Only 3 hours, 30 minutes to go!

This week, even though I wasn't sure if I needed it to fulfill my challenge, I went to the Denver Downs farmer's market. They also had SC certified produce. I picked up a couple of big tomatoes, some raw peanuts, and some...get this...sun dried tomatoes....yum!!

With the big tomatoes, I made the Herb Stuffed Tomtoes from Giada. I served it with cedar planked salmon and this meal went great together. Easy to put together, and tasty, I would definately make this again if I ever have a lot of big tomatoes to use up.


I bought the peanuts for Mark. I was hoping he would "parch" (roast) them. With the football games this weekend, I thought this would be great football food. Mark decided he would rather boil them. To do so, you basically boil the peanuts for 2 hours with 2 TB salt. Taste periodically and add salt as needed. Yuck, I hate boiled peanuts. They taste like squash.


Sun dried tomatoes are one of Mark's favorite things...along with angel hair pasta and goat cheese. I saw a recipe for Angel Hair Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Goat Cheese, also from Everyday Italian and I knew I would make it for my dear husband. These fresh sun-dried tomatoes seems like the perfect excuse.


Mark is waiting for the computer. I will announce the September challenge later, I guess.

Kerri's Greatest Hits

Can I post one more today? It's Friday and the end of the month and this one isn't necessarily farmer's market inspired but a great find that I thought I would share. When I left Texas, Kerri provided me with a binder of her most cherished recipes ... several of which I had sampled from our Sunday night dinner get-togethers. I don't know why it took me so long to try this one out. Probably, because the name alone is scary ... Risotto with Shrimp and Coconut Milk. Try passing off "risotto" made with coconut milk to an Italian husband ... still I was curious. This was a really great dish and easy to have ingredients on hand. It has a lot of different tastes going on with the coconut milk, tarragon, and fennel seeds. I wish I had a picture of it. Halfway through the dish, I had a bad feeling that it wasn't going to be what I expected ... but in the end, it came together and had a wonderful flavor.

Risotto with Shrimp and Coconut Milk (From Boston chef Didi Emmons of the Delux Cafe)

8 oz. small raw shrimp, peeled (shells reserved) and deveined
5 c. chicken broth, heated
2 T. vegetable oil
1 c. finely chopped onion ( I used a couple of shallots)
2 large garlic cloves, peeled and pressed or finely chopped
1/2 t. fennel seed
pinch of red pepper flakes
2 c. Arborio rice
1/2 c. dry white wine
1 t. dried tarragon leaves
2 small plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 c. unsweetened cocount milk
1/4 c. chopped scallions
juice of 1 lime, about 2 T.
salt
freshly ground pepper

1. Combine the shrimp shells with the broth in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook for 10 minutes. Strain broth and return it to the saucepan. Reheat the broth before adding it to the risotto. Discard the shells. Don't skip this stage it really does give the broth a shrimpy flavor.

2. Heat the oil in a heavy 4 qt. pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, fennel seed and red pepper flakes; cook, stirring, until the onion begins to soften, 2-3 minutes ( I would say maybe 8 minutes on a lower heat). Be careful not to brown it ... cook it gently. Stir in the rice to coat the grains with the remaining oil and onion mixture and cook about 1 minute longer.

3. Add the wine, tarragon, and tomatoes and stir until the wine is mostly absorbed by the rice. Add the coconut milk (I just used the whole can) and continue to cook, stirring until the milk is mostly absorbed by the rice. Add the broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. Wait until each addition is almost completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup. Reserve 1/4 cup of broth to add at the end. When the rice has been cooking for 15 minutes (tender but still quite firm), add the shrimp.

4. When the rice is tender, about 5 minutes longer, turn off the heat. Add the remaining 1/4 cup broth, the scallion, lime juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately. Serves 4-6

Fresh Tomato Lasagna ... CL "oldie but goodie"

This Fresh Tomato Lasagna is a wonderful way to use garden tomatoes if you have a lot of them. This week when I made this dish, I subbed cottage cheese for ricotta and added an egg to hold it together ... just to lighten it a bit. Also, I used no boil lasagna noodles and added a little extra water to the sauce for the noodles to soak up. I always halve this recipe and use an 8x8 metal baking dish. This is a little labor intensive with the fresh tomatoes but a very fresh tasting, light lasagna as there is only 1 cheese layer.

Summer Garden Tortelloni from Aug '07 Gourmet

While in the States, I picked up a Gourmet magazine. I didn't find a lot of inspiration in this edition but tried the Summer Garden Tortelloni. It was really light and fresh tasting and came together quickly ... perfect for a summer evening. Sorry, for the lack of pictures lately. Our hard drive is kaput and I've been instructed to not access the drive until we get our new one. Please say a quick prayer that our 16,000+ pictures survive the transfer ....

Produce Patch

Last week, I met my husband in Wahalla, SC for lunch at the Steakhouse Cafe. They have the best fried chicken ever. Anyways, I stopped at their produce stand to pick up the week's produce. This one was a little different from the other ones I had been to in the fact that it was a "certified SC produce stand" with "certified SC produce". Good to know.

I picked up vidalia onions (ok, from Georgia, but it is the next state down), SC certified sweet potatoes, and SC certified lemons. I had no idea they grew lemons in SC, or that they were in season, but there they were.



The first thing I made was the Vidalia Onion Risotto with Feta Cheese from Cooking Light. I have made this before with Texas 1015 onions, but this was the first time I made it with the real thing. I forgot to take a picture. I hadn't make a risotto in awhile, I guess I am worried that it is too much work...all that stirring...but it was very relaxing.

With the sweet potatoes I made my favorite Sweet Potato And Ginger Salad. This is such a great salad. I like to serve with with BBQ. The freshness of this salad balances out the heaviness of the BBQ. Next time I make it, I am going to use red onions instead of green and use it for tailgating at Clemson games. I took a picture, but it did not come out. Here is the recipe:

SWEET POTATO AND GINGER SALAD
(Everyday Food; June 2005) Serves 4
Prep time: 10 minutes Total time: 45 minutes

1. Preheat oven to 425. On a nonstick rimmed baking sheet toss 2-1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, cut into 3/4" chunks, with one Tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp. coarse salt, and 1/4 tsp ground pepper; roast until fork tender, about 35 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together 2 Tbsps. fresh orange juice, 1 Tbsp oil, 1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger, and 2 tsps. Dijon mustard.

3. Add 3 scallions, thinly sliced crosswise, and potatoes; toss to coat with dressing. Season with salt and pepper if desired. Serve warm, cold, or at room temperature.

I intended just to use the lemons for my tea or for little things, but the Glazed Lemon-Buttermilk Cake from Cooking Light had gotten some good reviews and decided to give it a try. Mine came out pretty dense, but the glaze really brings the lemon home. It is very good in the morning with coffee.

A great side dish ...Baked Couscous with Summer Squash and Herbs

Looking for a great way to use that summer squash? We tried this side last night and ate the whole casserole between the two of us (well, our 11 month old had her fair share as well). I should mention that I used a real egg instead of egg substitute and probably double the amount of cheese, which I subbed mozzarella for fontina.

Pendleton Farmers Market

Gosh, I really hate to move that yummy looking tomato tart down, but I am going to start cooking for next week tomorrow and need to post about last week.



Last Thursday, I went to the Pendleton Farmers Market that is held in the town square every Thursday from 4-6. I love Pendleton, and I had gone to a market in June and had a great time. Boy, what a different 20 degrees makes. We are in the middle of a heat wave and I think it is keeping both vendors and customers away. There really wasn't a lot of good looking produce, except tomatoes:



I bought a few Big Boys to add to the ones from my garden to make that fresh tomato sauce Lindsey posted earlier this month. That recipe was a real hit! For the rest of my shopping, I kind of cheated on my challenge. Well, lets say improvised. I bought pepper crusted goat cheese from a local farm. Mmmmmm, goat cheese.



Some homemade oatmeal and fresh bread made by one of the vendors.



Hopefully, this week will be better...