4th week bursts with flavor
June 26, 2008
So you think you’ve had enough salad? Never fear – more vegetables are here!
Hard-climbing mountain man Dan Freeman, of Shooting Star Farm, is on hand with morels. If you miss your chance at buying some at Market, check out restaurants in Hailey and Ketchum who will serve his morels up as fresh as they come. (He and his band, Good Hard Rain, are also performing at Whiskey Jacques this Saturday, starting at 10 p.m. – check it out.)
We’re all still waiting anxiously for many things, but baby beets are around already. Roast them up with any one of the multiple herbs available at most of the produce stands. Have you tried garlic scapes or lambs quarters yet? Waterwheel Gardens put out some cherries and raspberries last week – expect much more during the first week of July (next week!).
Chelsea Hayes is coming to Ketchum on July 1 with specialty toffee in tow. As if you needed another dessert option to pull you to market . . . Counter it with Deby Asmussen’s homemade pasta. It cooks in just three minutes – a perfect airy summer meal when paired with some herbs, a light butter sauce, or even one of Deby’s partner’s homemade sauces.
Our eggs disappear quickly, but make sure to check out Idahosbounty.org – their supply stands up to demand a bit better. To learn more about this local food ordering network, visit www.idahosbounty.org.
Finally, music at the market is posted on the individual site pages here, and will also be announced at the end of our radio ads come each Tuesday and Thursday. Come grab a cool drink of Hibiscus tea or lemonade and relax to the tunes for a while. It’s a beautiful summer!
City Council Meeting on Market Location
June 26, 2008
Hot off the Press!!! This Monday, June 30, the Ketchum City Council is holding a special meeting at 5:30 p.m., in the Presbyterian Church of the Big Wood. The Farmers Market location is the first item on the agenda. It is being contested.
Public comment will only be taken for a short while, and Ketchum Manager Lynea Newcomer will speak to the benefits of the Market’s current location. PLEASE come to at least this portion of the Council meeting, regardless of your opinion. This is a very important opportunity for discussion. As the Market has already been moved 3 times in the last 3 years, its members are anxious to find a welcoming resting place.
We believe that for the Ketchum Market to be successful, we require: 1) the ability to expand and contract, enabling the event to grow as the public demands; 2) a location in the absolute core of downtown, such that visitors and locals can find us easily and walk to and from our event and other errands; 3) a location in the absolute core so that we generate community interaction and energy for other surrounding businesses; 4) a location that impacts as few parking spaces as possible; 5) shade is sure nice, but a street makes for fluid loading and unloading; 6) stability – our customers depend on finding vendors where they were in previous weeks – we do not want to move every summer.
There are many pros and cons to each location the Market has been in or has considered. Please join us Monday night to voice or write your opinion. We would prefer to keep it in a core location, but we will also consider a private lot if we feel our needs will not be met consistently.
A Poaching Lesson
June 26, 2008
Starting off the day with at least a smidge of quality protein is essential. Come sun, hike, computer screen or yard work, an egg is your best starting point. When I want a variation from the easy scrambled or omelette options, I find myself toying around with poached eggs.
To poach an egg, select your freshest on hand (see M & M Organics, Fair Mtn. Farm, WR Natural Foods and more at the Markets for excellent eggs). Fill a saute pan or skillet with roughly 1 1/2 inches of water. Add a large dollop of white vinegar (try experimenting with other vinegars too), swirl it around, and a dash of salt. Heat the water to a bare simmer.
To add the eggs to the water, you can either break cold ones from the refrigerator gently into the simmering pan (no more than 4 at a time to start!), or use a metal poaching ring (a canning metal ring lid works as well, providing a place to keep the egg in the pan – the whites will tend to feather out a bit if the egg is too warm). Once the egg or eggs are in the pan, cook for a minute, always at a bare simmer, then slide a rubber spatula underneath them to loosen them from the bottom of the pan. If using a metal ring, disengage the ring after a minute or two.
Cook only 3 to 5 minutes longer, always at a bare simmer, depending on your desired firmness. I prefer a runny yolk, so I take them out sooner rather than later. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon or spatula. (Note: eggs will poach in a variety of liquids – tomato juice, broths, etc.).
And here is where the real cooking fun begins: serve with lots of things. Most recently, my favorite poached egg breakfast consists of sauteing lambs quarters, chard or any other sturdy sort of green – in butter of coarse – with salt and pepper and a dash of Worchestershire sauce, then placing the poached egg on top of a piece of toast, and topping it with some of the sauteed greens. Just yesterday I added roughly 3 large dollops of rich cream to the bunch of sauted greens, some sprinkles of flour and ground mustard, and voila – creamed greens served atop a poached egg. Bon Apetit!
Most Useful Cookbook of All Time
June 20, 2008
A relative recently gave me “Roast Chicken and Other Stories,” by Simon Hopkinson. Under the simple garlic drawing decorating the cover are the words “The most useful cookbook of all time.” Of course I was immediately intrigued. That is quite a large claim.
In fact, the cookbook takes quite a novel approach, reminiscent of the Joy of Cooking layout, but much more personal in recipe instruction. For example, here is an excerpt from the Cilantro chapter -
“This is a herb I came to late in life. I had tried using it in stews, as is the style of Indian cooks, and found the resultant taste muddy and bitter. It wasn’t until I discovered salsa, and some remarkably hot food in my initiaion to Thai cooking, that its magical taste finally appealed to me. So much so, that on paying a visit to a favorite Thai cafe-cum-restaurant in west London, desperate for my hit of cilantro, and discovering that it hadn’t yet been delivered, there seemed no point in staying for lunch. . . . I even find myself eating cilantro raw- whole clumps of it. I add it to far too many dishes, too often. I believe that cilantro should hardly ever be cooked and that if it is included in a hot dish, it should only be added at the very last moment. Its flavor is sharp, soapy, and metallic – not the most beguiling description but somehow it is a real spoiler for the taste buds. It seems to shout sharp and citrus and its flavor bursts open when combined with things spicy and hot-tasting. There is nothing like it. If I ever see a recipe again that suggests flat-leaf parsley as a substitute for cilantro, then I shall weep with frustration. There is no substitute. However, I know that there are many people who actively dislike its strident taste. And, incidentally, it is not a great partner to good wine.”
Hopkinson continues in this vein through chapters such as Chocolate, Garlic, Kidneys, Peppers, Scallops and Tripe, amongst many others. I enjoy that at those moments when one looks into the cupboard or refrigerator and sees one main item, this cookbook takes that item and offers a new twist. No looking in the index to see where it might be combined into a recipe in a different book.
Cooking becomes quite a journey on our Iron-Chef nights (we all do them – make do with what we have). Hopkinson’s British heritage adds yet another distinct diversity to his collection of recipe ideas. So set a fire in that stove, check out this book and begin a summer-long journey with fresh ingredients and ideas.
Info: Roast Chicken and Other Stories, by Simon Hopkinson; Published by Hyperion. See Chapter One or Iconoclast books stores in town to order.
Wild mushroom and potato flan
June 20, 2008
Any success while hunting for morels? Then you surely must attempt this exquisite dish with them. Remember: They also dry nicely, to be used mid-winter when you desire a musky taste of wet summer hills the most.
8 ounces fresh wild mushrooms, such as morels, washed and stemmed, and chopped.
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus some for the mold
2/3 cup coarsely chopped peeled and cooked potatoes
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
1 ½ cups milk
½ cup heavy cream
3 eggs
2 egg yolks
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Have a kettle of boiling water ready to use during the baking of the flan.
Place the mushrooms in a sauté pan and cook over high heat to evaporate any water left from cleaning. Add the butter and lower the heat. Sauté for several minutes, until the mushrooms are softened but still hold their shape.
Season the potatoes with salt, pepper and thyme. Generously butter a 4-cup ring mold (or 8 individual ½-cup custard cups) and set it in a roasting pan or cake pan.
Combine the milk and cream in a small saucepan and heat until just steaming to scald. Let the mixture cool for 5 minutes or so. It should be very warm but not scalding hot. Slowly pour it into a bowl with the eggs and egg yolks, whisking constantly. Season well with salt and pepper and pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a pitcher.
Pour a bit of the custard mixture into the prepared mold (or custard cups). Spoon the mushrooms and potatoes over the custard and pour in the remaining custard. Pour boiling water into the roasting pan to bring the level of the water about two-thirds of the way up the side of the mold.
Cover the roasting pan with foil and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until a knife inserted halfway down into the custard comes out clean. Do not over bake; the custard will continue to cook after it is removed from the oven. Let rest for 5 minutes in the mold, then unmold by running a knife around the edge and inverting the mold onto a plate. Serve warm.
Recipe from : American Artisanal, by Rebecca Gray
Asparagus soup – for all year
June 18, 2008
Already nearing the end of the asparagus season, some may be left with loads of the spears left over. Over the past winter, I’ve enjoyed asparagus soup several times. Either freeze the spears, or puree them after steaming, then freeze. From there, with your fresh ones still on hand or your frozen puree, here is a tasty idea. You’ll need:
1/2 pound asparagus – steamed and pureed (with stock of your choice);
1/2 onion, diced;
4 Tbs butter;
2 tsp Caraway seeds, salt, pepper.
Saute the diced onions in butter until translucent. Add the caraway seeds and saute 2 to 3 more minutes. Pour in the pureed asparagus (obviously now mixed in with stock), add salt and pepper. Warm to good eating temperature and check for taste. Possible additions include a couple dashes of Cayenne pepper, about 1/3 cup sweet corn (frozen from last year’s crop, or frozen from the store), and perhaps some diced up Italian sausage. This soup takes roughly 15 minutes to prepare.
Nancy Liston – Liston Studios LLC
June 16, 2008
Hello All! My name is Nancy Liston and I am the proud owner of Liston Studios, LLC and Liston Artistry. My involvement with the Farmers Market was an idea I stole from fast food restaurants: “Do you need a plate (fries) to go with that?”. Okay, let’s forgive the improper English, and that fast food has absolutely nothing to do with the gorgeous fresh food from the market. It just seemed a perfect fit.
My product shown at the market is a platter collection that changes with the seasons. Each piece is hand-painted in my studio, located in Hailey, Idaho. I also sell platters around the intermountain west. Presently, I am expanding the business to include Liston Artistry, which sells directly to five diamond hotels and custom requests.
Sometimes I can wrangle my sons to help set up the market fair. The production is entirely my own, and if I have any time to spare it’s spent snowboarding in winter. Summers are a blur.
I love the market. The vendors. The customers. The dogs. The children. The fresh mountain air. I hope you’ll stop by to visit me and see my artistry on platters! Regards, Nancy Liston
Please visit us online at www.listonstudios.com
Into the Swing – 2nd week details
June 12, 2008
After the first bite of spring salad, we are happy to note that Manager Lynea has ordered good weather for Ketchum’s second week in action. Quick reminder: click on the Ketchum Market link to access events and vendor details for each week. Scroll down below the map and directions that sits at the top of the page to find this information.
The BBQ Guy will return June 17, a great quick dinner idea. We are looking for more ready-to-eat food vendors, so pass the word along. Waterwheel gardens will have some strawberries, and with just several more warm days, perhaps even more fruit. Plenty of greens are available from Shooting Star Farm to Fair Mountain Farm to Theresa Strolberg to Luda to Prairie Sun Farm. If you are in the mood for a different sort of green, visit REAL Love Food; their chard, watercress and lamb’s quarters all offer the adventurous cook great materials to begin with. Wood River Organics continues to offer tomato plants – these are healthy, strong and older plants able to withstand the occasional weather blip. If you feel like giving tomatoes a try, one of these plants is a good starting point.
We post recommended recipes twice weekly, so make sure to click through to the recipe posts for ideas.
Watercress, Strawberry and Asparagus Salad
June 12, 2008
Dressing: 1/4 cup lemon juice, 2 Tbs. Honey, 2Tbs. olive oil
Salad: 1 bag or bunch of Watercress, 2 cups fresh asparagus cut in 1″ pieces, 2 cups fresh strawberries
In a small bowl combine all the dressing ingredients and mix well. Chill the dressing until ready to use. Blanch asparagus in boiling water for 3-5 minutes or until tender, but still crisp. Drain and rinse in cold water. In a large bowl, mix the watercress, strawberries and asparagus and toss with the dressing. Serve immediately. From: Chef Miki Knowles and www.watercress.com
Watercress with Ginger and Almonds
June 12, 2008
| 2 tablespoons soy sauce | |
| 1 tablespoon miso | |
| 1 tablespoon rice vinegar | |
| 2 tablespoons sliced almonds, raw | |
| 4 – 6 bunches B&W Watercress, washed, trimmed and cut into 2 – 4 inch pieces | |
| 2 tablespoons sesame oil | |
| 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, finely chopped | |
| Directions: Combine soy sauce, miso, and vinegar until smooth. Set aside. Heat wok over high heat. Add almonds and stir-fry quickly until fragrant and toasted, about 45 seconds. Remove. Add sesame oil to wok and heat. Add watercress and ginger and stir-fry until tender, about 2-3 minutes Drizzle with miso dressing and serve immediately. From www.watercress.com |
