Winter Squash and Sage Pasta

Two weeks ago, I was visiting one  of my favorite farm stands at the West Sacramento Farmer's Market, Moon River Farm. The farmer, Sara, was selling some beautiful, smooth-skinned butternut squashes. It was a hot August day and I thought it seemed a bit early for me to be making squash, which seems so autumn-y. After all, tomato season seems to last through September in Sacramento. But the squashes were so lovely, and the farmer, Sara, told me that it would keep on the counter for several weeks.

Sure enough, my squash was still in good shape today when I got around to chopping it up. I've been wanting to try a certain winter squash recipe ever since I read The Quarter Acre Farm by Spring Warren, who lives about 30 minutes away from me in Davis, CA.  The dish is a deconstructed version of butternut squash raviolis, only much simpler. For my take on it, I attempted to make it healthier, too, by cutting back the butter and cheese and using whole wheat, organic noodles. To add more flavor, I roasted my squash extra long, until the edges were brown and the squash was decidedly caramelized. The end result of my experimentation still felt indulgent and was totally delicious.

And can I just say-  roasted, caramelized butternut squash, where have you been all my life?! Oh... probably sitting on the shelf because I was too intimidated to cut you up and too lazy to prepare you.  I'm just glad that I've found you now, especially with fall and winter coming up. This could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

 

Winter Squash and Sage Pasta

4-6 cups any winter squash, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1-2 cups sage leaves

8 oz. whole wheat pasta (I used penne)

1/2-1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1/2 cube butter

2 T. brown sugar or honey

olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place the cubes of squash into a bowl. Drizzle squash with olive oil and sugar or honey. Stir until the moisture from the squash and the other ingredients form a thick juice to envelope each squash cube.

Pour the squash onto a lipped cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil, spreading the squash into a single layer. Place in oven and roast until squash is tender on the inside and browned on the outside, about 40 minutes. Put squash on the counter to cool slightly.

Melt the butter in a saucepan, adding your sage leaves. Allow the butter to barely bubble and cook the sage leaves until crispy, about 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta as the directions indicate. When the pasta is cooked and drained, place it in a large bowl. Add your butter/sage and a large handful of Parmesan. Toss together. Place the squash over the top of the pasta (to avoid having it gravitate to the bottom of the bowl). Serve with a green salad if desired. Mangia!

San Francisco Ferry Pier Farmer's Market

I love Farmer's Markets of all kinds, but my personal "original" market is the one in San Francisco behind the Ferry Building - the one that first introduced me to the whole concept of a farmer's market. We went there this weekend and enjoyed a beautiful day. Here are just a few of the sights we saw:

Heirloom tomatoes - dozens of varieties for our sampling

Prune plums, figs, more cherry tomatoes,
even a peacotum (peach-apricot-plum hybrid), not pictured

English peas and fava beans

Fresh cut flowers including unbelievable colorful hydrangeas

Cute dogs everywhere! Random fact:
There are more dogs in San Francisco than children.

Chilaquiles from the Primavera Mexican Stand. I had to try these scrambled eggs and homemade tortilla chips topped with a delicious spicy sauce. It was delicious!

Nothing captures the best of the season like your local Farmer's Market. What's your favorite thing in season at the moment?

Newest Herb Acquisition: Cuban Oregano

We made our second trip to the West Sacramento Farmer’s Market last night. We bought:

- $8 half flat of super-sweet strawberries

- A bag of crisp snap peas for $2.50

- Flank steaks ($8/lb) from Lucky Dog Ranch, which I realized is the same meat they serve at the wonderful Roxy restaurant. Tonight we’re grilling it and making a stab at our first chimmichurri sauce. Looking forward to it!

- Two kinds of Oregano. I needed something replace the parsley that went to seed in the last month, as it typically does in the second year. I knew I needed to replenish my herb box, so I thought I would take a stab at oregano for the first time. The first plant I saw was familiar enough and looked like a baby version of this:

This is Greek Oregano, the typical kind grown.

The second is new to me : Cuban Oregano!

See how different it looks? The fellow who sold it to me said it was good to slice and put in a green salad. Does anyone have any suggestions for using this unique herb? Maybe I should try my hand at Cuban food.

West Sacramento Farmer's Market

My love affair with farmer’s markets began with a trip to the Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market in San Francisco just after I graduated from college. Never had I seen such an array of attractive- no, more like immaculate- produce in my life. Nor was I previously aware that fruit could taste as sweet and satisfying as the samples that were handed out by eager vendors. Tiny apricots that popped like bursts of sunshine in my mouth. Dark, tiny strawberries with an intense flavor far outshining anything the grocery store could dream of selling.

After my discovery, I was pleased to learn about more accessible, nearby options. First, I visited the market at Davis, where neighborhood food vendors like the Hotdogger, local musicians and enthusiastic student protesters all created a strong sense of market attendance being a community affair.

Last summer, I took an out-of-town friend to the downtown afternoon market at Caesar Chavez park, where we selected a bag of perfect pears for a crisp so delicious we later declared it superior even to the apple version. Despite the melting heat of a late-summer heat wave, we were rewarded for our market sojourn with the discovering of outstanding locally produced Bariani Olive Oil and an unexpected performance by the Sacramento Ballet promoting their current production.

Each market offers unique products, from home-spun, hand-dyed wool in Point Reyes to burdock root and tomato juice in Portland. There were disappointments along the way, like the meager offerings at a disappointing Elk Grove market that supposedly lasted to “dusk”- yet was already starting to pack up when I arrived at 6pm. But though I traveled near and far, I always hoped that my own community in West Sacramento would be able to muster up their own market someday.

Today my dream came true. I give you the first West Sacramento Farmer's Market:

Fresh lemonade, a bargain at $1 a cup (above)
and free market bucks if you ride your bike (bike parking shown below)

Gorgeous Raineer cherries (above) and
hot house heirloom tomatoes grown here in West Sac (below)

Fresh flower bouquets (above) and
Oyster mushrooms at the mushroom stand (below)

Free samples of bean sprouted quinoa (above) and
French Icicle radishes from Dave's Pumpkin Patch (below)

Live music by Mike McGowan and the Mighty Delta
Roadmasters (all local West Sac residents except one)

Inside my market basket: green onions, heirloom tomatoes,
apricots, and green leaf lettuce

Dinner at the Hotdogger (featuring market heirloom tomato slices
and Maui Onion mustard). Delicious and a deal at buy one, get one half off!

Above: the dessert menu for the Eatery (scheduled to open in July by Target)

and their Strawberry Shortcake below

We have a great time and hope that the Farmer's Market has found a permanent home here! Thanks to all the fantastic vendors and city officials who finally made this dream a reality.

The Spirit of Marin County

Have you heard of Marin County? It's just north of San Francisco. After the 60's, loads of hippies were burned out and tired of the crowded city life. Anxious to "return to the land", they flooded north. Many founded towns and businesses that have since become very successful and affluent, but the area still maintains its bohemian roots. Here is my guide to an authentic Marin County experience.

1. Explore the many creameries, bakeries, and artisan meat shops that dot the rolling pastoral hills. Stock up for a picnic later on in the day.

2. Follow a little girl in a bread wagon down the street to the Farmer's Market where she's headed with her mom the baker.
3. Peruse the organic greens, vibrant vegetables, homespun yarn, homemade desserts, and glistening fruits at the market. Make friends with the people who grew the food or created the product that you are about to enjoy!
4. Examine the local Community Garden and get tips on how to help your crops thrive!

5. Hike the hills around Point Reyes Lighthouse and find a serene spot with a killer view before enjoying the edible spoils of the day.
6. Prepare to descend 308 steps to explore the lighthouse, built over 140 years ago! (It hasn't been operating since 1975.)

Hope you get a chance to explore this unique area soon. I sure liked our day trip and hope to explore more of it soon.

Urban Farm Stand

This Saturday, I went to the Broderick Urban Farm Stand. This is a new effort in an older part of my town's community to offer affordable, fresh produce in an urban setting. There is an internship program set up so that local young people can gain experience by helping at the stand. The project also allows a poorer segment of the population that generally suffers from more health problems greater access to fresh produce. Farmers Markets - they're not just for rich white people anymore!

The stand was set up in a park next to an elementary school. I found their prices to be quite reasonable. I got 3 baskets of uber-sweet strawberries, a bunch of carrots, a head of lovely red lettuce, and early hot house tomatoes. There were also radishes, blackberries, turnips, apricots, kale, chard, sweet peas, squash, tiny beets, and onions. I hope to go every week now and support their project. I can't wait to see what seasonal goodies they'll offer next!

What We Bought on Our First Trip to the Farmer's Market

We made our first trip of the season to the Farmer’s Market last night. One of the best things about going is discovering what’s new. This time, we found pastured lamb and grass-fed beef. I remember seeing chicken there before and thought it slightly odd to buy meat at the outdoor market, but now that I understand more about the meat industry, I think it's wonderful that the small family farms have Farmer's Markets as a venue to sell their quality product.

The lamb was tempting but a little above our budget; the beef, however, was an excellent price, even cheaper than Whole Foods. We ended up buying ground beef and short ribs from Lucky Dog Ranch in Dixon, as well as some gorgeous, firm cherries (they had three kinds of cherries- THREE!) and carrots with tops still on. (Those tops make them seem so much fresher. He he!) Also beautiful were the strawberries, spring onions, greens, and fresh herbs that we saw many stands selling. How I love spring!

How I Ate My Way Through LA - Day 2

Day 2: We hit the LA Farmer's Market to hunt down some lunch. It's an amazing collection of ethnic foods and little shops. After much deliberation, I decide on Singapore's Banana Leaf because I haven't had real Indonesian food before. (Although I do find the packaged Mi Goreng noodles to be curiously addictive. Could be the MSG...) I order the Chicken Rendang, a gingery red curry concoction. It was pretty good, but the best was yet to come...

My husband went to Moishe's, a famously popular stall selling Mediterranean food. He ordered the falafel and it was the most incredibly flavorful, addictive thing I've tried in a while: spiced garbanzo and fava beans formed into delectable balls and fried, then wrapped in a warm pita next to a ripe tomato slice and drizzled with creamy tahini/yogurt sauce. As soon as I got home, I got online and found their recipe and I plan on making it for dinner one night this week. It was that good! (Maybe I will post that later this week....)

My dad stopped at the Gumbo Pit and ordered alligator, fried like chicken. It was a little rubbery but novel (for us).
Last stop was Du-pars, where we sampled pie. I went for the gooseberry pie (pictured before). The gooseberry turned out to be like a small tart grape; I enjoyed it! Du-pars makes their pies without preservatives behind a window where you can watch them assembling them.

While walking along the Walk of Fame, we got some lemonade at Skooby's, which was voted the best in town. It really was quite tasty.
While walking down the street, we spotted a Beard Papa's store and had to stop for a chocolate cream puff. This is an Osaka-based chain that sells the above irresistible treats. So good!


For dinner, we ventured to the predominantly African-American territory of Roscoe's, home of the chicken and waffles. It's greasy Southern food, but a must try. Paul got the classic chicken and waffles; I went for a combo with collard greens, cornbread, candied yams and fried chicken. Then we shared. It was an experience to remember!


We finished the night by sharing pina coladas with our friend Charlie on the 35th floor of the Bonaventure building. It's a restaurant that slowly revolves in a circle, giving you full view of the skyline of LA. A very nice spot to enjoy the city by night.


Day 3 still to come...

Chicken and Waffles

I cannot survive the mundane nature of day-to-day working life without a trip to look forward to. I am currently anticipating a trip to LA this April, during which my husband and I hope to take a "foodie tour" of the city. One of our planned stops: Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles.

I was introduced to this common Southern food combination recently at the local Sandra Dee’s restaurant. I initially found the idea of it bizarre, but once I tried that crispy, savory chicken with a piece of sweet waffle, I realized that just like chocolate-covered pretzels, the sweet and salty combination is as addictive as it is delicious. It is also supremely comforting food.

We are still working on developing our list, but the LA Farmer’s Market is another stop, where myriads of vendors offer their wares and one can taste a little bit of everything. Any other suggestions?