End of the Summer Tomato and Mozzarella Salad

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

Don't let the last sunny days of the summer slip away without enjoying an insalata caprese. Simply slice tomatoes and mozzarella and layer them with fresh basil leaves. Sprinkle with sea salt and drizzle with olive oil and vinegar to taste, and enjoy in the sunshine. 

Roasted Fennel and Anchovy Pizza

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market you can look forward to pastured meets from Fair Valley Farm and fresh produce from Sweetwater Farm. For the past several weeks, Sweetwater Farm has had delicate fennel bulbs, which are wonderful paired with strong flavored seafood, as in this fennel and sardine pasta.

I'd picked up a fennel bulb at the market with plans for a quick Monday night pasta dinner, but under pressure from a powerful pizza lobby in the household, I mixed up a batch of Jim Lahey's no-knead pizza dough on Sunday evening instead. The next evening, when looking around for interesting toppings, I came across the bulb and realized it would be a perfect addition to an anchovy pizza. I slid our cast iron griddle into the preheating oven, sliced the fennel bulb, tossed it with olive oil and salt, and then spread it onto the hot griddle to sear. 

A few minutes in the preheating oven produced caramelized and soften fennel that melded beautifully with pungent anchovies and fresh basil on my new favorite pizza.

Roasted Fennel and Anchovy Pizza

1 recipe of Jim Lahey's no-knead pizza dough (makes four small pizzas)
tomato sauce (preferably made with fresh romas)
I small fennel bulb per pizza
olive oil and salt
6 to 8 anchovy fillets per pizza
fresh mozzarella balls, sliced
red pepper flakes
handful of basil leaves

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees and insert a cast iron griddle or baking sheet to preheat. On another shelf, place a pizza stone if you are using one. Trim the fronds from the fennel bulb and slice the bulb into thin wedges. Toss the fennel pieces in a drizzle of olive oil to coat and sprinkle with sea salt. When the pan is hot, spread the fennel pieces over it in a single layer. Roast the fennel pieces for about 8 minutes, until nicely browned, then flip and roast for another 3 to 5 minutes on the second side until they are soft through.

Divide the dough into four balls, flour them lightly, and shape them according to Lahey's instructions (or use a rolling pin to roll them out on a silicone mat). Sprinkle polenta on a baking sheet or pizza peel and place the pizza dough on top. If you like a crisper crust, pre-bake the crust for about 5 minutes. Spread a thin layer of tomato sauce over the dough, distribute over the roasted fennel, anchovies, and basil leaves. Sprinkle with red pepper flakes and distribute over the sliced mozzarella. Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes until the crust in browned and the cheese is bubbling. Enjoy.

Roasted Eggplant and Basil Spread

At the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market this Sunday, you can look forward to these beautiful little orb eggplants from Sweetwater Farm. Wonderful things happen when you roast eggplants, as in these Middle Eastern and Chinese roasted eggplant dishes.

In Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi's Jerusalem, they present a version of Baba Ganoush that is light and refreshing and lacks the traditional sesame paste. The eggplants are infused with smokiness by roasting them directly over the flames of a gas range. Rather than take the eggplants to the point when they were dripping messy juices over the range, I followed David Lebovitz's strategy of roasting followed by baking.

After the eggplants were soft and collapsed, I scooped out the flesh and whipped up an even simpler version of a roasted eggplant spread, seasoned with basil, lemon, sea salt, and olive oil. This is delicious served on toasted bread or as a vegetable side dish for a post-farmers market feast. 

Roasted Eggpant and Basil Spread

4 small globe eggplants
zest and juice from one lemon
1 handful basil leaves, torn
2 Tbsp olive oil
sea salt to taste

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees  Place the eggplants directly over the flames of a gas range and roast, turning occasionally, until they are charred all over, about 7 minutes. Transfer to a baking dish and bake for an additional 15 minutes or so until they are soft when pierced through. Allow the eggplants to cool a little, then halve and scoop out the flesh from the charred skin. Chop the flesh coarsely and combine in a bowl with the lemon zest and juice, basil, olive oil, and salt. Taste and add more lemon, olive oil, or salt if needed. Enjoy.

Miso Tofu Salad with an Egg on Top

If you get to the Fairmount Farmers Market early this Sunday, you might be lucky enough to pick up some of Fair Valley Farm's pasture raised eggs. 

If you also pick up an bunch of greens, some basil, a cucumber, some baby potatoes, and a handful of these Japanese eggplants from Sweetwater Farm, then you'll have the fixings for a satisfying dinner salad, perfect for these hot days.

I baked sliced eggplant and tofu in a miso marinade in my toaster oven, to avoid heating the kitchen. Over a bed of chopped kale and basil leaves, I layered on the eggplant and tofu with baby potatoes, cucumber spears, and a six-minute egg, and drizzled it all with the sweet and spicy dipping sauce left over from last week's chicken recipe. A delicious farm to table dinner, without generating much heat.

Miso Tofu Salad with an Egg on Top

makes four dinner salads

Miso marinate
1 tablespoon white miso
1/4 cup hot water
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil

Salad
4 Japanese eggplants, sliced on the diagonal into 1 inch slices
1 block firm tofu, sliced into 8 slabs and pre-frozen or pressed to remove liquid
1 bunch kale or lettuce
~16 basil leaves
1 large or 2 small cucumbers
16 baby potatoes
4 eggs

For the sweet and hot dipping sauce (1/2 recipe):
1/4 cup rice or cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoons dried red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon fish sauce

1. Prepare the miso marinade by whisking together all of the ingredients directly in a toaster oven pan or small baking dish. Dip both sides of the eggplant slices and tofu slabs into the marinate and let soak for at least 30 minutes at room temperature or for a day in the refrigerator. Bake at 350 degrees in a toaster oven or stove for 30 to 40 minutes until the eggplants are sift and have started to char and the tofu is dry and firm. Slice the tofu into strips and reserve.

2. Prepare the dipping sauce. In a small saucepan, heat the vinegar to a boil. Add the sugar, stirring until it dissolves, then lower the heat to a simmer for 5 minutes. In the meantime, pound or mash the garlic and salt into a paste in a mortar or on a cutting board with the side of your knife. Stir the red pepper flakes into the sauce. When the vinegar and sugar mixture is done simmering, stir in the garlic paste and fish sauce and let the sauce cool to room temperature. 

3. Prepare the remaining salad ingredients. Boil the baby potatoes until cooked, about 15 minutes, then drain and reserve. For the eggs, set a small pot of water to boil and the carefully lower in each egg with a slotted spoon. Lower the heat and cook for 6 minutes for eggs with yokes that are still a little runny, or up to 10 minutes for firm yokes. Transfer to a bowl with ice water to cool and peel gently. Peel the cucumber if desired and cut into spears. Rinse the kale leaves, remove the stems with your hands or a knife, and chop into small pieces. Rinse the basil leaves, tear into pieces and mix with the kale leaves.

4. Assemble the salads. On four plates, distribute the kale and basil leaves. Layer on eggplant slices, tofu strips, baby potatoes, cucumber spears, and an egg. Drizzle with a little of the dipping sauce and serve with more sauce on the side. Enjoy.

Puff Pastry Pesto Hearts

Here's a fun quick treat for your sweetie: puff pastry pesto hearts. We had them for dinner to accompany a favorite family soup, and they were devoured with gusto. Happy Valentine's Day.

Puff Pastry Pesto Hearts

makes about twenty

2 sheets frozen puff pastry
1 cup pesto (such as this recipe from the post below)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cover two baking sheets with parchment paper. 

2. Partially thaw the pastry (you can do this in a microwave on low power for a minute or two). Spread out a sheet of pastry. Top with 1/2 cup pesto and spread over the surface. Roll from two sides to make a double log. Carefully slice into 3/4 inch wide slices. Repeat with the second sheet of pastry and remaining pesto. 

3. Arrange the pastry slices on the parchment paper cookie sheets. For each slice, pinch the section between the two rolls to form a heart. Bake for approximately 16 minutes, rotating the pans 180 degrees and top to bottom midway through, until the pastries are golden brown.

Pasta Primavera for the Fall

This Sunday's Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market you can look forward to the following offerings from Sweetwater Farm and Fair Valley Farm:

• variety of sweet and spicy peppers (try in the pasta sauce below)
• variety of tomatoes including bargains on flats of San Marzano romas
• Akane apples and Asian pears from SLO Farm (time for roasted apple sauce)
• Italian prune plums (make a galette)
• cantaloupe and honeydew mellons
• kohlrabi, baby carrots, cabbage, and celery (make some kimchi)
• kale and collards (try as a kale salad)
• broccoli and eggplants (try a roasted salad)
• lettuces and baby lettuce salad mix
• zucchini and summer squash
• variety of potatoes including bargain bags of red potatoes
• sweet onions, garlic, leeks, and fennel
• fresh herbs, including basil, cilantro, dill, thyme, oregano, and sage
• tomato sauce and pesto
• naturally fermented pickles, dilly beans, and sauerkraut
• homemade jams (delicious in crepes)
• Scottish oats (make this teff oatmeal)
• a selection of dried beans and grains from Camas Country Mill
• pastured chicken (try spatchcocked)
• pastured pork: pork chops, shoulder roasts, and ham roasts
• pastured lamb: ground, rib chops, and leg roasts (grill some burgers)

Last week we used our left over Fair Valley Farm ham in pasta primavera, which was my family's extra special meal when I was growing up, reserved for birthdays and other celebrations. The funny thing about pasta primavera is that it's not really a springtime dish; it really makes more sense at the height of summer or during the warm fall days we've been so lucky to have. The classic Le Cirque recipe calls for asparagus and tomatoes, which are never going to be at their peek at the same time. Instead, I recommend pairing summer's sweet cherry tomatoes with the best produce of the season. I used leeks, sweet peppers, zucchini, and summer squash, all fresh from Sweetwater Farm.

Le Cirque's recipe uses a cream sauce, which my family's version omitted. Instead, the core flavor I remember from my childhood recipe was cubed ham and walnuts. Here I experimented with turning the walnuts into a very loose pesto for the kids, and the adults got the added layer of sauteed goodies (while the kids ate their veggies raw on the side). And because this was an extra special dish, we made fresh pasta to soak up all the flavors of the end of summer's harvest.

Pasta Primavera for the Fall

for the pasta
4 eggs
3 cups flour

Combine the eggs and flour in a food processor and mix until the dough starts to come together in a ball. Add a dribble of water if you need to. On a clean work surface, combine the dough into a log and cut it into about 12 pieces. Roll them out with a pasta maker (a fun task for kids) and cut them into fettucini. Cook the pasta in rapidly boiling, salted water for just a couple of minutes. Reserve a half cup of the pasta water if you need to moisten the sauce at the end. Drain the pasta and toss in a large bowl with the walnut sauce and toppings.

for the sauce
2 small or 1 large leek
2 medium bell peppers
2 small or 1 medium zucchini or summer squash
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup cubed ham
1/4 cup white vermouth
1 cup walnut pieces
1 large garlic clove
1 cup basil leaves
~3/4 cup olive oil
salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese and more for passing around the table

1. Prepare all of the vegetables, rinsing them and cutting them into small bite-sized pieces, except for the cherry tomatoes which you will keep whole.

2. Peel and mince the garlic. Chop the walnut pieces into small pieces (I did this with a meat pounder). Alternatively, you could combine the garlic clove and walnuts in a food processor and pulse a few times.

3. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add about a 1/4 cup of olive and when it is warm, add the garlic and walnuts to the oil and saute for a couple of minutes until they are fragrant, but before they start to burn. Transfer the walnut mixture to a large serving bowl that will hold all of the pasta. Add a 1/2 cup of grated Tear the basil leaves and toss into the bowl.

4. Wipe out the skillet and return to medium high heat. Add another 1/4 cup of olive oil. Add the chopped leaks and saute for a couple of minutes. Add the chopped peppers and saute for a couple of minutes. Add the chopped zucchini and summer squash with a generous pinch of salt and saute for a couple of minutes. Now add the ham for a minute, and then the cherry tomatoes. When the cherry tomatoes have just started to collapse under the heat, add the vermouth. Cook for another minute and then turn off the heat. Season with a generous amount of fresh pepper and salt to taste.

5. When the pasta is cooked, toss it in the bowl with the walnuts, parmesan cheese, and basil leaves and drizzle on about 1/4 cup olive oil. This is the point at which I removed some pasta for picky eaters/pesto purists/raw foodists. Then toss in all of the sauteed vegetables and ham. If the pasta seems dry, add a splash of reserved pasta water. Serve at once, with special occasion napkins and dishes.

Baked Zucchini and a Favor

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, you can expect to find the following offerings from Sweetwater Farm and Fair Valley Farm:

• raspberries and marionberries
• many varieties of greens and cabbage (try this stuffed cabbage)
• carrots, turnips, and potatoes (make some salad Nicoise for a picnic)
• broccoli and cauliflower (try roasted)
• fennel and peppers
• zucchini (make ladybugs on a log, recipe below)
• tomatoes (whip up some gazpacho)
• fresh herbs, including basil and parsley
• onions and garlic
• tomato sauce and pesto (make fresh pasta)
• pickles, sauerkraut, and kimchi (make a stir fry)
• homemade jams
• fresh eggs
• pastured chicken (try spatchcocking)
• pork chops, pork roast, ham, and bacon (treat yourself to a summer BLT)

Our market is a grassroots neighborhood effort and we need your help to publicize it. Please download our Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market Poster here, print out a few copies to hang around town, and forward it to your friends. Thanks!

For summer's bounty of squash, here is a recipe for baked zucchini with herby, cheesy breadcrumbs and a spattering of cherry tomatoes. These tender zucchini come out looking like logs overrun with a cluster of ladybugs, lucky rewards your publicity efforts.

Ladybugs on a Log

6 small zucchini
~16 red cherry tomatoes
olive oil
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated pecorino romano
1/4 cup pine nuts
~20 leaves basil
2 anchovy fillets
freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. 


2. Remove the ends of the zucchini and slice them into 1/4 inch strips lengthwise (about 3 or 4 strips per small zucchini). Halve the cherry tomatoes.


3. Spread some olive oil on the bottom of a baking dish and arrange the zucchini slices in a single layer. Brush the zucchini with a little more olive oil and arrange the tomato halves on top, cut side down. Sprinkle over the pine nuts.


4. Finely chop the basil and anchovy fillets and combine in a bowl with the bread crumbs, grated cheese, and a generous amount of black pepper, using your hands to mix the anchovy bits into the bread crumbs. Sprinkle the breadcrumb mixture over the zucchini and tomatoes.


5. Bake in the center of the oven for 20-25 minutes until the tomatoes have collapsed and the breadcrumb mixture is nicely browned. Serve warm.

Summer Gazpacho

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market you can look forward to the following products from SLO Farm, Sweetwater Farm, and Songbird Farm:

• plums, blackberries, strawberries, and apples (SLO Farm's first red gravensteins of the season!)
• tomatoes and peppers of all kinds, cucumbers, green beans, zucchini, eggplants, and beets
• celery, collards, kale, bietola greens, garlic, and herbs
• eggs, honey, fresh sauerkraut and kimchi, propolis salve and lip balm
• fresh cut flowers including cardoons

You will also find local grains and beans from the Southern Willamette Bean and Grain Project. Unfortunately the Salmon People won't be joining us, but they will return the following week.

With the abundance of flavorful, ripe tomatoes, you can whip up a delicious gazpacho:

1 cucumber, peeled

4 large tomatoes

sprig of basil

small splash of sherry vinegar

large splash of olive oil

sprinkle of red pepper flakes

generous pinch of salt

Puree in a blender until smooth.

Sesame Salmon with Cherry Salsa

Next Sunday Fairmount Market customers can look forward to the arrival of The Salmon People offering wild, sustainably harvested Alaskan salmon. Market regulars from last year will remember Linda Castleman's delicious fresh and smoked salmon offerings.

In anticipation of this year's salmon harvest, I tried out a food52 recipe for sesame encrusted salmon, paired with a cherry and basil salsa with ingredients from SLO Farm and Songbird Farm.

Salmon goes well with almost anything, but is especially nice with fruit. A plum and herb salsa would also be delicious (look forward to SLO Farm's plums in the coming weeks). This salmon recipe was easy to prepare. You coat the fish with sesame seeds and sear it, flesh side down, until the seeds are golden and toasted. Then finish it skin side down with some red wine that cooks into a tasty sauce. Serve with boiled new potatoes, and enjoy the remaining bottle of wine. 

Sesame Encrusted Salmon with Cherry Salsa

for the salsa

1 large handful cherries, pitted

3 basil branches

salt and freshly ground pepper

for the salmon
1 lb salmon fillet
1/8 cup sesame seeds
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup light red wine, such as a Pinot Noir
salt and freshly ground pepper


1. Prepare the salsa. Pit the cherries and put in a food processor or mini-chopper with the washed basil leaves. Pulse to chop into a coarse salsa. Remove to a bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and let sit so that the flavors meld while you prepare the salmon.


2. Salt and pepper the salmon fillet. Coat the flesh side with sesame seeds, pressing them down.


3. Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Add the olive oil. Place the salmon fillet flesh side down so that the sesame seeds will sear into the flesh. Cook for about 7 minutes. Flip so that the skin side is down. Pour over the red wine. Cook the salmon for another couple of minutes and remove to a serving platter when the flesh is still pink in the interior. 


4. Simmer the wine and reduce by half. Pour the wine sauce over the salmon fillet and top with the cherry salsa.

Pesto Pasta with Fresh Roasted Garlic on the Side

At the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market this Sunday July 3, you can expect to find these produce items from SLO Farm and Songbird Farm:

strawberries

sugar snap peas

green cabbage

cucmbers

potatoes

kale

chard

lettuce mix

basil

parsley
eggs

honey

Out of our Coop will have fresh eggs and chickens (perfect for a 4th of July BBQ). There won't be any beans and grains from the Southern Willamette Valley Bean and Grain Project, but you can expect them back the following Sunday.

With our bounty of basil, parsley, and eggs last week, we made a delicious pasta. My daughter, as regular readers know, is an accomplished pasta maker, and this batch was a gorgeous yellow when made with fresh eggs. 

To go with the pesto, I roasted some cherry tomatoes, which brings out their best, even when they are not quite in their prime (Songbird Farm promises some ripe cherry tomatoes soon, which would obviate this step). Since I had the oven on, I threw in a quartered head of fresh garlic. This was my first experience cooking fresh garlic, and it was a revelation. The final roasted garlic (which required a few more minutes than the tomatoes) was mellow and sweet, milder than the dried variety. The lovely plump quarters offered a solution to my personal pet peeve about pesto, that it is often overpowered with raw garlic. The answer: roasted garlic as a condiment.

I prepared my pesto in its purest form: basil, parsley, toasted pine nuts and a glug of olive oil. When the pasta was ready, I tossed it in this brilliant green paste, along with the tomatoes and some diced feta cheese. And then I served it with freshly grated parmesan and a roasted garlic wedge on the side. This way, everyone could squeeze out their own pungent roasted garlic paste and slather it about at their discretion.

Pesto and Fresh Pasta

Pasta

4 eggs

scan 3 cups flour

pinch of salt

Pesto

1 large bunch of basil

1 small handful of parsley

1/3 cup pine nuts

~1/3 cup olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Goodies

1 pint cherry tomatoes

1 head fresh or dried garlic

~3 ounces feta cheese, diced

freshly grated parmesan cheese

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.  In an oven proof pan, roll the cherry tomatoes around in a splash of olive oil until they are coated, and throw in a quartered head of garlic. Roast the tomatoes for about 30 minutes, until they are collapsed and fragrant. Transfer these to a bowl and keep roasting the garlic until its skin is quite brown and it is soft throughout, another 15 minutes or so.

2. Prepare the pasta dough in a food processor. Combine the ingredients and process until the dough just starts to come together into a ball. Use a little water or more flour to achieve the right consistency. Roll out the dough with a pasta maker and cut it into strip.

3. Toast the pine nuts in a dry skillet or toaster oven, and watch them like a hawk so that they don't burn (they are too expensive to waste! You could also use toasted almond wedges and a handful of walnuts). Reserve a tablespoon of pine nuts for garnish, and put the rest in a food processor. Pulse briefly. Add the basil and parsley leaves, a glug of olive oil (~1/3 cup), salt and pepper, and pulse to the desired consistency.

4. Cook the pasta in a large pot of rapidly boiling salted water for just a couple of minutes. Strain and stir the pasta into the pesto, fold in the tomatoes and feta, sprinkle over the reserved pine nuts, and serve with freshly grated parmesan and a roasted garlic wedge.