Waverly

We've had such a great summer. So much so that I'm realizing I have photos from June that I haven't published. Enjoy our spring finds from the Waverly Farmer's Market from three months ago.  E. is at the market this morning with our friends Brad and Mina. I've sent him out to find Joan to pray she has a flat of Tony Tomatoes to sell us. Chances are we are out of luck because Spike ordered 1,000 pounds to can for Woodberry Kitchen.  

We always run into friends at the market. It's a little social haven on Saturday mornings.

Remember asparagus? Now that you can get asparagus all year long the novelty wears off a bit, but there is still nothing more delightful than the first signs of spring with asparagus spears. We roast them with olive oil, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese. 

We are also excited that the Baltimore Food Co-op had their grand opening this week. To have so much organic goodness only a half a mile away makes my detox way of eating very easy. Congratulations Cheryl and all who worked tirelessly to help you make the Co-op a reality.

We bought all of our garden plants from Waverly this year. 

I love a lime and red garden.

I'm still taking my NutraMetrix vitamins every morning. It's made all the difference with my energy level.

E's been so supportive he even made buckwheat pancakes during the detox.

We were not big fans but was thankful to try something new and be treated to E's cooking. We are big fans of maple syrup as a sweetener and breakfast Quinoa is our staple morning meal during the week.

This morning he made this amazing Corn, Mozzarella, tomato and basil frittata all from his Waverly finds. I am seriously blessed to have a man who likes to cook so much!

It was delicious and gave me the energy to can pear chutney all day. Can't wait to document my second year on the blog with pear chutney. My first post ever on Stone Hill Farm.

E. has graciously "socc-rificed" his Saturdays to spend more time with me. It has made such a difference. I was a soccer widow. He played three times a week and his Saturday games took the entire mid-day. His still plays three times a week but gave up the Saturday game. Now we have time to enjoy the market, fix things around the house and just hang. I'm pretty much in Stone Hill heaven. Thanks Charlie for loving me so much to make this little change. It's been the best summer yet. 

Tomatillo Salsa

 

Just in time for football. Run to your farmers market this weekend for a very, very easy salsa. Hopefully you will luck out and get the last of the tomatillo's of the season.

Not only is this hands down my favorite color green, but you little sweeties are husky too. Peel the husks off of the fruit. They are a little sticky.

Blanch them, just until the water boils.

I used cilantro, the zest of one lime, two cloves of garlic, a heaping tablespoon of salt, a couple of grinds of pepper, and a third of a cup of olive oil.

Boil for no more than five minutes.

Throw everything together and cut the tomatillos in half.

Blend, taste, add sugar if you want to add to the sweetness of the fruit.

 

This makes a light, sweet salsa that won't stick around very long on game day.

Thanks again to Joan from One Straw Farm for her amazing produce and literally teaching me how to make this salsa one morning at the Farmers Market.

Holy Tomatoes

As summer is drawing closer to an end I finally broke down and bought some tomatoes at the Waverly Farmers Market. Mind you, I didn't want to have to buy them but our Stone Hill tomatoes didn't fare so well in the heat. Joan from One Straw Farm is the best source for ideas of what to cook from the market and her produce is organic, well cared for, fresh as the day is long and hands down amazing. You can taste her smile and passion in every bite. I end up speaking to her about recipes every week and told her I was looking for a great sauce tomato. She said she had a story for me.

She walked me to these Heirloom Roma Tomatoes. She had an employee, Tony, who was from Italy who was never impressed with the Roma's he tasted in the U.S. He went back to Italy and brought the seeds back for Joan to start growing these babies. He was so protective of them that he would slap the hands of any who squeezed or handled them unjustly. She fondly named them Tony Tomatoes.

I bought a case from her for a steep discount.

And this helpful young fella helped me to my car blocks away from the market.

One wee little cherry from Stone Hill. Not enough for sauce making.

Slice the Tony's, drizzle olive oil and this salt and fresh cracked pepper.

Roast for 2 hours at 300 degrees.

I probably could have upped the heat but the result was great. You want that roasted, caramelized char.

I grabbed a massive handful of fresh basil.

Chop and add after you puree the cooked tomatoes.

Use a hand blender and pulse to puree.

Add 2 tablespoons of sugar to cut the acid. Add more salt if you like, but I prefer to keep my canning jars free of salt, knowing I can add it later.

The second batch I made had about seven cloves of roasted garlic and I added a fourth of a cup of dried oregano. These jars with these fridge lids are for us to use this week. They are great for the ones you will use quickly. I found them at Walmart. I feel like a little grasshopper stocking up for winter. After fours hours I only had six large jars canned. I most certainly over purchased so became a tomato fairy to my Stone Hill neighbors. One neighbor traded us the tomatoes for a great fancy schmancy brew for E's birthday. It was a long week of good, hot, hard work and tons of hours with great rewards.

I'm so thankful to live in this country and have access to such great, fresh produce so readily available. I learned so much about organic farming, the importance of shopping at farmers markets, and certification when I was working for Restaurant and Asia Nora. Nora worked countless hours to become the first certified organic restaurant in the country. I can without question tell you that One Straw Farm is successful because of Nora and other restaurants that value local, organic produce. Thank you Nora for all of your pioneering efforts to keep small farms viable in this country.