Up to the challenge

While I do try to live a "paleo" lifestyle I have been a bit more relaxed about it all for the last few months.  My sister and I have attempted not one, but two Whole30's that really were more like Whole5's...not exactly a giant success.   So when word came down that our gym would be doing a 6-week nutritional challenge I begrudgingly signed up.  Begrudgingly because it spans the height of lake/boat/pool/beach season and July 4, who wants to be the girl not enjoying a cocktail during those events?  Not I.  Despite all of that serious enthusiasm (insert sarcastic look here) I signed up anyway to give me the shove over the cliff back into a lifestyle that I know makes me feel good and perform well.    I did take a little bit of advantage of the impending challenge start date to enjoy some things I wouldn't be able to during that time, some vino, a grilled cheese and popcorn at the movies last night.  The grilled cheese might've been the worst idea in that list.  Heading into the week I planned a list of meals that will make life a little easier for me, they are all good for me and even better, I actually will want to eat the leftovers.

First on the list, left over Wild Boar Ragu (yes this was the vino on my pre-challenge list), originally I had it over zucchini "fettuccine" and tomorrow night it'll be over some spaghetti squash.

Wild Boar Ragu:
1 Lb Ground Wild Boar
8 pieces thick cut bacon, diced
1 8 oz Package Baby Bella Mushrooms, sliced
1 Medium Onion, Diced
1 Cup Diced Carrot
1 Cup Diced Celery
28oz Crushed Tomatoes
4 Cloves Garlic
1/4 Cup Dutch Processed Unsweet Cocoa
4 Bay Leaves
2 Springs Rosemary
1 Tsp Anchovy Paste (you won't even know it's in there)
1/2 cup chicken stock or red wine (*if you use chicken stock add 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar as well)

1. Mix ground boar and diced bacon, put in the bottom of a crockpot.  Cover the bottom completely with the meat mixture.
2. Sprinkle onion, carrot, celery over the meat mixture.
3. I used fresh tomatoes vs. canned since it's in season but either works well. Add tomato, garlic, cocoa, anchovy paste, salt and pepper and puree in a blender until it's relatively sauce-like. I prefer a little less smooth sauce but you can puree to your hearts content. Pour tomato/garlic mixture over the veggies.
4. Add  sliced mushrooms over sauce, then pour wine or stock + vinegar over the mushrooms and put the lid on it.
5.  Cook this on high for 1.5-2 hours or on low for 4-6 hours.

In addition to this I've got a handful of other easy but yummy recipes planned, a fajita recipe from the PaleOMG cookbook, Cinnamon Beef Stew from Well Fed a green bean salad with shrimp and grilled chicken with fresh tomato, bacon, leek sauce.  Hopefully between those and the breakfast "casserole" (a word I hate) I'll have plenty of options to keep me from wandering from the path this week.

Get Local in the New Year

As I've mentioned in many posts, I'm a huge fan of farmers markets, locally produced goods and any opportunities to make getting those things a bit easier (ehem, my Farmhouse box being delivered to me).  Recently a new company reached out to me with yet another way to get easy access to locally produced produce, meats, etc., it's called CitySprout.   I have yet to try it but here's how it works, you log onto their website and join a 'community' in your area, once the community reaches critical mass and has enough members local food producers are alerted and can begin making offers for fresh food.  Then, as people accept/buy the offers the producers bring the items to you somewhere close by.   This can be anything from veggies to coffee to bakery goods to honey or grass-fed meats (just to name a few).

The part of the CitySprout mission that was interesting to me is this: "CitySprout was founded to help solve many of the problems currently facing U.S. agricultural production and food distribution. As CitySprout continues to grow and reach more and more communities, so does our ability to effect positive change on an economic, environmental, and social level."     Currently there isn't an active community near me so I started one (talk about grassroots!), we'll see how quickly it grows and what becomes available in my area.  Check it out yourself and see if you've got a community.

A Duo of Resolutions

While the New Year is upon us and so many of my friends and family are resolving to be healthier and active I am renewing my commitment to my healthy lifestyle.  I am already fairly active, crossfitting (yes its a verb!) pretty much four days a week and running the other three, I found myself slipping back into bad nutritional habits over the week between Christmas and New Years.  While I don't feel guilty cheating occasionally I also know the difference between doing whatever and having a bit of discipline, which I had none of during that week!  In an effort to right myself and get back on track I decided to pull together a few salads that are combinations of my Farmhouse Delivery box goodies and my favorite Asian flavors. 

Beyond my continued resolution of being healthier I wanted to find other self-improvement type resolutions, this year I've decided to get more organized (granted I'm completely inspired by all the fun organization boards and pins on Pintrest) and second, I will get my sweet puppy Sam trained, actually trained not just haphazardly making him sit when need be.  Sam is now 10 months old and while he's really good natured and relatively well-behaved we had a scare last week that has made getting him trained all the more necessary.  Last week Sammy had to have an unscheduled abdominal exploratory surgery to remove pieces of two dog toys he had eaten along with some garbage....he's doing well now but I have since removed all plush and rope toys from the house, switched all the trash cans to the type that require you to step on them to open them and am watching him like a hawk.   Sam now is learning how to live with a nice plastic cone hat, so stylish!  He'll have that off on January 13 but until then he's busy running into things with it.

He's ok just sleeping it all off anyway!

First up, a take on a recipe that was featured on the Farmhouse Delivery blog (such a great place for ways to use the fabulous produce I get from them week after week).

Vietnamese Chopped Cabbage Salad

2 chicken breasts, bones and skin removed

1/2 head cabbage, finely shredded

1 small bunch green onion, sliced thin

1 handful cilantro leaves

1 handful mint leaves

1 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds, for garnish

1 apple, julienned

2-3 radishes, sliced or julienned

juice of 1 lime

4 Tbs. grapeseed or sesame oil

1 Tbs. soy sauce

3-4 Tbs. fish sauce

1 tsp. siracha chili sauce (substitute chili flakes or tabasco sauce)

2 Tbs. rice wine vinegar

1. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper and either broil or saute in sesame oil until cooked.

2. Whisk lime juice, sesame oil, soy sauce, fish sauce, rice wine vinegar and siracha into a dressing.

3. Toss cabbage, green onion, cilantro, mint, apple and radishes, dress with vinaigrette and top with sliced chicken and toasted sesame seeds.

The second recipe is inspired by one of my favorite sandwiches, a Vietnamese Bahn Mi.  I don't typically miss bread, etc. much but this sandwich is one of those things I do miss when I see them.  Typically featured on a baguette and stuffed with tasty meats, pickled diakon radish and carrot, lettuce, mayo and spiciness they are heavenly!  So, after seeing a recipe (thanks Serious Eats!) that looked evil and good for a Bacon Bahn Mi I decided I needed to make a Bahn Mi salad to quell my cravings.

Chicken Bahn Mi Salad

Pickled Veggies (courtesy of Bahn Mi Battle)

1/2 lb. carrots -shredded in food processor, sliced in thin rounds or thin match-like strips.

1/2 lb. daikon radish – cut same as carrots.

3 cups warm water

3 Tablespoons distilled or rice vinegar

2-3 tablespoons sugar, depending on how sweet you want your pickles

2 tablespoons salt

Salad Ingredients
1 head romaine lettuce, washed and torn
1/2 medium red onion, sliced
Broiled or Grilled Chicken Tenders
1/2 cup Cilantro, washed and chopped

Dressing:
4 tablespoons almond butter
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon siracha (or more to taste)
1 to 2 tablespoons water

To make veggies:

1. Mix warm water, vinegar, sugar and salt until everything is dissolved. Choose a pitcher or bowl with a lip that can be used for pouring mixture.

2. Peel, wash and cut daikon & carrots to desired size. Combine both together in bowl and blot dry with paper towel.

3. Fill carrot & daikon mixture into a tight lid jar, bowl or similar container.

4. Pour liquid salt mixture into carrot & daikon container till full. Close lid and let it pickle for about 3-5 days, or till desired sourness. For immediate use, let marinade for about 1 hour.

To make salad:

1. Whisk almond butter, rice vinegar, siracha and water together to create dressing.

2. Toss all salad veggies in dressing, top with chicken strips.

Yes, cavemen and women ate seafood

Eating like a caveman (ok cavewoman) sounds absurd, just the idea that you won't eat things that cave-folk were unable to eat.  Then you start thinking about it, that means no boxed/preserved food right? Not so crazy.  Yes, I miss Cheetoes...oh well. It also means no legumes, no dairy and no grains.  Again, you're probably thinking I'm crazy.  Maybe I am but I also am in the best shape I've been in in years, I recover substantially faster from tough workouts than I have ever and I'm learning that I have no limits, eating like a cavewoman is only a small piece of the puzzle but it's definitely helping.   So to keep myself interested in what I'm cooking and to keep what I'm doing from becoming 'routine' I have to stay creative, which means 'paleo-fying' recipes I already loved and finding new and interesting things. 

A lot of people who make major dietary changes look for ways to force their old tastes into the box of their new diet, I'm not sure I feel that is the best answer.  If this is going to stick it's better to make the switch, embrace it and on occasion allow myself a treat that is paleo but is paleo masquerading as non-paleo goodies.

In keeping with my love of the Farmers Market (and the whole, it should be wild thing that Paleo folks recoomend), I have been buying 99.9% of my seafood from a super vendor at my local market, K&S Seafood, they always have an amazing assortment of Gulf seafood, from shirmp and oysters to tuna, flounder or snapper.  All summer long I would pick up seafood from them almost on a weekly basis, for no reason other than the fact that everything I've gotten from them has been top notch.  So in the spirit of catching up on tasty things and bringing down the queue of recipes I haven't blogged here are two of my seafood delicious dishes from this past summer.


Crab Stuffed Zucchini
1 Large Zucchini, halved with the center scooped out
1/2 Pint Cherry Tomatoes, halved
1 Medium Sweet Onion, diced
1/3 Cup Dessicated Coconut (Unsweet)
1/2 Bunch Green Onions, chopped
1 lb Lump Crab Meat, separated to remove any bits of shell
Extra Virgin Olive Oil




1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Once the oven is hot, place the zucchini halves in large glass baking dishes, put about 1 inch of water in the bottom of the dish and rub a small amount of olive oil along all exposed sides of the cut zucchini.  Salt and pepper zucchini and heat in oven until fork tender.
2. While zucchini is cooking, saute sweet onion until tender in a tsp of olive oil.  Then after onion is translucent, add remaining zucchini (what you scooped out of the center) and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Turn off heat, mix in cherry tomato halves, fold in crab meat.
4. Stuff zucchini with zucchini-onion-tomato mixture, top with coconut and green onions and put back in oven to brown.
5. Let zucchini brown, if the water has completely evaporated add another inch of water to keep things from drying out.

Poor Girl's Cioppino
1lb Snapper Filets, cut into 2 inch cubes
1 lb Lump Crab Meat, separated to remove any bits of shell

2 Fresh Hatch Chiles, seeded and stemmed
1 Bunch Green Onions, chopped
1 14.5oz cans of fire roasted chopped tomatoes
1 Medium Sweet Onion, Diced
1 Tbsp minced garlic
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1. Saute sweet onion and garlic in a tablespoon of olive oil until onion is translucent.
2. Once onion is cooked add 1 diced hatch chile and saute for about two minutes.
3. Add tomatoes and one can of water, let it come up to a boil.
4. Turn down heat so that broth/soup is simmering, let it simmer for 20 minutes.  Add salt/pepper to taste.
5. Add snapper and let it cook for about 5-10 minutes (depending on the size of the pieces you cut, you just want the fish to cook in the broth) then turn off soup and add crap in.
6. Serve topped with a slice of hatch chile and chopped green onions.

Apples to apples

Somewhere between Halloween, the time change and today I realized the holidays are about to come crashing down upon me.  Scary thought, 10 days to Thanksgiving...OMG what is a girl to do?  Well this girl will start arming herself with all forms of delicious veggie sides, some kind of turkey recipe (we usually turn to a brined turkey but maybe something new) and of course a dessert.  It doesn't seem so overwhelming yet but just wait, I'm sure the stress will start getting to me.

Before pilgrims, turkeys and cornucopias come flying my way I want to share some non-turkey influenced recipes centering around my favorite fall ingredients...apples!  I have always enjoyed apples in the fall, between caramel apples, apple cider, apple baked goodies and just plain delicious apples it feels like fall when they are around.  I was super excited the last few weeks to receive apples in my Farmhouse Delivery box, who can beat local apples after all?   For those of you unfamiliar with Farmhouse Delivery, they are a very cool service from here in Austin that delivers bi-weekly or weekly produce boxes to your home or office.  While I am slightly outside their delivery zone I get a weekly box delivered to my parents house; each Thursday. I greedily look forward to the contents of that box  starting long before pickup on Thursday and then happily share it with my family.  It is a constant reminder of the diversity of products available in this area.  On top of the produce that is routine (and ever changing) in each box, you can order meats, canned goods, eggs, cheese and other extra grocery goodies to be delivered as well.  It's amazing how a $39 box has decreased my grocery store trips!  The other neat perk to this is that while they will swap out items due to dietary constraints, having that box delivered with whatever is available, fresh and seasonal means you have to work with it.  Just like other CSA-type programs I have opened up my box to find everything from pears to grapefruits and greens or even turnips (no, I don't know what I'm doing with those yet).

Running backwards after my trip down the Farmhouse Delivery rabbit hole...the main event today, apples. 

First up, a twist on a Cooking Light recipe, Savory Baked Apples.

Stuffed Savory Apples
Inspired by Cooking Light

2/3 cup chicken broth

4 large Honeycrisp apples, cored

1 lb ground pork 

3/4 cup finely chopped sweet onion

1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper

3 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon dried rubbed sage

1/2 cup sharp white cheddar, shredded (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Using a small spoon, carefully scoop out centers of apples, leaving a 1/2-inch-thick shell, and chop apple flesh. Brush the inside of apples with a small amount of broth. Place apples on a baking sheet, and bake at 350° for 25 minutes or until just tender.
3. Preheat broiler to high.
4. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork, and sauté 5 minutes, stirring to crumble. Remove from pan; drain. Add chopped apple, onion, sage, salt and red pepper, sauté 4 minutes. Add garlic; sauté for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add pork, onion mixture, walnuts and divide mixture evenly among apples; top with cheese. Broil for 5 minutes or until golden.

This year the Honeycrisp apples have been delicious, I will eat two maybe three in a day (if they aren't the massively big ones).  Apples appear in stuffings (haven't found my 'paleo' alternative to the bread yet), soups, stews, baked with cinnamon and agave nectar over the top and now as a main dish.

Apart from the stuffed apples, I also made a mean pork-apple soup a few nights back.  I don't mind soups, as a rule I used to love them as an excuse to have a nice crusty loaf of bread around, I think that's part of why I've avoided having a lot of soup since switching to my mostly-paleo diet.  Frankly this soup was delicious and would've been tasty with some crusty warm bread but being a good girl there was none to be found!

Pork & Apple Soup

Adapted from Martha Stewart's Pork and Apple Stew

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound pork sirloin, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes

Salt and pepper

1 onion, chopped

1/4 teaspoon caraway seeds, (optional)

4 cups chicken stock

1 cups water

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1/2 pound green cabbage, shredded (about 2 cups)

2 tart green apples such as Granny Smith, unpeeled, cut into 3/4-inch chunks

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1. In a Dutch oven, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high heat. Toss pork with 2 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add meat to the pan, and brown, turning occasionally, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

2. Reduce heat to medium-low, add remaining 1 tablespoon oil, onion, and caraway seeds, if using, and cook until onion softens, about 3 minutes. Stir in stock, water, mustard, cabbage, pork, and 3/4 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. Add apples, and continue cooking, covered, for 10 minutes.

3. Just before serving, stir in chopped parsley. Be careful not to simmer soup too long, extensive cooking will turn the pork tough.


The final recipe isn't as detailed, or even a recipe so much but instructions on making one of my favorite desserts.  It's quite simple really, core an apple (or two or three or pears or both), put it into an oven safe dish.  Put a few teaspoons of agave nectar or honey as well as flax seed granola (one of my favorite local finds - Flax Z Snacks) and then toss it in the oven (350F) until the fruit is tender.

Beets....a stain on my heart (or face and hands)

Many moons ago when I was a baby my parents fed me beets, the photo lives on in infamy...really it's haunted me for years at many a family gathering.

So I ask how does one overcome such humiliation at such a young age? Beet 'em of course! Ok so that was pretty bad beet humor but oh well. In my zeal for local produce I've found that beets are ever-present this time of year at our farmers markets, not quite up to the challenge yet I ignored them last year and then early this year I tasted an amazing golden beet salad at Whole Foods, that was it, the hunt was on! I have taken to oven roasted beets with a variety of different oils/vinegars/spices atop them. One of my favorites is a salad similar to the golden beet salad I loved at Whole Foods...

Golden Beet Salad with Goat Cheese and Sage
3 Medium Golden Beets, diced (approx. 1 inch cubes)
Olive Oil
1/2 Cup Sage, sliced in a chiffonade
3 oz Goat Cheese
2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
Salt & Pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375 F
2. Toss beets with olive oil and salt and pepper to taste
3. Place beets in 13x9 oven dish and roast beets until tender, approximately 30-45 minutes.
4. Remove beets from oven and let cool 10 minutes.
5.Chop up goat cheese (or crumble) as best you can. Place beets in a large bowl, top with sage and goat cheese, drizzle with vinegar.

While I adore this salad and have made a handful of variations on it, including adding blanched green beans, roasting the beets with various vinegars in the mix, using smoked salts, etc. I definitely tired of it. I started investigating the other ways to eat beets...(hear the sound of crickets??) there aren't many, at least not that I found appetizing. So I came back to the fact that I really like them roasted but needed something else.


Another variation on this included Chioggia, Golden and Red Beets, it's beautiful while it's being roasted (and then eaten!). I also swapped out basil for the sage.




Because I really liked the way the beets were off-set by the flavor of the goat cheese I decided to serve roasted beets alongside a goat cheese risotto.

Basil, Speck and Goat Cheese Risotto

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
4 small shallots, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup Arborio Rice
1/2 cup dry White Wine
2 1/2 cups Chicken Stock
1/2 cup Goat Cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup diced Speck
Spice Globe Basil, thinly sliced (chiffonade)as garnish

1. In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat.
2. Saute shallot until soft. Add the garlic and saute for another minute more.
3. Add the Arborio rice to the skillet, making sure to stir it around in the olive oil so that each granule is coated, and toast it for about 2 minutes.
4. Next add the white wine and stir the rice. Wait until all the wine has been absorbed and then start adding the chicken stock 1/2 cup at a time, making sure not to add more until the previous addition has been absorbed.
5. Once the rice is just tender, add the Goat cheese and let it melt in, mix well. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with the Spice Globe Basil and Speck.




It's funny, sometimes the things you think you hate the most come back as favorites.

Meatball Monday

I know, I know, it's supposed to be Meatless Monday, but come on meatballs sound good, don't they? Both recipes I want to share today are meatball-centric, but contrary to the heavy meatballs you might be envisioning, I'm going to share some healthy, tasty meatballs that are well worth making! I love this time of year, finding beautiful green veggies and treats at the farmers markets it's such a welcome sight after the chilly winter evenings. Both of the recipes I'm going to share capitalize on the great produce available right now, the first has a slightly less than traditional pesto made with mustard greens.

Mustard greens are terrific for you they are packed with anti-oxidants and vitamins, some evidence even suggests a diet rich in mustard greens prevent arthritis, osteoporosis, iron deficiency anemia and protects from cardiovascular diseases, asthma and colon and prostate cancers.

Mustard Green Pesto with Chicken/Turkey Meatballs

1 lb Mild Turkey Breakfast Sausage
1 lb Chicken-Apple Sausage*
1 1/2 Tbsp Rubbed Sage
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tsp Black Pepper
1 Cup Apple Cider, reduced down to 1/4 cup to create a syrup
2 Lg Bunches Baby Mustard Greens
5 Cloves Garlic
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
1/3 Cup Pecan Pieces, Toasted
1 Tbsp Cider Vinegar
1 Tsp Salt
1/2 Cup Pine Nuts, Toasted
3 Tbsp Grated Parmesean Cheese
1 Red Bell Pepper

1. Fold bulk sausages together wtih 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper, rubbed sage and reduced cider. Do not over work the mixture, shape into balls and place in a greased 13 x 9 pan. Bake at 400 F for 25 minutes.

2. While the meatballs are baking, blend the mustard greens, garlic, olive oil, cider vinegar, 1 tsp salt, pine nuts, pecans and grated parmesean.

3. Slice bell peppers, leave raw. Toss meatballs, pesto and bell peppers together and serve, top with extra cheese if desired.

*Recipe to follow soon

Korean Chicken Meatballs with Rice Noodles & Veggie Stir-fry

1 lb Ground Chicken
2 Tbsp Brown Sugar
5 Cloves Minced Garlic
2 Tbsp Hoisin Sauce
2 Tbsp Canola Oil
3 Tbsp Soy Sauce
1/2 Cup Fresh Chopped Cilantro
1/4 Cup Panko Bread Crumbs
2 Tsp Fresh Peeled, Minced Ginger
1/4 Cup Thinly Sliced Red Onion
1 Cup Red Bell Pepper, Thinly Sliced
1 Cup Sugar Snap Peas, Thinly Sliced
1/2 Cup Thinly Sliced Green Onions
8oz Uncooked, Wide Rice Noodles
1 Tbsp Dark Sesame Oil
1 Tbsp Sweet Soy Sauce

1. Mix brown sugar, garlic, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, bread crumbs and cilantro together. Gently fold into chicken, being careful not to overwork the meat. Roll into balls and place in a greased oven-save dish, bake 25 minutes at 400F.

2. Cook noodles according to package directions, drain and rinse under cool water. Heat canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.

3. Add bell pepper, pease, red onion and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn off heat, ad sweet soy and dark sesame oil, noodles and meatballs, toss gently.

Fishing for the end of summer

As I heartily welcome Fall I also have to bid Summer adieu, during the last part of August I stumbled across some beautiful Amberjack tenderloins in the ice chests at the San Miguel Seafood stand in our local Farmers Market. My mother has extolled the virtues of the purveyors of San Miguel Seafood on our other blog, Fresh from the Heart of Texas, but I can't tell you enough how fabulous these guys are. Every ounce of product that comes from the gentlemen of San Miguel is delicious! So, I gladly took their recommendation, bought the Amberjack and then had to come up with a fantastic way to use it. Towards the end of July my boyfriend was sent to Malaysia for a business trip, three weeks later his homecoming meal was the tasty Amberjack tenderloin :)



Taking advantage of not just the beautiful fish I found but the other delights of our local Farmers Market, butternut squash, peaches, onions, bell peppers and jalapenos to make a great welcome home meal.

AmberJack with Peach Salsa and Butternut Squash Fritters

AmberJack
2 6oz AmberJack tenderloins
1/2 Tsp Cumin
1/2 Tsp Ancho Chile Powder
1/4 Tsp Cayenne Pepper
2 Tsp Coarse Sea Salt
1 Tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
3 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
Mixed Salad Greens

Butternut Squash Fritters
1 Small Butternut Squash, peeled, shredded and drained
1/4 Cup Flour
1 Small White Onion, diced
Salt & Pepper to taste
Vegetable Oil

Peach Salsa
2 White Flesh Peaches, cubed
1 Blush Peach, cubed
2 Tbsp Cilantro, chopped
1 Small Red Onion, diced
1 Large Jalapeno, seeded, diced
1 Tsp Adobo Chile Powder
1/2 Tsp Coarse Salt
2 Tbsp Fresh Lime Juice

1. Mix all salsa ingredients together, let sit at least 30 minutes ahead of beginning cooking.
2. Prepare fritter mixture.
3. Season fish with all seasonings, melt butter in a large skillet and add oil.
4. Sear the fish on both sides, spooning oil/butter over the side not touching the skillet.
5. After fish is seared, place in oven at 250F for 20 minutes.
6. Once fish is in the oven, heat enough vegetable oil in a large skillet to come up about 1 inch in the skillet. Once the oil is heated and ready, drop rounded fritters into pan (only a few, maybe three max at a time). Cook so that both sides are browned, 3-4 minutes total.

After fritters and fish are done, plate, place fish atop mixed greens and top with salsa.

Seeking Vegetables...

Summer to me is usually signaled by a bountiful harvest of tomato, zucchini, peppers and sometimes eggplant. While all of this beautiful produce is easily found at my grocery store and favorite farmers market, none is readily available in the garden I painstakingly put together in the earlier part of the year! Ok, more like I made my boyfriend put together the frame, help me pour all the dirt in, but I did put in my veggies and lovingly water them daily (still do)....square-foot garden why have you forsaken me? If you could only see...oh wait, here's a pic:


By all accounts there is plenty of growth in there for loads of something, apparently only a fist-full of small (sweet and tasty) tomatoes, not nearly enough for me to cook with as I had hoped. Alas, I must purchase produce from my usual sources and hope that some late-summer haul awaits me in my garden one of these days. In the interim the succulent produce from the farmers market makes a farmers market potato salad (thanks Cooking Light!) that was a terrific accompaniment to good old fashioned fried chicken:


Ingredients

* 1 cup fresh corn kernels (about 2 ears)
* 2 pounds fingerling potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
* 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
* 2 tablespoons whole-grain Dijon mustard
* 1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
* Cooking spray
* 3/4 cup vertically sliced red onion
* 3/4 cup diced zucchini
* 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 425°.

2. Place corn and potatoes on a jelly-roll pan. Drizzle vegetables with 1 tablespoon oil; toss to coat. Bake at 425° for 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Place mixture in a large bowl. Combine tarragon and next 5 ingredients (through pepper) in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Gradually add remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons oil, stirring constantly with a whisk. Drizzle potato mixture with dressing; toss gently to coat.

3. Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion and zucchini to pan; cook 4 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Add zucchini mixture and tomatoes to potato mixture; toss gently to combine.

Peaches for me...Millions of Peaches, Peaches for Free (I wish!)

Days pass, then weeks pass and somehow I have lost the ability to post regularly, I swear one of these days I'll reclaim some time and actually write on a weekly (or more) basis, for now I'll try again and hope it takes.

Summer has been really great thus far here in Texas, we've had some rain and the temperatures haven't been as scorching as they were last year (record breaking number of days over 100 degrees!). Farmers market trips have been bountiful and as an aspiring gardener I've been dutifully watching my veggies and awaiting the harvest (thus far only a handful of small tomatoes and two yellow squash).

One of the most refreshing (and anticipated) things that abounds early summer in Texas are peaches and a few weeks ago (mid-June) my boyfriend and I went down to Fredericksburg to sample the wares and enjoy perusing the shops (ok I loved the shops, he was a good trooper and was happiest when we found the brewery, which lets you buy by the cup and then, amazingly, you can walk around downtown with your beer!).

Fredericksburg is about an hour and a half west of Austin, the drive out on Hwy 290 is a glorious sampling of Hill Country views and once you arrive the town itself is full of amazing old homes, churches and a neat downtown shopping district full of boutique shops both old and new. As we made our way into Stonewall (a very tiny city just outside of Frederickburg) the song 'Peaches' by the Presidents of the United States started playing on repeat in my head, unfortunately for me no one was actually playing it in Fredericksburg so it stayed stuck! Each year Stonewall and Fredericksburg have their annual Peach festival, you haven't tasted peaches until you've eaten the sweet juicy fruit from this area! Every orchard has their own recipes for jam, ice cream, cobbler and other yummy items that they sell along with their peaches and every local you talk to will direct you to their own favorite orchard. So hard to choose! We ended up stopping at a few stands but far and away our favorite peaches were found at Engel's, the peaches were a beautiful shade of reddish peach and had such fragrant, juicy fruit we couldn't help but snack on one before driving off back to Austin.




Gillespie Count Courthouse (at the edge of Downtown Fredericksburg) at Christmas time.
















In honor of these sweet jewels I have a few peach recipes that I'd like to share, the first of which is a Peach Quick Bread, so tasty!



Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup fresh cut peaches, cubed into about 1 inch slices
1 cup pecan halves

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350F; spray 4 mini loaf pans with a light spray of nonstick cooking spray (or use 1 9x5 loaf pan, if you wish, but you'll need to bake the one loaf longer, likely about 50 minutes) and set aside.
2. Sift, through a sieve, the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a mixing bowl; set aside.
3. In another mixing bowl, blend together the brown sugar, ricotta, oil, eggs and vanilla; set aside.
4. Dice peach slices to make one cup. If your diced peaches seem wet (they likely will), pat dry with paper towel.
6. Add flour mixture to ricotta mixture all at once and stir just until flour is incorporated; do not over-stir.
7. Stir diced peaches and pecan halves into mixture.
8. Divide mixture between the 4 mini loaf pans and smooth tops.
9. Bake in preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, until tops are golden brown and a tester inserted in center of loaves comes out clean.
10. Let cool in pans for 20 minutes, then remove loaves from pans and let cool completely on a rack.


Enjoy!