August 20, 2010

Welcome New York Times readers!

In the Berkshires, Dinner's Not Far Away — New York Times

It’s totally thrilling to be a part of the Berkshires “locavore boom” that Mark Vanhoenacker so wonderfully describes in Sunday’s New York Times travel section. When Mark emailed way back when to ask about the farm-to-table scene, I happily obliged with my two cents — and more. And now I’ve found myself quoted in the nation’s most widely-read newspaper.

The introduction to the wonderful photo slideshow sums it up nicely:

There is a deep enthusiasm for eating farm-to-table in the Berkshires, where longstanding activism is supplemented by increasingly food-savvy tourists.

Those of you who are new to the site, welcome! I am delighted to have you here. You can read the most recent posts on the homepage, or explore recipes, or, if you’re curious, learn more about me and the inspiration behind Plate to Plate. I’ve compiled a list of locavorish sources over there in the sidebar, but I’m always looking for more. Email me if you have suggestions, or just to say hi. I’d love to hear from you.

What a wonderful little write-up. Thanks to Mark and the New York Times!

Posted by Frances in Press
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August 17, 2010

Canning Tomatoes

Coring and peeling twenty pounds of tomatoes — a fun job for Dano.

We’d only been talking about doing it for, I don’t know, five or so years. Canning tomatoes. Preserving that bright, acidic summertime flavor for purely homemade sauce all winter long. Canned tomatoes are one of the few processed items we buy anymore — our utter dependence on Friday night pizzas requires some decent tomatoes, even in February.

One down, many to go.

When I got the email last week from our CSA that canning tomatoes were starting to ripen, I jumped. Now was our chance. Last Friday, out in the field, I picked about twenty pounds of beautiful red plum tomatoes. My parents, who had come to visit and to spend an evening at Tanglewood, were put into service. We scrubbed the kitchen. We ran the quart jars through the diswasher. We boiled up water in the biggest pot we could find.

We finally canned tomatoes.

And though we weren’t around to hear the delightful little ping of the jar lids making their final seal, when we checked them in the morning, they looked great and seemed sealed. It was all I could do to keep from cracking them open then and there.

Canned tomatoes! I can’t believe we did it.

Almost ready for the hot water bath.

Now I wonder why we waited so long. It was easy, and even fun. We used the recipe from Storey’s Put ‘Em Up for canned whole tomatoes. You can also download a PDF of the USDA’s entire canning guide at foodsaving.com — or just download the tomatoes section.

Go on, try it.

Posted by Frances in Canning & Preserving
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August 11, 2010

Pioneer Valley Farmers’ Markets Photos

Ashfield Farmers' Market

In the years I’ve spent together with Dan, one thing has been certain: I’m the photographer. I’m the one behind the lens, happily snapping away, producing piles (well, digital piles) of photos of my accommodating husband’s wide grin, our many shared dinners, and structures near and far in various states of crumbling decay. This truth held for a long time. Actually, it held until last weekend, when, while I was otherwise occupied, Dan snuck off to the Pioneer Valley armed with my camera and a list of farmers’ markets.

lemon cukes

eggplant

carrots, greens

The Pioneer Valley is a swath of western Massachusetts around the Connecticut river, a big hunk of the state just to the east of the Berkshires, and probably much larger and more demographically varied than our little western corner. When I think of the Pioneer Valley, I think of Amherst and Northampton, but I think the region also includes the wonderful Hilltowns — Ashfield, Plainfield, Cummington, and the like — and the tiny towns to the north, like Turner’s Falls. Parts of this region of western Mass are spectacularly beautiful. And parts of it fill me with a little bit of that exciting, big-city energy that I so miss.

baby greens

lettuce

Those two elements combine at some of the region’s farmers’ markets, which Dan visited last Saturday in search of some shots for a humdinger of a book he’s working on. He visited the Ashfield farmers’ market, and the Northampton and Amherst markets. (There are many, many more.)

tomatoes!

red onions

I wanted to share these photos with you, because they’re lovely, and so celebratory of the zenith of the season — a complete riot of veggie goodness. Plus, the photos illustrate the somewhat incongruous way that the more developed, urban parts of the state — at least this side of the state — seem to have a lockdown on the most fantastic produce grown in the region. One particularly thrilling discovery was a grower with long beans and Thai basil, two Asian staples we’d otherwise have to get from decidely un-local sources at a supermarket in Albany.

We’re lucky, really, to live near so much good food.

Continue reading “Pioneer Valley Farmers’ Markets Photos” »

Posted by Frances in Markets
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August 10, 2010

Summer Tomato and Grilled Shrimp Salad

summer tomato and grilled shrimp salad

This salad is ridiculously easy to make, strikes a just-right summery and savory balance, and keeps you from having to actually cook anything in the kitchen in the blistering heat of August. Serve it up with big, crusty hunks of bread for sopping in the dressing that remains at the bottom of the salad bowl. The original recipe, from Mark Bittman’s classic How to Cook Everything, calls for regular ol’ large ripe tomatoes, but I used a mixture of heirloom tomatoes and cherry tomatoes, since that’s what I had on hand. It’s essential, though, that you use super-ripe, fresh-from-the-farm tomatoes, and a decent, fruity olive oil.

Summer Tomato and Grilled Shrimp Salad

From How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman

  • 1 lb. large to extra-large shrimp, peeled
  • about 1/2 c. extra-virgin olive oil
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 2 or 3 tablespoons balsamic or sherry vinegar
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 1 tsp. dijon mustard
  • 4 large ripe tomatoes, cored, seeded, and cut into chunks
  • 20 fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
  1. Preheat your grill so the fire is quite hot. Move the rack as close as possible to the heat source.
  2. Brush the shrimp with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
  3. Mix together the rest of the olive oil, 2 tbs. vinegar, shallot, and mustard, and season with salt and pepper. Taste to add more vinegar if needed.
  4. Set the tomatoes in a large bowl to marinate with the vinaigrette and basil. Grill the shrimp over high heat until they turn pink, about 2 minutes per side. Top the tomatoes with the shrimp and serve.

Serves 4

Posted by Frances in Recipes, Salads
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August 4, 2010

Curried Cauliflower and Cashews

curried cauliflower and cashews

Nestled next to the chives and basil at the farmers’ market in Bennington, all billowy white and cloud-like, was a gorgeous head of cauliflower. Weirdly, I never think of cauliflower as something to eat in the summer, or to get at a farmers’ market, for that matter. But it’s worth seeking out a farm-fresh cauliflower — like many other overlooked supermarket vegetables (I’m looking at you, cabbage), it’s just so much better straight off the farm.

Cauliflower is great in summer, too, because it can be lightly steamed and served hot or cold. This recipe makes that transition particularly well, going from warm dinner dish to straight-from-the-fridge lunch leftovers without much fuss. I used some steamed green beans in the recipe, too, for color and texture, but it would be just fine without them.

I used a custom curry spice mixture here, but you could use store-bought curry powder — sub in about 2 – 3 teaspoons, depending on the intensity of heat and flavor.

Curried Cauliflower and Cashews

  • One head cauliflower, trimmed of green parts
  • Handful cashews
  • Spice mixture
    • 2 tsp. ground cumin
    • 1 tsp. ground coriander
    • 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
    • 1/8 tsp. cayenne
    • 1 tsp. fennel seeds, coarsely ground
  • 4 tbs. butter or olive oil
  • Fresh lime juice
  • A few tablespoons each of snipped chives and chopped cilantro
  • 1 tsp. salt
  1. Steam the cauliflower. Leaving it whole, place the cauliflower above an inch or two of salted water and steam for about 12 minutes, or until just tender (it will continue to cook after you take it off the heat). Set aside. When cool, chop the cauliflower into bite-sized pieces.
  2. Toast the nuts. Lately I’ve been doing this in the toaster oven for 5 minutes, but you can also toast nuts in a 350 degree oven (keep an eye on them) or in a pan on the stovetop over low heat. Set aside.
  3. Combine the spices and fennel seeds in a small bowl. Set aside.
  4. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a saucepan over high heat. Add the curry mixture and fennel seeds and cook for a minute or two, until fragrant. Add the herbs, lime juice, and cauliflower and toss to coat. Season with salt, sprinkling the cashews on top. Serve warm or at room temperature, over basmati rice.

PS: How do you pronounce “cauliflower”? I’ve heard it these ways: COLLIE-flower and COLL-ih-flour. Which is correct? I’ll admit to the former — I realize it sounds sort of bumpkin-y, but that’s how I heard it pronounced growing up. (This is a special little interest of mine, obsessing about how people pronounce things, and it’s so fun to do here in Western MA, where the accent is bizarrely, twangily midwestern to my raised-in-Long-Island-and-subdued-by-too-many-Californians-in-college ears.) How about you?

Posted by Frances in Recipes, Vegetables
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