tomatoes

The Accidental Locavore: August Charcutepalooza Challenge, Binding

by Anne Maxfield on August 12, 2011

Accidental Locavore Vegetable Terrine

This month the Accidental Locavore and other Charcutepalooza participants gave up the sausage stuffing for a more refined pastime, making terrines. Our mission was to make them beautiful as well as delicious. Since I had a houseful of vegetarians coming for the weekend, as well as a box full of gorgeous vegetables, I decided to give Michael Ruhlman’s grilled vegetable terrine a shot.Accidental Locavore Eggplants and Squash

In return for some recipes for cherry tomatoes, my farmer was cool enough to let me pick up my farm box early in the morning, after I had asked for an “advance” of a couple of zucchini and a squash. Someone who knows me well had given me the perfect Le Creuset terrine a while ago so I was set.

It’s a pretty easy recipe and great for this time of year when everything is at its peak. There’s a lot of prep work, but it’s mostly slicing and grilling and then assembly. The hint about wetting the terrine before you line it with Saran wrap is almost worth the cost of the book and thank you Mrs. Wheelbarrow for pointing that out.Accidental Locavore Veggies for Terrine

With any terrine, a little pre-planning is important, especially in this case when style points count. Since I had both green and purple basil, an alternating leaf pattern on the top (or the bottom as you’re layering) would be a good jumping-off point. There were no red Roma tomatoes at the Greenmarket, nor red peppers, so it turned out to be a medley of greens, purples and yellows. I added some chopped thyme to the goat cheese layer but otherwise played it pretty straight.Accidental Locavore Grilled Vegetables

The final result? A lovely if a bit monochromatic terrine. The verdict? Delicious! Everyone had seconds and there was barely anything leftover. The leftovers were the filling of choice for omelets the next morning (and highly praised). My thoughts? For the next one, longer eggplants and I would divide up the goat cheese instead of having one thick layer. The oven roasted/dried tomatoes seemed a little tough, I might just grill them with everything else. And for some crazy reason, I kept expecting artichoke hearts to show up, so in the future they will. The thyme and basil were good, but there could have been more of it and maybe a little garlic?Accidental Locavore Terrine Cross Section

 

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Recipe: Veal Meatballs With Baby Artichokes

by Anne Maxfield on October 15, 2010

Accidental Locavore Veal MeatballsWhen the cool weather comes, the Accidental Locavore always wants to make these meatballs, but baby artichokes aren’t always around. This week, we hit the jackpot and found them in two colors! At the new (and pretty amazing) Eataly, they were there in both green and purple, so of course we had to have them in both colors. It’s a lot of prep work, but nothing difficult, and the results are worth it.  I serve them over egg noodles, but feel free to improvise, and let me know what you like to serve them over.

Adapted from Chez Panisse Cooking, serves 8

  • 5 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 medium yellow onions, finely diced
  • Salt and pepper
  • 2 pounds ground veal (ground turkey would work fine)
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley (I use flat leaf Italian)
  • 3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
  • 3 large eggs (or 2 jumbos)
  • 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
  • 15 baby artichokes (if you can’t find fresh, you can use frozen artichoke hearts, but it’s really worth it to find fresh)
  • 1 box cherry tomatoes, peeled (to peel the tomatoes, put them in a pan of boiling water for a minute, drain and they’ll peel really easily)
  • 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 2/3 cup green olives (I use olive salad for muffalettas) coarsely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice, plus additional lemon juice for the artichokes
  • 3/4 cup chicken broth

Make the meatballs: In a large saute pan, warm 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, add the onions, salt and pepper them lightly, and cook over moderate heat until soft, about 8 minutes. Do not brown the onions. While the onions are cooking, put the veal, parsley, eggs, Parmesan, and breadcrumbs in a mixing bowl. Add 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 1/3 cup of the cooked onions. Mix well. Form into meatballs about 2″ in diameter. You should have about 16. Put the remaining onionsin a large gratin pan or casserole and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Wipe out the saute pan, and add the rest of the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the meatballs and brown them on all sides (about 2 minutes a side). While the meatballs are browning, prepare the artichokes. Snap the outer leaves off until you reach the pale green center. Cut off the stems, and trim the bottoms. Cut off about 1/2 inch of the tops, quarter them the long way, and put them in a bowl of water with the juice of 1/2 lemon as you work.

When the meatballs are browned, add them to the baking dish with the onions. Drain the artichokes, and add them along with the tomatoes, garlic, olives, and sage. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the lemon juice, and the chicken broth. Cover and bake for 1 hour. Serve and enjoy.

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Accidental Locavore Farmbasket Week 16, What, No Brussels Sprouts?

by Anne Maxfield on October 11, 2010

Accidental Locavore Tomatoes and a Pepper

The Accidental Locavore is probably one of few people who would rather get a primeval stalk of Brussels sprouts than a handful of butternut squash, but to quote an over-use cliche, there you go. However, it’s great to still be getting wonderful tomatoes, and I savor each bite, knowing it could be a long, long time before tomatoes are back in season. The herb garden is looking a little worse for wear, basil and mint gone, but sage still going strong, and there are still cherry tomatoes on the vine. I’m planning to make some of my favorite meatballs, with the sage and cherry tomatoes, some ground veal from up the road, and some baby artichokes (certainly not local). I’ll post the recipe Friday.

What else was in this week’s basket? Green peppers, which quickly made their way into the chicken my husband made Saturday, the aforementioned butternut squash, tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, salad greens, and russet potatoes. Now, if I could only remember what I wanted the russets for…

There were also some lovely, slim, green beans which I cooked very simply for dinner with Frank’s chicken.

  • Stem the beans, and steam in the microwave for 5 minutes.
  • Toast a handful of pine nuts (you could use any other nuts you like)
  • In a saute pan, melt about a tablespoon of butter and some olive oil 
  • Add the beans, pine nuts, some salt and pepper, and about a teaspoon ofherbs de provence, crushed
  • Saute about 5 minutes, tossing them to coat, and serve.

And while we ended up doing something else for dinner that night, we were going to roast the acorn squash.

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
  • Halve the squash, and remove the seeds
  • Put the cleaned squash on a baking sheet, and dot the cavities with butter.
  • Add your choice of maple syrup, or brown sugar (or both)
  • Bake until tender about 45 minutes
  • I top with my cousin’s amazing rhubarb chutney, but you can enjoy as is, or add your favorite condiment.

Maybe if we ask nicely, Ellen will share the chutney recipe with us?

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Farmbasket Week 15, the Last of the Tomatoes?

by Anne Maxfield on October 4, 2010

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My basket this week had a lovely mix of great stuff, although now that it’s fall, every week the first thing I look for is tomatoes. You know it’s all over when they stop coming. However this week there were three big red ones, and lots of little ones in my garden, although my basil is pretty much over. Back this week were cranberry beans, and now the weather is perfect for a gratin with the beans and I scored a bunch of duck legs confit from Hudson Valley Fois Gras, so they will go well together.

Some green peppers and pimentos were tossed in a great steak pizzaiola my husband made last night. He takes a steak or pork chops and sautees them with some onions and garlic. Then he adds some plum tomatoes, crushed, a little of the juice, and sometimes mushrooms, and/or peppers. Let it simmer until everything is tender and the flavors melded together and serve over the widest egg noodles you can find. So nice when he cooks!

A little bit of mesclun, enough to go with the tomatoes, and some radhishes, and I have lunch for today anyway. Another lovely orange cauliflower, broccoli, an acorn squash, potatoes, beans, and yes, more zucchini. If it gets warm enough, I’m making a salad Nicoise while we have all the ingredients fresh and local. I’ve got some lamb curry sausage which I’m going to have with the zucchini, and some chick peas with zaatar, a Middle Eastern spice.

Other than roasting it, or making soup, what do you do with winter squash? And can you roast the seeds like pumpkin seeds?

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Accidental Locavore: Farmbasket Week 11 Ratatouille Here We Come!

September 6, 2010
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Finally a farmbasket. Lots of good stuff this week, tomatoes, both large and cherry (really sweet!), mesclun, corn, jalapenos, green and red peppers, pimentos, yellow and green zucchini, a big yellow melon (muskmelon?), eggplant, and leeks. The pepper, eggplant, zucchini, and tomato combo calls for a batch of ratatouille, and since it’s going to be [...]

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Are you ready for the NY Locavore Challenge? The Accidental Locavore is!

August 16, 2010
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If you could only pick 5 things to cook with and or eat that weren’t local, what would they be? There are way too many things I like to eat that come from more than 100 miles from NYC, or even Dutchess County. And eating local would get pretty tough/boring come January. That’s why I consider [...]

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Accidental Locavore Farmbasket Week 8; Tomatoes!!!!

July 26, 2010
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After a week where the Accidental Locavore’s farmer, Paul, was relaxing (well, sort of) at a Bluegrass Festival, the farm-basket is back and overflowing! Making their first appearance, so it must really be summer, tomatoes. Both big beefsteak, and mixed little yellow pear, and other cherry tomatoes. Patty pan squash, eggplants, peppers, yellow, green and [...]

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Recipe: Tabouli (Couscous Salad)

July 26, 2010

Tabouli is one of theAccidental Locavore’s favorite summer salads. You need to be patient and wait for really good ripe tomatoes, trust me! It’s easy to make, I chop everything myself, but you could easily use a food processor. Rinse 1 cup of couscous in a good sized bowl Add 1/4 cup of water and let [...]

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Recipe: Pasta Puttenesca For Friends

March 1, 2010

The first of March, must mean it’s only a few more months before we actually do get local and fresh in my neck of the woods. If you were truly  a locavore in New York, you’d starve to death, probably out of boredom. Come on, how many apples and root veggies can you eat? Humor [...]

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The Accidental Locavore: How it All Started

February 8, 2010
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As you know, sometimes in life, opportunities come from the most unlikely places. Earlier this summer, my local farmer, Paul, decided not to open his farmstand and focus instead on the farmers market in Millbrook, and his wholesale business. Understand that I never make it to the Millbrook market. Besides not having the prerequisite Range [...]

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