Peppers and plums on parade!
Peppers are at their peak, people, so make sure to pick a peck this Saturday.
So many to choose from, starting with shishito peppers. Originally. from East Asia, these lime-green peppers are so simple to prepare and yet, deliver so much crunchy umami, that you can't eat just one. Go on, I dare you!
The easiest way to prepare them is as follows: put some grape seed oil and sesame oil in a cast-iron pan and let the pan get steamy hot. You can tell your pan is hot enough when a drop of water hisses as it hits and slides across the pan! Drop your rinsed shishito peppers in and let them sizzle for about three to 5 minutes until they start to char and blister, occasionally shaking the pan vigorously so they don't stick. Sprinkle some finishing salt on them and serve. It's hard to describe the taste as shishitos are neither sweet nor spicy. (The rumor is that one in every 8-10 peppers will catch you by surprise with its unexpected fire. It's happened to me more than once and I've lived to tell the tale.) Been there done that with sizzled shishitos? Consider this recipe for shishito salad with sizzled mint and sesame.
I picked up some of the leggy Italian peppers known as corna di toro (bull's horn) at the Halal Pastures tent last week. These lean sweet and taste almost creamy when roasted. Try using them instead of ho-hum bells in this recipe for stuffed peppers.
Obercreek Farm had some gorgeous jalapeño peppers last week. Since
I'm always looking for ways to incorporate seasonal fruit into my salads I'm going to make this red plum and mozzarella salad with a serrano-lime dressing and swap out milder jalapeño for the serrano. Heading straight to La Trafila for my mozzarella.
Did you see that pile o' corn at the Morgiewicz Produce tent last week? They were down to three ears at day's end. Getting a little tired of corn on the cob? Try this Melissa Clark recipe for corn and salmon chowder. The folks at Pura Vida can help you pick the right type of salmon for this late summer soup.
Don't forget to pair it with your favorite Bien Cuit bread loaf.
Speaking of Bien Cuit, last Saturday was Max's last day selling at the bakery's tent after three years. He will be missed and I hope he comes to visit us on college breaks. Meanwhile we gave him one of our snazzy new market t-shirts to remember us by.
(Yep, that's right! The new T-shirts are IN, in cool new colors and new tote bags, too. Come and get 'em. The perfect souvenir for someone who is visiting from out of town. )
Buy some yellow Mirabelle plums at Mead Orchards to make this rustic Mirabelle tart. Top with a dollop of Mirabelle plum sorbet from Unofficial Ice Cream. Abby was at the market as a shopper last week, buying ingredients to make this week's batch which also includes caramel peach cobbler ice cream and corn and polenta.
See you at the market!