Monday, June 29, 2009

Farmer's Market Finds - Part 2

This year at the Farmer's Market there are some old favorites and some new vendors that I love! My go to lunch is the Goat Cheese picnic - a 3 oz. tub of marinated goat cheese, six slices of french peasant bread, and a bag of trail mix. They give you a coupon each week (I love coupons almost as much as I love free samples). I always eat about half the cheese (because I feel better about eating the dessert I buy myself) and have the rest left over to use for breakfast.

My new favorite vendor is Nantucket Wild Gourmet. The guy is really nice and they have free samples. Last week I picked up some smoked sable (black cod) and it was fabulous. This week I decided to go for the smoked salmon. We weren't disappointed!

After last night's steak dinner, we still had some veggies leftover. Using all these fun farmer's market finds, I made an omelet with the veggies and marinated goat cheese. I've previously posted on omelet making, check the post for details.

We put the smoked salmon on toasted sesame bagels with cream cheese. Served with OJ and a hot cup of coffee it was better than anything at the corner deli.

Stay tuned for another post with the farmer's market finds and another installment of "When He Fends for Himself".

Farmer's Market Finds - Part 1

One of my favorite things about working on Fridays in the summer is my trip to the Copley Square farmer's market. I bring my reusable bags and head out (rain or shine) to see what interesting things are for sale each week. It's fun, but a little slow, to go without a plan and just pick up whatever catches my eye. I usually pick up something for lunch and then take about four laps around the market before committing to any purchases.

This week's finds included one of my new favorite spring finds - English peas. They are bigger than the standard frozen peas and have a great flavor. I also picked up some rainbow carrots and garlic scapes. I had never heard of a garlic scape, but for $1 I figured that they were worth a try! They are a curly green shoot that grows out of the garlic. The sign on the basket said that they could be cut and sauteed like green beans and that they have milder garlic flavor.

Another bonus at this market is that there is a stand that sells steaks, ribs, and other meats. I picked up a nice sirloin steak for us to eat along with all the new vegetables.

Here's what I came up with for Friday night dinner with the farmer's market finds. Stay tuned for the Saturday morning breakfast post and more fun with the farmer's market finds.




This was a quick meal - the veggies take 5 minutes and the steak takes about 20-25 minutes or so to cook.

Grilled Sirloin Steak
Sirloin Steak
Your favorite seasoning (we used more of the leftover coffee rub from the BBQ)

Heat the grill for about 5-10 minutes to medium-high (like 400-450 degrees)
Rub the seasonings on the steak and let it sit while the grill is heating
Grill for 5ish minutes per side (depending on thickness)
Remove the steak and let it rest for at least 5 minutes before cutting it (this lets the juices redistribute)

Sauteed Farmer's Market Veggies
About 1/2 cup of fresh shelled peas
4 garlic scapes, cut into 2 inch pieces
1/2 cup baby rainbow carrots, peeled and cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon olive oil
Dash of salt and pepper

Heat the oil to medium in a small skillet
Rinse and pat the veggies dry
Add to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally
The veggies will still have a little crunch (I hate mushy cooked carrots)



Serve with your favorite rice or couscous and a nice glass of wine!

Monday, June 22, 2009

When He Fends for Himself - Breakfast for Dinner Two Ways

Welcome to another telling of the husband fending for himself. A couple of weeks ago I came home knowing I was on my own for dinner. I knew there was some left over steak and asparagus in the fridge from the night before. All I had to do was heat it up and eat it. It would be a very good dinner and I would be very satisfied, but there wouldn't have been much to write about.

So as I was opening the fridge and reaching for the steak, I saw something orange out of the corner of my eye. I thought for a second it could be cantaloupe, but I didn't think we had any. Instead, it was something more exciting, more delicious, and more noteworthy. It was lox, and there was enough for one more serving.

I immediately called the wife and made sure she didn't have plans for the fish. It was mid-week and I knew it wouldn't keep until the weekend for our Saturday morning breakfast. Also, I knew I could save the steak and asparagus for the next day's lunch. So I made an executive decision and decided to make my dinner around the night's secret ingredient: smoked salmon.
I took a sesame bagel out of the the freezer, thawed in the microwave for 10 seconds, and then threw it in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Once the bagel was warm and crisp, I took it out of the oven and applied the cream cheese as soon as possible so that it could melt a little.
Then I put on the lox to complete dish.

It being dinner time, however, I knew a simple bagel with lox would not satisfy me. So, to stay with the breakfast for dinner theme, I filled a bowl with Barbara's shredded spoonfuls cereal, put in a splash of milk, and had breakfast two ways!


It turned into a great meal that I was very proud of. For me, lox is always a treat, but to have it mid-week, completely out of the blue, was something special. It would have made it more special if the wife was around too, but that wasn't the case. Instead, I made due with what I had to work with and produced a satisfying dinner!

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