When is this guy going to run out of tortillas?

Never, I'm afraid. They're just too convenient. Pictured above are tacos with a classic combination of blanched green beans and potatoes--the beans from the garden and the potatoes, Yukon Golds, from the Market. The mix is normally found in enchiladas or tamales, but I just didn't have the patience to defrost some of the wonderful Sonoran style enchilada sauce my (soon to be ex) next door neighbor made for me almost a year ago. And tamales, despite a deep curiosity and love of Mexican cooking, the ones available at Orale in the West Side Market are just too good to justify me bumbling through making them myself (although I have been looking for an excuse to buy a tub of lard at one of the local Mexican grocery stores).

In addition to the potatoes and beans I included some blanched and chopped early cabbage and sliced green serrano pepper, both also from the garden, grated raw cheddar from the Market, a few splashes of Tapatio, and some creme fraiche. Not much visible color contrast, but it was delicious nonetheless.

And the cucumber salad--my take on sunomono I've enjoyed at Japanese restaurants. Here it's just a diced, seeded garden cucumber (marketmore), salt, pepper, and white wine vinegar. It marinated for a few minutes and was refreshing in its simplicity.

Almost French

Four simple courses, starting with the cheese above. For reasons mentioned in the last post, there will likely be more brie in my future. The wine is from the Market Avenue Wine Bar (50% off takeaway wines), which is sadly moving (closing?) in the near future. A biodynamic Cotes du Rhone winds up being about $16--not bad for a decent bottle. The bread source, unfortunately, is not worth mentioning.

Above is a classic vichyssoise (French or not), cooling in a sink half filled with water and ice packs. I followed a Julia Child recipe, available here. Basically it was just boiled leek whites and peeled potatoes pureed in a blender. I thinned with chicken stock from Souper Market, a local mini-chain of soup shops. They've got it to go fresh or frozen. While it may not have been the best stock in the history of stocks, it was definitely serviceable and beats boiling bones in 90+ weather (others around here have been braver). After blending I added just a bit of creme fraiche (maybe a tablespoon for four decent sized potatoes worth of soup) and seasoned aggressively with salt and pepper. Topped with some fresh chives it was perfect for the summer. Reaction from co-diner after tasting: "What kind of cream soup is this?" It took some explaining.

The fish course was meant to be sole meuniere made with whatever looked good at Kate's (see their writeup here, while it's available). Flounder seemed appropriate. Tom the fishmonger suggested cooking it Charleston style (is there really such a thing?), meaning hatched and cooked whole. I gave it a shot, first seasoning the whole headed and gutted fish with salt and pepper and then dipping it in flour before pan frying in a mix of butter and canola oil. After it was browned it went for a quick trip in a hot oven to cook through.

After it was cooked and resting I wiped out the pan and melted some butter with lemon juice and parsley. The fish was taken off the bone at the table and served with a wedge of lemon and some zucchini batons that were sauteed in butter with salt and pepper.
And finally, garden salad greens with fresh local blueberries. The vinaigrette is Dijon mustard, shallot, cider vinegar, honey (it's the year of the honey bee after all), olive oil, and salt and pepper. While I nearly always whisk a vinaigrette or shake it up in a closed jar, I did this one in a food processor and was pleased with the emulsion--it was even worth having to clean the processor. Next time I'll puree the blueberries with the vinaigrette, as the plump berries on the lettuce leaves were tasty, but a bit awkward.

Now, to learn desserts . . . .

What to do with all those beets?

Shredded beets and carrots, minced onions, cilantro, lemon juice, and salt. The Chioggia beet is from the garden and is pictured below (as promised nearly a year ago). The cilantro and carrots are from Rootstown Organic Farm. The recipe came from Monica, the lady who runs Muddy Fork Farm, a transplant to Wayne County, Ohio from Cali, Columbia. She says this is a common first course in her area of Columbia. I can see why.

I used a Japanese Mandoline for the beets, and was first concerned that I should have gone for a finer julienne (it's easy enough to switch blades), but this worked out well. With a beet like this one, i.e. one that does not bleed red all over the place, I think this salad could be made ahead of time and left to sit in fridge until you're ready for it. Nice and cold, it's ridiculously refreshing. But just because I can't leave anything alone, I'll probably add chilies the next time I make this.

Steak and Potatoes

I'm getting boring in my old age. Here's the proof along with a dull post. A nice piece of pastured rib eye (Millgate Farm), alongside some goat cheese (Mackenzie Creamery) creme fraiche and roasted shallot fortified mashed potatoes, and an oyster mushroom (Killbuck Valley) pancetta and sweet onion mixture. There was a pan sauce too, and it was pretty good--shallot, white wine, butter, and a touch of the creme fraiche. It went well with everything.

And an heirloom lettuce salad, organic from the yard, complete with all its insect damage. Coated lightly with extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper, it was lovely in its imperfection.

Simple Salad

Fresh asparagus, old cheese. This was quick and easy, with a vinaigrette very loosely based on the one that this guy served during Sunday's plated landscape dinner. The main ingredients are blanched Muddy Fork Farm Asparagus, French Breakfast Radishes, and Parmesan Cheese (that has seen better days). I meant to include to some cracked herb seeds (fennel, coriander, cardamom, or whatever) as some folks have been known to do around here. It adds an extra dimension and some more crunch, but the absence was no big deal.

The vinaigrette was a bit more involved. In order of amount it included olive oil; white wine vinegar; Plum Creek egg yolk (as per the Sunday dinner and this); local maple syrup; white miso; Dijon mustard; minced shallot, salt, and pepper. It all went into a mini-mason jar for a quick shake to emulsify and that was it. Since egg goes so well with asparagus, I was itching to make a dressing with egg yolk, and the asparagus has been flowing like water, this was bound to happen.