Farmer's Market Vegetable Saute

Each week I pick up a basket overflowing with fresh vegetables from a stand at our farmer's market.  The veggies taste so much fresher than what I usually buy at the grocery store that we often eat them raw.

When I cook them, I like to keep it simple, to allow the flavor of the veggies to shine through.

A simple saute is a pretty way to accomplish this. This dish is a perfect side to grilled meats. Make it a main dish with a sprinkle of cheese and a crusty loaf of bread.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Farmer's Market Vegetable Saute
Inspired by the Garden Spot Vegetable Farm in Princeville, IL

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, halved and then thinly sliced (you can substitute 1 or 2 shallots or 2-3 leeks)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
3 to 4 ears of corn, kernels removed
1 pound green beans, ends removed and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 or 3 small red peppers, thinly sliced
5 or 6 small red potatoes
3 tablespoons fresh herbs (such as cilantro or Italian parsley)
Salt and pepper to taste

Microwave potatoes until soft, about 5 or 6 minutes. Let cool, then cut into quarters.

Using a sharp knife, cut corn kernels from the cob, set aside. See my easy trick for completing this task here.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion and stir until onion starts to become translucent. Lower heat to medium-low and continue to cook until onion caramelizes and turns golden brown. Add garlic and cook until fragrant.

Add corn, green beans and peppers and cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables just begin to soften. Add potatoes and 2 tablespoons herbs and salt and pepper. Cook another 2 or 3 minutes.

Remove from heat. Place vegetables in serving bowl and sprinkle with remaining herbs and salt and pepper to taste.

Oven-Roasted Kohlrabi Medley

I recently came into some kohlrabi -- when the Friday cycle instructor brought in some grown by her budding farmer son, owner of Old Sol Produce. I'd heard of kohlrabi, but wasn't sure what to with it. First, let me explain that  kohlrabi is in the cabbage family and is a popular vegetable in German fare in and today's farm-to-table restaurants. The taste is like a cross between cabbage and the sweeter broccoli stems. I think it's delicious.

So, anyhow, I found a bunch of cool recipes online for things like kohlrabi fritters and even a kind of salad with radishes (kohlrabi can be eaten cooked or raw), but in the end I didn't have time to do anything fancy, so I just roasted it with a bunch of other vegetables -- carrot, parsnip, eggplant and red onion.

BTW, here is a great guide from the kitchn on How To Roast Any Vegetable. I love the roasting times by vegetable type.

I recommend giving kohlrabi a try -- at home or when you're at a farm-to-table restaurant.

XOXO,
Amy

Oven-Roasted Kohlrabi Medley

2 kohlrabi, trimmed, outer later peeled/removed and cut into 1/4" to 1/2" slices

A variety of vegetables cut and trimmed. Use whatever you like or have on hand.

Cooking spray

Salt, pepper and seasoning to taste

1-2 table spoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare vegetables. Spray pan, baking dish or sheet with cooking spray. Place vegetable in a single layer and top with salt and pepper and seasoning of your choice. (I used Penzeys Sunny Paris seasoning.)

Place in oven and check  every 15 minutes until veggies are roasted sufficiently -- to your taste. If you are roasting softer vegetables (i.e. tomatoes, yellow squash) with root veggies (i.e. carrots, parsnips, kohrabi), you might want to add those later in the roasting process as they won't take as long. Again, consult the kitchn's guide above.

The fork is piercing a piece of kohlrabi.

Hunter-Gatherer

Much like the squirrel who lives in my backyard, I feel like it's time to start storing up provisions for the coming winter.  With this nesting instinct as motivation, I scampered off to the farmers market to rustle up some grub.

Unlike my furry friend, I did not carry my bounty in my mouth, but I did return with several sacks of delicious eats.  In the next couple weeks, you can look forward to hearing about them...  


Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Brussel Sprouts.  Mmmm.  Even if you aren't a brussel sprout fan, trust me on this one.  Also, I discovered that the official color of my retro (and by that I mean ancient) counter top is actually "brussel sprout." I'll keep that in mind next time I'm looking for accessories.

    
Chicken with Cipollini Onions & Riesling.  

 Oven-Roasted Green Beans.  I'm convinced that everything is better when it's roasted.

I also learned something new at the farmer's market.  Winter squash is the candy of the vegetable world, so, of course, I think it's off the hook.  Then I started thinking about those adorable little gourds that I stick in a bowl on my dining room table.  Could the teenie tiny squashes be as delicious as the big ones? Better yet, could they be MORE delicious?? 

One of the friendly farmers ensured me that they were not delicious at all, but rather dry and disgusting.  Good to know.   

Steamed Bok Choy

Sometimes I get carried away.  At the farmer's market I often get carried away.  I'll be wandering the rows, peering at the various stands, sampling the bounty of Milwaukee farms, and I just can't help loading up my earth-friendly tote with produce.  It's like the stuff leaps out at me.  Needless to say, I return home from my Saturday morning jaunts a bit over-burdened with veggies.

The Bok Choy Situation was born of such a visit to the farmer's market.

I found this bok choy at the market, and it was ridiculous.  It was ginormous.  It had all these crazy spindly stalks like the legs of a million gawky middle schoolers.  And I couldn't live without it.

Of course, I brought it home regardless of the fact that I'd never cooked bok choy.  I wasn't even sure I liked the stuff.

So, when I went to slay the beast, I consulted my trusty tome, Joy of Cooking.  Irma Rombauer and the gang know all there is to know about everything, so I figured they'd have the answer.  And they did!

In order to prepare bok choy, you need to separate the stems and rinse them well.  Now, this is no joke.  That bok choy was dirty.  And not just, oh a little piece here and there.  I'm talking Christina Aguilera dirrrty-style dirty.  Proof:

Once it's squeaky clean (I rinsed it in my salad spinner about five times), slice the stems and the leaves and cook them separately because the leaves will cook faster.  I decided to steam it: place a steamer basket over 1-2 inches of boiling water.  Place the stems in the basket. Cover and cook about two minutes.  Add the leaves, cover, and cook about eight more minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  (By that I mean lots.)  

Now, in the spirit of honesty, I'm not sure that bok choy will be a regular at our dinner table.  When I served it for dinner with a stir-fry, the husband daintily picked an offending piece from his main course. "This went into my cashew chicken," he said.  I took the hint.

If you like "greens," I suggest giving bok choy a chance.  And if you just can't resist giant vegetables at the farmer's market, it's certainly worth the challenge.

Goat Cheese and Tomato Sandwich

I'm always impressed by an enterprising farmer at my local farmer's market.  Each Saturday, I visit a particular stand for a tomato.  (Yes, only one tomato.  Anyone who knows the food preferences of my husband understands that the man does not eat tomatoes.  So, it's just the one tomato for yours truly.)  Anyway, each week the farmer asks me if I would like some fresh goat cheese to go with my tomato.

Ah, the up-sell.  Typically, the up-sell chaps my hide, but I figure it's tough for a small farmer to make a buck.  And, well, I really love goat cheese.

The only issue is that I have a limited farmer's market budget each week, and the $7 ($7!!) for goat cheese would limit the number of caramels I could purchase.  A girl has to have her priorities.

Finally, after several weeks of turning down the chevre, I had enough pennies in my pocket.  When the farmer offered the bait, I bit hard. "Well, yes, I would like some goat cheese to go with my tomato!"

And I was on my way home, dreaming of lunch at 8:30 a.m.

When the husband and I met up later that morning, I proudly announced my farmer's market purchase.  He looked at me with that look that told me I was being dense but wasn't quite sure why.  "That goat cheese is going to be UNPASTEURIZED."

Ahhh.  Unpasteurized.  Dang.

I am the kind of person who sniffs the milk carton even before it's reached the expiration date.  I stopped eating raw cookie dough as soon as I learned the word salmonella.  In my mind, unpasteurized meant consequences I was not interested in.

But goat cheese and tomato sounded so goooood.

God bless the people who invented the internet.  After a quick search, I tracked down my enterprising farmer and confirmed that his product was indeed pasteurized.

Darn good thing because I couldn't have resisted this kind of glorious concoction:

This is simple.  Get bread.  Schmear it with goat cheese.  Top it with sliced tomatoes.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Smile big.