Saturday, April 21, 2012

Farmers' Market Bounty

I have a hard time not going crazy at the local farmers' market. The produce is so luscious! This morning I bought local honey, brussels sprouts, onion flowers (a new one for me!), kale, spinach, green beans, blueberries, and eggs.


Nathan's holding the brussels sprouts we bought. It's almost as big as he is! Not only do we get the sprouts from the stem, but the leaves are also edible! I may try a collard style dish for them.


I chopped the brussels sprouts (after snapping them off the stalk) and used left over bacon grease to coast them, then roasted them at 400 until soft and brownish. Sprinkle some sea salt on them for a candy taste. Seriously, the can taste caramelized! My mom used to steam brussels sprouts until they were limp, soggy, grey and generally the grossest vegetable out there. The smell from steamed brussels sprouts used to linger in the house for hours afterwards. Blech. I had no idea that they actually tasted good! The secret is to roast them with either olive oil or lard and salt them. They become soft, but not soggy. Some leaves brown and crisp and have a satisfying, salty crunch. I also roasted sweet potatoes with olive oil and salt at the same time in the oven. The kids ate steamed green beans from the market, because they sure won't try anything new unless it's a dessert or grain based. Then they'll eat it up.




Tonight's main course was a slow roasted local grass-fed chuck roast. It's so easy to make them! Get out your cast iron pot, brown the meat with some butter, then put onions on the bottom of the pot. Put the roast on top, sprinkle salt and pepper on the meat. Add some water or beef broth and cook on 275 for hours and hours and hours (this cooked for about 5 hours). The meat was so soft! I sautéed some onion and crimini mushrooms to put on top of the steak.

Last on the dinner menu was a gluten free honey corn muffin. I try to bake as many gluten-free items as I can because I think my kids eat too much wheat. Wheat is in everything and it's a gut-irritant. I might as well give their digestive system a break if I bake things at home from scratch. I just substitute half white rice flour and half tapioca starch for whatever wheat is called for in the recipe . The milk, eggs and honey were local. I also love Bob's Red Mill Masa Harina as the corn meal base for the recipe. Masa Harina has been treated with pickling lime; too much untreated corn can lead to pellagra, a niacin deficiency.

I'm now making bone broth using the left over bones, fat, meat, drippings, carrots, celery, onions and a little apple cider vinaiger to help pull out the mineral from the bone. The broth will cook over night to keep pulling out as many nutrients tomorrow. My plan is to make french onion soup tomorrow night using the broth.

The lettuce and carrots are on there to make the plate look healthy. I ate them, but I seem to be the only one eating salad right now. Why is that? I guess I'll have salad for breakfast. I have a lot leftover.

I realize that the pictures are pretty awful. I'll have to work on better lighting and a better camera. Maybe a better plate, too?


3 comments:

Zoe said...

This looks delish and I like the plate. I can see how taking pictures of dinner every night would make you notice your dishes more.

LoriD said...

Oh this looks delicious! I wish my picky eaters were less picky, especially since we're on a tight budget. Keep all the great ideas coming!

Anonymous said...

You make everything seem so easy! I cant wait to try making sprouts this way.