Saturday, December 19, 2009

WINTER MARKET DEC. 2009 and QUINOA STUFFED BUTTERCUP SQUASH

Today I visited the winter farmer's market in Pawtucket for the first time this year. My usual market in Pawtuxet is open until the Saturday before Thanksgiving, so I patronize them as long as they are willing to stand out there in the cold, plus it is 2-1/2 miles from my house. The 2 Saturdays since Thanksgiving, I have been leading an ethical eating workshop at Westminster, so I have visited the winter market in North Kingston on those days.

Here is a visual representation of all that was available at the Pawtucket market today. With this much abundance you could make all of your meals this week with the offerings that were there.



There were 2 apple vendors, Barden Family Orchard and Hill Farm Orchard. They each had a huge assortment of different varieties of apples from their farms and apple cider. We only bought the cider because I still have apples from last weeks market visit. The cider is for Dan to drink and I will use about a 1/2 cup in the Butternut Squash soup I plan on making in the next few days.




Ooooh! Cabbage and Beets and Bok Choy! Oh my!




Corn Tortillas made right in Federal Hill. This package of 30 tortillas was about $4 and will last me quite some time. I plan on making enchiladas and quesadillas with them.




The rolled oats were grown in Maine. We have bought these in the past, Dan liked them. I am not a big fan of oatmeal so I cannot give you a first hand review of them. There is also maple syrup available to garnish the oatmeal, and there is local milk available at the market too. IF I ate oatmeal, I'd add some of the above mentioned apples to the oatmeal, after I had sauteed them in a little bit of butter & dusted them with cinnamon.




These are "Watermelon Radishes", so-called because of their coloration. I sampled some and they were pretty good, just a little bit sharp, but not overwhelmingly so as some radishes are prone to be. I love their appearance. I forgot to buy some, I hope them have them in 2 weeks when I go to the market again.




These lovely carrots were at the same table as the Watermelon Radishes. They look marvelous in this basket. The name of this farm is on they sign below. I think it is a very cute sign. I bought a bunch of these carrots to use in several dishes in the upcoming week: I take them to school for my midday snack, I use them in soups, I grate them on top of salads and I will also grate them to use in my Veggie Lasagna that I am making for Christmas.



Here is the afore-mentioned very cute sign.




Another farmer's table with a good assortment of root vegetables, kale, bok choy and garlic.



This very interesting looking vegetable is one of my favorites to photograph, it looks like an alien being, or something that Madonna wore on her Material Girl concert tour. It is called Romensco. I have used this before, I sauteed it with olive oil & garlic and added it to pasta.





Wishing Stone Farms from Little Compton always has a large assortment. They had several varieties of potatoes, lots of onions, carrots, parsnips, kale, spinach, cauliflower.




Another section of Wishing Stone farms offerings.




CHEEEEEEESE! I think this is Farmstand's table. Narragansett Creamery was also there. We purchased Atwell's Gold from Narragansett Creamery and their awesome Ricotta that I will be using in my Christmas Lasagna.




Rhode Island grown Boston lettuce, grown hydroponically. I love the texture of Boston lettuce. It is sold with the roots on it, so if you keep the roots moist and put in a plastic bag, it will last longer. I use green produce bags, I get them at Whole Foods Market. They are treated a special way and they extend the life of the produce. I swear by them.




I think this is Shartner Farms table. The potatoes look pretty neat in these burlap backgrounds. They also had cherry tomatoes grown in their greenhouse.



Purple & orange cauliflower, along with the Romanesco and plain old white cauliflower. I got the plain old and I like to roast it with some other veggies or boil it and mash it with cream cheese & parmesan to make fake mashed potatoes.



Another table from Wishing Stone Farms, featuring leeks and cabbages.



QUINOA STUFFED BUTTERCUP SQUASH
Here is a recipe that I made tonight, using some buttercup squash I had from Morris Farms. The other local ingredients are an apple, onions, garlic and Narragansett Creamery's Salty Sea Feta. You can make this vegan by not adding the cheese. Also, I have made this with Butternut Squash or Acorn Squash. If you do not have quinoa, you can use brown rice. I got this from Persephone's blog, she is my grandson's mamma and she is a Holistic Health Counselor. I think you can find some other great recipes on her blog, it is titled "Clean Up Clear Out" there is a link to it from this blog.


Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut a buttercup squash in half across the width. If using butternut, cut in half from top to bottom. For acorn, cut across the width as shown here for the buttercup.
Scoop out the seeds & the stringy part of the squash. Set aside to put into compost.
Put the squash on a baking pan & cook for 35 to 40 minutes, testing with a fork for doneness.



While the squash is roasting, dice up 1 large onion, 2 to 4 garlic cloves based on your preference for garlic flavor, and 1 apple. I think this apple is a Jonah Gold from Barden Farms.





Make the quinoa according to the package directions. I make enough to have leftovers. I use the leftovers in salads, or I eat in the morning like oatmeal with maple syrup & cinnamon. You will only need about half of what they call for on the package directions.
In a saute pan put 1 Tbsp. of olive oil on med heat. Add the onions and the garlic and saute till translucent. Add the diced apple, some frozen organic spinach, or some fresh baby spinach leaves, cook on med-low for about 10 minutes.



After the quinoa is done, add to the onion and apple mix. Add some spices: 1/2 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, a dash of chili powder of cayenne. If the mixture is too dry, I add a 1/4 cup of apple cider. Add 1/4 cup of dried cranberries or raisins and a handful of chopped toasted pecans or almonds. Salt & pepper to taste.
When the squash is ready, scoop out about half of it and add to the quinoa/apple mixture.



Take the quinoa/squash mixture & stuff it on top of the remaining squash parcel, top with some feta or other sharp cheese you may have and cook under the broiler in the oven for 5 minutes.

2 comments:

  1. This is a visually beautiful dish as well as tasty I'm sure! Send me some of those radises..I like them with a little bite...how beautiful, too! I also do not care for oatmeal, but found a great recipe for baked oatmeal which is very good. I add raisins and apples and blueberries and sometimes dates or dried cherries/cranberries for a different taste. It's like eating dessert for breakfast and sometimes I eat it for dessert with a little powdered sugar or whipping cream on top.

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  2. Awesome looking veggies. Makes me covet getting back to my garden.
    Bev

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