Asparagus

Roast Chicken With Ramps, Asparagus and Capers

by Anne Maxfield on May 17, 2012

Accidental Locavore Spring RampsHave you been taking the easy way out and picking up pre-roasted chickens? Well, the Accidental Locavore is going to change your mind about doing it yourself at home! This is an easy, no-fuss way to roast a bird with nice crisp skin and added bonus: the veggies are roasted along with the bird.  I adapted this from the New York Times and added asparagus. Feel free to add whatever is in season, just add them in sooner if they need more roasting time. If you don’t do this in the next five minutes, while ramps are in season, substitute scallions, which should work almost as well.

Roast Chicken With Ramps, Asparagus and Capers

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Roast Chicken With Ramps, Asparagus and Capers
Serves 4
Prep time 20 minutes
Cook time 50 minutes
Total time 1 hours, 10 minutes
Meal type Main Dish
The Accidental Locavore adapted this easy way to roast a chicken from the New York Times. An easy main course recipe for chicken roasted with spring vegetables: ramps and asparagus.

Ingredients

  • 1 whole chicken, 4-41/2 pounds, rinsed and patted dry
  • 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 bunch ramps, about 6 ounces, washed
  • 1lb asparagus, washed and cut into 3" lengths
  • 1 lemon, quartered
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 5 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
  • 1 tablespoon capers

Directions

Step 1
Rub the chicken inside and out with the salt and pepper. If you have time, do this 2-3 hours ahead of time and refrigerate uncovered (this will help the skin crisp up when you cook it). Place a large (10" or bigger) cast iron skillet in the oven and heat to 500 degrees. Leave the chicken out to warm to room temperature while the oven heats up.
Step 2
Prep the ramps: trim the roots from the bottoms and remove the outer layer of skin. Separate the leaves from the bulbs. Cut any bulb fatter than a pencil, in half lengthwise. Cut the leaves into 3" pieces and set aside.
Step 3
Transfer the chicken to a cutting board, breast side up. Cut the skin connecting the legs (thighs actually) to the body. Spread out the legs until you feel the joints pop on each side. Place 2 of the lemon quarters in the cavity of the chicken. Remove the skillet from the oven and carefully place the chicken in it, breast side up. Remember the pan is really hot! Press down on the legs so they lie flat on the bottom of the pan. Drizzle the oil over the bird. Roast for 30 minutes.
Step 4
Add the ramp bulbs, asparagus, garlic and capers to the skillet. Stir to coat with the juices from the pan. Roast until the ramps and asparagus are tender and the chicken is cooked through, 10-20 minutes more (total cooking time 40-50 minutes).
Step 5
Remove the chicken from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes. While the chicken is resting, add the ramp leaves to the pan and stir until just wilted. Cut the chicken into serving pieces, and serve with the vegetables and the pan juices. Add the juice from the remaining lemon if desired. Serve and enjoy!
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My verdict: a great way to roast a chicken and having the side dish made at the same time is a big plus! Use a good quality chicken here, you’ll be able to taste the difference. Because I had them, I used Meyer lemons, which gave it a wonderful mellow lemon flavor that worked well with the ramps and asparagus. Tossing a few small potatoes in at the beginning might work but I would need a bigger cast-iron pan. What do you think?

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The Accidental Locavore at Le Victor Hugo: a Very Good Good Friday!

by Anne Maxfield on April 16, 2012

Accidental Locavore Russan CathedralThe Accidental Locavore thinks that sometimes the old saying “no good deed goes unpunished” doesn’t hold true in France. Many of our most memorable meals  come when my husband and I have been exploring  places one of us has little or no interest in (all the F1 racetracks in France) and afterwards, as a reward we always seem to find an amazing meal.

Such was the case when we went off in search of the one big tourist attraction in Nice we had never seen, the Russian Orthodox Cathedral. This was an adventure that the Locavore had wanted to do for a while, but Frank is not a big church guy and it was pretty far off our regular routes. Along the way, down Avenue Victor Hugo, possibly the most beautiful street in Nice, we came upon a little corner bistro, with a simple but interesting menu, a possibility for lunch later. Accidental Locavore Le Victor Hugo

After a mostly nice, long walk we came to the Cathedral. Built by Tzar Nicholas and finished in 1912, it’s big and beautiful, with azure and green tiled onion domes surrounded by an intricate cast iron fence…locked! Now why a church would be closed on Good Friday is beyond me, but it’s probably because the Russian Orthodox religion has Easter on a different calendar than we do. Back home we schlepped, with me hoping that lunch at le Victor Hugo would be good enough to erase his short-term memory of a long walk for a closed cathedral.

Accidental Locavore French CharcuterieYou had to know it was going to be fine when the musician (my husband) was seated under a painting of a conductor. You had to know it was going to be fine when there was no menu, just a recitation of the day’s three main courses. You had to really hope it was going to be fine, when Frank ordered a lunchtime pastis. And you had to relax and know it was going to be fine when you got really hungry, seeing what the guy at the next table was eating.

It was more than fine!Accidental Locavore Cold Asparagus

While Frank sipped his drink, the hostess/waitress brought an amuse bouche of salami and a smooth pâté on tiny slices of ficelle (a baguette’s skinny cousin) I had a starter of white asparagus with green tips in a simple vinaigrette. Then we both had the côte de boeuf, perfectly grilled, sprinkled with sea salt and served with béarnaise sauce on the side.Accidental Locavore Cote de Boeuf It tasted as good as it looked! But what would any steak in France be without a side of frites? These were small cubes, golden brown, hot, salty and amazingly good!Accidental Locavore Frites As Frank noticed, somehow each and every piece of potato was perfectly fried on each surface. Definitely in the top ten of potatoes I have eaten, and believe me, we ate all of them!

Dessert? No room for what looked like perfect pastries and tarts, just a very reasonable bill and a couple of very happy diners. Accidental Locavore Happy Frank

As we left, Frank looked at an adjoining table and said wistfully (and on a full stomach) “They got an entree portion of the potatoes….”

 

 

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The Accidental Locavore’s Farm Box and a Recipe for Sugar Snap Peas

by Anne Maxfield on June 17, 2011

Accidental Locavore Farm Box Week 2

This week the Accidental Locavore’s farm box definitely looked like things are getting ripe on the farm. The big surprise was a box of beautiful strawberries, as lovely and flavorful as the ones we got in Nice. If you missed my Facebook page, they were so good with cherries on top of homemade yogurt! Accidental Locavore Yogurt with Berries

There were what may be the last of the asparagus, big purple ones (because Farmer Paul knows when it comes to asparagus, I’m a size queen) and some skinny green ones he threw in since we were chatting and catching up while banding asparagus and getting them ready for the market. The next morning, I tossed a spear in the microwave for a minute, then sliced it thinly on the diagonal and added them to my scrambled eggs for another great breakfast.

Two kinds of lettuce, a bunch of arugula and I’m set for lunch for the week.

And finally, a big batch of sugar snap peas to sauté in olive oil or butter and top with my favorite herbs. Here’s the recipe:

Sugar Snap Peas With Your Favorite Herbs

Accidental Locavore Sugar Snap PeasSugar snap peas are pretty amenable to being paired with a variety of fresh herbs. Here’s a basic recipe for them that’s quick and easy. Feel free to use your favorite herbs and citrus. A shallot thinly sliced and sautéed with the peas would work well too. Experiment and see what you like the best. Here are some suggestions: mint with lemon, lime or orange, cilantro with lime, thyme or tarragon with lemon, lemon verbena with lemon, basil with orange or lime.  Serves 4.

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 pound sugar snap peas (Snap off the stem ends of the snap peas and pull the string down the length)
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 tablespoon fresh mint (chopped)

Heat a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil. When the oil is warm, add the peas and sauté until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Add the lime juice and sauté, stirring until the lime juice is almost evaporated. Remove from the heat and season to taste with salt & pepper and stir in the mint. Serve and enjoy!

What’s your favorite herb/citrus combination?

If you want to experience Paul Wigsten’s amazing produce for yourself, catch him and his family at the Millbrook NY farmers’ market on Saturdays from 9-1. You don’t really need a black Range Rover and matching Lab, but it couldn’t hurt…

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What Does a Locavore Eat in the South of France?

by Anne Maxfield on May 16, 2011

Accidental Locavore Pizza and Salad

While the joke answer to what does a locavore eat in the South of France might be “whatever they want” (as long as it was grown 100 miles/161 km from where they are…), the Accidental Locavore ate a lot of great food and most of it was local and fresh. You know your locavore choices are much better in a mild climate where olive oil, lemons and other citrus, along with amazing vegetables and good wines, are all from just down the road.

One of the “old standbys,” to quote my mother, is Le Safari in the old town of Nice by the market. We often go there for lunch, usually split a pizza from the wood burning oven and a classic salad Nicoise. One of the big differences in their salad dressings? More olive oil. On our last day in Nice at Safari, asparagus with fois gras was the special and as crazy as it sounds, made a great pairing with the pizza and a glass of rosé. Accidental Locavore Asparagus Fois Gras

Another delicious thing to eat over there is steak tartare and if you’ve been reading the Accidental Locavore for a while, you know it’s always been a favorite. Frank was particularly fond of a version we discovered at a café in Antibes. It was essentially DIY steak tartare, with the chopped steak surrounded by ramekins containing: an egg yolk, minced shallot, chopped cornichons, Dijon mustard and chopped parsley. On table to mix in, Worchester sauce and Tabasco. I’m going to start adding chopped cornichons to my steak tartare and thanks to Charcutepalooza for this month’s meat grinding challenge, grinding my own steak.Accidental Locavore DIY Steak Tartare

Our last meal we went to a new (to us) place in Vence, a lovely hill town about 40 minutes drive northeast of Nice. As an amuse gueule we were served a pea puree bruleé. In a couple of weeks when the peas are local and fresh, I have to try to make this. It seemed to be peas pureed with heavy cream, topped with fresh breadcrumbs tossed with Parmesan. It looked good and tasted better. Accidental Locavore Pea Puree Brulee

For the Accidental Locavore the biggest surprise? An amazing daube de boeuf, the local version of a beef stew, served on the terrace in the old, walled town of Vence. What made it so good? The addition of orange zest (and a little orange juice?). Daube is traditionally served over tiny ravioli (don’t forget, back in the day this was all Roman territory), in this case it was over gnocchi which made it even better in my mind. As soon as we get a cool night, I’m looking for a recipe and giving this a shot.

What’s your favorite meal from the South of France? What would you like to see me try to duplicate here?

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What’s Local and Fresh in the South of France?

May 2, 2011
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For the past two weeks the Accidental Locavore has been hanging out in the South of France. I’ve been exploring the farmer’s markets in Nice and the surrounding areas, discovering what’s local and fresh in a new locale. Since one of my long term goals is to buy a house over there, this was a [...]

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Recipe: Local Leg of Lamb Roasted in Parchment With Garlic and Herbs

April 15, 2011

This recipe for a slow-roasted leg of lamb in parchment is from a recent Rachel Ray episode on Cooking Channel. The Accidental Locavore has mixed feelings about Rachel Ray, however, she occasionally comes up with something that makes me pay attention. In the “how bad can that be” category, came the idea of wrapping a [...]

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Charcutepalooza April Challenge: Smoking (In More Ways Than One)

April 11, 2011
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April’s Charcutepalooza challenge was to smoke either salmon or pork. The Accidental Locavore chose salmon and ended up smoking in more ways than one. In the process of developing the website and as a blogger member of Charcutepalooza I’ve been cooking to a higher standard these days. To have conceptualized a dish, executed it (more [...]

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Recipe for Hollandaise Sauce (Don’t Worry it’s Easy)

December 24, 2010

Every year at Christmas the Accidental Locavore gets called on to make Hollandaise sauce. This is a recipe for Hollandaise sauce using a food processor or blender which makes it pretty simple, you just need to be a bit careful. You can also use a stick blender, or a wisk, but doing it by hand [...]

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Farmbasket Week 2: the Last of the Asparagus, Peas, and Radishes

June 7, 2010
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This week the Accidental Locvore’s  farmbasket had two bunches of asparagus, a box of peas, radishes, mesclun, and some sprigs of sage that have already begun to flower (way ahead of mine). However, there was also a note from Paul, saying that he thought it was the last week for asparagus. Too bad! I’ve barely [...]

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Happy Memorial Day! First Farmbasket

May 31, 2010
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You know I stumbled into the locavore arena last summer with my surprise farmbaskets. That’s why I consider myself an accidental locavore. Also, living in New York, there are way too many things; tea, salt (sorry Nanny Bloomberg) and olive oil, to name a few, that are not, and will never be made within a 90 [...]

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