Save Your Summer Farmers’ Market Flavors

One of the great pleasures of the summer season is the outrageous abundance of the city’s farmers’ markets. Everything is flush and ripe—just begging you to bring it home. A full market basket is a delight. But sometimes it can compete with a full social calendar. There’s so much fun to be had but you don’t want your crisper to become sad. Don’t let your market haul go to waste. Here are some tips and tricks you can use to buy yourself some extra time to enjoy summer flavor.

Quickles

Quick pickles are so easy to make and are a great way to keep crisp vegetables from turning limp and unappealing. Great for peppers, cabbage, carrots, radishes and daikon, celery, or any sturdy veg you might have on hand. Make a brine of equal parts vinegar and water, seasoned with salt, sugar and any spices of your choosing and bring to a boil. Cut your clean vegetables into bite-sized pieces. Pack them into a heat proof jar or container (such as a canning jar) and ladle over the hot brine. Cool, cover and refrigerate for up to three weeks.

Berry Sickles

Frozen berries are great to have on hand to add to smoothies, baked goods, or your morning cereal. The secret to having easy-to-use berries on hand is individually freezing them. Simply wash, dry and arrange berries in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Freeze until solid (at least four hours and up to 24) and transfer to an airtight freezer container for up to six months. The fruit will stay free-pouring so you can take out just what you need. This method can also be used for pitted and sliced stone fruit.

Purees

Purees are super quick to make and turn your freezer into a flavor treasure chest. Fruit purees can be used in smoothies, cocktails, frozen desserts, sauces, and more. Tomato puree can be blended straight from the freezer into chilled gazpacho or boiled down before or after freezing for a sauce with fresh-from-the-vine flavor. Just stem, core and pit as necessary (no need to remove skins) and whir in your blender. Pour into a freezer safe container and freeze for up to three months.

Dried Herbs

Many herbs can be dried and stored in your spice rack. This is particularly true of woody herbs such as thyme, rosemary, and bay. Arrange them on a cooling rack or tie them into small bundles and hang in a well-ventilated area until brittle. Crush them in your hand, remove stems, and store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place for up to three months.

Herb Sauce

Turn tender herbs into a sauce that can be used to dress grilled foods, whisked into dressings and dips or become the base of a spiky marinade. Puree herbs with a pinch of salt and pepper and a splash of oil. Divide into the compartments a freezer tray and freeze until solid. Cover tray or transfer frozen cubes to an airtight container and use within three months.

Sherri Brooks Vinton

Sherri Brooks Vinton is the Chair of Slow Food Los Angeles and the author of a number of farm-to-table cookbooks including “Put ‘em Up! A Comprehensive Home Preserving Guide for the Creative Cook” and “Eat it Up! 150 Recipes to Use Every Bit and Enjoy Every Bite of the Food You Buy”.

The post 5 Tips for Buying Time on Farmers’ Market Produce appeared first on LA Yoga Magazine - Ayurveda & Health.

Moles, pronounced mo-lay, are traditional Mexican sauces made from a range of ingredients that can include chilis, nuts, vegetables, fruits, and spices. They span the culinary rainbow in color and flavor from the bright green tomatillo-based mole verde to the chocolate-enriched, almost black mole negro.

I call this sauce a “mole” in quotation marks because it’s really a mash-up, putting to use my favorite ingredients from the different sauces rather than just staying true to one combination. That being said, every mole reflects the hand of the cook and a great deal of pride is taken in making the sauce one’s own. Use this recipe as a starting point, but don’t be afraid to tweak it to your taste. The best mole is your mole.

Makes about 1 Quart Mole

Ingredients

1 ancho chili, stemmed and seeded
1 tablespoon mild paprika
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup shelled raw pumpkin seeds (also called pepitas)
2 tablespoons neutral tasting vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
1 mildly spicy chili, such as poblano, diced (about 3/4 cup)
salt and freshly ground pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
28 to 32 ounces whole canned tomatoes (preferably home canned)
or as many fresh tomatoes

Instructions

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Remove from the heat and submerge the ancho in the hot water to soften. Set aside while you prepare the rest of the mole.

Combine the spices, oregano, and cocoa powder in a small bowl and set aside.

Toast the pumpkin seeds in a large, dry saute pan over medium heat, tossing constantly to avoid burning the seeds, until lightly browned and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.

In the same pan over medium heat, saute the onion and chili pepper, seasoned with salt and pepper, in the oil until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about one minute. Add the spice mixture and saute for about a minute to release their essential oils. Add the tomatoes, toasted seeds, and rehydrated ancho to the pan (reserve the soaking liquid) and stir to combine. Lower the heat and simmer until thickened, about 45 minutes, adding the reserved ancho soaking liquid or water to the pan as necessary to keep it from sticking. (Using the soaking liquid will up the heat ante, so use water for a milder mole). Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.

Puree in a blender, working it in batches if necessary. Thin with more of the soaking liquid or water as necessary to reach the consistency of a thick tomato sauce. Use immediately, store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 6 months.

Sherri Brooks Vinton

Sherri Brooks Vinton is the Chair of Slow Food Los Angeles and the author of a number of farm-to-table cookbooks including “Put ‘em Up! A Comprehensive Home Preserving Guide for the Creative Cook” and “Eat it Up! 150 Recipes to Use Every Bit and Enjoy Every Bite of the Food You Buy”.

The post Pumpkin Seed Mole appeared first on LA Yoga Magazine - Ayurveda & Health.

You can roast pumpkin seeds with or without their shells. Kids love to snack on them, shells intact—something about nibbling and spitting that’s right up their alley. You can flavor the seeds simply with salt or with one of the spice combos I’ve listed, for a great homemade snacking treat.

Makes 1 cup seeds

1 cup pumpkin seeds, hulled or hull-less
2 teaspoons olive oil
salt

Optional Flavoring Ideas

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon combined with 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon curry powder or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger combined with 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

To roast the pumpkin seeds with their hulls, preheat the oven to 275 F. Rinse the seeds in a colander, then boil in a large pot of salted water for 10 minutes. Drain. Arrange in a single layer on a rimmed cookie sheet. Roast for 30 to 40 minutes, until dry, tossing occasionally to ensure even cooking. Drizzle with the oil, sprinkle with salt and flavoring, if using, and roast for an additional 10 minutes, or until just beginning to brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature (the seeds will crisp as they cool), then store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

To roast hull-less pumpkin seeds, preheat the oven to 325 F. Toss the seeds with the oil, salt, and flavorings, if using. Arrange on a rimmed cookie sheet in a single layer. Roast for 10 minutes. Serve hot or allow to cool to room temperature and store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Sherri Brooks Vinton

Sherri Brooks Vinton is the Chair of Slow Food Los Angeles and the author of a number of farm-to-table cookbooks including “Put ‘em Up! A Comprehensive Home Preserving Guide for the Creative Cook” and “Eat it Up! 150 Recipes to Use Every Bit and Enjoy Every Bite of the Food You Buy”.

The post DIY Roasted Pumpkin Seeds appeared first on LA Yoga Magazine - Ayurveda & Health.

Jack-o’-lanterns are lovely. Cleaning out the pumpkin guts, though, can put you off your gourd. The reward for this not-so-super task, however, is the plump, delicious pumpkin seeds, also called pepitas, which can be eaten straight up as a snack or included with great success in a variety of recipes.

Shopping: There are two varieties of pumpkin seeds—those that have hulls (the white outer shell) and hull-less, also called “naked” seeds. If you are gleaning seeds from a carving or pie pumpkin, chances are the seeds have hulls. The hull-less variety comes from gourds known as “oil seed pumpkins” that are grown specifically for their seed, the fat of which is easily extracted. These oil seed pumpkins have a rather bland flesh and are not widely available.

Storing: Pumpkins can be kept for several months in a cool root cellar. At room temperature, they deteriorate much more quickly—within several weeks. Cut as a jack-o’-lantern, you can expect a pumpkin to last only several days in warm temperatures before slowly melting into squirrel bait. Hunks of edible pumpkin will keep for several days, wrapped well and refrigerated. Seeds can be covered and refrigerated for a day or two before proceeding with your recipe.

Prepping: If you’ve ever carved a pumpkin, you know how to remove the seeds. Cut a hole in the top, reach in and scrape out the lovely gobs of pulp and seeds with your hand or a large spoon. Transfer all the pulp to a large cookie sheet and tease out the large clumps of seeds. Rinse the seeds in a colander to remove the finer strings of pulp and any sticky residue. At this point, you can simply roast the seeds, hull and all, and enjoy them as a snack. If you are going to use the seeds in recipes, it’s best to remove the hull.

To remove the hull of pumpkin seeds, arrange a single layer of seeds on a sheet of parchment or waxed paper. Roll over the seeds with a heavy rolling pin or empty wine bottle to crack the shells. Be careful not to crush the meat of the seeds. Transfer the cracked pumpkin seeds to a large pot of boiling water and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and skim off the empty shells, which will be floating. Drain the now hull-less seeds. Transfer to a large cookie sheet and pat dry with paper towels. Allow to air dry and then proceed with your recipe or store in the refrigerator for up to a month.

Sherri Brooks Vinton

Sherri Brooks Vinton is the Chair of Slow Food Los Angeles and the author of a number of farm-to-table cookbooks including “Put ‘em Up! A Comprehensive Home Preserving Guide for the Creative Cook” and “Eat it Up! 150 Recipes to Use Every Bit and Enjoy Every Bite of the Food You Buy”.

The post Prepare your own Pumpkin Seeds appeared first on LA Yoga Magazine - Ayurveda & Health.