Instant Pot Collar Green Sag Paneer

Tomorrow promises to be a beautiful autumn day, so be sure to visit the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market for its last day of its tenth season. The market will be open between 10 am - 2 pm on the corner of Agate and 19th Ave. You'll find plenty of fall fruits and vegetables from Camas Swale Farm.

Camas Swale has abundant collard greens, which are delicious roasted in a low oven. I also like to use them in sag paneer, as opposed to spinach which I find always cook down to a tiny portion that fits into a single dessert bowl. This time I converted my my stovetop recipe for the Instant Pot, which was able to reduce an enormous pile of leaves into a fragrantly spiced puree in a matter of minutes.

Instant Pot Collard Green Sag Paneer

2 bunches collard greens (or kale), washed, stripped from stems, and chopped
4 cloves garlic, diced
1 to 2 fresh hot chili, diced
4 roma tomatoes, chopped
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 inch ginger root, diced
2 Tbsp grape seed or canola oil
1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
salt to taste
8 ounces paneer cheese, chopped into small cubes
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp garam masala

1.Turn the instant pot to sautee. When warm, add the oil, and then the cumin seeds, mustard seeds, and fenugreek and let them sizzle for a few seconds until fragrant. Add the chopped onion, garlic, ginger, and chili pepper and cook, stirring for a couple minutes. Then add the chopped tomato and cook down a couple minutes longer until they have collapsed and released their juice. Press cancel.


2. Add the collard greens or kale and a generous pinch of salt and give the contents a stir. The liquid from the tomatoes and rinsed greens should be enough, but if it seems very dry, add a Tbsp or two of water. Seal the lid, and program the instant pot to cook at high pressure for 2 minutes. When the cooking is complete, press cancel and carefully release the pressure. 

3. Stir in the coriander and garam masala. Use an immersion blender to puree the greens into a smooth paste. Taste and season with salt if needed. Stir in the cubed paneer cheese and transfer to a serving bowl.

Roasted Red Kuri with Miso Glaze

Rain or shine the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market will be held tomorrow between 10 am - 2 pm on the corner of Agate and 19th Ave. You'll find plenty of fall fruits and vegetables from Camas Swale Farm and pastured meat and poultry from Fair Valley Farm and Fog Hollow Farm. 

Camas Swale has a wide selection of winter squashes including delicata, kabocha, and this red kuri. Sliced, roasted, and finished with a miso glaze, the red kuri made a delicious vegetable side for the end of a long week. 

Roasted Red Kuri with Miso Glaze

1 red kuri or other winter squash
~2 Tbsp neutral oil such as canola oil
1 Tbsp miso
1 Tbsp mirin

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Remove the stem of the squash and cut in half. Scoop out the seeds and pulp. At this point you could peel the squash with a vegetable peeled, but the skin is pretty thin and edible, so you can leave it on. Cut the squash into in inch wide wedges. Place on a baking sheet, drizzle with a little neutral oil and toss to coat. Roast for about 15 minutes, then flip and roast on the second side for another 5 to 10 minutes, so that the squash is cooked through and acquired some color. In the meantime, whisk together the miso and mirin (add a little more mirin if it seems too thick to spread). When the squash is cooked, transfer it to a serving platter and use a brush to spread the glaze on each wedge. Serve warm.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Fish Sauce Vinaigrette

Take advantage of these crips fall days to visit the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market between 10 am - 2 pm on Sunday on the corner of Agate and 19th Ave. You'll find plenty of fall fruits and vegetables from Camas Swale Farm and pastured meat and poultry from Fair Valley Farm and Fog Hollow Farm. 

Who can resist these brussels sprout stalks, that look like the tail of a mesozoic monster? One of my favorite recipes for brussels sprouts is a simplified version of Momofuku's famous brussels sprouts with fish sauce vinaigrette. With plenty of lime juice, fresh mint, and cilantro, these sprouts have a zing that savors the flavors of summer well into the fall.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Fish Sauce Vinaigrette

adapted from Momofuku

brussels sprouts from 1 stalk (about 1 lb)
2 Tbsp neutral oil, such as grapeseed or canola
3 Tbsp cilantro leaves and tender stems
3 Tbsp mint leaves

fish sauce vinaigrette
juice of one lime (anout 2 Tbsp)
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp sugar
red chili flakes to taste

Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Heat the oven to 400 degrees F. Peel away any loose or discolored outer leaves, trim the dry end of the stems with a knife, and cut the sprouts in half. Cut any especially large ones in quarters. On a sheet pan, toss the brussels sprouts with neutral oil. Arrange cut face side down and roast for about 15 minutes. Use a spatula to turn and continue roasting until all of the sprouts have some dark color. 

Fish Sauce Vinaigrette
Combine the lime juice, rice wine vinegar, fish sauce, sugar, and chili flakes and stir to dissolve the sugar.

When ready to serve the brussels sprouts, toss them with the vinaigrette and the cilantro and mint leaves. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Fresh Green Beans with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, held between 10 am - 2 pm on the corner of Agate and 19th Ave., you'll find plenty of summer produce from Camas Swale Farm and pastured meat and poultry from Fair Valley Farm and Fog Hollow Farm. Looks for plenty of cherry tomatoes and late summer green beans.

When they are small and tender, I love eating green beans unadulterated. But I'm also fond of the flavor of heartier bean varieties such as Romanos stewed in tomatoes (similar to this braised celery recipe). Last week I made a side dish for mac and cheese that was a perfect marriage of the two: fresh green beans drizzled with cherry tomatoes roasted with fresh herbs. The collapsed sweetness of roasted tomatoes was the perfect complement to green beans with a hint of a fresh crunch.

Fresh Green Beans with Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

serves four

1 pint cherry tomatoes
several springs of fresh thyme, marjoram, or oregano
drizzle of olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 lb green beans

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. In a small baking pan that will hold the tomatoes in a single layer, combine all of the ingredients and swirl to mix. Roast for 20 to 25 minutes until the tomatoes have completely collapsed and their juices have started to caramelize. This can also be done in a toaster oven. 

2. Meanwhile set a medium pot of salted water to boil. Trim off the stem ends of the green beans. When the water is boiling, add the green beans and cook for 4 minutes for small beans or 5 minutes for large beans. Drain and put on a serving platter. When the tomatoes are done roasting, drizzle them over the green beans and serve. 

Collard Greens with Emmer and Parsley Pesto

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market you will find fresh eggs and pastured chicken, beef, pork, and lamb from Fair Valley Farm and Fog Hollow Farm, baked goods made with local whole grains from WildFlour Oven, fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company, and plenty of fresh produce from Camas Swale Farm, including collard greens and cabbage. 

For a fresh but hearty salad, I combined a tangle of sauted collard greens with cooked emmer dressed up with a lemony parsley pesto. This made a nice side for an end of September barbecue. 

  

Collard Greens with Emmer and Parsley Pesto

1 bunch collard greens
1 shallot, chopped
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Rinse the collard greens and cut out the thick stem from each leaf. Cut the leaves into 1 inch wide strips. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, add the olive oil, and when hot, add the shallots. Saute until soft. Add the collard greens and a generous amount of salt and pepper, stir to coat in oil, and cook over medium low heat, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes until the leaves have soften.

1 bunch parsley
1/3 cup almonds
zest from one lemon
2 Tbsp olive oil
salt to taste
Lightly toast the almonds in a dry skillet on the stove top or in a oven or toaster oven. Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and blend into a coarse pesto. Taste and adjust seasonings.

1/2 cup emmer or other sturdy grain
Cook with 2 cups of water and a pinch of salt for about 25 minutes until al dente, tasting frequently. Drain through a fine mesh strainer.

Mix the pesto into the emmer to coat. Then in a pretty serving bowl, gently mix the emmer with the collard greens and serve.

Tomato Braised Celery

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market you will find fresh eggs and pastured chicken, beef, pork, and lamb from Fair Valley Farm and Fog Hollow Farm, fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company, and plenty of fresh produce from Camas Swale Farm including sweet corn, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, delicata squash, potatoes, leeks, and celery.

Celery is typically relegated to a supporting role in soups and stews, but apparently for Victorians it was a luxury ingredient displayed ostentatiously in special celery vases. For my beautiful Camas Swale celery bunch, I took inspiration from this tribute to long-cooked vegetables by Samit Nosrat in the New York Times, which reminded me of a Marcella Hazan recipe, deemed genius by food52. Hazan's recipe calls for pancetta to add some umami to the tomatoey braising liquid, but I opted for a few anchovy fillets because I love the flavors of celery and seafood.

If you, like me, happen to have momentarily succumb to the illusion that a kitchen appliance will solve all of your problems associated with anxieties about the impending school year, noxious smoke-filled air, and natural disasters related to climate change, and you recently invested in an Instant Pot, you could use it for this recipe. You could also cook this on the stove top. Either way, it is delicious and very soothing. 

Tomato Braised Celery

adapted from Marcella Hazan

1 bunch celery
2 large shallots, peeled and diced
1/4 cup olive oil
4 anchovy fillets in oil
15 ounce can of peeled and diced plum tomatoes, with their juice
red pepper flakes to taste
salt to tatse

1. Cut off the celery's leafy tops, saving the leaves for another use, and detach all the stalks from their base. Use a peeler to pare away most of the strings, and cut the stalks into pieces about 3 inches long (cutting on a diagonal looks nice). Alternately, if you plan on cooking long past tender (an hour or more), you can skip peeling the strings. 

2. Heat a saute pan over medium heat. Put in the oil and the anchovies and cook, breaking up the anchovies, until they dissolve into the oil. Add the red pepper flakes and stir, and then add the diced shallots. Cook until the shallots are cooked through and golden. 

3. Add the tomatoes with their juice, the celery, and salt, and toss thoroughly to coat well. Adjust heat to cook at a steady simmer, and put a cover on the pan. After 15 minutes check the celery, cooking it until it feels tender when prodded with a fork. The longer you cook them, the softer and sweeter they will become. If while the celery is cooking, the pan juices become insufficient, replenish with 2 to 3 tablespoons of water as needed. If on the contrary, when the celery is done, the pan juices are watery, uncover, raise the heat to high, and boil the juices away rapidly.

To make in an Instant Pot:
Perform step 2 using the Saute function. Press cancel, add the remaining ingredients for step 3, then cook with the pressure cooker function on low pressure for 15 minutes and allow the pressure to release naturally.

Pork Chops with Deviled Chard Stems and Chard Gratin

This Sunday at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market there will be fresh eggs and pastured chicken, beef, pork, and lamb from Fair Valley Farm and Fog Hollow Farm. Also you'll find fresh cut flower bouquets from Tiger Lily Art Company and fresh produce from Camas Swale Farm including melons and watermelons, tomatoes, tomatillos (try this roasted salsa), padron peppers, summer squash, sweet onions, and fresh herbs.

Our family let out a collective squeal of delight last week when we saw the first of Camas Swale's harvest of padron pepper, or what my son refers to as "lucky, unlucky peppers." My husband and I love their intense flavor when seared and salted, and our kids love to watch us eat them, since their variable spiciness level makes each new specimen a gamble.

Along with our padron peppers, we purchased colorful chard, sumptuous heirloom tomatoes, zucchini, onions, and sweet cucumbers from Camas Swale, and some thick boneless pork chops from Fair Valley Farm. 

I love the combination of pork with mustard, so I decided to make a mustardy garnish for our seared pork chops of roasted deviled chard stems. With the chard leaves, I made a variation on this zucchini gratin, but with the addition of a cheesy breadcrumb topping. It all made for another delicious midsummer Sunday evening farmers market feast.

Pork Chops with Deviled Chard Stems

roasted deviled chard stems
Swiss chard stems sliced from 1 bunch of chard and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 small lemon
1 Tbsp dijon mustard
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 teaspoon honey
salt and pepper

seared and roasted pork chops
2 thick boneless pork chops
salt and pepper
1 Tbsp olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 

2. Peel the lemon with a vegetable peeler and cut into thin strips. Juice the lemon into a medium bowl. Whisk in the mustard, olive oil, and honey. Stir in the chard pieces and lemon peel. Season with a little salt (depending on the saltiness of your mustard) and plenty of black pepper. Transfer to a small baking dish or oven safe skillet. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the stems are fragrant and nicely browned on the edges.

3. Generously season the pork chops with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat a cast iron skillet over high heat until it is very hot. Add 1 Tbsp olive oil to coat the pan. Sear the pork chops at high temperature until nicely browned on all sides, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer the pan to the oven and continue cooking for about five minutes until the internal temperature reaches 145 degrees F. 

4. Allow the cooked pork chops to rest for about ten minutes. Serve topped with the deviled chard stems.

Zucchini and Chard Gratin

1 bunch chard leaves, cut into 1 inch strips
1 small onion, diced
1 Tbsp olive oil 
1 medium zucchini, grated
2 eggs
100 g (scan 1/2 cup) crème fraîche (which you can make yourself, or use sour cream)
120 ml (1/2 cup) milk
1 cup bread crumbs
100 g (3.5 ounces) grated gruyère or aged cheddar cheese 
salt and pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. On the stovetop, heat a pan over medium heat. Saute the diced onion in 1 Tbsp olive oil. When the onion is glassy, add the chard leaves. Cook the chard leaves for a couple of minutes until brightly colored but not yet wilted. Season with salt to taste and transfer to a 9x9 inch baking dish. Add the grated zucchini and mix.  

2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs and then mix in the crème fraîche, milk, salt and pepper. Pour the mixture over the chard and zucchini in the baking dish. Cover with bread crumbs and then with the grated cheese.

6. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes until the gratin is nicely browned.

Roasted Pepper and Onion Toasts

Sweet peppers and onions don't get much prettier than these varieties from Camas Swale Farm at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market.

These long, red specimens seemed made for each other. My son has recently discovered that roasted red peppers are basically parent sanctioned candy, so they've been making a regular appearance at our dinner table.

A handy tool for deseeding and deveining these narrow peppers is one that might just be lurking in your cutlery drawer, threatening sleepy cereal eaters: the grapefruit spoon.

I roasted them together in the toaster oven (too hot to turn on the real oven these days) with a lot of olive oil and a few sprigs of marjoram.

We ate the resulting caramelized goodness simply piled on slices of toasted baguette. On a hot day, these toasts plus some cold gazpacho makes a perfect dinner.

Roasted Pepper and Onion Toasts

4-8 sweet peppers
1-2 onions
olive oil
salt
several springs of marjoram or thyme
sliced bread

Seed and slice the peppers into 1 inch strips. Peel and slice the onions into eighths. Preheat a toaster oven to 450 degrees. Toss the vegetables in several slugs of olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and roast in a toasting oven pan with the sprigs of herbs, stirring occasionally, for about 25 minutes, until caramelized and slightly charred. Transfer the caramelized vegetables to a bowl. Rub the bread slices in the remaining oil in the pan, flip and drizzle on a little more olive oil if desired. Toast until lightly brown on the edges. Pile the caramelized peppers and onions onto the toast and serve.

Miso-Glazed Eggplant

This week Fair Valley Farm will be at the Fairmount Farmers Market with their pastured meat, along with gorgeous fresh produce of Camas Swale Farm and lovely flowers from Tiger Lily Art Company.

Our favorite eggplant recipe these days comes from the Lucky Peach 101 Easy Asian Recipes cookbook and it's dead easy. Halve eggplants (Japanese or otherwise), bake them a bit (and you can do this in a toaster oven if it feels too hot to turn on your real oven), then slather with a miso and mirin paste and bake some more. This makes a substantial vegetarian entree, and is also a nice accompaniment to other Japanese-inspired dishes. With some Fair Valley Farm boneless pork chops, we made Melissa Clark's recipe for breaded and fried tonkatsu, which she points out is essentially the same and German weiner schnitzel, a dish of my youth. To round out the meal we had crunchy quick pickles (tsukemono) and sweet and sour zucchini.

Miso-Glazed Eggplant

from Lucky Peach 101 Easy Asian Recipes 

4 Japanese eggplants or 2 regular eggplants, halved lengthwise

1 Tbsp neutral oil

1/4 cup red miso

2 Tbsp mirin

sesame seeds

1. Heat the oven (or toaster oven) to 450 degrees. 

2. Slick the eggplant halves all over with oil and arrange them cut side up on a baking sheet. Roast for 10-15 minutes until they are just wilted, a very light roast. 

3. Meanwhile, whisk together the miso and miring in a small bowl.

4. Smear the cut side of the eggplants with the miso mixture and roast until the eggplants are tender and the miso is browned and bubbling, about 10 minutes longer. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.

Baby Turnip Pennies

Last week at the Fairmount Neighborhood Farmers Market, my son picked out the cutest bunch of baby turnips from Camas Swale Farm. When trying to think of a pleasing turnip preparation for the eight and under crowd, I turned to Mollie Kaizen's children's cookbook classic Pretend Soup, source of our family's favorite popover recipe.  

I remembered that Katzen had a recipe for carrot pennies, which I thought might work for baby turnips. On closer inspection, I realized this was a version of the Japanese cooking style of kinpira or sauté and simmer, as in this kinpira gobo, which  produces an addictive sweet and salty syrup coating for the vegetables. This preparation proved to be just the thing to make turnips fun to eat for all ages.

Baby Turnip Pennies

adapted from Mollie Katzen’s Pretend Soup

1 bunch baby turnips
2 Tbsp butter
juice from 1/2 lemon
2 tsp sesame seeds
1 Tbsp brown sugar
generous pinch of salt
1/4 cup water

Trim the tops and tails from rinsed baby turnips and slice them into thin rounds. Place a skillet over medium heat and melt the butter. Add the turnips and a pinch of salt and toss to coat. Add the lemon juice, sesame seeds, and brown sugar and saute until the turnips start to soften and brown. Add the water and allow to cook down to a syrup. Serve warm.

Spinach Yogurt with Spiced Chickpeas

In line with my last post, my Christmas present cookbook this year, Yogurt Culture by Cheryl Sternman Rule, is full of inspiration for cooking with fermented daily products. With some baby spinach from our Sweetwater Farm CSA and some cooked chickpeas in the refrigerator, I ended up making a mashup of two of Rule's yogurt spread recipes (a Turkish spinach dip and an Indian raita with a spiced tarka). For the base I mixed plain whole milk Nancy's Yogurt with chopped spinach and a pinch of salt, and then layered on these chickpeas fried with garlic, lemon rind, cumin, coriander, and smoked paprika.

Rules tops many of her savory yogurt dishes with a drizzled of oil, so for this one I made a tarka of cumin and mustard seeds and fresh curry leaves (now available on a regular basis at Sunrise Asian Food Market). This dish worked well as a party appetizer with pita chips, with the cooling yogurt as a nice contrast to the spicy chickpeas, and it was substantial enough to serve as dinner after the guests were gone and we were too tired to cook.

Spinach Yogurt with Spiced Chickpeas

for the chickpeas
2 Tbsp neutral oil such as canola
3 strips lemon rind, sliced thin
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
2 cups cooked chickpeas (could use one 15 ounce can)
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
pinch of salt

for the yogurt
1 cup baby spinach
1 cup whole milk plain yogurt
pinch of salt

for the tarka
1 Tbsp neutral oil such as canola
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
4-5 fresh curry leaves (optional)

1. For the chickpeas, heat a skillet over medium high heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil and then the slivers of lemon rind. Cook one minute and then add the garlic. Cook another 30 seconds and then add the chickpeas and spices. Stir well and allow to coat the chickpeas. Allow to cook for about ten minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chickpeas have crisped.

2. Prepare the tarka. Heat a small pan over medium high heat. Add the oil. When it is hot, add the cumin seeds and about 30 seconds later add the mustard seeds and curry leaves. Cook about a minute until the oil is very fragrant but before anything burns, and then transfer the tarka to a small bowl.

3. Rinse the spinach, drain, and chop finely. When you are close to serving the dish, combine the spinach with the yogurt and a pinch of salt.

4. To serve, spread the yogurt mixture on a shallow serving dish. Layer over the chickpeas. Drizzle the platter with the spiced oil, including the toasted seeds. Serve with warmed flat bread or pita chips.

Sichuan Green Beans

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.

Sweetwater Farm has a lovely selection of beans including these yardlong beans, which always get a giggle out of my kids when served full length. I like to blanch them, save some in their full splendor, and chop the rest to stir fry in Fuchsia Dunlop's Sichan green beans from Every Grain of Rice. This recipe involves a secret ingredient of Tianjin preserved vegetables, available at Sunrise Market, which add a salty pungency. And with so many pretty spicy peppers at the market, I substituted fresh for dried. Blanching the beans first, as Dunlop does in this version of her recipe, means that they require less oil so that the dish tastes fresh and not too greasy. A great side dish to have in your repertoire, and a great reason to stock up on fall beans.

Sichuanese Dry-Fried Green Beans

from Fuchsia Dunlop's Every Grain of Rice

3/4 pound green beans or yard long beans
4-6 dried chiles
2 scallions, whites only, sliced
3 garlic cloves, sliced
An equivalent amount of ginger, sliced
2 tablespoons Sichuanese ya cai or Tianjin preserved vegetable (optional but recommended; see note above)
1/2 teaspoon whole Sichuan pepper
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons canola or peanut oil

1. Trim beans; snap them in half. Then snip the chiles in half and shake out and discard the seeds. If you're using the Tianjin preserved vegetable, rinse off the excess salt and squeeze it dry. 

2. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add beans and blanch until just tender, then drain. 

3. Put your wok over high heat. Add the canola or peanut oil, then the chiles and the Sichuan pepper. Stir-fry just until the chiles begin to darken, then add the scallion, ginger, and garlic and cook for a few moments more. Add the preserved vegetable and stir a few more times. Then add the beans and stir-fry for a minute or two longer, until coated in the oil and the seasonings. Add salt to taste. Drizzle with sesame oil and serve.

Zucchini Butter

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.

I've been on a zucchini kick this summer. It's funny because I remember distinctly how unenthusiastic I was about this vegetable when I was young, a sentiment shared by my children, who view a zucchini as a failed, soggy attempt at a cucumber. But these days I can't seem to get enough of these summer squash roasted, stir fried, or on pizza, so I couldn't resist Erica's bargain bag of zucchini at the market last weekend. 

Faced with this hefty zucchini haul, I decided to try out a recipe I'd been eying for zucchini butter from the food52 genius recipe series. It called for shallots, but I used a lovely slender leek from the market. You simply shred your zucchini (easiest to do in a food processor for a big batch), and cook it down with a generous portion of olive oil or butter (I used both) until the squash melts into a rich spread, which is delicious on crackers or as the base for a sandwich with sliced tomatoes. The best part, for those facing a zucchini glut, is the sense of satisfaction when you see your huge stack of squash reduced to a manageable pot of spread.

Zucchini Butter

adapted slightly from Jennie Cook's genius recipe

makes about 2 cups

2 pounds zucchini or assorted summer squash (feel free to use less or add extra -- cooking times will vary)
2 Tbsp olive oil 
2 Tbsp butter
1 small leek or 2 shallots
Salt and pepper

1. Grate the zucchini in a food processor or on a box grater. Toss with a generous pinch of salt and let it drain in a colander for 3 to 4 minutes or until you are ready to begin cooking. Mince the white part of the leek or the peeled shallots. Squeeze the water out of the zucchini (you can do this with your hands or by wringing it in a clean cloth towel). 

2. In a deep skillet, heat the olive oil and butter. Sauté the leeks or shallots briefly. Add the zucchini and toss. Cook and stir over medium to medium-high heat until the zucchini reaches a spreadable consistency, about 15 minutes. If you scorch the bottom, turn the flame down! (And scrape those delicious bits into the butter for added flavor -- you can splash in a little water to help deglaze the pan.) The zucchini will hold its bright green color and slowly caramelize into a nice vegetable jam. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

3, Enjoy on crackers or toast, or as a side dish all summer long!

Sweet and Sour Zucchini

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.

While summer squash are at their peek, I recommend you try Fuchsia Dunlop's sweet and sour zucchini from Every Grain of Rice. As Dunlop points out, zucchini are not a common vegetable in Chinese cuisine, but I was happy to find a different approach for preparing these abundant summer vegetables. The squash are pre-salted to drain away some of their water content and then stir-fried over high heat. The recipe couldn't be simpler: slivered garlic, a pinch of salt and sugar, and a kick of Chinkiang vinegar, making a delicious accompaniment for Ma Po Doufo.

Sweet and Sour Zucchini

from Fuchsia Dunlop's Every Grain of Rice

2 zucchini
salt
2 Tbsp cooking oil
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp Chinkiang vinegar

Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise, then cut each half into about three sections. Thinly slice each section lengthwise and place in a bowl. Add 1/2 tsp salt, mix well and set aside for 30 minutes or so. When you are ready to cook, drain the slices and squeeze them to get rid of excess water.

Heat a wok over a high flame. Add the oil, then the garlic, and stir-fry for a few seconds until you smell its fragrance. Add the zucchini and stir-fry until they are hot and just cooked, but still a little crisp. Add the sugar and vinegar, with salt to taste, stir a couple of times, then tip on to a dish and serve.