Saturday, June 17, 2006

Fresca Season

So in this post I will try to address several different topics, seamlessly integrating them under the general subject of "fresca". Read on . . .

Farmer Market Season is in full bloom with the excitement of new seasonal arrivals each week. Strawberries and asparagus are old news already and I just can't get enough of those summer beans. Even more exciting for Brad and I, this year's CSA share has finally commenced! No longer are we eating veggies from the Garden of Eve, but for he next 23 weeks, we will be enjoying both fruit and veggies, from Wildflower Farm, in upstate NY. This week's bounty included such goodies as strawberries, radishes, Tokyo Bekana (similar to both Broccoli Raab and Bok Choy), lots o' greens and even a potted thyme plant!

Last year's surplus of basil from our farm share aided in my perfection of pesto. However, with all the strawberries in my fridge I was excited to stumble upon this recipe for strawberry pesto at chocolateandzucchini.com. What an excellent idea! It brings back fond memories of Nectar, in Mérida, where Brad and I experienced the most amazing dessert, when we were served basil ice cream topped with starwberries and honey. You drooling yet? Well, for those of you who have been in need of new recipes and culinary inspiration like you are probably experiencing right now, but are disapointed by me recent lull in blogging, might I also recommend, some amusment from The Amateur Gourmet and as a resource, Epicurious.com.

But wait, I am still here right now - typing away. And on the subject of summer surplus recipes, the other thing we began to have more than we could handle from our farm share last season was tomatoes. You might ask yourself, what else do you do with tomatoes besides make pasta sauce? Salsa, silly! How surprised I was when I whipped up a batch at a BBQ the other night (hosted by a friend on the roof of a stranger for whom he was housitting - what fun!) and the general public response was "Wow, this is good. How do you make it?" It is so easy, my friends, just check out my recipe below:

Salsa Fresca
to make a party-sized batch
(Ingredient quantities need not be precise, this is just how much I used last time. Experimentation is encouraged.)

2.5-3lbs ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 large or 2 small red onions, chopped
As many jalepeños as you dare, but at least one, chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Juice of 3 limes
A few tablespoons of olive oil
Freshly ground pepper and sea salt
One bunch of cilantro, chopped

Mix all the above ingredients in a bowl and serve with good corn chips.

That's all there is to it, so make some salsa. And while you're at it - here are some fun "upgrades" reccomended in my most recent issue of Real Simple:

1. Black beans and corn
2. Bell pepper
3. Mango
4. Diced cucumber and sliced radishes.

Oh, and doesn't that remind me of the most delicious sandwich I ate for lunch yesterday from a gourmet deli near my work in SoHo. On a beautiful 7 grain roll I was served, grilled chicken, havarti cheese, endive and cucumber. That's all, and it was deeelicious. So warm and soft and salty the havarti was .
. . mmm. It was actually quite a culinary day for me. Brad and I had dinner later in the evening at a local green market restaurant, Restaurant Sorrel, here in Brooklyn where I ate some truly inspiring dishes as part of a three course $25 prixe fixe menu, including braised, organic duck legs. We will be going back!

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