Recipes

The Short List

Easy Ideas for What’s at the Market Now

August 24, 2008

Summer Supper Salads
Try these warm weather ideas for composed entree salads.

Meatball Salad
PD Farms lean ground beef meatballs rolled the size of walnuts, lettuce or spinach, grilled sweet onions and fresh or pickled cherries. Use extra virgin olive oil and a bit of the pickle vinegar to dress the salad. Or, dress the lettuce with just enough olive oil to make the leaves shine, then drizzle balsamic vinegar over the top of the finished salad.

The Gilded Lily
Here’s our take on an extravagant vegetarian salad: lettuce, chickpeas marinated with sweet onion and herbs, fried baby artichokes, pickled red onions, chevre or feta cheese, and green goddess dressing. Add market vegetables to taste. Possibilities include cherry tomatoes, summer squash cut into matchsticks, corn, cucumbers, and radishes or summer turnips.

Montavilla Farmers Market Nouveau Salade Nicoise
Use the classic nicoise salad as a template and make adjustments according to what you find at the market. Whisk together a dressing of stone ground mustard, minced garlic, red wine vinegar and olive oil. (Lightly dress ingredients as you add them to the salad, or drizzle the vinaigrette over the completed salad.) Begin with lettuce. Add canned albacore or a smoked fish from Oregon Wild. Continue with tomatoes; green beans or marinated cauliflower; boiled or grilled potatoes and capers; black olives; and hard-boiled egg if desired. Fresh fish is delicious here, too. Try a piece of grilled salmon or snapper cut into 2-inch chunks, rubbed with Dijon mustard and herbs, dusted with flour and fried. Drain on paper towels before adding to the salad.

August 17, 2008

Grill corn with or without the husk
Corn that is husked, rubbed with a little oil and salt and grilled takes on a smoky, caramelized char. If it is left in its husk (but with the silk removed) and grilled more slowly, corn’s flavor deepens and mellows. Either way, be sure to grill more than you can eat in one sitting. Remove kernels from the cob and refrigerate. You can use leftover grilled corn in cornmeal muffins with jalapeno and green onion, sauté it with fresh chile peppers and oregano for a quick side to a main dish, or try a summer salad with grilled corn, cherry tomatoes, chives and cucumber.

Make your own crème fraiche
To make the cultured cream known as crème fraiche, or crema, whisk three tablespoons buttermilk into one cup whipping cream. Set the mixture aside in a warm place for 8 to 24 hours, or until thickened. Refrigerate. Drizzle tangy, rich crema over tacos, enchiladas and tostadas, serve it with sweetened berries and fruit pies in place of whipping cream, and swirl it into chilled and hot soups. See the complete method here

Dried corn
This preserve proves its worth during the long winter months. The bright flavor that emerges from the re-hydrated corn brings warm reminders of summer like no frozen or canned corn ever could. You’ll want to add a couple of spoonfuls to stews or winter squash soups. See our website for the procedure.

August 10, 2008

Freeze berries that don’t stick together
Anthony Boutard of Ayers Creek Farm taught us to leave berries like blackberries, blueberries, and marionberries in their pint boxes, put them directly in the freezer, wait overnight, then knock the berries loose from their containers into a freezer bag. The result is as if you’ve frozen the berries individually on a sheet pan, except without the work.

Brandied peaches
Preserve one of summer’s iconic fruits by drowning slices of ripe, unblemished peaches in brandy with a little sugar, lemon and optional flavorings like cinnamon stick, vanilla bean, and allspice berries. This keeps in your refrigerator, so there’s no need to can. The method is wonderful for plums, too. Find the recipe at www.marketchefs.com.

Cocktails, anyone?
Puree berries or peeled peaches or nectarines until smooth. Add a squeeze of lemon juice to stone fruit puree to prevent browning. Use the puree in Bellinis—put 1- 2 Tbsp. of puree in the bottom of a champagne flute, then fill the glass with prosecco or other sparkling wine.

August 3, 2008

Cut peaches and nectarines in half and throw them on a hot grill until they soften. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and serve with pork chops. Alternately, wrap the peach halves in bacon before grilling or roasting. Or go the dessert route and pair the grilled stone fruit with vanilla ice cream and berries that have been crushed with a fork and stirred with honey into a sweet sauce.

Snapper tacos
Salt and pepper 1 ½ inch chunks of snapper or rockfish, dredge in flour and fry in ¾ inch oil. Wrap in corn tortillas with creamy cabbage slaw and tart cherry tomatoes. Serve with radishes and limes.

Succotash:
Stew green beans, corn, and spring onions or torpedo onions in butter with a little water or cream until tender. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve as a side to grilled steaks or braised beef short ribs.

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