A couple weeks ago I wrote about the Bon Appetit 2019 Healthyish Farmers' Market Challenge. I'm happy to say, I have completed the challenge by trying all 10 fruits/vegetables/herbs on their list. I've already written about how I prepared some of them; this post is to let you know about the remaining few.
Mint
I prepared this minty limeade recipe from Bon Appetit, which was the one listed in the Challenge. I didn't think I liked fresh mint, but after drinking this I'm converted! With a hefty dose of mint leaves (see below, picked that morning!), the puckering acidity of the citrus, and just enough sweetness, this drink was just what I needed on a hot summer day. I used 2 liters of seltzer, which was perfect for our group. I'm definitely looking forward to making this one again.
Swiss Chard
I feel like if you get great product, you shouldn't need to do much to it for the end result to be delicious. I was looking for a way to prepare the rainbow chard in the picture above in a way that would enhance its flavor, while retaining the essence of the chard. I made braised chicken thighs with acorn squash, using a recipe that calls for mustard greens. The dish was quite tasty, particularly the salty/spicy/sweet/tart sauce that develops. However, I felt like this same delicious sauce masked the flavor of the chard. I also didn't care for the soggy limpness of the chard leaves once they were cooked. Time to go to plan B.
Next, I tried a simple sauté of the chard leaves, with only a drizzle of olive oil and thinly sliced garlic, seasoning with salt and a little freshly cracked pepper, and finishing with a squeeze of half a lemon. I thought maybe this no-nonsence preparation would truly allow me to taste and enjoy the chard, with the added benefit that I could cook it to my desired wiltedness (is that even a word?), and without liquid, which I felt made the chard taste water-logged.
So, having tried two different preparations of rainbow chard, I have concluded it is not my preferred green. I'm open to trying it again, but for now, I'll stick with chard's not-so-distant relative, Tuscan/Lacinato kale.
As an aside, it killed me when every recipe for chard that I saw said to discard the tough stems; they are so beautiful! What do you mean you can't put them in the dish??? Even recipes for pickling rainbow chard stems admit that they won't look beautiful once pickled. There has got to be a better way to use such a gorgeous part of the vegetable such that it retains its beauty. Alas...
Tomatoes
Even though the first few tomatoes in my garden ripened several weeks ago, it wasn't until this week that I had more than one tomato ripe at the same time. So while I had some really great tomatoes to top my bagel and cream cheese or tuna sandwiches, it wasn't until today that I could make a nice tomato salad. I cut 3 heirloom tomatoes into wedges, diced an orange bell pepper, halved and sliced 4 small pickling cucumbers (also from our garden), and quartered a handful of yellow cherry tomatoes. I made a dressing of 1 small shallot, about 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar and 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar, about 3 tablespoons olive oil, a pinch of salt and sprinkling of black pepper. I tossed the vegetables with the dressing, adding a small handful of chopped parsley at the end. The tomatoes were sweet, their texture perfect (all at once soft but not mealy, firm but not hard), and the finished dish so understated that the vegetables in their prime could sing the perfect song together. The quintessential summer dish.
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