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Posts Tagged ‘organic veggies’

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If you’ve followed this blog through a summer or two, you know how much we like fresh fava beans.  I picked up a batch at the farmers market this other day, peeled them, and seasoned them with a little extra virgin olive oil, lemon zest, and salt and pepper.  Since the grill was already flaming, I put the mix in a cast iron skillet on the grill – it took just a few minutes to soften them a bit and allow the olive oil and lemon to add a little zest.  We piled them on a cracker with a thin slice of ricotta salata to enjoy with a pre-dinner glass of wine.  Easy, breezy and delicious.

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As summer comes in with a bang – thunderstorms have been daily occurrences since the first day of summer at the end of June – I pay my respects to the last bit of spring on our menu.  I’ve talked about fiddlehead ferns in past posts, but since they are such a seasonal treat, I’d like to talk about them again.  Fiddleheads are not cultivated so the only way you can experience them is through picking them yourself or purchasing from a farmers market or local forager.  Plus I think they are only found in the United States in the northeast, but I could be wrong about this.  All of these things make them, I think, even more special.  I use them as a vegetable as well as a component in spring pasta dishes.  Our farewell batch turned into a lovely light dinner sautéed with some chopped garlic scapes in butter and extra virgin olive oil and then tossed with crumbled ricotta salata in homemade pasta.  I already am thinking about what next spring might bring.

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Is there anything more spring-like than a bowl of fresh from the garden English peas?  I don’t think so.  Growing up, my most favorite springtime dish was my mom’s version of fresh peas and tiny new potatoes in cream sauce.  I don’t think I’ve seen this combination on a menu since childhood, though.  The French steam their spring peas with lettuce or make a light cold pea soup flavored with mint, Italians combine them with rice and prosciutto for risi e bisi, and Indians add them to vegetarian samosas.  I, on the other hand, enjoy them most straight out of the pod popped right into my mouth.  This only works when they are not only picture perfect, but absolutely totally and completely fresh.  Just like candy, they are!  And I have a sweet tooth!

 

©StephenKolyer_peas

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