Here we go folks, another Fabulous Farmer’s Market recipe! This is really fun and challenging. Stay with me because I still have two more meals to show you – still from out FIRST Farmer’s Market Adventure! This weekend my Dad and Stepmom are coming to visit and guess where we are going Saturday AM – you guessed it! I will try to get some better pictures of the market itself…this was the best I could find from our maiden voyage.

Anyway, I digress…

I am a die hard beet fan. I just love them. Maybe it is their beautiful color, maybe it is their sweet taste, maybe it is the fact that they just SCREAM health. Whatever it is, when I see good looking beets, I am all over them, I can’t resist.
My favorite way to prepare them, is to roast them. It just really brings out their sweetness – it is like making vegetable candy. I could eat em by the bowl full. But me, I love the entire beet, I love the sweet purple root and I also adore the bitter greens. Nothing goes to waste – just the root if it is still attached.

I got gorgeous beets at the Farmer’s Market. In fact this dish is the dish I made the night we went to the Farmer’s Market. I just could not wait to dig in! I paired the roasted beets with goat cheese and pine nuts and served it on a bed of baby greens and wilted beet greens. It doesn’t get fresher than this guys. We just loved this salad. We ate along side crusty country bread also purchased at the Farmer’s Market dipped in reserve Greek olive oil from Kalamata. It was heaven.
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On our last trip to the Farmer’s Market we also procured some little eggplants. Not the Japanese kind, just small eggplants. I love getting these because they taste so amazing  like eggplant is supposed to taste. Many times when I get the big ones they are full of seeds and the flesh is bitter, even when you salt them and let them drain. But these small ones are delicious and need no salting. One of my favorite things to make with eggplant is Imam Bayildi or The Imam Fainted. Apparently it is the copious amounts of olive oil in the dish that made him faint, but it is not clear whether he fainted from meanness or delight, so the legend says.

I have loved cooking since I was a young girl. I spent many many hours in the kitchen with my grandmother and my mother watching. That is what they say about writers – we are observers first and foremost, as being involved would make us lose our perspective. But I also helped these ladies of the kitchens. I was cooking full meals by the time I was 12 years old. My first love affair with food was with Greek cooking. The first time I had Dolmas, Tzatziki, Melitzanosalata and Feta Cheese I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I understood the magic of food and how it could transport you somewhere else. So began my love affair with food and traveling the world through my palette.

My love of food was noticed early. My grandfather used to love to watch me eat because he could tell how much I enjoyed it. When my friends came over to play, we would experiment in the kitchen, trying to bake cakes- that was before I understood about baking powder and soda, though so you can imagine the many flops! I am not sure when I received this cookbook:

but I remember always having it – it was one of the first of many and probably still my all time favorite Greek cookbook. The recipes are easy to follow, it is unpretentious , the pictures of the food are drawn and it is where I learned that an eggplant is called aubergine and zucchini, courgette, which made me feel very smart and wordly.

I suggest when making Imam Bayildi, make extra. It is delicious and it goes down very easy!
I welcome comments from all my experts in Greek Cookery out there. I have never seen this dish on any menu at any Greek restaurant I have ever been to…do you have any stories about this dish?
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I really believe in the concept of eating with the seasons. On the occasional times I have been able to do that with regularity(when I had a CSA membership, when I lived on the Navajo Reservation) I have felt great. Like I really had a concept of what the earth produces at certain times of the year – you know The Harvest. I also found that it made me much more creative, culinarily speaking. You have all these veggies of the same kind for weeks in a row – how can you make them interesting? After having these experiences of seasonal eating, I have always wanted to live near a farmer’s market so I could keep up the good work. When I lived in MA and when I travel back to The Northeast and I find myself in Boston, I always get jealous of the people living there that have access to one of the best farmers markets I have ever seen. They have meats, cheeses, breads, fresh fruits, veggies, nuts, grains, food stalls where you can eat, ad infinitum. It is a playground for anyone who loves food or anyone who is looking for quality product – local, organic, FRESH and inexpensive! Granted living in rural MA we had our farm stands which don’t get me wrong, are pretty great. But I just envied the variety these people in Boston enjoy. Then I start blogging and I read blogs like Figs Olives Wine and Once Upon a Feast and you hear Amanda and Ruth talk about the importance of eating local and fresh and you see these wonderful photographs of the Farmer’s Markets in their communities and I think to myself, why doesn’t every town have this? Every town used to have this.The market has always been, for centuries, the mainstay, the hub of a community, have we become that out of touch?

Well I guess the Foodie Fairies have shined their light on me, because now I get to live in a community that has a farmer’s market and a good one at that. This is good news because it is more fodder for my kitchen creations and my writing. I hope to be inspired, challenged and in love with this market. I will do my best to do right by it – get most of my produce there, meet the farmers and learn who they are, just get back in touch with the earth, even in this small way. I love simplicity – great ingredients that still taste like they are supposed to after they have been enhanced by a few other simple ingredients. If Leftovers are rooted in simplicity, the other side of the coin is this.

And did anyone see the SIZE of that Swiss Chard Leaf up there?

How about this LEMON? Yes it is the size of a an orange, 5 for $2. Unbeatable.

This leads me to Today’s Recipe: Swiss Chard and Potatoes

This recipe is near and dear to my heart – it is my adaptation of one of my Grandfather’s recipes and as those of you who keep up withthis blog of mine know, I love my grandfather. He had 3 things he made: Home made Italian Sausage (mild AND hot), Pepperoni Eggs and Swiss Chard with Potatoes. His version is very simple – thinly sliced potatoes, garlic and onions fried in olive oil, mixed with chard, salt and pepper. To mine I add the juice of one lemon and Parmesan cheese. I then put it in a casserole and bake it in the oven for 15 minutes at 350 F. Then I broil it for a few minutes to get the Parmesan crusty and browned. It is simple fair but my goodness is it good, especially when you use such quality ingredients!
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I can’t believe it is almost a week since we rang in 2008. Father Time must have put on his jogging shoes this week. I am so delighted and feeling so blessed and I really think that 2008 is going to be the best year yet! Why is that? Because I am determined to make it so. Roberto and I have just moved to a town we both fell in love with when we moved to Florida a year ago, January 2007. We have moved to a wonderful little place in St. Augustine, the oldest city in the United States, founded in 1565, “discovered” (because as we know there were already Native people living here) by Ponce de Leon about 40 years earlier, just 20 years after Christopher Columbus “sailed the ocean blue”. Coming from New England we loved walking alongside history in our daily lives, there is just something so grounding about it. Roberto grew up in Rome, and I am a self-described history buff, so when we moved to Florida, a relatively new place in the grand scheme, it felt a little stale. We loved the weather, the palm trees, the little lizards everywhere and the beautiful flowers. But we missed the small town feel, the old streets and the large, stately, almost ancient homes of New England. So when we went to St. Augustine, on a day trip with my mom months ago, we found what we had been looking for. A beautiful small town steeped in history, right on the ocean. It could not have been more perfect.

So here we are, in our new place, and I have a new kitchen to initiate. I wanted our first meal to be something that was very homey –to communicate to the space that we were happy to be there and intended to make it a place full of warmth, love, happiness and comfort. A refuge. I wanted our new home to know we were down to earth, simple people who would take care of it and be happy there. So I decided to make sausage pasta – simple, robust, hearty and full of comfort.

The ingredients had to be GOOD – organic, whole grain, healthy, no skimping.

I set the table, lit candles, put music on and away I went. I turned the stove, heated up the burner, warmed the olive oil, cut the garlic and onions and sautéed it in the pan. I laid the sausage in and with it I put my hopes for our future in this house and in this town in the sauce, and I stirred it all around with a helping of love and goodwill for added measure.

It was delicious, and hearty and comforting just like I hoped. We had it with salad – and crunchy Italian style breadsticks, a Roberto favorite, and we toasted our new home and kitchen with a new wine, which has become a new favorite – rich with a berry blush with a wisp of smokiness in the background. We had a great time laughing and talking and enjoying our new space – making it ours, making it home.

Sometime in the middle of this New Year, I had discovered what my secret ingredient in cooking is. It is the energy that you put into it, the intention. I learned about how food is such a powerful tool. Things I had always known, but never really put into concepts or words. I plan on discussing this more in future posts, and as part of my New Year’s resolutions, along with getting organized, finishing up things in the new house, and getting back to meditation and quiet time with myself, I have decided to start some writing projects, maybe even a book. I also have ideas of how others can profit from this, not just I. You know me, I am all about community. So stay tuned!

In terms of food and cooking here are my resolutions:

1) Utilize the wonderful Farmer’s Market here in St. Augustine (YES, I finally have one in my community!!!)
2) Eat even more seasonally – take the cue from the Farmer’s Market
3) Buy what is on sale – but only good stuff – learn to be even more creative with what is available
3) Use my cookbooks more
4) Have people over for meals!
5) EXPERIMENT

This is our first Royal Foodie Joust of the year! We had a very special list of required ingredients – perfect for the holiday season: Pomegranate, Mint and Pistachios. Not only are the colors beautiful in a dish, but the ingredients seasonal in much of the world at this time. These ingredients were chosen by Emiline at Sugar Plum, last month’s winner. Every month it seems the ingredients for The Joust get more an more challenging and I am always impressed with how many are up for he challenge. Due to this, 2 months ago I decided that the winner of each month will win a personalized apron as first prize! So please do not miss your chance this month to participate, flex your foodie muscles and win yourself a very cool apron. To learn more about how to participate in the monthly Royal Foodie Joust, please visit the Leftover Queen Forum.
Now for this month’s winner – to start of the new year.

Drum roll please………

Dharm from Dad~Baker & Chef with his dish: Chicken Pilaf with Pomegranate, Mint and Pistachio

CONGRATS to Dharm! You will be recieving your apron as soon as possible!

Now for our second and third placers:

tie for second:

Valli from …More Than Burnt Toast with Baked Salmon Tarator

&
Heather from Gild The Voodoolily with her Pistachio-Crusted Lamb with Mint Pistou and Pomegranate Reduction

Third place is Peppermint Tart with Pomegranate Glaze by Katy from Sugarlaw!

Congrats to all the winners!

If you would like to win a personalized apron please join us for this month’s Royal Foodie Joust!

Every year, right around the holidays, I turn a year older (don’t I look so much older and wiser here snapping this poor green bean?!). Since most of my family has migrated to Florida over the past 10 years, we now make a point to celebrate birthdays together. Since my birthday is in December, right around the holidays, I usually save my family party for a time when most of my relatives are here – from Florida and from out of state. So in between Christmas and New Years and MOVING, we put this shindig on – nothing is getting in the way of a party with good food. So this year we celebrated my birthday on January 1st – New Year’s Day. Per tradition, the birthday person, (in this case, me) gets to choose the menu. The weather has turned a bit cold here in The Sunshine State and so I was after more hearty fare.

I chose an Armenian Vegetable Stew, called Kharn Panchareghen, out of one of my favorite cookbooks called Secrets of Cooking: Armenian/Lebanese/Persian which is an Armenian, Lebanese and Persian cookbook, written by the sister of one of my mom’s friends. The stew was delicious. I added some Kalamata olives, dried prunes and about a ¼ TBS of ground cinnamon to the original recipe. I also opted for canned plum tomatoes as opposed to fresh, as tomatoes are out of season right now and not very flavorful. It was rich in flavor and the secret touches of sweetness really intrigued the palate. We served the stew with Rice Pilaf, Naan bread and Greek Salad.

Then there was the question of the cake. Now this next picture looks kinda weird, but don’t be scared…there is a story, rest assured.

I am not normally a chocolate person, usually opting for spice cake or carrot cake on my birthday, but I saw Giada make chocolate espresso brownies recently. I LOVE espresso. My mom had given me a bundt cake pan shaped like a giant octopus (I know I am weird, I love octopi) and so a plan for chocolate chip espresso bundt cake with an espresso glaze came to life. My mom wanted to decorate the cake all in waves and pretty icing, but since I am not partial to icing, I requested just a glaze. Hence a pretty much unadorned Octopus cake. But it was good.

Now for the recipe:
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