Brookline Farmer’s Market

It’s August already! The summer is flying by, but it’s peak season for some of my favorite vegetables. And they’re especially great when grown locally. I’ve been hitting farmer’s markets here and there this summer, including my visit to Allandale Farm. Last week I made a special trip to the Brookline Farmer’s Market, accompanied by my friends Sarah and Vanessa. The market is on Thursday afternoons right in Coolidge Corner.

Just look at all the fresh produce, like the familiar Swiss chard, corn, and lettuce:

And some (new to me) items, like purple peppers, white currants, and two toned squash:

Farmer’s markets are often a great chance to try new produce. (Remember the watermelon radish from the winter market?) We decided we had to try these guys, lemon cucumbers:

My friend Marsha was working at the market, and told us they they had a light taste, with just a hint of lemon. She was right, and here’s what they look like on the inside.

It was tough to decide what to buy – I wanted it all. I ended up taking home lettuce, carrots, Swiss chard, lemon cucumbers, zucchini, and beets. They have a wide variety of items at this market including turkey, beef, bread, goat cheese, fresh pasta, and ice cream. Next time I will come to the market with some cold packs, and I am not leaving without trying the ice cream.

My first order of business that night was a fresh and local salad, topped with my favorite Honey Mustard dressing.

Every day this week, I’ll feature a dish I made with my local produce. It may already be August, but there’s still plenty of time to scope our your local farmer’s market and load up on fresh fruits and vegetables. Thanks to Sarah and Vanessa for prompting this trip, I had a great time!

White Sangria

The summer was halfway over when I finally had my first glass of white sangria at a local Boston bar. And sadly, when I ordered a second glass, the waitress informed me that they had run out. So what’s a girl to do but concoct a pitcher of white sangria the following weekend? This was literally a game of “Let’s Check the Liquor Cabinet” followed by “Let’s See What’s in the Fruit Basket”. The final game was the most difficult: “Let’s Wait For the Flavors to Blend”. We lasted about 30 minutes before glasses were poured. It was really hot out! Here’s the final recipe:

4 c. white wine (nothing fancy, the kind from a box)
1/2 c. triple sec
1/4 c. brandy
2 c. club soda
1/2 cantaloupe, peeled and diced
1 ripe necatrine, pit removed and diced
1 ripe plum, pit removed and diced
1 tray ice cubes

The sangria was light and refreshing, and the perfect way to kick off a summer evening. Cheers!

Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns

When I eat a burger at home, I usually just grab a piece of whole wheat bread from the freezer and pop it in the toaster. But you know, when you’re serving burgers to other people, they generally expect a more traditional bun.

And so late one night, I found myself in the bread aisle of the grocery store looking at all the hamburger rolls. I know that’s not the best time to shop for fresh bread, but I was not pleased with my choices. There were very few buns that were 100% whole wheat, and most of those contained high fructose corn syrup. One roll even had partially hydrogenated oil (i.e. trans fat)! It’s not that I have sworn off HFCS entirely, but is it too much to expect to find one brand that uses more natural ingredients?

And that’s why I decided to make my own, using this recipe from Heavenly Homemakers. The ingredients are simple: whole wheat flour, water, yeast, honey, milk, butter, and salt. Like many bread recipes, there are a lot of steps but you have plenty of free time in between. I halved the recipe, and made 8 rolls which I baked in a 13″x9″ glass dish. And isn’t this towel lined basket a whole lot nicer than the plastic bag from the grocery store?

The rolls had a fairly light texture, and they tasted great! The real test though was how they held up when used for an actual burger. The rolls were thin, and could be overwhelmed by heavy burger toppings, so they are best suited to those who like more burger than bun. (Count me in!)

At the end of the day, I was really happy I made these. I realize that it won’t always be practical to make your own buns, and your cooking time might be better spent on other aspects of the meal. But if you were to make a couple batches of these in the spring and then freeze them, you’d have homemade hamburger rolls ready for an impromptu BBQ!

S’mores on a Stick

This recipe has been making it’s way around the blog world, most notably on CarrotsnCake. It’s a dessert that’s super simple and super cute. When my sister wanted to make them, I quickly agreed that we should give it a try.

All you need is marshmallows, chocolate chips, animal crackers, and skewers. You put each marshmallow on a skewer, roll it in melted chocolate chips, and then roll it in crushed graham cracker. After chilling in the refrigerator for a bit, they’re ready to eat!

Any S’mores purist will tell you that toasting the marshmallow is, like, the most important part. And I kind of agree, even if I do manage to burn my fingers every time I actually try to make them. But this is still a quick and easy dessert in it’s own right, and great for parties because guests can pick at them throughout the evening.

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms with Manchego Cheese

You didn’t think I would just make Bacon Cheese Inside Out Turkey Burgers for a BBQ meal, right? Of course not. Every good BBQ needs a vegetarian option, and portobello mushrooms are one of my favorites. This Bobby Flay recipe is fairly simple, yet so elegant.

You start by drizzling portobello mushrooms with olive oil, and grilling them for 4-5 minutes on each side. Right at the end, you place thinly sliced manchego cheese on the mushrooms, allowing the cheese to melt. Each mushroom is then plated, and topped with chopped fresh spinach leaves and a balsamic viniagrette. The mushrooms can be served as an appetizer or side dish, or you can make a stack of 2 or 3 mushrooms to serve as an entree. Either way, these portobello mushrooms will be the highlight of the meal.

A quick word about cost. Portobello mushrooms can be expensive – one grocery store in my area charges $3.99 for a package of 2 caps. I found the best deal at a local produce market which sells portobello mushrooms for $3.98/lb., and I ended up paying just about $1.00 per mushroom. That still adds up quickly if you’re cooking for a crowd, but is more reasonable. If you’re going to splurge on food, fruits and vegetables are the best choice! I happen to believe that good cheese is also worth every penny and really enjoyed the Manchego, but you could easily substitute a less expensive sharp cheddar.

Bacon Cheese Inside Out Turkey Burgers

Ground turkey makes a special appearance today, paired with bacon and cheese. My family was sure excited about trying this recipe from Roni at Green Lite Bites. The (very real) bacon bits are mixed right in to the turkey mixture along with rolled oats and shredded zucchini. The zucchini provides moisture, and the oats help to stretch out the meat. And of course, both ingredients add some nutrition. I chopped a small onion into the mixture as well, for a little extra flavor.

But the truly unique part is that half of a Mini Babybel Light cheese wheel is tucked inside the burger. When the burger is grilled, the cheese melts perfectly inside. This was a really fun way to make cheeseburgers, and of course you could use the idea for a homemade veggie burger as well. Thanks to Roni for posting this recipe, it was a crowd pleaser!

Potato, Lentil, and Swiss Chard Curry

Some people find it easier to prepare meals during the summer months. Fresh produce is abundant and the days are longer. The snow that used to cover the grill is a distant memory. Many summer recipes are designed to be quick and easy, and some don’t need to be cooked at all.

But while I love cooking with summer ingredients, I am actually finding meal preparation more challenging in the summer. My schedule is erratic and I am spending more time away from home. I always seem to be missing one key ingredient for a recipe. And it’s unbearable to think about turning the oven on when it’s already 95F in my kitchen.

Really, I miss my Sunday kitchen sessions. Of course, I’d rather be hanging at the beach than in my kitchen, but when Monday comes and I am less than prepared, chaos ensues. My skin has had enough sun for this week, so I spent some time putting together a recipe that felt just a little like fall – Smitten Kitchen’s Curried Lentils and Sweet Potatoes. Since it is July and not November, I used small red potatoes instead of sweet potatoes.

I was worried this would be too spicy, but it’s actually fairly mild, even with a whole (deseeded) jalapeno in the mix. Of course I used the Swiss chard stems as well, adding the chopped stems into the pan with the onion. The potatoes, lentils, and chard each have a different texture but work well together. My craving for a substantial Indian dish was satisfied with this meal, and I can now rest easy because I have curry packed for lunches this week.

#FitBoston Recap and Thank You to Pretzel Crisps!

Last Saturday, I was fortunate to attend #FitBoston, which was a local meetup for Fitbloggin’ people organized by some great folks at Me You Health. It was a fun day at Healthworks, and included workshops using the FitTrampoline, hula hoops, and pilates. Lisa Johnson had some great tips about blogging, and Kurt Eng offered some WordPress wisdom.

My favorite part of the day was meeting so many new bloggers, but of course I was also interested in the food! Boloco provided burritos, Whole Foods had a booth where you could massage kale, and Pretzel Crips had plenty of samples and a giveaway.

I was really excited when I learned that I won a raffle prize from Pretzel Crisps which was a generous gift card to Whole Foods. And Pretzel Crisps threw in a bunch of coupons for free pretzels. If you invite me to your summer BBQ, I promise to bring a bag. (This is the part when you flood my email with party invites….)

Pretzel crisps are crunchy flat pretzels, the kind that you can eat out of the bag or use to scoop up your favorite dip, like hummus.

But the thing I really like about Pretzel Crisps is that they only have 4 ingredients, and you can pronounce them all.
Ingredients: Wheat Flour, Sugar, Salt, Malt Syrup.

I’ll do a full product review once I’ve had a chance to test out a few different flavors, but a big thank you to everyone who worked so hard to create #FitBoston, and to Pretzel Crisps for this prize.

Zucchini Black Bean Enchiladas

We’ll take a little break from the sweets today to talk about a new dinner recipe. These enchiladas are so good that I’ve made them three times over the past month. Really! The first time I forgot to take pictures. The second time I added a few ingredients and liked the result, but the pictures came out horribly. The third time I made a few more changes to the recipe and liked the enchiladas even more. The pictures aren’t great but you really need this recipe now, so that you’re ready when local zucchini is abundant.

I started with this recipe posted by Gina from Skinny Taste, who had the fabulous idea to use shredded zucchini to make a vegetarian enchilada. I added some red onion and black beans, for just a little more flavor and protein. Gina also inspired me to make my own enchilada sauce, which is actually really easy! Everyone who tasted this recipe has been surprised by just how much they like it. And equally important, the enchiladas are just as good for lunch the next day.

Enchiladas:

2 t canola oil

1 t minced garlic

1 large red onion, peeled and diced

4 scallions, white and light green parts only, chopped

3 large zucchini, shredded

1 (15 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained

8 oz. Cabot 50% Reduced Fat Cheddar Cheese, shredded and divided

6 Joesph’s brand Flax, Oat Bran, and Whole Wheat tortillas

Enchilada Sauce:

Cooking Spray

1 t minced garlic

1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce

1 T chili powder

1 t cumin

1/8 t cayenne pepper

1 c. Knorr vegetable broth

Heat oil in a large frying pan, and saute garlic, onion, and scallions for 5-10 minutes, or until golden brown. Add shredded zucchini, and saute for 15-20 minutes, or until most of the liquid is evaporated. Stir in beans and 1/2 c. shredded cheese.

To make the sauce, coat a small pot with cooking spray, and saute the minced garlic. Add the tomato sauce, spices, and broth, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15-20 minutes and then remove from heat.

Coat an 11″x7″ or a 13″x9″ baking dish with cooking spray. Fill each tortilla with 1/6 of zucchini- bean mixture, and place seam side down in the baking dish. Reserving 1 cup of the enchilada sauce for serving, pour the remaining sauce over the enchiladas. Top with remaining shredded cheese. Bake at 400F for 20 minutes.

Serve with remaining enchilada sauce and additional chopped scallions.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls

What’s better than cookie dough? In the summer, that would be cookie dough right from the freezer. And this version doesn’t have any pesky food safety issues because there is no egg. Angela from Oh She Glows came up with this recipe which contains just cashews, oats, flour, sugar, maple syrup, and chocolate chips of course! The whole batch comes together in just a few minutes, and you can roll the dough into balls and pop them in the freezer, or eat them right away. It’s the perfect frozen sweet treat for a hot summer night.