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Garden of PLENTY

September 14, 2011

Garden Of PLENTY
Make the most of a farmers' market trip by cooking, storing, preserving bountiful flavors

Farmers' Markets
DENISE MILLER
For the Albuquerque Journal


Choosing great food at your local growers' market is relatively easy: fruits and vegetables are at their peak of ripeness and have mostly been picked within 24 hours of your visit, ranch-raised meats are wholesome and delicious, and specialty foods like cheese, jam and bread often have been prepared with local ingredients.

But choosing which foods to bring home and which to eat first can be overwhelming when market tables are full and temptation is everywhere.

Sometimes budgets keep our shopping list tight. Other days we don't have time to purchase everything we will need during the week.

Occasionally we have just the right amount of time and money to devote to weekly grocery shopping at the growers' market -- and then the fun begins.

There are many ways to make the most of your market visits, but here is how I dealt with the consequences of a huge shopping trip to the farmers' market in Cuba, N.M.

Arriving at 9 a.m. when the market opened, I saw six or seven vendors. As I visited the tables it became apparent that what looked like a small market offered a variety of produce.

Plentiful choices
Rosemary Anslow, the county cooperative extension agent, offered samples of her broccoli salad, and off I went to buy some broccoli.

Having secured several pounds of broccoli for my family, I moved down the row. Rainbow chard, fresh kale and lettuce. Done.

Then came a small head of pak choy (smaller cousin of Chinese bok choy), a dainty cabbage, a few peppers, a slender trombone squash, a couple of white patty pan squash, some Japanese eggplant and sweet onions. The cooler in the car was getting full.

I went back to the broccoli farmer and remarked about his large bundles of beautiful chard. He said he wasn't sure if they would sell, so I thought I better help him out. Now I was really loaded with chard. This time I noticed his rhubarb and beets and bought some of those, too.

Preserving treasures
When I got home and laid everything on the counter it was apparent it would not all fit in the refrigerator. The only reasonable thing to do was to start cooking. Besides wanting to make the most of the food's freshness, cooking a few meals that make good leftovers on the weekend helps me get through the busy week ahead.

But with so many choices, what should I cook? And what would be best left uncooked for a few more days?

The chard was an obvious ingredient to use immediately. I searched the Internet for chard recipes, and found lasagna with chard. That inspired an improvised vegetable lasagna. With fresh tomato sauce from last market season still in the freezer, and mushrooms already on hand, all I needed from the store was cheese and noodles.

I also decided quiche would be good for breakfasts and lunches during the week. Because the chard and mushrooms could do double duty, they would be easy to prep. Broccoli also could be used in the second quiche.

After the quiches went in the oven, I prepped the rest of the vegetables for lasagna.

After the dishes were done, I decided to use the rhubarb and make an easy rhubarb-apple crumble for dessert.

Three days later most of the cooked food was gone, but the refrigerator still looks full.

What are you having for dinner tonight?


VEGETABLE LASAGNA

Substitute vegetables as desired. Thinly sliced eggplant is a great addition. If you have tomato sauce, skip the can of tomatoes, wine and parsley to the cooked vegetables, and layer your sauce and vegetables separately onto the noodles.

Serves 12

Ingredients
10 ounces lasagna noodles
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 whole red bell pepper, diced
4 whole squash (yellow or zucchini), diced
24 ounces white mushrooms, chopped

½ cup white wine
½ teaspoon kosher salt (to taste) & Freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 can (28 ounce) whole tomatoes
¼ cup fresh parsley, chopped (to taste)
30 ounces ricotta
2 whole eggs
½ cup grated Parmesan, plus extra for sprinkling
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound thinly sliced mozzarella

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain and lay flat on a sheet of aluminum foil.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook for a minute. Add diced red peppers and sauté for another minute or so. Add squash and mushrooms and cook for a few minutes. Pour in wine, add salt, pepper and red pepper flakes, and stir.

Pour in tomatoes. Use hands to squeeze/crush them. Stir to combine and let simmer for 20 minutes or so. Stir in chopped parsley.

In a separate bowl, combine ricotta, eggs, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. To assemble, spread a little of the vegetable/tomato sauce in a lasagna pan. Layer four cooked noodles in the pan, slightly overlapping them if necessary. Spread • of the ricotta mixture on the noodles. Top the ricotta mixture with mozzarella slices. Spoon a little less than • of the veggie/sauce mixture over the mozzarella. Repeat the layering two more times, ending with a large helping of vegetable sauce and a sprinkling of Parmesan.

Bake at 350 degrees, covered in foil, for 20 minutes, then remove foil and continue baking for 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

-- Recipe adapted from thepioneerwoman.com


VEGETABLE QUICHE

Choose any combination of vegetables. If using chard, blanch first, then sauté quickly with onions. Broccoli also should be blanched. Other vegetables like mushrooms should be sautéed. Makes 2 quiches

Ingredients
12 eggs
1½ cups milk
3-4 cups of vegetables (blanched and/or sautéed)
½ teaspoon salt (or to taste)
½ teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
8-10 ounces Swiss cheese, shredded
2 (9 inch) unbaked pie shells

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs and milk. Season with salt and pepper. Place cooked vegetables in the pie shells. Sprinkle with cheese. Pour egg mixture over cheese. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F, and bake for 25 minutes, or until crust is golden and filling is set. Allow to set 5 to 10 minutes before serving.


RHUBARB-APPLE CRUMBLE

If you want a brown topping, replace the shortening with butter.

For crumble mixture:
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup oatmeal
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup melted shortening
1 teaspoon cinnamon

For fruit sauce:
1 cup sugar
1 cup hot water
2 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon cinnamon
4 cups diced rhubarb (or apple)

Directions:
Mix crumble ingredients until crumbly. Set aside. Put fruit ingredients in pot and cook until thick. Put half of crumb mixture into 9 x 9 inch pan. Pour in fruit sauce and sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Let cool. Serve alone or with ice cream.

-- Recipe adapted from cooks.com


Vegetable storage tips

Storing your vegetables properly will protect your investment and their flavor. A few quick rules: Get rid of any damaged vegetables because they pass the damage on. Dirt is good. Leaving a little dirt on root vegetables such as carrots, artichokes and potatoes can help storage. Avoid cutting or trimming. A whole squash or melon keeps longer than its pieces. Pay attention to the temperature. Different vegetables like different temperatures. Remove the green tops of carrots, radishes and beets before refrigerating to reduce moisture. Store their greens separately and use within three days.

Minimize dehydration by storing higher moisture veggies, such as leafy greens, beans, cucumbers, broccoli, in plastic bags or containers in the refrigerator.

Avoid condensation and sweating. Use a paper towel to absorb excess moisture. Store mushrooms in a brown paper bag in the refrigerator.

Beware of the bananas. Do not store bananas next to your veggies or anything really. They make everything ripen because they release ethylene gas.

Don't refrigerate your tomatoes.

How long will it last?

Not sure what to eat or cook first? Growers' market produce almost always lasts longer than store-bought goods because market produce usually has been picked within 24 hours of a shopper's visit versus goods that has traveled long distances and sat on trucks, in warehouses and then on shelves.

• Artichokes: 1 week
• Asparagus: 2-3 days
• Beans: 1-2 weeks
• Beets: 1-2 weeks
• Broccoli: 3-5 days
• Brussel sprouts: 7-10 days
• Cabbage: 1 week
• Carrots: 2 weeks
• Cauliflower: 1 week
• Celeriac (celery root): 2 weeks
• Corn: 1-2 days
• Cucumber: 1 week
• Eggplant: 1 week
• Garlic: 2 months (pantry)
• Jerusalem artichokes: 4 months
• Lettuce: 1 week
• Leeks: 1 week
• Mushrooms: 2 days
• Onions (cured): 2 weeks-1 month
• Peppers: 1 week
• Potatoes - white: 1 month
• Potatoes - fingerling: 4 months
• Rhubarb: 3-5 days
• Spinach: 5-7 days
• Squash - summer (soft-skinned): 1 week
• Squash - winter (hard-skinned): 1-3 months
• Turnips: 2 weeks
• Tomatoes (do not refrigerate): 1 week