Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho & Cappellini Margherita

The Food Nanny
August12/13 2008
Meal 1: Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho, Pizza Bianca, Chick Pea and Sweet Corn Salad
· Warm the pizza bianca in the toaster or oven.
· Serve the soup chilled, garnish with a few drops of very good olive oil.
· Serve the salad at room temp.

Meal 2: Cappellini Margherita with Prairie Fruits Chevre, Grilled Zucchini, and Herb Crusted Eggplant
· Bake the cappellini at 350° until the sauce is bubbly and the cheese is melted and slightly browned, approx 20 mins.
· Bake the zucchini and eggplant in the oven until warm through, about 10 minutes.

Trivia: What is the common name for Cappellini?

Presenting: Your Dinner, starring -Tomatoes !

One of the most beautiful things about gazpacho is that there is no place to hide. This is a soup that should really never be made out of season. Although I confess to having a secret with regards to this serving: I used frozen tomatoes! Just for the base, and I froze fresh tomatoes overnight. In the morning peeling them was a snap - just run them under cold water and the skins slough right off. The rest of the tomato, sans stem core, is then pureed when thawed. Beats the pants off making tomatoes concasse. I remember spending two work days making one sauce from two cases of plum tomatoes when I was an apprentice. I learned to respect tomatoes concasse, and to avoid them. That being said, detectable little rolls of tomato skin are an unforgivable sin in most cuisine, and gazpacho would be an epitome. The freezer trick works like a charm for roasted peppers too. Put some up for the winter and thank me in January, or even next April for that matter.

Gazpacho also benefits from cucumber I think, but not zucchini. I prefer cooked zucchini, and cucumber excels at raw. Additionally, parsley not cilantro. This isn't for chips you know! Penultimately, there should be a whiff of heat, and an aroma of garlic, whitout being harsh. Finally, olive oil seduces the concoction of garden fruits into a unified palate experience that is totally naked.

Salt yours freshly upon serving.

The Cappellini Margherita is a play on the popular pizza. Fresh basil and dollops of Leslie's chevre hopefully play up the very fresh, sweet flavor of Jon's tomatoes. The sauce is nothing more than garlic cooked very gently in olive oil and then arrested with tomato sauce (tomato puree reduced by 1/3). As I was heating the whole thing I noticed the light, sweet tomato flavors fleeing from the heat, so I pulled it from the stove, salted it and dressed the cappellini right then and there without wasting a further note. Heat releases, but heat also destroys!

Enjoy the meals and look for a deepening of flavors next week as the daylight continues to receede, and the summer richens.

Heirloom Tomato Galette and Summer Omelet

Food Nanny
August 4 & 5, 2008
Meal 1: Heirloom Tomato Galettes, Mixed Greens, Green Bean Salad with Fried Sweet Peppers
· Warm the galette in the oven at 350°.
· Dress the greens.
· Serve the beans at room temperature or warm it in a sauté pan.
Meal 2: Summer Omelet, Savory Corn and Rice Salad, Roasted Beets with Walnuts
· Serve the omelet at room temp or warm it in the oven gently at 300° for 15 to 20 minutes.
· Warm the beet salad in the same manner as the omelet or serve at room temp
· The rice can be either served at room temp or heated in a sauté pan with some butter.

Ahh Toms!

Thats the correct way to pronounce them...neither tomAto not tomAHto, it's Ahh Toms! They are here and we are buying them, en masse to be correct. We purchased 160 lbs. from Blue Moon this week and are putting them up for your shares this winter. We certainly expect to buy a lot more, plus onions potatoes, garlic, winter squash, carrots, and other root crops. But lets not think of winters warming flavors just yet. The tomatoes are here!

Everyone has caught wind of the heirloom tomato thing by now and well they should - these beauties offer us a true measure of what we have traded away in handing our culture, cuisine, and agriculture to inept and greedy stewards who offer us paltry facimilies in return. Its like getting glass beads for Manhattan all over again. Especially since heirlooms are never ours to sell off in the first place.

I particularly enjoyed the effect of slicing, seasoning, and then oven drying the tomatoes before putting them on the galettes. This process had the effect of both concentrating flavors a la sun dried tomatoes, while also removing the excess moisture that is often the downfall of many a well intentioned fresh tomato pizza. We plan on processing many tomatoes in a similar manner and making tomato paste to freeze. Thanks to Eric Menzel for hipping us to this great idea.

Well when life gives you tomatoes, make tomato soup! Hint for this coming week.

PS The answer to the previous trivia is: Dill, butter, and sea salt. There is nothing better on boiled new potatoes.

Sorry for the tardy posting on that.

Curried Summer Squash & Black Bean Tamales

Food Nanny
July 29/30, 2008
Meal 1: Curried Summer Squash, Basmati Pilaf, & Grilled Flatbreads
· Heat the curry in a saucepan or microwave.
· Either heat the pilaf in a sauté pan with some olive oil, finishing with a dash of water to steam through, or in the microwave, or serve at room temperature.
· Toast the flatbread before serving.
· If you like, serve the rice and curry together in a bowl with a dollop of yogurt.
Meal 2: Black Bean Tamales, Sweet Corn Succotash, & Yellow Rice with Pepitas
· To heat the tamales, either microwave or place in a steamer basket and steam for about 15 minutes. If you do not have a steamer basket simply place a small bowl in the bottom of a sauce pot. Add about a 1/2” of water. Place a plate atop the bowl inside the pot so it is above the water. Place the tamales upon the plate and proceed to steam them.
· Sauté the succotash in a little oil or butter to warm it.
· The rice can be either heated or served at room temp.
· Serve the tamales with yogurt or sour cream and fresh salsa.

Pan Roasted Meatloaf and Polenta

The Food Nanny
July15/16 2008
Meal 1: Pan Roasted Meatloaf, New Potatoes with Green Beans, & Peach Cobbler
· Pre-heat your oven to 375°. Bake the meatloaves for 10-13 minutes depending upon your preferred doneness. They should be sizzly, aromatic, and somewhat firm to the touch.
· Meanwhile, place the potatoes in a sauce pan with a little water and some butter, salt and pepper. Allow the water to boil gently, cover the pot and steam the potatoes until hot, about 5 minutes. Then add the green beans and steam one minute more. Add a pat more butter and serve. Alternately, you can dress them cold with olive oil and herbs or a vinaigrette.
· Remove the piece of wax paper separating the peaches from the biscuit. Place the cobbler in the oven to bake at 350 °for 5-10 minutes or until beginning to bubble. Add the biscuit to the top and bake for 5 minutes more. Enjoy with ice cream or whipped cream
Meal 2: Fried Polenta with Summer Vegetable Ragout, Herb Risotto, & Blue Moon Salad Mix
· In a sauté pan heat some oil on medium high. When the oil is hot place the polenta cake in the pan ‘dry’ side down – be careful! Cook several minutes until lightly browned, then flip and finish cooking through. Reserve the polenta cake and sauté the ragout in the same pan. Serve atop the cake.
· To finish the risotto place it in a sauce pan with a little water and heat to a simmer stirring all the while. If necessary, and a little more water and stir until the rice grains are firm but not starchy. Finish with a bit of parm, butter, or very good olive oil if you like.
· Dress the salad with oil and balsamic vinegar and enjoy!

Trivia: What is the traditional Swedish garnish for new potatoes?

A Vegetable Garden is Not Beautiful; Unless You Think Food is Beautiful

This was actually spoken to me this week. Go figure.

Above is our variety of garlic. It was found growing ferel in the compost area of the Meadowbrook Organic Gardens by Kate and I in 2003. We grew out the plants and have cultivated the bulbs since. My best guess is that it is a Rocambole type. The skins mature to a mauve color. It has medium heat and roasts well. We use it all around as it fortifies food as garlic should without being over-prominent. We call it Urbana Tiger.

I would like to present some new arrivale to the cast this week. Most notably, to my sensabilities: The Potato.

New potatoes are sublime and I summon all the power of my convictions to convince you to raise some just so you can experience the otherwise unapproachable gustation of freshly dug new potatoes. They are unique and become something else: a potato, and still a good one at that, after even 12 hours.

New Potatoes are the young ones either robbed from the hills of the parent plants or just taken whilst small due to market demands or a justified impatience.

Red Norland is one of the first varieties to come on line and it is a good potato. But grab some Red Gold if you see it. Imagine Yukon Gold and Red Norland's love child.

I planted over 30 lbs. of potato for us all this year, over 7 different varieties. But my Meadowbrook plot all but failed mainly due to innundation and poor plot preparation last fall. Rest assured I'll find some great treats for you all at the market.

We are also, finally, getting local onions. Lets hope for a good keeper crop. I should put up several hundred pounds for this year. FYI we are averaging 10 lbs. per week. Eat 'em up folks!

And hey ! Sweet corn!

The ragout is just the epitome of midsummer eating to me. We are very fortunate to have farmers bringing eggplant to us to lend its lusciousness to the otherwise square saute of corn, onions and squash. The red pepper is the end of our garden stash of roasters we put up from last year. There are somethings that only come with summers heat, and sweet red peppers are one of them.

The Food Nanny

Meal 1: Broccoli and Ricotta Calzones & Blue Moon Mix with Raspberry Vinaigrette
· Pre-heat your oven to 475°. If you have a pizza stone, use it and allow it to heat in the oven for 30 minutes. If you have a metal cookie sheet, allow it to heat for only 5 minutes. Keep the calzone refrigerated until you are about to cook it. Be sure that the slits cut in it have not sealed themselves.
· When the oven/stone/ tray is ready, place the calzone, still sitting on it parchment paper foot, upon it and bake until golden brown, 10 -12 minutes. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before eating.
Meal 2: Summer Squash Latkes, Green Beans with Almonds, and Lebanese Orzo Salad
· Serve the salads at room temp.
· If the latke batter has become watery, drain the liquid off and/ or add some breadcrumbs or matzoh meal to re-bind the batter. Season it with salt as I have omitted this step to inhibit the extraction of water from the vegetables.
· To cook the latkes heat a generous amount of oil in a sauté pan. When the oil is hot use a large tablespoon to dollop the batter into the pan and flatten them into shape. You should expect 2-3 latkes per person.
· Fry them for 2-3 minutes or until golden brown below, then flip them to finish. You may lower the heat a bit to avoid burning them as they cook through, another 3-4 minutes. I recommend adding a bit more oil, or better yet, butter, after turning the latkes. This ensures that the second side fries rather than toasts, but it is a bit decadent. Garnish with yogurt.

Two Weeks of Trivia

Garlic Scapes are the flowerinng stalk of the garlic plant - typically found only on the type of garlics known as hard neck garlic. Starting as a tender, curled shoot, the scape is edible for a week or two in early summer before lignifying and straightening. The flowers mature bulbils- mini garlic bulbs that can be planted for garlic shoots in the fall, winter and spring, or allowed to mature into a full clove useful for planting to produce a full head of garlic the following year.

Bread flour has a higher gluten percentage than AP flour and produces a chewier, more toothsome product. It makes a real difference in those pitas, and can not be substituted without sacfrifce in flavor and texture.

The Food Nanny
July1/2 2008
Meal 1: Fresh Papardelle with Prairie Fruits Ricotta and Shell Peas, Mixed Greens, and a Batard
· Boil 1 qt of water for each portion of pasta.
· Salt the water liberally and add the pasta. Cook for 3-5 minutes. Taste-test a bit for doneness. Drain when done.
· When the pasta is added to the water, gently heat a generous portion of good quality olive oil in a sauté pan (3-4T per person). Add the peas and cook briefly to heat. Add the drained pasta and cook to heat. Add the ricotta in crumbles and toss. Season the fresh pepper and salt. Serve Immediately with the salad and bread.
Meal 2: Napa & Fried Rice ‘Dolmas’, Twice-Baked Japanese Turnips, Cucumber Salad
· Bake the Turnips at 350° until they begin to brown (12-15 mins).
· Serve the Dolmas and Salad at room temperature.

Trivia: How is bread flour different from all-purpose flour and how does it affect baked goods ?

Sorry no pictures this week but we are off to Wisconsin for a little vacation!