Farmers’ Market Finds

Even though our Community Supported Agriculture farm has been supplying us with a wealth of great produce this season, I still like to visit farmers’ markets to supplement our table.  You see, the CSA box provides just the right amount for what a normal family would want to eat.  But what if you want zucchini coming out of your ears, like a real gardener?  (There’s an old joke in my hometown that you shouldn’t leave your car unlocked in the summer, not to prevent theft, but to prevent zealous gardeners from giving you their surplus zucchini.)  I have neither the time, space, skill, nor inclination to actually garden, so I market instead.  I wanted more than what we could eat for dinner, so I could bake with some, freeze some, and just revel in the surplus of it.

Besides, the farmers’ market was on our summer list.

I brought home enough zucchini to eat some for lunch, freeze four cups of it, and bake this zucchini bread and these zucchini brownies.  (Trust me.  Zucchini brownies = good.)

While we were there, I couldn’t resist some ears of corn and these herbs.

Even though I have three healthy basil plants on the porch, I couldn’t resist that beautiful bunch of basil for $1.  This is what we had for dinner that night.  I had enough pesto to freeze, and enough leftover basil for salad dressing.

The recipe is for Spaghettoni Al Pesto (Barefoot Contessa Parties!), and you’ll probably notice that the picture doesn’t show spaghettoni.  That’s rigatoni, which rhymes with spaghettoni, and that’s good enough for me.

I had less of an idea of what I would do with the dill, but seeing those big, flowery bunches reminded me of my grandmother.  She grew acres of vegetables and herbs every summer, and I remember the dill on the edge of the garden.  The smell of dill always brings me back to her, and that garden.  Unlike a lot of people, I don’t have a lot of good food memories of my grandmother – she was pretty much insane, and not in a charming way – but the garden and the dill made me smile.
I brought it home and made a small batch of creamy cucumber salad, from Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics.

French String Bean Salad

I like green beans.  I like them plain, and even raw.  I grew up eating them straight out of my grandmother’s garden, and I can’t get enough of them.  Someone Else Who Lives In My House would prefer that they be cooked within an inch of their life, preferably with bacon.  Marriage is all about compromise, or so I’m told, and this recipe (from Barefoot Contessa: How Easy is That?) provides an easy way to get that compromise.  I would still prefer them perfectly plain, but my husband really likes this mustard dressing.  The nice thing about it is that the dressing is added after the beans are lightly steamed (and served on the side, if desired), so we can both be happy.  If only the Contessa could mitigate the thermostat wars or make a Star Trek movie that doubles as a chick flick.

Green Herb Dip

This recipe (Barefoot Contessa at Home) uses the same herbs as this salmon, so I had extra herbs in the refrigerator.  I didn’t have any scallions left, so I used freeze dried shallots instead.  I served it with some new-fangled hippie chips with soy and flax in them, so that made it healthy, right?  Right?!

When life (or your CSA, or your garden) hands you cucumbers…

… make tzatziki!  We love this with grilled pork or lamb, or just as a dip with crackers and raw veggies.  Plus, you get to feel like an ancient chemist when you drain the cucumbers and the yogurt.  That’s just me, you say?  Well, just leave me with my delusions, then, please.

Unfortunately, a photo can’t do this dip/sauce justice.  It can’t capture the creamy coolness of the yogurt and the brightness of the lemon juice, paired with the crispness of the cucumbers and the earthiness of the dill.  You’ll just have to make it yourself to see.

Barefoot Contessa Parties!

Classic Potato Salad

My college friend Amber hit the nail on the head when she said that opinions abound when it comes to egg salad, mostly because we all love the way our families made it when we were growing up.  Amber and I survived college dorm food together (thanks in no small part to cold cereal, the salad bar, and Saturday morning pancakes), and now she’s one of my food heroes.  She’s an aspiring locavore, and I try not to be jealous when she writes about buying oranges at her farmers’ market near her California home.

Amber’s theory about egg salad extends to potato salad as well, in my opinion.  I didn’t even like potato salad until I was well into my twenties, but I still have strong opinions about what should be in it.  This version (Barefoot Contessa at Home) is nice, and it provides a canvas to add your own family’s favorites.  I omitted the raw red onion and added a little celery seed.  Hard boiled eggs would have made it extra good.  We had this with sandwiches for a weeknight dinner.  I made a half-batch, and even halving the dressing recipe would provide enough for a sandwich spread or tuna salad for the next day’s lunch.  If you don’t like dill and decide to eliminate it, you’ll probably want something to boost the flavor a bit:  roasted garlic, perhaps, or maybe some fresh parsley.

Our CSA farmers have a special affinity for a great variety of potatoes, so I can’t wait to try this recipe this summer with some beautiful blue-fleshed potatoes.