Instant Pot Tomatillo Pork and Bean Stew

This Sunday, come visit the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market between 10 am - 2 pm on the corner of Agate and 19th Ave. for fresh produce from Camas Swale Farm and pastured meat and poultry from Fair Valley Farm and Fog Hollow Farm. 

Camas Swale has gorgeous tomatillos on offering. I love searing them in a cast iron skillet to make a delicious roasted salsa with layers of flavor that belie the ease of preparation. The drizzly weather reminded me of another favorite tomatillo dish of pork and white bean stew, based on a Rick Bayless recipe and made in a slow cooker. Here I adapted it for an instant pot pressure cooker and incorporated a step of searing the tomatillos for extra flavor. I also incorporated some roasted Hatch green chiles that Market of Choice sold every Friday in August, but other roasted chiles would work fine. I served the stew over rice with corn tortillas and seared summer squash on the side and it was a huge hit with hungry kids after a long day of school and sports practice.

Instant Pot Tomatillo Pork and Bean Stew

serves eight and freezes well

1 lb tomatillos
6 garlic cloves
several green chiles of desired heat (e.g. 2 poblano, 1 hatch)
1 bunch cilantro
~3 lb pork shoulder
1 Tbsp canola oil
salt
2 cups white navy beans, soaked overnight in salted water
lime

1. Husk and rinse the tortillas. Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium high and sear the tomatillos whole until they are well charred. Transfer the tortillas to the insert pot of a pressure cooker. In the same skillet, sear the green chiles until charred, then remove to a bowl, cover with a plate, and allow to steam and cool. At the same time you can throw in the unpeeled garlic cloves and roast them until they start to blacken, then remove and cool. Peel the charred skin from the peppers, remove the seeds and membranes from the inside, and add to the pot. Peel the garlic and add to the pot. Rinse and roughly chop the cilantro and add to the pot. Use an immersion blender to blend the contents of the pot until smooth. Taste and season with salt and chile pepper if you would like more heat (or sear and blend in more green chiles). 

2. Cut the pork into 1 1/2 inch chunks and season well with salt. In the same skillet, add a little neutral oil to coat the pan and then sear the cubes of meat well on each side, working in batches so as not to overcrowd them. Transfer them to the pot and immerse in the tomatillo sauce. Turn on the pressure cooker and cook the meat in the tomatillo sauce for 30 minutes on high. Allow the pressure to release naturally. 

3. Drain the soaked beans and add them to the pot. Make sure they are completely submerged in liquid, and if not, add a cup or two of water (or reserved bean broth from a previous batch of beans). Cook on high pressure for 25 minutes and allow the the pressure to release naturally. Taste the sauce and add more salt and chile pepper as needed. Brighten with fresh lime juice. Serve with rice and tortillas.

This can also be cooked slow in a slow cooker or in low oven in a Dutch oven.

Seared Corn and Scallion Quesadillas

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, you'll find pastured meats from Fair Valley Farm and Fog Hollow Farm and fresh produce from Camas Swale Farm, including tomatoes, eggplants, summer squash, peppers, and corn on the cob.

If you are exhausted from the first week back to school, plan to treat yourself to an easy supper of seared corn and scallion quesadillas, which are so simple that they don't need a formal recipe. Just heat a griddle or big skillet over medium high heat, give it a slick of oil, and throw on a husked corn cob and some whole scallions to sear. Meanwhile slice some cheddar cheese, rinse some cherry tomatoes, locate some tortillas and perhaps some other vegetables (above I had some leftover roasted radishes handy). When your vegetables have charred, slice the scallion and cut off the kernels into a bowl. Turn the heat to medium low. Toast a tortilla on one side until it starts to brown, then flip and cover with slices of cheese and the seared vegetables. Cook on the second side until the cheese has melted. Serve with cherry tomatoes and your favorite hot sauce. 

Salt Crusted Potatoes and Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

The Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market will be back at its regular location this Sunday in the Sun Automotive lot on the corner of Agate Street and 19th Avenue. Last week's colorful selection of sweet peppers, tomatoes, and tomatillos from Camas Swale Farm was perfect for a fajita feast.

Also tucked under the table was a lovely selection of freshly harvested potatoes, which inspired me to try this salt crusted potato recipe from food52's Genius Recipes.

These are simmered in a shallow pan with plenty of salt until all the water cooks away, leaving tender, salt-coated tubers that are a tasty alternative to chips for dipping in salsa. 

For these potatoes, I made my favorite roasted tomatillo salsa from Rick Bayless. Meanwhile, my husband seared up some Camas Swale Farm peppers and onions and some marinated skirt steak from Fair Valley Farm for fajitas, and we had veritable feast.

Salt Crusted Potatoes

from José Pizarro’s Spanish Flavors, via food52 Genius Recipes 

2 1/4 pounds evenly sized waxy new potatoes, such as fingerling, scrubbed but unpeeled
2 Tbsp sea salt
1 quart cold water

Put the potatoes into a wide, shallow pan in which they fit in a single layer. Add 2 tablespoons salt and 1 quart cold water (just enough to cover), bring to a boil, and leave to boil rapidly until the water has evaporated. Test one of the largest potatoes with the tip of a paring knife, and if it’s still hard, add a little more water to the pan and cook off. Once the water is evaporated and the potatoes are cooked through, turn the heat to low and continue to cook for a few minutes, gently turning the potatoes over occasionally, until they are dry and the skins are wrinkled and covered in a thin crust of salt.

Pile the hot potatoes onto a plate and serve with the tomatillo salsa, instructing your guests to rub off as much salt from the potatoes as they wish before dipping them in the sauce.

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

adapted from Rick Bayless' Mexican Everyday

8-10 tomatillos
1-2 cloves garlic
1 chipotle chile in adobe sauce 
salt

To roast the tomatillos, you will want to use a cast iron or nonstick skillet, or to avoid a messy cleanup, you can line a regular skillet with foil. Heat the skillet over medium high heat, and place in the unpeeled garlic cloves. Meanwhile, remove the husks from the tomatillos, rinse them, and cut them in half. Turn the garlic cloves and cook until they are charred on both sides. Remove from the pan, and when cooled enough to handle, remove the peels. Place the tomatillo halves into the hot pan, cut side down, and allow to cook until they are well charred and start to soften and collapse, turning more yellow. Flip them over and cook them for a few minutes on the other side. Transfer the charred tomatillos, including all the charred bits from the bottom of the pan, and the garlic, to a blender jar (or a quart sized mason jar on which you can fit the blender blade and base). Add the chipotle pepper in adobe sauce and a generous pinch of salt (you can freeze the remaining chiles from the can on a saran wrap-lined baking sheet, each with a dollop of adobe sauce, and then transfer to a freezer bag when hardened). Blend all the salsa ingredients until smooth. Taste and add more salt if needed. You could mix in chopped cilantro and diced white onions if you like. Serve with the potatoes and use the remaining salas over tacos, with chips, or thinned with stock for an enchilada sauce.

Roasted Collards with Chorizo and Fresh Tomatillo Salsa

This week at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, you can look forward to summer produce from Good Food Easy at Sweetwater Farm, pastured meats and eggs from Fair Valley Farm, and beautiful fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company.

The season's bounty is reaching its height of outrageous beauty, like these blush tomatoes and purple tomatillos. With produce this pretty, it seemed a shame to roast the tomatillos for my usual salsa, so I blended them up fresh with cilantro and a hot pepper.

Even as the produce is reaching its peak, the days are getting cooler, and it's not hard to justify turning on the oven. For less glamorous looking collard greens, I made a version of these pot-roasted collard greens with chorizo. Cooked for an hour in a low oven, the collards' flavors soften and deepen, the onions melt into a sweet jam, and the chorizo infuse the dish with a decadent richness.

Layered on top of tender Lonesome Whistle Farm beans, these rich collards made a delicious bed for a fried Fair Valley Farm egg, topped with the bright notes of the fresh tomatillo salsa and slices of blush tomatoes to make the plate outrageously pretty.

Fresh Tomatillo Salsa

1 pint tomatillos
1 small jalapeño or other spicy pepper
1 handful cilantro leaves
1 pinch salt

Hull and rinse the tomatillos. Halve them and toss them in a food processor. Halve and seed the jalapeño and add it to the food processor along with the cilantro and salt. Pulse to chop into a salsa of the desired coarseness. Reserve.

Roasted Collards with Chorizo

1 large bunch collard greens
1 medium onion
2 chorizo sausages (about 5 ounces)
2 Tbsp canola oil
salt to taste

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Rinse the collard leaves, cut out the stems, and slice crosswise into 1/2 inch strips. Peel and dice the onion. Cut the sausages into quarters lengthwise and then crosswise into 1/2 inch chunks.

2. Heat a large heavy bottomed pot with a lid, such as a Dutch oven, over medium heat. Add the oil, the onions, and a pinch of salt, and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add the sausage pieces and continue cooking until the onions are very soft. Add the collard green strips and stir to coat in the oils. Place the lid on the pot and transfer to the oven. 

3. Cook for about an hour until the contents are deeply roasted and caramelized. Stir, taste, and add more salt if needed. Cover until ready to serve.

Beans and Baby Potatoes with Roasted Tomatillo Sauce

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, you can look forward to a bounty of summer produce from Good Food Easy at Sweetwater Farm, pastured meats and eggs from Fair Valley Farm, and beautiful fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company.

Sweetwater Farm has started harvesting their tomatillos, which, when juxtaposed last Sunday with spicy peppers and baby potatoes, seemed to dictate dinner.

I pan roasted halved tomatillos, along with some garlic cloves and peppers, for my favorite roasted tomatillo salsa from Rick Bayless. Then I drizzled the salsa over baby potatoes and tender yellow beans for a delicious vegetable side with broiled salmon. Summer simplicity packed with flavor.

Beans and Baby Potatoes with Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

Salsa (adapted from Rick Bayless' Mexican Everyday)
1 pint of tomatillos
1-2 cloves garlic
1-2 spicy peppers such as jalapeños
salt

To roast the tomatillos, you will want to use a cast iron or nonstick skillet, or to avoid a messy cleanup, you can line a regular skillet with foil. Heat the skillet over medium high heat, and place in the unpeeled garlic cloves and whole jalapeños. Meanwhile, remove the husks from the tomatillos, rinse them, and cut them in half. Turn the jalapeños and garlic and cook until they are charred on both sides. Remove from the pan to cool. Place the tomatillo halves into the hot pan, cut side down, and allow to cook until they start to soften and collapse, turn more yellow, and char on the bottom. Flip them over and cook them for a few minutes on the other side. Remove the skillet from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. While the tomatillos are cooking, peel the garlic and place in a blender jar. Remove the stems from the jalapeño and all or some of the seeds, according to your preference for spiciness, and add these to the blender jar. Once the tomatillos have cooled a bit, add them to the blender jar, including all the charred bits from the bottom of the pan. Add a generous pinch of salt and blend until smooth. Taste and add more salt if needed. Reserve. 

Vegetables
I pint baby potatoes
2 handfuls yellow or green beans

Set a medium pot of salted water with the baby potatoes over medium high heat and cooked until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain, slice in half, and arrange on a platter.

Set another medium pot of salted water to boil. Trim the beans. When the water is boiling, add the beans and cook for 4 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Arrange the beans over the potatoes. Drizzle with the salsa and serve water or at room temperature.

Chard and Chipotle Tacos

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market you will be able to find a wide selection of pastured meats from Fair Valley Farm, beautiful fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company, and a bounty of spring produce from Good Food Easy at Sweetwater Farm.

I recommend picking up a at least one bunch of greens, even if you have no immediate culinary plans, because you will thank yourself later when you find you have the fixings for a quick weeknight dinner. For this lovely bunch of Sweetwater Farm rainbow chard, I turned to Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen for inspiration. One recipe that sounded delicious was his Tacos de Acelgas Guisadas con Crema (Tacos of Creamy Braised Chard, Potatoes and Poblanos), which starts with a base of roasted poblano chiles mixed into browned onions, then combined with braised potatoes and chard and finished with creme fraiche. 

For a quicker version of this, I replaced the roasted poblano chiles with a chipotle chile in adobo sauce (which I always have in the freezer, because I never use up a whole can), and omitted the potatoes. This creamy, smokey, spicy chard cooked up in the same time it took to warm up tortillas and some Lonesome Whistle beans I had cooked over the weekend, turning mundane bean tacos into an inspired meal.

Chard and Chipotle Tacos

(serves four)

chard topping
1 bunch chard
1 large onion
2 Tbsp canola oil
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, diced (freeze the remaining chiles from the can on a saran wrap covered baking sheet and transfer to a ziplock bag for long term freezer storage)
1/2 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
salt to taste

for the tacos
corn tortillas
cooked pinto beans
rice (optional)
avocado slices

1. Set some rice to cook and start heating up the cooked beans. Peel and chop the onion. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, add the oil and when it starts to shimmer, add the onions. Cook the onions with a pinch of salt, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes until they are soft and have started to brown.

2. While the onions are browning, rinse the chard leaves, trim off the tips of the stems, and then cut the remaining stems from the leaves. Slice the stems into 1/4 inch slices and reserve. Slice the leaves into 1/4 inch slices and reserve. When the onions have started to brown, add the chard stems and a pinch of salt and continue cooking. Meanwhile, slice the avocado and start warming the tortillas. After about 5 minutes, when the chard stems are soft, add the chard leaves and another pinch of salt. Cook for a minute, then add in the chipotle chile. Cook for another minute or so until the chard leaves are soft, then add in the creme fraiche. Cook for another minute to warm and incorporate the creme fraiche, then remove from the heat.

3. Serve the warmed tortillas topped with beans, (and rice if you like) and the chard mixture, with avocado slices on the side. Enjoy.

Turkey Mole Poblano

At this point Thanksgiving should be a distant memory. But if you still have some lingering turkey leftovers in your freezer, I can recommend a turkey mole poblano. The meditative process of roasting all the chiles, seeds, and nuts that go into this elaborate sauce can be an escape from the frenzy of the holiday season.

I always crave something spicy after the mild flavors of Thanksgiving fare, and we often make Mexican dishes with our turkey remains. This recipe for turkey mole poblano is from The Border Cookbook by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison. I also consulted Rick Bayless' recipe but wasn't quite up to all the straining involved. Instead I happily embraced the slight grittiness of the various purees (above from left to right: chocolate and corn tortillas, chiles and tomatoes, and nuts and seeds). The recipe made enough to freeze away a batch of sauce and still have plenty to drench our turkey leftovers. We dined on turkey mole tacos with a side salad of kale, roasted delicata squash, black beans, and avocado, as we started to discuss our Christmas wish lists. 

Turkey Mole Poblano

adapted from The Border Cookbook

Mole sauce (makes enough for two batches)

12 ounces whole dried red chiles (a combination of anchos and pasilla)

6 Tbsp sesame seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 cup almonds

1/4 cup pepitas

3 Tbsp neutral oil such as canola

4 cups stock (turkey, chicken, or vegetable)

6 garlic cloves

14 ounce can of fire roasted tomatoes

1 medium onion, peeled and quartered

2 stale corn tortillas, torn into pieces

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate (preferably Mexican)

1 tsp ground canela or other cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

shredded cooked turkey (3 cups for half of the sauce recipe)

1. Break the stems off the chiles and remove the seeds. Toast the chiles until fragrant in a large, heavy skillet, turning frequently, and transfer to a bowl. Cover with two cups of boiling water and allow to rehydrate.

2. In turn, toast the fennel seeds, cumin seeds, pepitas, and almonds until fragrant and transfer them to a blender. Then toast the garlic cloves until soft. When cool enough to handle, peel them and add to the blender. Add one cup of stock to the blender and blend until smooth. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

3. Next add the rehydrated chiles to the blender, along with the fire roasted tomatoes, and 1 cup of the rehydration liquid from the chiles, strained through a strainer. Blend these until smooth and add them to the bowl with the nut and seed puree.

4. Add the quartered onion to the skillet and cook until slightly charred on all sides. Place these in the blender along with the corn tortilla, the chocolate, the cinnamon, and 1 cup broth. Blend until smooth and add to the bowl with the other purees.

5. Heat a deep Dutch oven over medium heat and add the oil. Spoon in the sauce and fry while stirring continuously (it will splatter) for about ten minutes. Add the remaining broth and continue to cook for about 30 minutes. Depending on how much turkey you have, at this point you could reserve a portion of the sauce to freeze for a rainy day.  Add the shredded turkey and allow to simmer for 15 minutes.

6. Serve the turkey mole with warm tortillas, over rice, or bake into enchiladas. Enjoy. 

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

This Sunday at at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, you can look forward to a selection of pastured chicken, lamb, and pork cuts from Fair Valley Farm and beautiful fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company. Good Food Easy at Sweetwater Farm will have the following offerings:  

Fresh
corn (add to fish tacos) and tomatillos (make the salsa below) 
watermelon, cantaloupes, peaches, and Italian prune plums
Gravenstein apples, Asian pears and bartlett pears from SLO farm (make a barley salad)
lots of tomatoes, including cherries and flats of romas (restock your sauce supply)
sweet and hot peppers of all kinds (for salsas)
green and yellow beans, potatoes, and baby beets 
eggplants and broccoli (make a roasted salad)
fennel, cucumbers, kohlrabi, carrots, and radish (toppings for peanut sauce noodles)
crookneck squash, summer squash, and zucchini (try Erica's recipe published in the RG)
cabbage (green, red, savoy) (make some mung bean and kimchi pancakes)
radicchio, chard, kale, lettuce, including bagged mix (make kale pesto)
turnips and delicata squash (try roasted with spices)
garlic and fresh herbs (basil, oregano, sage, thyme) and home-grown lemon grass

Preserves, Beans, and Grains
From Sweet Creek Foods:
Dill Pickles, Chili Dill Pickles, Bread 'N Butter Pickles, Pickle Relish
Blueberry, Strawberry, Blackberry, and Raspberry Fruit Spreads
Enchilada Sauce and Salsa
From SLO Farm: Applesauce
Assorted beans and grains from Camas Country Mill

Pan roasted tomatillos make delicious salsa. Their natural bright tartness, combined with the charred flavors from the roasting, are all that you need for a perfect topping for tacos. 

Rick Bayless Mexican Everyday has a couple of recipes for pan roasted tomatillo salsas. I've often made his version with chipotle peppers, but this time decided to use some fresh jalapeños from Sweetwater Farm.

We slathered this salsa on fish tacos with pan roasted corn kernels for an easy weeknight Farmers Market feast.

Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

adapted from Rick Bayless' Mexican Everyday

8-10 tomatillos
1-2 cloves garlic
1-2 spicy peppers such as jalapeños
salt

To roast the tomatillos, you will want to use a cast iron or nonstick skillet, or to avoid a messy cleanup, you can line a regular skillet with foil. Heat the skillet over medium high heat, and place in the unpeeled garlic cloves and whole jalapeños. Meanwhile, remove the husks from the tomatillos, rinse them, and cut them in half. Turn the jalapeños and garlic and cook until they are charred on both sides. Remove from the pan to cool. Place the tomatillo halves into the hot pan, cut side down, and allow to cook until they start to soften and collapse, turn more yellow, and char on the bottom. Flip them over and cook them for a few minutes on the other side. Remove the skillet from the heat and allow to cool for a few minutes. While the tomatillos are cooking, peel the garlic and place in a blender jar. Remove the stems from the jalapeño and all or some of the seeds, according to your preference for spiciness, and add these to the blender jar. Once the tomatillos have cooled a bit, add them to the blender jar, including all the charred bits from the bottom of the pan. Add a generous pinch of salt and blend until smooth. Taste and add more salt if needed. Pour into a bowl. You could mix in chopped cilantro and diced white onions if you like. Enjoy over tacos, with chips, on frittatas, or thin with stock for an enchilada sauce.

Roasted Tomato and Fish Tacos with Kohlrabi Carrot Slaw

This Sunday at at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, you can look forward to a selection of pastured chicken, lamb, and pork cuts from Fair Valley Farm, handcrafted vegan hazelnut cheese from Avellana Creamery, and beautiful fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company. Good Food Easy at Sweetwater Farm will have the following offerings: 

Fresh
lots of tomatoes, including cherries and flats of romas (try roasting for tacos)
sweet and hot peppers of all kinds  peppers (use your grilled vegetables on pizza)
Shiro plums from SLO farm, NW peaches, and blackberries (try a plum and berry galette)
fennel and eggplants
baby beets and new potatoes (Salade Nicoise is nice on a hot summer day)
carrots and kohlrabi  (try the slaw below)
crookneck squash, summer squash, and cucumbers (make Ume Grill's Tsukemono)
radicchio, chard, kale, and lettuce, including ready-to-eat bagged mix
garlic and fresh herbs (cilantro, dill, basil, oregano, sage, thyme) and home-grown lemon grass

Preserves, Beans, and Grains
From Sweet Creek Foods:
Dill Pickles, Chili Dill Pickles, Bread 'N Butter Pickles, Pickle Relish
Blueberry, Strawberry, Blackberry, and Raspberry Fruit Spreads
Enchilada Sauce and Salsa
From SLO Farm: Applesauce
Assorted beans and grains from Camas Country Mill

Sweetwater Farm's summer harvest is reaching its peak. Their abundance of tomatoes and peppers are the perfect ingredients for fish tacos for a crowd, made simply with a couple of baking sheets as we did last weekend with a family crowd on the coast. First roast some halved tomatoes and peppers, topped with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt in a 350 degree oven. When these are nicely caramelized, put your fish on a baking sheet, topped again with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. If you have them, you could add a dusting of ground cumin and chipotle pepper, but in our sparse rental house kitchen, we made due with just salt and pepper and the intense flavors of the roasted vegetables, and the tacos were delicious. The fish will cook quickly, just in time to heat up some tortillas on the lower rack of the oven. With a bevy of cooks in the kitchen, we had all sorts of tasty toppings and sides. A favorite was a light lime slaw of kohlrabi and purple carrots, with the kohlrabi leaves reserved for taco toppings. The best part of this bountiful summer spread was that everyone could taylor their tacos to their personal taste.

Roasted Tomato and Fish Tacos for a Crowd

firm tomatoes such as romas (about 2 per person)
peppers of colors and spiciness that will suit your guests (about 1 per person)
white fish such as cod or sole (about 1/4 lb per person, check for best types to buy)
olive oil
fresh lime juice
salt and pepper
ground cumin (optional)
ground chipotle chile (optional)
small tortillas, corn or flour (2 or 3 per person)

Other taco fixings
sliced fresh or pickled radishes
shredded cabbage or kohlrabi leaves
cilantro
avocado
lime wedges
black beans
diced cotija cheese
sour cream or creme Mexicana
hot sauce, like Cholula

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Halve the tomatoes and arrange on a rimmed baking sheet. Halve the peppers and remove their stems and seeds. Arrange them next to the tomatoes or on a second baking sheet. Drizzle the vegetables with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast for about 30 minutes, until they are very soft and begin to caramelize. Remove and reserve.

2. Arrange the fish on a baking dish. Sprinkle with salt and other spices if using. Drizzle with a little olive oil and lime juice. Roast until the fish is just opaque throughout, which will depend on the thickness of the fish but will go quickly.

3. Meanwhile, arrange tortillas on a clean baking sheet or directly on the oven rack and bake briefly on each side, about a minute per side, until they just start to show a few brown spots. Store under a kitchen towel to keep from drying out.

4. Everyone can assemble their own tacos, including fish, a roasted tomato half, roasted peppers, and any other toppings they like. Enjoy.

Kohlrabi Carrot Slaw

1 medium kohlrabi
3 colorful carrots
juice from 1 lime
2 Tbsp olive oil
generous pinch of salt
tiny pinch of sugar

Generously trim the kohlrabi bulb of its tough skin and cut into julienne strips. Scrub, top, and tail the carrots and cut into julienne strips. Combine the kohlrabi and carrots in a bowl, toss with the lime juice, olive oil, salt, and sugar. Taste and adjust seasonings. It's fine to let this sit and pickle for a few hours if you want to make it ahead.

Grilled Garlic Whistle Salsa

This Sunday at at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, you can look forward to a selection of pastured chicken and grass-fed lamb cuts from Fair Valley Farm and beautiful fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company. Good Food Easy at Sweetwater Farm will have the following offerings: 

Fresh
Leeks, scallions, baby stalks of garlic and garlic whistles, also called scapes (try in salsa)
Anaheim and poblano chile peppers and some early tomatoes
Artichokes, baby beets, and kohlrabi (try grilled kohlrabi)
New potatoes, cauliflower and broccoli
Carrots, summer squash, and cucumbers (try these tsukemono pickles from Ume Grill)
Chard, collard greens, and kale
Fresh herbs (basil, oregano, sage, thyme) and home-grown lemon grass!!
Lettuce, including ready-to-eat bagged mix (make some lettuce wraps)
Cherries and Blenheim apricots (from Washington)

Preserves, Beans, and Grains
From Sweet Creek Foods:
Dill Pickles, Chili Dill Pickles, Bread 'N Butter Pickles, Pickle Relish
Blueberry, Strawberry, Blackberry, and Raspberry Fruit Spreads
Enchilada Sauce and Salsa
From SLO Farm: Applesauce
Assorted beans and grains from Camas Country Mill

Before their season is over, be sure to try some of these crazy spiraling garlic whistles (also called scapes). One way to soften their stalks and temper their garlic punch is to  grilled or seared them on a hot skillet.

Once charred and diced into rounds, these make a delicious garnish for tacos and add a smoky punch to your favorite tomato salsa.

Grilled Garlic Whistle Salsa

1 bunch garlic whistles (also called scapes)
1 jalapeño pepper
1 15 ounce can of fire roasted tomatoes (or fresh or frozen tomatoes)
1 bunch cilantro
salt to taste

1. Heat a grill or a large cast iron skillet and throw on the garlic whistles and the jalapeño. Cook, turning occasionally, until they are charred and fragrant. Trim off the garlic scape blossom tips and cut the stalks into small rounds. Stem and seed the jalapeño and dice.

2. In a blender or food processor, blend together the tomatoes and cilantro. Add salt to taste. Stir in the chopped charred garlic scales and jalapeño in batches and taste until it's to your liking (save any unused scapes and jalapeño for taco garnish). Enjoy.

Chipotle Tofu Tacos

With day lights savings depriving us of our morning sunlight, and the drizzly days lingering, this is the time of year when you need some easy weeknight dinners in your back pocket. These tofu tacos fit the bill, especially if you cook up some grains and a pot of beans (like Rio zapes in mole sauce) ahead of time. The sauce for these tacos comes from a shrimp recipe from Rick Bayless' Mexican Everyday and is dead easy: blend together a 15 ounce can of fire roasted tomatoes with a couple of chipotle chiles in adobe sauce. A tip for storing a can's worth of these chiles: dot them on a piece of saran wrap draped across a cookie sheet, freeze, and then store in a freezer bag for future meals. If you've taken to stashing tofu in your freezer for banh mi, the same strategy would work here for creating extra firm tofu chunks. For toppings, fresh avocado is nice, but shredded cabbage and root vegetables or even refrigerator pickles will do the trick. And while you eat these, imagine yourself on a sunny tropical beach. 

Chipotle Tofu Tacos

tofu filling
1 14 ounce package of tofu (if possible, slice and freeze, then thaw, for extra firm pieces)
3 cloves garlic
3 Tbsp canola oil
1 15 ounce can fire roasted tomatoes
2 to 3 chipotle chiles in adobe sauce
salt to taste

taco fixings
tortillas
cooked grain, such as farro, or rice
cubed avocado
spinach leaves or chopped lettuce or cabbage
cilantro
shredded cheddar cheese or sour cream
lime wedges

1. Cut the tofu into 1 inch slabs. If you can prepare this ahead of time, freeze the tofu slabs and then thaw them to release extra liquid. 

2. In a blender, combine the fire roasted tomatoes and chipotle chiles.

3. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat and, when hot, add 2 Tbsp oil. Now add the tofu slabs in a single layer. Allow them to sear undisturbed for about 3 minutes, then gently flip and sear on the second side. Sprinkle them with a pinch of salt. Meanwhile, mince the garlic. When the tofu is nicely golden on both sides, remove to a plate.

4. Add remaining 1 Tbsp oil to the pan and when warm, add the garlic. Stir for a minute until fragrant but not brown, and then pour in the tomato chipotle sauce from the blender jar and a generous pinch of salt. Stir and bring to a simmer. Cook for about five minutes or so, taste and add more salt if needed. Meanwhile, cut the tofu slabs into 1 inch cubes. Add the tofu cubes to the sauce, stir to coat, and continue to simmer while you prepare the tacos toppings and warm the tortillas.

5. Allow everyone to assemble their tacos to their personal taste following the general formula of starting with a warm tortilla, adding a scoop of grains, a generous helping of tofu, topping with avocado, greens, cilantro, and cheese or sour cream, a squeeze of lime, and serving with beans on the side. Enjoy.