So, its official, fall has begun and summer is winding
down. And, since today is the first day
of October, it is only fitting that fall produce is now starting to show up at
the markets. This morning I ventured to
both The Beaverton Market and The PSU Market.
What I noticed at both markets today is an abundance of beautiful
produce. Chilies, peppers, corn,
squashes, tomatoes and other summer fare still look great and now apples,
pears, winter squashes, potatoes and onions are starting to come into
season. This is my favorite time of the
year for produce and I often find that I'm indecisive about what to cook
with. Today I found myself purchasing more
produce than I need, but it all looked so good.
Here are some of the highlights for this week.
Brussels Sprouts – I couldn’t track down the farm selling Brussels
sprouts, but I did see a few people walking through the market with fresh Brussels
sprouts, so they are out there. And when
it comes to Brussels sprouts I find that most people love them or hate
them. The secret to delicious Brussels
Sprouts is how they are cooked. To
prepare them I first blanch them in salted water. Before blanching, trim off the tough outer
leaves and using a paring knife cut an X into the stem end going about ¼ inch
deep. This helps the centers cook. Blanch the sprouts for about 4 minutes or
until a paring knife inserted into the center meets no resistance. Immediately plunge them into ice water to
stop the cooking process. To finish Brussels
sprouts cut them in half and sauté with rendered bacon, onions, garlic and a
hint of sherry vinegar at the end. Here’s
a great recipe for Brussels Sprout and Wild Mushroom Fricassee.Brussels Sprouts and Wild Mushroom Fricassee
Onions – This is the best time of year for onions. Almost every large farm has onions for sale. From the sweet varieties to cipollinis, this is the time of year to roast, caramelize or sauté them for your favorite dishes.
Potatoes – I always forget how much I love potatoes, especially when they are grown on a small farm. The difference between the potatoes you buy at the super market and those at the Farmers’ Market is night and day! I buy some of the German Butterballs from Groundworks Organics every time I am at the PSU Market. And for an out of this world potato experience stop by Prairie Creek Farm. Their farm is located in the Northeast corner of Oregon and the soil in that area produces very flavorful potatoes.
Grapes – Grapes are starting to show up at the market. The selection is still sparse, but we should start to see more over the next few weeks. Unger Farms had amazing red flame seedless today.
Apples – Apples are everywhere and the quality is
great. I have found that the crisper
varieties, such as honeycrisp and Fuji’s have been the best. The great thing about apples is that they
store well, so once you find a flavorful and crisp variety that you like the
chances are they will be available for weeks to come.
Tomatoes are still very abundant at the market this
week. But once summer is gone so are the
tomatoes. So the question is how can you
enjoy summer ripe tomatoes throughout the winter? Well, of course there is canning, but I have
another secret for preserving tomatoes for the winter. It’s called slow roasting and it works great
for romas. Every fall I buy copious
amounts of romas and roast them to bring out their flavor. This simple technique involves coring and quartering
roma tomatoes and then tossing them with olive oil, thyme, rosemary, garlic,
salt and sugar. Next you lay them out on a
baking sheet tray with a roasting rack and slowly cook them for 12 to 16 hours
at 150°F. This process takes a long time, but the
results are, well, flavorful. The final
step in this process is to peel off the skin and place the tomatoes in jars with olive oil
and fresh thyme and rosemary sprigs.
These tomatoes are great on pizza, antipasto platters, sandwiches or with
pasta. Here’s my recipe for Slow Roasted
Tomatoes.Slow Roasted Tomatoes
Photos courtesy of Daryl Ann Yeany
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