I Love a Parade! With Confetti [Salad]!

Well, okay, it's a lame lead-in.  But the salad is yummy.  It seems to have limitless variations and an uncertain history, but the common denominator is that it looks like a party on a plate.  For my version, start by roasting 1/2 head of garlic, top cut off but otherwise intact, doused in olive oil, at 425 degrees for 30 minutes or until you can squeeze the cloves and a nutty, lovely garlic paste comes out.  Do not include any burnt or brown parts.  They're bitter.

Take 1/4 c. sundried tomatoes and rehydrate with 3/4 c. very hot water and 2 T. sweet vermouth.  If you don't want the alcohol, dissolve 2 T. honey in very hot water, then pour over the tomatoes.  You can also use jarred sundried tomatoes or roasted peppers, but you need to drain and rinse them first.

Cook 1 cup of Israeli couscous (or rice would be fine). Follow either package directions or the directions that are usually posted on the bulk bin. 

While the couscous is cooking, steam or simmer 10 spears of asparagus (woody or tough ends chopped off) until bright green and just slightly tender when you bite into them.  How do you know?  Bite into a spear!!  Plunge under cold water to stop the cooking and chop into (more or less) 1/8 inch rounds.

Sautee 1/4 c. sliced mushrooms in olive oil.  When they're golden brown on both sides, turn the pan off.  Take about 1/4 t. each of dried tarragon and marjoram and crush between your fingers into the pan.  Why?  Because crushing releases their oils and you don't want to burn the herbs.  Residual heat will warm them through just enough to release the flavor into the oil and mushrooms.

Finally, chop up 4 scallions, white and light green parts only, into very small pieces.  Throw everything together in the bowl with the couscous.  Now make the dressing:  3/8 c. olive oil goes into a bowl with the garlic pulp, and crush and stir with a fork until the garlic is evenly distributed, then whisk in 1/8 c. red vinegar. (Hint:  1/8 c. = 2 Tablespoons) Stir as much as you like into the salad.  Start with half of it and taste . . . if it tastes under-dressed to you, add some more and taste again.  I used about 3/4 of the dressing and put the rest aside for another use.  Salt and pepper to taste and set aside for at least one hour.  It's even better the next day.

Other possible add-ins include:  chick peas, toasted pine nuts, and/or kalamata olives.  Enjoy! And until tomorrow, I'll see you at the market!

Quick Breakfast Tip w/Asparagus

If you like your breakfast eggs with runny yolks (or "dippy", as we used to say), read on.  If not, this is not for you.  I have quite a bit of asparagus at home and tomorrow I'll be using some to make an updated version of confetti salad.  However, this morning, I was inspired to cook an egg over-medium (you could also poach the egg, but I find frying easier when I'm in a hurry) and break the yolk over some asparagus simmered until it was just tender.  Add a piece of toast, and it's almost an asparagus eggs benedict!

See you tomorrow - and until then, I'll see you at the market!

Sunday Driver!

I got up this morning to bright sunshine streaming through the windows of the condo and decided to go for a Sunday drive.  It got a little out of control.

I put 4 gallons in the tank and then sat down to recover from the shock. Thank heaven for my little tiny Toyota! I headed over to Highway 1 and went north to the outskirts of Watsonville. At the first exit for Watsonville (going north) exit and turn left, toward the Chevron station - right next door is Redman House Farm Stand. My intention was to provide some info on the stand for my readers who have trouble making it to the farmers markets. The link is to the right. It's beautiful organic food; cash only. They are open Wednesday-Sunday, 10-6. I got there at 9 a.m. Since there isn't much else to do around there, I decided to turn around and head back.  I decided to try the stands along Highway 1, because I've been driving by them for years and never checked them out.

I stopped at the Moss Landing stand which has the advantage of being co-located with Surf City Coffee.  There were a few items labeled "local" - all conventional - and they also had a jewelry stand, a lot of local nuts (the kind that grow on trees, not the "colorful character" kind), and a wide assortment of very inexpensively priced fruits and vegetables (5 lb. of oranges for $1.00).  The highlight was some delicious home made hummus, salsa and guacamole from $3.99-$5.99/container.  I bought some baby eggplant to put on the grill later.  I'm pretty sure they were not local.

Then I stopped at the Thistle Hut. (Watch out for the potholes in the driveway! Yikes!)  I suspect the artichokes were local, but nothing was labeled, so I couldn't tell.  Everything there was also conventional.  I turned off on Nashua-Molera Road to visit Pezzini Farms ("As seen on Food Network").  I was surprised to see BMW's and Mercedes parked in the lot.  When I got inside, I saw why - very upscale, gourmet local food.  They had a comprehensive collection of locavore goodies - Lula's chocolate, Pacific Cookie Company, Gil's Gourmet - attractively arranged for browsing.  The woman who greeted me was busily stocking strawberries.  She informed me that they were Albion strawberries grown in Moss Landing and very, very sweet.  I should have asked to try one, but I have a whole pint from Hector's Organic I just bought yesterday, so their sweetness will remain a mystery for now.

I ended my sojourn at the Marina Farmers' Market, where I visited with the fine people at Palermo Bakery's stand, and sampled every hummus at Mr. Falafel.  I wasn't greedy - it's just that the young guy who operates the stand opens one hummus after another (I think I tried 10 in all) and says, "try this."  I bought some mahummara, a red-pepper based, slightly spicy spread from the Middle East.  Mr. Falafel makes all the hummus from scratch, including not using canned beans.  Delicious!  The falafel is really good, too.

I hope you find some of the information about all those stands around here useful.  Until next time, I'll see you at the market!