humidity that we won’t (hopefully) see in Virginia for another two months. After checking bags at our hotel, changing into shorts and slathering on sunscreen we set out into the city with two friends who’d joined us for four days of exploring, absorbing, listening and, most importantly, eating. As the veteran visitors, Brian and I had laid out an agenda based on food - our nine meals were carefully scheduled and the rest of the trip was woven loosely around their locations.
As New Orleans disappeared beneath a bank of hazy clouds last Monday I found myself thinking that we could live there, Brian and I, in a cute Creole cottage just downriver from the French Quarter. We’d paint our home in shades of blue and grey with a vibrant yellow, or maybe eggplant, accent around the windows and doors. There would be bikes leaned up against the side of the house, one with a basket, ready at a moment’s notice to be ridden into the Quarter for lunch or to the Crescent City Farmer’s Market for fresh, local seafood and produce. Our yard would be tiny, just big enough for a vegetable garden and a stone terrace with an umbrella-covered picnic table. We’d string lanterns from the trees and host crawfish boils on that terrace, invite guests who would wear jaunty hats and sip frosty cocktails as they unconsciously swayed to the sounds of Doreen’s clarinet wafting from the stereo.
It is a lovely dream, one that I could see becoming a reality one day if we could just find a way to get used to the stifling heat. And the cockroaches - complete terror only scratches the surface of the affect that those little buggers have on me. And the city’s status as the murder capital of the USA... Minor details, since I already have the biggest obstacle solved - vegetables. Did you notice that my list of traditional NOLA fare does not include even a hint of green? While we happily consumed fried / buttered / sugared food for four full days, I believe that four days must be the limit. For as I dreamt about our little blue Creole cottage and crawfish boils and lanterns strung from trees and clinking glasses of frosty beverages, I managed to squeeze a giant bowl of homegrown greens onto the linen-covered table in the middle of that backyard terrace.
A vegetable garden would be an absolute necessity to our New Orleans lifestyle.
The next day, back at work in Charlottesville and fully submerged in reality, Brian and I met a friend for lunch at Feast. I ordered a mixed salad plate, and while I couldn’t stop talking about the wonderful food in New Orleans, my mind was distracted by how amazingly satisfying the plate full of veggies in front of me was. And on Saturday, at our own City Market, we filled our basket with all the green we could get our hands on - two heads of lettuce, two bunches of both kale and collards, two pounds of asparagus.
I plan to share some of our favorite New Orleans-inspired dishes here on Bella Eats in the next month or two (along with some photographs from our trip!), but just had to give our systems a break this last 10 days. I'd originally thought that a full month of NOLA fare on this little blog could be fun, but have decided instead to spread those rich, indulgent dishes out, to balance them with recipes like this side of wilted spinach tossed with fresh peas, garlic and scallions. It's better this way, I promise.
Tangles of earthy spinach play well with the sweet peas in this dish. The mild flavors are complimented nicely by the subdued bite of sliced garlic and a generous handful of scallions. Serve alongside a fillet of white fish dressed simply with lemon, sea salt and herbs for a healthy, feel-good-to-the-core meal.
1 bunch of scallions, dark and light green parts diced (about 1/4 cup)
3 garlic cloves, sliced
2 cups of fresh or frozen peas
1 cup white wine
4 large handfulls of spinach, tough stems removed
sea salt and pepper
Method
Heat olive oil and 1 tbsp butter in deep skillet over medium heat. Add the scallions and sliced garlic, stirring to coat with oil and butter. Let saute' for 2-3 minutes, not letting the garlic brown.
Add the peas, and saute' for another 2-3 minutes, until the garlic starts to turn golden brown. Add the wine, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and allow to cook for another 2-3 minutes. If using fresh peas, be sure to test one before adding the spinach to be sure that it is cooked.
Add the spinach, stirring to coat with liquid. Allow spinach to heat through and wilt, 2-3 more minutes. Add last tbsp of butter and salt and pepper to taste.
Last Saturday was the opening weekend for the 2010 Charlottesville City Market. I awoke bright and early that morning, positively giddy with excitement, ready to greet old friends and fill our basket with local meat, cheese, eggs, coffee and greens. I not-so-gently shook Brian awake, bounced down the hall to brush my teeth and tame my hair, pulled on jeans and slipped into sandals all in the amount of time it typically takes me to fumble around groggily looking for the ‘snooze’ button on my alarm.
We arrived beneath a sky washed with shades of pink and blue, just as the cool morning air was pierced by golden sunbeams slipping between historic brick buildings. Our bodies cast long shadows on the sidewalk as we made our way towards the parking lot full of rainbow-hued tents, listening to the chatter of vendors and patrons mingled with the strum of a banjo and the bark of a dog. The intoxicating smell of sizzling, smokey breakfast sausage wafted our way as the folks from Babes in the Wood grilled plump links for the line of people curled around their booth, ready to get their fill of a market favorite missed for the last four months.
We made our way down the already-crowded aisles, stopping to admire a booth of freshly cut tulips resembling painted Easter eggs swaying atop fluorescent green stems. Our first destination, always, is Double H Farm, where we're sure to receive a big bear-hug from Richard and a bright, happy smile from Jean. It was no different last Saturday, and even though we saw each other every few weeks through the long, cold Winter, we greeted each other as if it had been months since our last visit, all so excited that Spring is finally here and we'll be able to catch up every week.
After a brief chat, our basket was filled with a dozen eggs, arugula, kale, sliced ham and a 6-pack of lettuce plants. Goodbyes were said alongside "see you next week!" and Brian and I moved on to explore the rest of the market. We stopped at the Shenandoah Joe booth for our morning cup of coffee and a pound of whole beans for the week, before moving on to Night Sky Farm for some samples of chevre and the purchase of fresh feta cheese. We wandered between booths, waving to familiar faces and introducing ourselves to new vendors, until finally our basket was filled to the brim and our wallets were empty.
Once home I surveyed our purchases, planned our menu for the week and penned our grocery shopping list. I love this time of year, when local, seasonal produce begins to inform our meal choices, when the trip to the grocery store happens only after a visit to the farmer's market.
Greens will play a prominent role in our diet for the next few months, until a greater variety of locally-grown produce becomes available. I'm okay with that, as it seems that there are endless possibilities for the leafy, fiber and vitamin-full vegetables. Last week we tried kale chips for the very first time, after seeing them pop up on many of my favorite blogs. We used green curly kale and, although not as crispy as a potato chip, they were really quite tasty. Next time we'll try lacinato kale, as it seems that the thicker leaves will make for a more substantial chip.
We also spread the baked kale across whole wheat pitas brushed with olive oil, and then topped the 'pizzas' with thinly sliced red onion and thick slices of fresh mozzarella. Delicious, and such a healthy, quick dinner.
Baked Kale Chips
Ingredients
one large bunch of kale (I used the green, curly variety, but I think that Lacinato would be even better)
1-2 tbsp olive oil
sea salt
freshly grated parmesan
Method
Preheat oven to 350*
Rinse and dry kale as best you can with paper towels or in a salad spinner. Tear into bite-size pieces, discarding tough central stems.
Toss kale with olive oil, just to coat very lightly. Spread kale across baking sheets in one layer. Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly grated parmesan.
Bake at 350* for 10-15 minutes, until edges are starting to brown and kale gets mostly crispy. Remove from oven and remove from tray, laying kale chips out on a wire rack to cool slightly. Serve immediately.
Our City Market lost someone very dear this week. John Coles, founder of the Virginia Independent Consumers and Farmers Association (VICFA), longtime food advocate and producer of incredible, artisanal goat cheese, has passed away. His presence at the City Market and as a member of the local food community will be missed greatly.
Winter and I have had a rocky go of it this year. We’ve waffled back and forth in a love / hate relationship that rivals the one I’ve currently got going on with my gym membership. On one hand, I’ve loved the quiet beauty a good snowstorm lays gently across my world and the resulting desire to cozy up on the couch with a hot cup of tea and a season of Entourage. On the other, I am tired of feeling stuck indoors, the outside ice, mud and frigid air enough to keep me hibernating under a quilt with the lights turned low. The result has been a bit too much cozying, and my motivation to cook, write, or log miles on the treadmill seems to be hiding in the same dark place as the sun. I am lost in the monotony of February, floating through scenes of white and gray, desperately seeking a reprieve in the form of a warm day, tiny chartreuse buds on the backyard Maple tree, fresh produce from local farmers that isn’t squash or cabbage.
There have been some brighter moments lately, a few shrieks of excitement released from my heart after witnessing the sun pierce a hazy layer of clouds, revealing a small patch of brilliant blue sky. I was thrilled to notice last week that two copper-toned birds have chosen to make a nest in the cold, drab ally outside my office window, and just this morning heard a woman excitedly discussing the yellow crocuses popping out from under a blanket of snow in her yard. All are sure signs of Spring’s impending arrival and moments I am desperate to capture permanently. Should snow fall again in the coming weeks I’d like to have a photograph stashed away in my back pocket to remind me that the end is near, that productivity will return with a sunshine-filled sky and baby birds chirping on the sill.
In the meantime, the meals I am managing to cook seem to have several similar qualities. They are simple. They are hearty and warm and filling. They incorporate some ingredient that brightens the dish at multiple levels; to the eyes, to the nose, to the tongue. Whether it be golden citrus tossed in a salmon salad, vibrant leeks bobbing amongst emerald isles of kale, the scent of fresh lime wafting from my oven, each recipe is very carefully chosen to lift our spirits and carry us through these last (25!) days of Winter.
This salad is no exception to my new rules. Hearty grains are joined by warm, earth-scented mushrooms to create a salad base as warm and satisfying as a family quilt enveloping shivering shoulders. Jewel-toned grape tomatoes and bright flecks of fresh parsley are the harbingers of this dish, reminders that Spring, followed closely by Summer, will be joining us soon. Served over a bed of spicy arugula and layered with shavings of Pecorino Toscano, this salad makes for a lovely, filling, early dinner, and is best enjoyed beside a window in the rays of Winter's setting sun.
Warm Barley Salad with Roasted Tomatoes and Mushrooms
4 oz Pecorino Toscano, feta or goat cheese, diced or crumbled (I used a hard pecorino, shaved over the top of the salad)
Method
Move an oven rack to the middle position and heat oven to 425*.
Toss the mushrooms, tomatoes, shallots and 2 tbsp of the oil together on a rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Toast the veggies, stirring once, until the mushrooms and shallots are browned nicely, about 25 minutes. Let cool slightly.
Meanwhile, bring water, barley and pinch of salt to a boil in a large saucepan. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the barley is tender but still a bit chewy, about 30 minutes. Drain the barley well in a strainer and transfer to a large bowl.
Toss the barley with the remaining 3 tbsp oil until coated evenly. Add the roasted vegetables and parsley and toss to combine. Cool slightly and then season with salt and pepper to taste.
Divide the arugula or spinach among four large plates. Spoon warm barley salad over each plate, sprinkle with cheese, and serve.
Store barley salad separately from arugula or spinach and reheat for lunch the next day, if desired.
After all of the indulgent foods that we consumed between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, Brian and I have been more than ready to get back into our typical, mostly healthy*, eating routine. We've bookmarked page after page of easy-to-prepare, full-of-veggies, yet still homey and comforting meals in some of our favoritecookbooks, and also in some newtitles gracing the bookshelf. It is my hope that the month of January on Bella Eats will help all of us to get back on track and break our dependence on cheese plates before and dessert after most meals, as lovely as that may have been.
*To be clear, Brian and I believe in non-restrictive eating and the idea that nothing is off limits as long as moderation is practiced. So don't be surprised when small amounts of butter, cream, bacon etc. still appear in the lists of ingredients for recipes that claim to be healthy. Balance is key to a healthy diet, and we strive to prepare meals that are full of flavor and satisfying so as not to feel deprived of something that is important to us - delicious food!
Whenever I feel off-track, out of balance, the need for a healthy meal after weeks of parties and holidays and travel and restaurants...I turn to dark greens. Full of nutrients and flavor, the consumption of a heaping pile of kale, collard greens, swiss chard, mustard greens or spinach as a side dish or addition to soup or salads has me instantly feeling like myself again. The most common preparation for us is to simply saute' any of the above greens with extra-virgin olive oil and garlic, finishing them with a light drizzle of balsamic vinegar or lemon juice and a sprinkle of sea salt and freshly-ground pepper. Occasionally though, I'll have the desire to try something different, such as when our friends gave us a heaping pile of mustard greens from their garden just before the big snowstorm hit in December.
Mustard greens have a spicy, peppery taste, and these particular greens were especially flavorful. We'd sauteed some in our typical fashion and, while still enjoyable, the spiciness was on the verge of being too overwhelming for us. I turned to Vegetables Every Day for an alternative method of preparation (our go-to book for veggies, always) and was so pleased with the result of my search. The creamy sauce and sweet onion tempers the spiciness of the greens but still allows their mustardy flavor to shine through. I could have eaten the entire bowl-full as a meal on its own.
Brian and I enjoy greens on the side of many dishes, but a recent discovery has been the deliciousness of greens on top of one of our favorite meals, sausage with peppers and onions. We stocked up on pork sausage from Double H Farm to get us through winter, and will throw a few links on the grill for a quick and tasty lunch or dinner quite often. Saute' red bell peppers with sweet onions in a bit of olive oil and garlic until tender. Serve sausage on a bun (whole wheat, for a healthier alternative) topped with peppers and onions and a generous helping of these greens. Add extra Dijon mustard if you're as big a fan as we are.
Wash the greens in several changes of cold water, then strip off the leafy green portion from either side of the tough stem. Discard the stalks and rip the leafy portions into small pieces. Add the greens and 1 tsp salt to the boiling water. Cook until the greens are tender, about 8 minutes. Drain well.
Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the onion and cook over medium heat until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the greens and toss to coat with the butter and onion. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Whisk the cream and mustard together in a small bowl. Add this mixture to the skillet and cook just until the greens absorb some of the sauce, 3 to 4 minutes. Adjust the seasonings and serve immediately.
Across the country cookbooks and magazines have been poured through, pages dog-eared and marked with post-it notes of all colors as folks finalize their Thanksgiving menus. Lists are made, non-perishable foods have been purchased and trips to the grocery for fresh veggies and dairy products have been scheduled. Sweet potatoes are tucked away in dark pantries, waiting for hands to scrub, peel and cube them to boil, roast, mash or bake on Thursday.
Growing up, sweet potatoes were never an exciting part of our Thanksgiving menu. They made the occasional appearance and never left much of an impression on me. Brian and I have hosted Thanksgiving twice now since being married, and only once have they made it on our table after a guest offered to bring them with her to dinner. Its not that I have anything against the orange-fleshed tuber, in fact I purchase them throughout the year to eat baked and topped with steamed broccoli, kernels of plump corn and a generous sprinkle of sea salt. Its just that, traditionally, I enjoy them in savory form rather than sweetened as they are in most Thanksgiving recipes.
Not wanting to give up just yet, I decided to give sweet potatoes a try again this year. Originally I planned to find a savory recipe to test, but elected instead to give a sweet recipe another shot; to stick with tradition for at least one more year before abandoning the concept entirely. My momma sent me a classic version that she insisted I had liked in the past, one that she assured me was much more enjoyable than the soupy, marshmallow-topped dishes I described from my own memory.
The potatoes are boiled, mashed, whipped and sweetened, then smothered with a crumbly streusel-like topping before being baked until golden brown. The result is neither soupy nor pasty, is in fact pleasantly fluffy with the contrasting crunch of sugared pecans. It is quite sweet, so much so that I would probably categorize it as a dessert rather than a side, although my momma tells me that when paired with other savory bites on a Thanksgiving plate it is altogether balanced. No matter when it is served, this casserole deserves a place at the table.
Sweet Potato Casserole
Ingredients
3 cups mashed sweet potatoes (4 large or one 29-oz can)
2 eggs
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), melted
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup heavy cream
Topping
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), melted
1/2 cup flour
1 cup pecans, chopped
Method
If using raw sweet potatoes, peel them as best you can and chop them into small chunks. Boil for 10-15 minutes until potatoes are tender but not falling apart. Mash until nearly smooth.
Mix in eggs, butter, cinnamon, brown sugar and salt. Add cream slowly and blend until fluffy (use whisk attachment if using a stand mixer), stopping before potatoes become soupy.
Spoon sweet potato mixture into a greased 9x13 baking dish. Preheat oven to 350*.
Mix together topping ingredients in a small bowl. Spread over sweet potato mixture.
Bake for 50-60 minutes, until topping is deep golden brown.
A very Happy Thanksgiving to all!!!
2009 has been a tough year for many. Even though we've hit speed bump after speed bump, I have much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving:
Our family and very close friends, all of whom are so incredibly supportive of Brian and I.
My employers, for pushing through and doing all they can in a difficult time.
Brian, my love, who always knows how to make me smile when things get tough.
I’ve never really considered Thanksgiving dinner to be “The Meal of the Turkey”, like so many do. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a well-cooked bird. Especially when it smokes all day on the Big Green Egg after having soaked in a sweet-salty brine for the twelve hours prior. I always take a modest piece, allow my cranberry juice to run underneath and turn the flesh a rosy pink, then cut it into small bites that I bury amidst forkfuls of fluffy mashed potatoes. Its an enjoyable piece of the Thanksgiving tradition, one that I gave up the year I was a vegetarian and admit that I did miss, although not as much as I would miss some of the accompaniments were I to ban cranberries, or potatoes, or pie (heavens what a tragedy that would be!) from my diet.
When I stand at the buffet table and survey the offerings laid out before me on Thanksgiving Day, it is all of the other “supporting” or “side” dishes that I get really excited about. The homemade rolls, the roasted vegetables, the tart-sweet cranberry sauce, the stuffing composed of spicy sausage and earthy sage, the fact that I can choose to pile two different types of potatoes on my plate - one sweet with a topping of pecans (recipe to come) and the other mashed with chunks of celery root. And of course, the green bean casserole. My absolute favorite dish on the table (aside from the desserts, which are a whole other story).
For most of my life the green bean casseroles of Thanksgiving came from the recipe on the back of the French's French Fried Onions container. It is quick, simple and perfectly delicious. When I told my momma that I'd found a wholly from-scratch recipe in the New York Times that I was planning to test out before the big day she simply asked "why?!?", assuring me that my readers wouldn't want to abandon the tradition of mixing Campbell's cream-of-mushroom soup with frozen green beans and popping the foil top on the red and white cylindrical canister filled with crunchy bits of onion. Why would you stray from a recipe that has proved itself reliable year after year? Because, friends, this version is even better.
It seems tedious, I know, to make your own cream-of-mushroom soup for this casserole when you can simply whip out a can opener and have what you need in a mere 30 seconds. And maybe frying up your own crunchy onions seems like too much trouble as well when somebody has already packaged them up and made them available at grocery stores across the world. But with a little forethought (the mushroom soup can be made up to 24 hours in advance) and only 60 seconds to fry your onion rings, you'll have a dish worthy of supporting the star of the show. Just don't be surprised if the turkey gets upstaged...
1 lb button mushrooms, sliced (I used baby bellos)
2 small red onions, chopped
4 oz butter (1 stick)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup vegetable stock
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 lbs green beans, trimmed
1/4 cup sliced toasted almonds
1/2 cup fine dry bread crumbs (I used panko)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
6 pearl onions, thinly sliced
Method
In a food processor or blender, combine 1/2 the mushrooms and both onions. Blend until a smooth paste forms, and set aside
In a large, wide saucepan set over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the remaining mushrooms and turn the heat up to high. Cook while stirring often, until the mushrooms release their liquid and start to crisp at the edges.
Add garlic and thyme and stir for about 30 seconds. Add mushroom-onion paste and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 10 minutes. Add cream and stock, and salt and pepper to taste. At this point the mushroom mixture may be cooled and refrigerated for up to 24 hours.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and fill another bowl with ice water. Drop the green beans in the boiling water and cook until bright green and just tender, about 60 seconds. Drain and immediately plunge the beans into the ice water. Drain well.
Preheat oven to 375*. In a large bowl combine green beans, mushroom mixture, almonds and 1/4 cup of the bread crumbs. Transfer to a 9 x 13 baking dish and pack down the mixture to level it. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 cup of bread crumbs.
Bake, uncovered, until beans are tender and top is lightly golden, 35-40 minutes. If you wish, place under the broiler for the last couple of minutes to really crisp the top.
To garnish, heat oil in a non-stick skillet until it shimmers. Place flour in a mixing bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add sliced pearl onions, toss to coat and fry in oil until golden, 30-45 seconds. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle on finished casserole.
In Other News...
Remember this pie?
Well, I've submitted it in the Bon Appetit Blog Envy Bake-Off, which Bon Appetit actually invited me to participate in! Exciting stuff, and you all can help me to make the finalists list if you visit this page and vote for my recipe in the pies/tarts/pastries category. Any support you can send my way is much appreciated! And if you're looking for a unique and delicious holiday dessert, my Plum Pie with Lemon Almond Crust could be just what you're looking for...
rat-a-tat-toooooouuuuuille!
Ok, so the name is sometimes more fun than the dish itself. Ratatouille evokes all kinds of call-outs and tabletop drumming from me, in an effort to convince Brian of its viability as a recipe to remain in our files. It starts one Saturday morning at the farmer’s market, as we pass a table full of deep-purple eggplant and I turn to Brian to ask “how about ratatouille this week?”. He’ll snarl a little, let out an “eh” and shrug his shoulders. This happens for a few consecutive Saturdays, until finally I’ll say, “come on...rat-a-tat-toooooouuuuuille!” and he’ll grin and agree that this can be the week for our once-a-year ratatouille night.
For me, it wouldn’t be the end of summer without the classic eggplant, zucchini and tomato-laden dish. It feels like a last-hurrah for the final produce of the season and the perfect start to autumn, when I start craving meals of its kind. It is homey and hearty, a melding of flavors served warm over pasta and topped with shaved parmesan cheese. I like to dunk a couple of thick slices of crusty french bread into the juices, and usually pair the meal with one of my first glasses of red wine of the season. Its tradition, and one that I cling to mightily despite a little resistance.
For Brian, ratatouille is just a little “blah”. He doesn’t mind it so much, but would prefer that we skip straight from summer salads to creamy potato cheese soup and pans full of bubbly lasagna. Typically, after we’ve purchased our eggplant Saturday morning, it will sit on the countertop for a couple of days until finally, on the cusp of its transition from firm and fleshy to soft and dimpled, I’ll convince Brian that “tonight is rat-a-tat-touille night!” and it will be peeled, cubed, salted and tossed in a pan with a glug of olive oil, freshly diced zucchini and a generous pile of minced garlic.
After some silly names, a few tabletop drumming performances and maybe a little ratatouille dance, it is the smell that will finally bring Brian around - his nose leads him to the kitchen and he’ll sheepishly tell me “it smells really good in here, honey”. The eggplant is set aside, and in its place onion and bell pepper start sizzling away. Tomatoes are added, and as their juice is released the eggplant is tossed back into the pan. All is covered and simmered until the eggplant is silky and the zucchini and peppers are just tender. Pasta is boiled, parmesan is shaved and bread is sliced. Dinner is served alongside glasses of red wine, in the golden light of the fading sun and suddenly, it is Fall.
Basic Ratatouilleadapted from the joy of cookingover pasta, this will serve 4
Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil, plus 2 tbsp
2 medium eggplants, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 medium zucchini, cut into 1-inch cubes
4-5 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 large onion, diced (about 1-1/2 cups)
2 large bell peppers, red, yellow or orange, cut into 1-inch squares
1-1/2 cups chopped and seeded fresh tomatoes (I used romas. the recipe says to peel them, I did not.)
2 to 3 sprigs fresh thyme (oregano is good as well)
2 bay leaves
salt + pepper
Method:
After peeling and chopping your eggplant, place it in a colander and sprinkle with course sea salt. Let sit for 30 minutes to release some of the liquid, rinse well and pat dry.
Heat the oil over high heat and add the eggplant and zucchini. Saute' for about 8 minutes, then add the garlic. Continue cooking for another 2-3 minutes until the veggies are golden and just tender. (This timing will depend on the freshness of your eggplant. You don't want it to get too soft, so watch closely.)
Remove the vegetables from the pan and reduce the heat to medium-high. Drizzle in the 2 tbsp of olive oil and add the onion and bell pepper. Cook for 8-10 minutes until the veggies are just tender but not browned. Season with salt and pepper to tasted.
Add tomatoes, thyme and bay leaf. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 5 minutes. Add the eggplant mixture and cook until everything is tender 10-20 minutes. (Again, this depends on your veggies. You want the eggplant to be silky but not falling apart, and the other veggies to be tender but not mushy.) Taste and adjust your seasonings.
* We decided after this go-round that the ratatouille could be improved with the addition of some red pepper flakes. I'd add about a 1/4 tsp, depending on your tastes, when you add the onion and bell pepper to the pan.
* Another possibility, if you're not a fan of spicy food, is to add capers. I had a bruschetta recently with eggplant, onion, tomato and capers that was absolutely delicious, so think they'd be lovely in the ratatouille as well. I'd start with a tablespoon, added with the tomatoes, and add more if you feel it is necessary.
Hello hello! Goodness, there were a few days there that I felt like I was never going to get back to Bella Eats. Life has been busy, my friends, but in a very good way. The kind of way that makes you feel really good about what you’re doing, and very thankful for the support of your understanding husband who winds up single-handedly taking on the domestic tasks of keeping us both fed and in clean clothes, while simultaneously helping me make invitation design decisions and proofreading documents for presentations.
He’s a keeper, that one, as are all of you for your very sweet comments on my last post. I apologize for not being as present in comment response as I should be, but wanted you all to know how much each and every one means to me. If you asked a question, and I think there were only a couple, I answered it in the last day or so at the bottom of the comments. And please, if you ever have a question for me that requires a timely response, feel free to send me an email - I’m usually better with those.
There has been a lot of stuffing happening around our house these last few weeks, and I don’t just mean boxes full of wedding invitations for a friend or images into a presentation for a big board meeting. I mean stuffed peppers. And squash. It all started with a dinner party thrown by our dear friend Amy, who hosts fabulous gatherings at which everybody cooks a dish based on a theme for the evening. Sometimes the theme is a specific ingredient such as almonds or chocolate, and other times it is based on a method of cooking or assembly. A month or so ago the theme was “stuffed!”, and we enjoyed the food so much that Brian and I have been replicating recipes ever since.
The timing worked out perfectly, as we had just traded extra bell peppers from our garden for a friend’s over-abundance of homegrown pattypan squash. If you’ve ever grown squash, you know that two people can’t possibly consume all of the bounty from one little squash plant. Its unreal. We planted summer squash two years ago and were so over it by the end of the season that we haven’t planted any since. The same goes for eggplant. Next year we’re planning to coordinate with our friends and plan more regular produce swaps, to take advantage of the space we each have and be sure that nothing will go to waste. Our own mini version of a CSA.
Peppers are a different story. I never get tired of them, and the only reason for sharing is when I know that we can’t possibly finish them before they start to get soft. I haven’t always felt that way as growing up, I only knew of one type of bell pepper - green. They made appearances in the stir fries, fajitas and supreme pizzas of my childhood, their distinct earthy flavor permeating whatever dish they graced. I wouldn’t have called myself a fan, but I didn’t mind them either. Like milk with breakfast and brushing my teeth before bed, the emerald bells were just an ever-present part of my life that I didn’t bother to question.
Sometime in college I discovered that bell peppers came in colors other than green, and the rainbow beauties started making their way into my cart each week at the market. I found the sunset-hued varieties to be much more versatile than the green, and added them to my usual pepper-laden dishes as well as pastas, quiches and salads. They aren’t inexpensive, so when I found out we could grow them in Virginia I was quite excited.
Our garden has seen them all. The first summer we were a little over-zealous with our pepper patch, planting green, purple, red, yellow and orange bells, along with one lone (although incredibly productive) banana pepper plant. Our kitchen saw much pepper experimentation that season, as we learned that we really weren’t fans of green bells anymore, that the beautiful eggplant color fades from the purple bells when they are cooked (leaving you, essentially, with a green bell) and that we couldn’t possibly keep up with the harvest from one banana pepper plant (although, now that we know how to pickle, I think we’ll try again next year).
As summer winds down we are cherishing the last red and yellow bell peppers coming out of the garden. Smaller than those we were getting a couple of weeks ago, but every bit as tasty, they’ve added a mild sweetness and lovely color to frittatas, stir fry, fajitas, homemade pizzas and summer salads. Our favorite use lately has been to sauté thinly sliced red peppers with strips of onion, minced garlic and fresh kale, then to pile the whole mixture on top of grilled spicy Italian sausage drizzled with dijon mustard and encased in a crusty bun. So delicious, so summer.
And then, of course, there is the Stuffed! pepper option. Always a winner in my book, I finally convinced Brian of their merit a few years ago when I made them using red and yellow bells instead of green. We tried the same stuffing recipe with pattypan squash, with much success. Pattypan has such a mild flavor that it lends itself well to a full-flavored filling.
I came up with this recipe on a whim, adding ingredients to the stuffing until it looked and tasted the way I thought it should. The result was quite tasty but I encourage you to tweak to suit your own tastes.
Stuffed Peppers or Squashserves 4
Ingredients:
4 bell peppers (preferably red or yellow), 4 medium patty pan squash
1 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup raw red onion
1/2 cup diced bell pepper (from the tops that you'll cut off)
3 roma tomatoes, seeds removed, diced
1 can black beans, drained
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp ancho chile pepper, OR 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus 2 tbsp to sprinkle on top
Method:
Preheat oven to 400*.
For Peppers: Cut the tops off of the peppers. Cut out the interior ribs and remove all seeds. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and drop the peppers in so that they fill with water. Boil for 1-2 minutes, until the peppers are starting to soften and turn a brighter shade of yellow/red/green. Remove from water, drain and set aside.
For Squash: Cut tops off of squash as you would a pumpkin. Scrape out interior seeds and strings, discard. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, and drop the squash in. Boil for 5-8 minutes, until the squash is fork-tender. Remove and drain, set aside.
In a medium-size bowl, mix together the cooked rice, corn, red onion, diced bell pepper, and roma tomatoes. Drain the beans and press or squish with your palms before adding to the rice mixture (some beans will remain whole, but most should be squished). Add cumin, chile pepper, salt and pepper, mix well. Add 1/2 cup cheese and set aside.
Line a baking dish with foil and set peppers or squash in dish. Fill with rice mixture until full, and sprinkle top with cheddar cheese.
Bake at 400* for 20-25 minutes, until cheese is bubbly. Turn on broiler for last minute or two if you want to brown the cheese a bit. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving on a bed of rice.
Chiles Rellenosserves 4This recipe is nearly identical to the one above. But, there are a couple of ingredient changes and the method for preparing the peppers is a little different.
Ingredients:
6-8 medium-size poblano peppers
1 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
1/2 cup raw yellow onion
1/2 cup diced bell pepper
3 roma tomatoes, seeds removed, diced
1 can black beans, drained
1/4 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus 2 tbsp to sprinkle on top
Method:
Move rack to top of oven. Turn broiler on hi.
Place peppers in a baking dish. Place under broiler and broil until all sides are charred, turning accordingly, for 3-5 minutes. (See photo on left below for peppers just after charring). Remove and turn off oven.
Put hot peppers in a gallon-size ziplock and seal. Let "sweat" for 30 minutes in bag.
After 30 minutes, remove peppers from bag. Skin should be easy to peel from peppers - remove it all. Cut a slice in one side of each pepper and remove all ribs and seeds from interior. IMPORTANT - If you are sensitive to heat, make sure to remove ALL of the ribs as this is where the heat lies. Also WASH YOUR HANDS many many many times with soap and water before touching your eyes, nose, mouth etc.
In a medium-size bowl, mix together the cooked rice, corn, onion, diced bell pepper, and roma tomatoes. Drain the beans and press or squish with your palms before adding to the rice mixture (some beans will remain whole, but most should be squished). Add cumin, salt and pepper, mix well. Add 1/2 cup cheese and set aside.
Line a baking dish with foil and set peppers or squash in dish. Fill with rice mixture until full, and sprinkle top with cheddar cheese.
Bake at 400* for 20-25 minutes, until cheese is bubbly. Turn on broiler for last minute or two if you want to brown the cheese a bit. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes before serving on a bed of rice.
This weekend, Brian and I are off to Brooklyn for a childhood friend's (mine) wedding. We are so excited, even though we'll only be in the city for about 48 hours. As with all of our vacations, we are planning this one entirely around food (except for the wedding of course, but the lovely bride has Baked! catering the desserts!!!). If you have any suggestions for your favorite foodie havens in Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn...send them on! And expect a full photographic review of our trip next week...!
As I sat on our deck steps last night listening to the cicadas and sipping a glass of vino verde while Brian threw toys for the dogs, their feet tearing through our bed of mint and releasing the most intoxicating smell into the air, I realized that the outside temperature was incredibly comfortable. A lovely 68 degrees, with the lightest breeze to whisk the hair out of your face and send goosebumps dancing up your arms, made for the perfect deck-sitting evening. I thought to myself “Fall...she’s almost here”, before picking myself up and moving inside because Summer’s mosquitos haven’t yet received the memo.
September. The first month of Autumn...how is it already upon us? The end of Summer is quite visible in the shriveling of our tomato plants, the slumber of our blackberries and the fully ripe figs on the public trees just down the street (of which I have enjoyed many...). I must admit, I’ve been feeling the fingers of Fall moving in to pull me through the last few weeks of Summer for awhile now and have not been unhappy about it. For Fall, with her crisp air, golden light, crunchy leaves under feet and produce fit for warm and hearty meals, is absolutely my favorite season.
That’s not to say that I won’t miss Summer. I’ll miss our garden, and bemoan the fact that I didn’t have enough forethought to plant winter squash, sweet potatoes or another round of beets. I’ll miss the gorgeous heirloom tomatoes that literally burst open on the vine because they are so full of juice, and the sweet taste of a peach pulled from a tree with my very own hands. I’ll miss my effervescent white wines and fresh berry tarts topped with vanilla ice cream, and simple green salads for dinner paired with a loaf of french bread. And of course there’s the kayaking, the trips to the reservoir with the dogs and the extended daylight that allows for late evening walks and runs with girlfriends.
We’ve done our best to preserve as much of Summer’s bounty as possible. We had bigger plans for the 2009 harvest, but I’m proud that we saved so much more than last year and feel certain that we’ll do even better in 2010. We’ve made over 200 ounces of jam, in flavors ranging from strawberry rhubarb to peach lime. I’ve frozen 10 quart-bags full of blackberries and the same number full of peach slices. I’ve baked and frozen zucchini muffins and raspberry muffins to grab on the go on future rushed Autumn mornings. And I’ve slow-roasted tomatoes, 8 pounds of them, to enjoy over pasta and on sandwiches this winter when I need a little reminder of warmer days.
Slow-roasting tomatoes concentrates their flavor into single bites that seem to explode in your mouth. They will instantly transform a simple parmesan-laced pasta or crusty loaf of bread spread with St. Andres or another triple cream cheese into the most satisfying meal. That is, if you can keep your husband and other fingers away from the pan as the tomatoes cool...
If possible, I encourage you all to freeze or can as much local produce as you can this summer. I wish I'd pushed the idea earlier on, and promise that next year I'll have more comprehensive guides to canning and freezing. As I've mentioned, Brian and I try to eat as locally and seasonally as possible. Unfortunately, living in Virginia, there comes a time every winter when it is nearly impossible to get any fresh local produce. This year we decided to extend out local eating season as long as possible by preserving as much as we could. We had big plans for canned whole vegetables and fruits, salsas and tomato sauces (of which Brian did make one freezer batch). We weren't as productive as we had hoped, although the season isn't quite over yet. So, get to your local farmer's market this weekend and pick up the last of the tomatoes, peaches, berries, okra etc, and have a little canning or freezing party in your kitchen. Come winter, you'll be so happy you did.
Slow-Roasted Tomatoesrecipe from Molly Wizenburg's A Homemade Life, pg. 192
Ingredients:
3-1/2 pounds ripe Roma tomatoes, halved (about 20 tomatoes)
1 tbsp olive oil
salt
ground coriander
Method:
Preheat oven to 200*F.
Wash and dry tomatoes, and cut them in half length-wise. Place in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Toss gently to coat.
Arrange them on a baking sheet cut-side up, and sprinkle each with a pinch of salt and a pinch of coriander for every 4-6 tomatoes.
Bake until the tomatoes crinkle at the edges and shrink to about half their original size, 4 to 6 hours.
Cool to room temperature before storing them in an airtight container. They will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week or the freezer for a few months.
**I also found this slow-roasted tomato recipe that I wanted to try, but we ran out of tomatoes in the garden too soon. I may pick some up at the market this weekend to give it a try.
Winners!
The winners of the last two Saucy Mama Lime Chipotle Marinade (picked by random.org) are:
#15 Bev
#31 Melissa, of Melissa's Journey
Congratulations Ladies! I know you'll love the sauce. Please send me an email at bellaeats[at]gmail[dot]com with your full name and address.
All other winners, of Saucy Mama marinade and jam, your treats are going out this week! I promise!
Other Bella Terra posts this season:
I feel like I am so behind on bella terra posts that I've got to give you another immediately following my last. Its the time of year, I suppose - even the farmer's market has exploded with dozens of options for fresh local produce. So many things are happening in the garden that I am having a very hard time keeping up. In fact, as I write this, the very last cucumber that we will get this year is ripening on the vine, and I haven't even shared a recipe with you yet! The rest of the cucumber plants have started browning from the ground up, wilting away in the high-80* heat we've had these last few weeks. Soon their place will be taken with new plantings of fall crops...once I figure out what those will be.
We enjoyed an abundance of cukes this year, many more than we've been able to handle gracefully. I've shamelessly offered them to anybody who will take them, and am usually met with a pleased-yet-baffled look as I hand over an armload of huge cucumbers and am asked "any suggestions"? Salads, of course. Lots and lots of salads.
Maybe this one - even though cucumbers aren't listed in the ingredients I think they would make a fine addition. Same goes for this one, which you're probably already making what with all the beets showing up in farmer's market booths and grocery stores this time of year. Throw some cucumbers in, they'd be great mixed with those golden globes, purple cabbage and just-off-the-vine tomatoes. But if you're looking for something new, something with a fresh California-inspired, deconstructed guacamole flavor, I've got just the salad for you.
It screams summer, with its refreshing bites of cucumber and juicy tomato. The red onion adds just the right amount of bite that is tempered slightly by the creamy avocado. Take it to a picnic, a backyard fiesta or an evening dinner on a friend's front porch. Margarita not required, but definitely recommended.
Mid-Summer Cucumber Salad with Champagne Vinaigrettevinaigrette from emeril via food network
Ingredients:
3 large cucumbers, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 tbsp kosher salt
1 small red onion, diced finely
20 cherry tomatoes, halved
1 avocado, chopped to 1/2-inch dice
finely chopped cilantro, to taste (I find that everybody's tolerance for cilantro is a little different, so use as much or as little as you'd like)
1/4-cup champagne vinegar or white wine vinegar
1 tbsp honey
2 tsp minced shallot
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1/4 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt + pepper
Method:
Peel cucumbers and slice them in half length-wise. Scoop seeds out with a spoon and cut cukes into 1/2-inch slices. Place cukes in colander in sink and sprinkle with kosher salt. Toss to coat and let sit for 30 minutes before rinsing very well.
Combine vinegar, honey, shallot, mustard and garlic in food processor. Slowly add olive oil and process until smooth. Salt + pepper to taste.
In a large bowl, toss rinsed cucumbers, red onion, tomatoes, avocado and cilantro together. Add dressing to taste. You will have dressing leftover, and it should be used within 1 week.
I’ve mentioned before that I am a big fan of leafy greens. Big, big fan. A taste for greens kind of comes with the territory when you grow up in the south, along with a decent addiction to fried okra and sweet tea. But unlike those two childhood favorites, greens can be an incredibly healthy addition to your diet - full of fiber, vitamins A, C and K, folate, iron and calcium - as long as you leave out the bacon that is standard in most southern dishes. And when you eat greens as often as Brian and I do you really should leave out the bacon. Or run a few extra miles a day which, lets be honest, could be worth it.
We planted kale our first year with the garden but had very little luck with it. We were late getting the seeds in the ground that spring and wound up having very hot weather very early in the season so the poor little shoots never really had a chance. The next year we tried collard greens, having heard that they were a bit heartier than kale. Wow. Heartier was right. We had more collards than Brian and I plus the handful of friends that also like greens could handle. They were enjoyed immensely through most of the summer, but at the end of the season Brian not-so-subtly hinted that he’d had enough collards to last him for quite some time, and could we maybe try kale again next year?
We chose lacinato kale this spring, also known as black or dinosaur kale, because we love its deep earthy flavor and feel that it is a tad less bitter than other kale varieties. The seeds went into the ground in mid-march, and because we’ve had a relatively cool and wet summer we've been enjoying a steady harvest of fresh garden kale for the last two months. The weather is getting warmer now though, and the greens are fading fast. I’m suddenly feeling the pressure to increase our intake before they all wilt away and we have to wait for the cooler fall air for our next crop.
Luckily, this increase in consumption corresponded with a couple of key events that led to the creation of a new favorite salad. The first was an email I received a few weeks ago asking if I would like to participate in a Barhyte Foodsrecipe contest featuring their line of condiments - Saucy Mama. The second was my discovery that young, raw lacinato kale leaves make for quite the tasty salad.
Accompanied by sweet roasted vegetables, tangy goat cheese and a delightful raspberry vinaigrette, the slight bitterness of the greens (which is typically tempered by blanching) was balanced perfectly. And because kale is more firm than lettuce it holds its own quite well even after being coated with the dressing, adding a nice crunch to a bite filled with soft beets and creamy cheese. Add some toasted walnuts to the top and you have a lovely dinner salad in front of you. You won’t even miss the bacon.
It is best to use young kale leaves, just 4 to 6 inches long and 2 to 3 inches wide. They will be more tender, and less bitter, than their older siblings. I also tossed in some beet greens, which have a wonderful spicy bite to them and are best if used within one day of being pulled from the ground.
For the dressing I used Saucy Mama’s Raspberry Vinaigrette. In full disclosure, Barhyte Foods has sent me samples of their most popular condiments to develop recipes for a contest they are holding. Also, to be completely honest, I must tell you that this dressing is delicious. Really, really delicious.
Summer Greens Salad with Roasted Vegetables and Raspberry Vinaigretteserves 4 for a light dinner
Ingredients:
about 1 pound of fresh greens - rinsed, dried, removed from stems and chopped (I used lacinato kale and beet greens) - should equal about 6 cups
3 medium-size beets - washed, peeled and chopped to 1" dice
2 medium-size carrots - washed, peeled and chopped to 1" dice
Preheat oven to 350*. Place chopped beets and carrots into medium-size glass baking dish. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, stir to coat. Roast vegetables for 30-40 minutes, until tender but not mushy.
Wash and dry greens as best you can. Remove leaves from stems and chop to bite-size pieces. Place in large bowl and toss with raspberry vinaigrette to coat well.
Remove vegetables from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. While they cool, toast your walnuts.
Place a heap of greens in the center of your plate. Top with roasted vegetables, crumbled goat cheese and toasted walnuts.
Even though we've only lived here four years, Brian and I have fallen completely in love with Charlottesville. One of the things we enjoy most about this little city is the strong local food movement. We visit the farmer's market each weekend during the season to gather our meat, eggs and produce for the week (whatever we're not growing in our own garden) and have long conversations with our favorite farmers. We get to see photographs of the chickens who lay our eggs pecking the ground in their grassy field, the cows and their new calfs, and the bee hives housing the bees that are pollinating the plants from which our vegetables grow.
It is undoubtably our favorite part of the week, and we make sure to leave ourselves with plenty of time to talk to Richard about the problems we are having with our own tomato plants and to gush to Jean about the magic of her hens’ eggs. We have a direct connection to the people who supply the food on our table, something that I think the majority of the world population doesn’t have and may not understand.
I know that we're very fortunate, and was reminded of it again last week when I made this vegetable frittata. As we sat down to eat I realized that every single ingredient, except for the parmesan cheese and olive oil, was locally grown. The eggs, milk, bell pepper, leeks and zucchini all came from the farmers' market, and the herbs were grown in our own garden. How cool is that?!? I'm not trying to rub it in, I'm really not, I just had to share with you all the amazing feeling that I had knowing that our dinner was not only delicious, but also supporting our local farmers.
With Food, Inc. just out (which I haven't seen yet, gasp!) I've read a lot more chatter in the food blog world about being aware of where our food comes from. Its exciting, and I'm so glad to see bloggers with serious readership and influence supporting the cause. To join in, I wanted to share a couple of sites I've recently read about that may help you discover local food providers in your area. And, for my Charlottesville readers, I've added a new local page to the top bar. I know that I am probably missing a lot of great resources so if you have any to add, please leave a comment!
I challenge you all to make this frittata and try to include at least one local ingredient, even if it is just herbs from pots on your porch. Every little bit counts!
Feel free to switch up the veggies, the recipe is very versatile. And delicious too, I might add.
Farmers' Market Frittata
Ingredients:
8 large eggs
1/2 cup plain greek yogurt (for a silkier texture) or 1/2 cup whole milk
4-5 good grinds of sea salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp fresh chives, minced
1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
1 red bell pepper, chopped to 1/4-inch dice
1 zucchini, chopped to 1/4-inch dice
1 leek, white and pale green part only, halved then sliced thinly
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Method:
Whisk together eggs, salt, pepper and yogurt or milk until smooth. Add minced herbs and stir well, set aside.
Heat oil in 10 or 12 inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add bell pepper, zucchini and leek. Cook for 8-10 minutes, until veggies are tender.
Increase heat to medium-high. Pour egg mixture over veggies evenly. Cook on medium high for 3-4 minutes, tilting pan and lifting edges of frittata to allow raw egg to run underneath.
Lower heat to low, cover pan and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes, until frittata is mostly set. Shake pan occasionally while cooking. Meanwhile, place a rack at the top of the oven and turn broiler on to high.
Remove frittata from stovetop when it is mostly set. Sprinkle cheese across top and place in oven, under broiler. Broil for 1-2 minutes, watching carefully to not let it get to brown. You just want a few spots of brown across the top, and bubbly cheese.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in pan for about 5 minutes. Remove to cutting board or large plate, cut into wedges and serve.
When I stand at the buffet table and survey the offerings laid out before me on Thanksgiving Day, it is all of the other “supporting” or “side” dishes that I get really excited about. The homemade rolls, the roasted vegetables, the tart-sweet cranberry sauce, the 
For most of my life the green bean casseroles of Thanksgiving came from the 
It seems tedious, I know, to make your own cream-of-mushroom soup for this casserole when you can simply whip out a can opener and have what you need in a mere 30 seconds. And maybe frying up your own crunchy onions seems like too much trouble as well when somebody has already packaged them up and made them available at grocery stores across the world. But with a little forethought (the mushroom soup can be made up to 24 hours in advance) and only 60 seconds to fry your onion rings, you'll have a dish worthy of supporting the star of the show. Just don't be surprised if the turkey gets upstaged...
For me, it wouldn’t be the end of summer without the classic eggplant, zucchini and tomato-laden dish. It feels like a last-hurrah for the final produce of the season and the perfect start to autumn, when I start craving meals of its kind. It is homey and hearty, a melding of flavors served warm over pasta and topped with shaved parmesan cheese. I like to dunk a couple of thick slices of crusty french bread into the juices, and usually pair the meal with one of my first glasses of red wine of the season. Its tradition, and one that I cling to mightily despite a little resistance.
For Brian, ratatouille is just a little “blah”. He doesn’t mind it so much, but would prefer that we skip straight from summer salads to creamy potato cheese soup and pans full of bubbly lasagna. Typically, after we’ve purchased our eggplant Saturday morning, it will sit on the countertop for a couple of days until finally, on the cusp of its transition from firm and fleshy to soft and dimpled, I’ll convince Brian that “tonight is rat-a-tat-touille night!” and it will be peeled, cubed, salted and tossed in a pan with a glug of olive oil, freshly diced zucchini and a generous pile of minced garlic.
After some silly names, a few tabletop drumming performances and maybe a little ratatouille dance, it is the smell that will finally bring Brian around - his nose leads him to the kitchen and he’ll sheepishly tell me “it smells really good in here, honey”. The eggplant is set aside, and in its place onion and bell pepper start sizzling away. Tomatoes are added, and as their juice is released the eggplant is tossed back into the pan. All is covered and simmered until the eggplant is silky and the zucchini and peppers are just tender. Pasta is boiled, parmesan is shaved and bread is sliced. Dinner is served alongside glasses of red wine, in the golden light of the fading sun and suddenly, it is Fall.
Basic Ratatouille
adapted from 
There has been a lot of stuffing happening around our house these last few weeks, and I don’t just mean boxes full of wedding invitations for a friend or images into a presentation for a big board meeting. I mean stuffed peppers. And squash. It all started with a dinner party thrown by our dear friend Amy, who hosts fabulous gatherings at which everybody cooks a dish based on a theme for the evening. Sometimes the theme is a specific ingredient such as almonds or chocolate, and other times it is based on a method of cooking or assembly. A month or so ago the theme was “stuffed!”, and we enjoyed the food so much that Brian and I have been replicating recipes ever since.
The timing worked out perfectly, as we had just traded extra bell peppers from our garden for a friend’s over-abundance of homegrown pattypan squash. If you’ve ever grown squash, you know that two people can’t possibly consume all of the bounty from one little squash plant. Its unreal. We planted summer squash two years ago and were so over it by the end of the season that we haven’t planted any since. The same goes for eggplant. Next year we’re planning to coordinate with our friends and plan more regular produce swaps, to take advantage of the space we each have and be sure that nothing will go to waste. Our own mini version of a CSA.
Peppers are a different story. I never get tired of them, and the only reason for sharing is when I know that we can’t possibly finish them before they start to get soft. I haven’t always felt that way as growing up, I only knew of one type of bell pepper - green. They made appearances in the stir fries, fajitas and supreme pizzas of my childhood, their distinct earthy flavor permeating whatever dish they graced. I wouldn’t have called myself a fan, but I didn’t mind them either. Like milk with breakfast and brushing my teeth before bed, the emerald bells were just an ever-present part of my life that I didn’t bother to question.
Sometime in college I discovered that bell peppers came in colors other than green, and the rainbow beauties started making their way into my cart each week at the market. I found the sunset-hued varieties to be much more versatile than the green, and added them to my usual pepper-laden dishes as well as pastas, quiches and salads. They aren’t inexpensive, so when I found out we could grow them in Virginia I was quite excited.
Our garden has seen them all. The first summer we were a little over-zealous with our pepper patch, planting green, purple, red, yellow and orange bells, along with one lone (although incredibly productive) banana pepper plant. Our kitchen saw much pepper experimentation that season, as we learned that we really weren’t fans of green bells anymore, that the beautiful eggplant color fades from the purple bells when they are cooked (leaving you, essentially, with a green bell) and that we couldn’t possibly keep up with the harvest from one banana pepper plant (although, now that we know how to pickle, I think we’ll try again next year).
As summer winds down we are cherishing the last red and yellow bell peppers coming out of the garden. Smaller than those we were getting a couple of weeks ago, but every bit as tasty, they’ve added a mild sweetness and lovely color to frittatas, stir fry, fajitas, homemade pizzas and summer salads. Our favorite use lately has been to sauté thinly sliced red peppers with strips of onion, minced garlic and fresh kale, then to pile the whole mixture on top of grilled spicy Italian sausage drizzled with dijon mustard and encased in a crusty bun. So delicious, so summer.
And then, of course, there is the Stuffed! pepper option. Always a winner in my book, I finally convinced Brian of their merit a few years ago when I made them using red and yellow bells instead of green. We tried the same stuffing recipe with pattypan squash, with much success. Pattypan has such a mild flavor that it lends itself well to a full-flavored filling.
I came up with this recipe on a whim, adding ingredients to the stuffing until it looked and tasted the way I thought it should. The result was quite tasty but I encourage you to tweak to suit your own tastes.
Stuffed Peppers or Squash
serves 4
Ingredients:
Chiles Rellenos
serves 4
This recipe is nearly identical to the one above. But, there are a couple of ingredient changes and the method for preparing the peppers is a little different.
Ingredients:
This weekend, Brian and I are off to Brooklyn for a childhood friend's (mine) wedding. We are so excited, even though we'll only be in the city for about 48 hours. As with all of our vacations, we are planning this one entirely around food (except for the wedding of course, but the lovely bride has Baked! catering the desserts!!!). If you have any suggestions for your favorite foodie havens in Lower Manhattan and Brooklyn...send them on! And expect a full photographic review of our trip next week...!
September. The first month of Autumn...how is it already upon us? The end of Summer is quite visible in the shriveling of our tomato plants, the slumber of our blackberries and the fully ripe figs on the public trees just down the street (of which I have enjoyed many...). I must admit, I’ve been feeling the fingers of Fall moving in to pull me through the last few weeks of Summer for awhile now and have not been unhappy about it. For Fall, with her crisp air, golden light, crunchy leaves under feet and produce fit for warm and hearty meals, is absolutely my favorite season.
That’s not to say that I won’t miss Summer. I’ll miss our garden, and bemoan the fact that I didn’t have enough forethought to plant winter squash, sweet potatoes or another round of beets. I’ll miss the gorgeous heirloom tomatoes that literally burst open on the vine because they are so full of juice, and the sweet taste of a peach pulled from a tree with my very own hands. I’ll miss my effervescent white wines and fresh berry tarts topped with vanilla ice cream, and simple green salads for dinner paired with a loaf of french bread. And of course there’s the kayaking, the trips to the reservoir with the dogs and the extended daylight that allows for late evening walks and runs with girlfriends.
We’ve done our best to preserve as much of Summer’s bounty as possible. We had bigger plans for the 2009 harvest, but I’m proud that we saved so much more than last year and feel certain that we’ll do even better in 2010. We’ve made over 200 ounces of jam, in flavors ranging from strawberry rhubarb to peach lime. I’ve frozen 10 quart-bags full of blackberries and the same number full of peach slices. I’ve baked and frozen zucchini muffins and raspberry muffins to grab on the go on future rushed Autumn mornings. And I’ve slow-roasted tomatoes, 8 pounds of them, to enjoy over pasta and on sandwiches this winter when I need a little reminder of warmer days.
Slow-roasting tomatoes concentrates their flavor into single bites that seem to explode in your mouth. They will instantly transform a simple parmesan-laced pasta or crusty loaf of bread spread with St. Andres or another triple cream cheese into the most satisfying meal. That is, if you can keep your husband and other fingers away from the pan as the tomatoes cool...
If possible, I encourage you all to freeze or can as much local produce as you can this summer. I wish I'd pushed the idea earlier on, and promise that next year I'll have more comprehensive guides to canning and freezing. As I've mentioned, Brian and I try to eat as locally and seasonally as possible. Unfortunately, living in Virginia, there comes a time every winter when it is nearly impossible to get any fresh local produce. This year we decided to extend out local eating season as long as possible by preserving as much as we could. We had big plans for canned whole vegetables and fruits, salsas and tomato sauces (of which Brian did make one freezer batch). We weren't as productive as we had hoped, although the season isn't quite over yet. So, get to your local farmer's market this weekend and pick up the last of the tomatoes, peaches, berries, okra etc, and have a little canning or freezing party in your kitchen. Come winter, you'll be so happy you did.
Slow-Roasted Tomatoes
recipe from Molly Wizenburg's 
We enjoyed an abundance of cukes this year, many more than we've been able to handle gracefully. I've shamelessly offered them to anybody who will take them, and am usually met with a pleased-yet-baffled look as I hand over an armload of huge cucumbers and am asked "any suggestions"? Salads, of course. Lots and lots of salads.
Maybe 
It screams summer, with its refreshing bites of cucumber and juicy tomato. The red onion adds just the right amount of bite that is tempered slightly by the creamy avocado. Take it to a picnic, a backyard fiesta or an evening dinner on a friend's front porch. Margarita not required, but definitely recommended.
Mid-Summer Cucumber Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette
vinaigrette from emeril via 
Want to read more about our garden?
We planted kale our first year with the garden but had very little luck with it. We were late getting the seeds in the ground that spring and wound up having very hot weather very early in the season so the poor little shoots never really had a chance. The next year we tried collard greens, having heard that they were a bit heartier than kale. Wow. Heartier was right. We had more collards than Brian and I plus the handful of friends that also like greens could handle. They were enjoyed immensely through most of the summer, but at the end of the season Brian not-so-subtly hinted that he’d had enough collards to last him for quite some time, and could we maybe try kale again next year?
We chose lacinato kale this spring, also known as black or dinosaur kale, because we love its deep earthy flavor and feel that it is a tad less bitter than other kale varieties. The seeds went into the ground in mid-march, and because we’ve had a relatively cool and wet summer we've been enjoying a steady harvest of fresh garden kale for the last two months. The weather is getting warmer now though, and the greens are fading fast. I’m suddenly feeling the pressure to increase our intake before they all wilt away and we have to wait for the cooler fall air for our next crop.
Luckily, this increase in consumption corresponded with a couple of key events that led to the creation of a new favorite salad. The first was an email I received a few weeks ago asking if I would like to participate in a 
It is best to use young kale leaves, just 4 to 6 inches long and 2 to 3 inches wide. They will be more tender, and less bitter, than their older siblings. I also tossed in some beet greens, which have a wonderful spicy bite to them and are best if used within one day of being pulled from the ground.
For the dressing I used 
It is undoubtably our favorite part of the week, and we make sure to leave ourselves with plenty of time to talk to Richard about the problems we are having with our own tomato plants and to gush to Jean about the magic of her hens’ eggs. We have a direct connection to the people who supply the food on our table, something that I think the majority of the world population doesn’t have and may not understand.
I know that we're very fortunate, and was reminded of it again last week when I made this vegetable frittata. As we sat down to eat I realized that every single ingredient, except for the parmesan cheese and olive oil, was locally grown. The eggs, milk, bell pepper, leeks and zucchini all came from the farmers' market, and the herbs were grown in our own garden. How cool is that?!? I'm not trying to rub it in, I'm really not, I just had to share with you all the amazing feeling that I had knowing that our dinner was not only delicious, but also supporting our local farmers.
With 
I challenge you all to make this frittata and try to include at least one local ingredient, even if it is just herbs from pots on your porch. Every little bit counts!
Feel free to switch up the veggies, the recipe is very versatile. And delicious too, I might add.
Farmers' Market Frittata
Ingredients:
