I’ve never thought of myself as a “pickling” kind of gal-it’s one of those simple things that’s somehow mysterious to me. I was reminded of this when watching an episode of The Barefoot Contessa yesterday, when she noted the same phenomenon when it comes to vinaigrettes-which I have become comfortable making since reading about them in Thomas Keller’s Bouchon (I highly recommend this cookbook/tome).
Here, I’ve adapted a recipe from Epicurious to make these cucumbers to top a teriyaki bbq chicken sandwich topped with grilled pineapple. The combination was sweet, salty and crunchy-it made for a really satisfying meal.
Method
Thinly slice one English/seedless cucumber and place in a bowl. Add 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon kosher salt, 1/2 cup chopped cilantro, 6 chopped chives, several dashes of soy sauce. Mix, cover tightly and refrigerate for at least an hour, or overnight. Top hamburgers, deli sandwiches, or use as a side salad.
Back at the market at last. I missed my semi-regular Sunday morning ritual of going to the Dupont Market. During spring and summer, I focus on markets which are closer to me, but when they close for the season, Dupont is where I head to. The market has a good vibe-a kind of energy where food and people come together and create something so rustic right in the heart of the city.
Cardoons….cardon’ts
At Next Step Produce, I bought a large bunch of cardoons. I’ve only eaten them once, at Vermillion. I believe it was a gratin dish, and I loved it. I found a recipe for cardoon soup from Mario Batalli, and set out to make it. After prepping, chopping and simmering the cardoons in salted water for about 30 minutes, I decided to check them for taste and tenderness before I went ahead with making the recipe.
They were, in a word, bitter. Perhaps I should have soaked them for a couple hours beforehand. Conquering cardoons would have to wait for another day. Undeterred and still in the mood for soup, I dug out a large bag of frozen broccoli from my freezer, some scallion and cheddar cheese and made a broccoli cheddar soup, served up with sourdough bread that I purchased from Atwater Bakery. Man, that is good bread!
Success with a market salad
While making the soup, I threw a couple beets in the oven to roast and made a simple vinaigrette for a salad. Here’s the recipe for this market salad that truly tasted fresh and wonderful. The beets (New Morning Farm) were earthy, the Allegheny chevre from Firefly Farm was slightly piquant, the cress (Next Step Produce) was peppery and the vinaigrette had a slight licorice taste that went well with the cheese.
Roasted Golden Beet, Chevre and Cress Salad with Tarragon Vinaigrette
Serves 4 generously
Ingredients
2 golden beets
1 bunch cress, washed and dried (arugula would also work well in this salad)
1 log fresh chevre
2 Tablespoons champagne vinegar
6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
5-6 Tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon dried tarragon, or 1 Tablespoon fresh tarragon, chopped fine
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Wash beets and dry thoroughly. Place beets on foil and/or parchment paper (I wrapped them in parchment, followed by foil) that has been placed on a baking sheet. Drizzle beets with olive oil and coat completely. Generously salt beets with kosher salt. Wrap beets and roast in the oven for 1 hour. Allow to cook and cut top and bottom of beets. Peel skin and chop beets into small cubes.
For vinaigrette, use a bowl and whisk. Pour vinegar in bowl, along with a pinch of kosher salt, several grinds of pepper, mustard, tarragon and honey. Whisk to combine. Continue whisking and stream in olive oil. Check for seasoning.
To assemble salad, lightly dress the cress. Plate cress and top with 2-3 slices of chevre and beets. Drizzle additional vinaigrette on the plate. I like to add a small pinch of good salt crystals and a bit of ground pepper just before serving.
Enjoy the photos, and until the next At The Market, eat and buy local when you can.
Washington DC’s first heat wave is upon us* and it’s just too hot to cook. For dinner last night, I used leftovers and some produce from the farmers markets to make an entree salad. Leftover cooked lamb chops, sauteed spring peas, spring onions, previously oven roasted golden beets, blue cheese and a red wine vinaigrette made an easy and satisfying dinner.
What are your favorite dishes to eat on a really hot day? Salads? Chilled soups? Grilled dishes?
Let THG know your ideas!
*Last night’s thunder storms has brought us a glorious break in the heat wave-but still…tell me how you cook and cope with the heat-it’s not even summer yet!
Spoiler Alert! This salad is easy and delicious….and not one ingredient came from a farmers market! Gasp, I know. Me-Miss “eat and buy local”. I know, I know.
Ahem. I can explain.
I have been buying quarts of strawberries at the markets, and honestly, they’ve been good, but not great. I’m not wowed and I really want to be. But, here’s the thing-we’ve had so much rain, and strawberries prefer dryer conditions. Dryer weather sweetens the berries and this area has seen over 9 inches of rain in the past month.
I’m contemplating building an arc-a small one-it only needs to fit 3 dogs.
Which is why I have been keeping an eye open for sales on strawberries at my local markets. Yesterday, I found them on sale at Whole Foods for $3.89 per pound. They are much sweeter than local berries at this time. I will be checking out the local farmers berries each weekend to see how the taste is coming along over the rest of the season.
This salad is a a perfect begining, or ending to a meal. The candied pecans will have you snacking on them again and again (the recipe makes 2 cups). The sweetness and crunch of the berries and nuts plays nicely off of the creamy, salty tang of the cheese and mild pepper taste of the watercress.
Salad of Watercress, Strawberries, Gorgonzola Dolce and Candied Pecans with Champagne Vinaigrette
serves 4
Ingredients
Salad
1 large bunch watercress-about 6 cups loosely packed, washed and dried (you can use arugula or escarole)
4 large or 8 small strawberries, washed and dried just before serving, quartered
1/2 cup candied pecans (see recipe below)
1/4 lb. gorgonzola dolce, crumbled (you can use any mild blue-veined cheese)
Champagne Vinaigrette
2 Tablespoons champagne vinegar
2 tablespoons spicy apricot mustard (you can use other mustards such as dijon, or cranberry, or any fruity mustard if you like)
kosher salt, pinch
pepper, 2-3 grinds freshly ground
6 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Candied Pecans
2 cups pecans, rough chopped
1 egg white, beaten
1 cup granulated sugar
pinch kosher salt
Directions
Preheat oven to 300 degrees
In a bowl, combine pecans and egg white. Coat fully.
Turn coated pecans out onto a baking sheet which has been sprayed with a non-stick spray. Sprinkle sugar over pecans and turn to coat evenly. Sprinkle pinch of salt over the pecans and spread evenly on baking sheet.
Bake in oven for 30-35 minutes. Turn once during cooking. Allow to cool for 10 minutes. The nuts can be stored in an airtight container for 4 days, or in the freezer for 1 month.
In a small bowl, add champagne vinegar, mustard, salt and peppers. Whisk briskly to incorporate. Continue whisking and slowly stream in olive oil. Continue whisking until the vinaigrette is emulsified. Adjust seasoning to taste.
To compose the salad;
Arrange watercress, quartered strawberries, crumbled gorgonzola and candied pecans on 4 salad plates
Drizzle vinaigrette over composed salads and serve immediately.
Don’t you just love asparagus season? I confess that I buy asparagus year round-I love it. But the purple-tipped local asparagus at the farmers markets is really special, and I wanted to make a recipe to showcase them.
For DC Foodies, I created a Mother’s Day brunch menu, incuding this frittata, a warm spinach salad and rosemary potatoes. It was easy and so delicious. Frank gave the frittata two thumbs up when I made this meal for dinner recently.
