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06 June 2007

Cooking bunnies, to my aid! Help me think up some tasty, bite-sized, farmer's-market-sourced snacks for a party on Saturday.[More:] I really only need to bring one thing (well, honestly I don't even need to bring that but I have a reputation to maintain). I'm going to the farmer's market today and it would be great if I could get everything there. There's a stall that sells really good goat cheese so I'm thinking maybe something bruschetta-esque? Vegetarian preferred. Aaaaaaand...go!
Where do you live? What's in season where you are?

Me, sometimes I just like to go, get whatever looks really good and really fresh, and figure out what I'm going to make AFTER I have the ingredients.
posted by dersins 06 June | 10:16
Southern California (going to the Santa Monica farmer's market). In season: afaik, damn near everything.
posted by Fuzzbean 06 June | 10:20
Figs?

Almonds?

Roasted figs stuffed with almonds and the afore-mentioned "really good goat cheese?"

That's the delicious vegetarian version.

The even-more-delicious version involves wrapping the whole damn thing in bacon prior to roasting.
posted by dersins 06 June | 10:29
Also, watch out for old people. In cars.
posted by dersins 06 June | 10:38
Why? Do they taste better than old people not in cars?

I imagine they'd be less stringy than those blasted walking old people.
posted by Fuzzbean 06 June | 10:40
Oh, and it's Ojai Pixie season. They're the best tangerines ever.

For real. The best. Nothing comes close.

You'll have to get there early to get them, though, because people know how damn good they are, and they sell out quickly.

You can get them from, among others, these people. They're at the Santa Monica market every week. And a bunch of others, too.

posted by dersins 06 June | 10:44
Spanikopita might be a sucess. Spinach, filo dough and feta. Delish!
posted by pieisexactlythree 06 June | 11:41
Goat cheese goes really well with arugula. Maybe a salad of arugula, dollops of goat cheese, pine nuts or maybe spiced pecans, and dried fruits like apricots or cherries?

You could do that as a bruschetta by making an arugula pesto (whiz leaves in blender with olive oil and walnuts or pine nuts, salt and pepper) and plopping some pesto and some goat cheese on each toasty bread slice.
posted by Miko 06 June | 12:04
This has always been popular when I have made it. You can improvise, but the constant is endives, if they are in season where you are.
posted by danf 06 June | 12:26
Oh, and it's Ojai Pixie season. They're the best tangerines ever.


Jeez. . .I LIVED there and have never heard of these. Lots of oranges and lemons and avos, but not the pixie tangerines.
posted by danf 06 June | 12:31
A friend of mine, who hosted a lot of parties, taught me that pretty much everything becomes bite-sized with the aid of wonton wrappers -- buy the frozen ones, arrange them (like you would a pie crust) in mini cupcake tins (I assume you'd grease the tins), and bake for a bit. Now you've got a more-or-less flavor-neutral cup into which pretty much anything can go -- goat cheese blended with a bit of olive oil and chopped fresh time would be a great, easy filling.

(This is a great way to serve chicken salad at parties, as well.)
posted by occhiblu 06 June | 12:39
chopped fresh time


That is a beautiful image, occhiblu.
posted by dersins 06 June | 12:53
Heh. Sigh. Sorry. I lost my intuitive grasp of homophones a few years ago and it's just never come back. :-)
posted by occhiblu 06 June | 13:24
I. am. so. hungry.

This thread is making me cry.
posted by Specklet 06 June | 13:38
It's probably too early for tomatoes (well, good tomatoes, anyway), but when tomato season comes you can make tomato confit and totally blow everyone's socks off.

Make shallow Xs on the bottoms of the tomatoes, just cutting through the skin. Dunk them in boiling water for 5 seconds, then run under cold water and remove the skins.

Cut the tomatoes in half and remove the seeds. Cut them now into wedges or chunks or whatever shape you prefer. Pat dry with a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Put the tomatoes in a baking dish (make sure they're not touching -- use two dishes if you have to) and cover with olive oil by 1/2 inch. (Yes, it's a lot of olive oil.) Throw in a smashed garlic clove or two.

Bake at 200 for 1 hour to 1-1/2, until the tomatoes get firmer and sort of leathery. Discard the garlic cloves.

Store the tomatoes in a jar, covered by the olive oil. (It'll congeal, but will liquify again at room temp.)

Serve on good bread. Fucking stellar.
posted by mudpuppie 06 June | 13:44
*cries harder, bookmarks thread*
posted by Specklet 06 June | 14:58
(*joins Specklet in the crying*) (*and the bookmarking*)

God, mudpuppie, that sounds incredible. And occhiblu, what a great idea! I'm definitely doing that the next time I'm on potluck duty.

Man, I wish I had something here to eat besides a half-full bag of stale old Cheezits...
posted by kat allison 06 June | 15:13
Update: The strawberries were to *die* for, so I got a baguette and some cracked-pepper goat cheese, a load of strawberries, and some basil and mint. I'm going to make a strawberry-goat cheese bruschetta with balsamic vinegar, garnished with basil and just a smidge of mint.

I also have four pints of cherries (only one more week!), apricots, plums, ting choy, baby spinach, salad greens, blue-, rasp-, and blackberries...um....yeah. I have so much fruit! I'm so stoked!

Occhi, that is an *awesome* idea. The other thing I was thinking about making was banh mi chay sandwiches (tofu, sriracha sauce+soy sauce marinade, spinach, and vinegar-soaked carrots) in little pita pockets, but it doesn't really take advantage of the season right now.

Fruit! OMG FRUIT! *runs to gorge self on cherries*
posted by Fuzzbean 06 June | 15:53
I endorse the confit idea, too! I tend to make this in late summer when there are a LOT of tomatoes. They concentrate beautifully. Last year I used it on bread, as a sauce for roast pork, and as a pasta sauce. All awesome.
posted by Miko 06 June | 16:09
Cooking bunnies, to my aid!

Shame on you for cooking bunnies. SHAME on YOU! Poor defenseless little fuzzies.
posted by shane 07 June | 09:01
Defenseless?! Hardly! They have huge, sharp...he can leap about....look at the bones!

No, it's the VEGETARIANS who should be ashamed. Look at them, eating poor defenseless little vegetables. All the carrots can do is sit in the ground and twitch, screaming little supersonic screams as they await their demise.... [NOT VEGETARIANIST]
posted by Fuzzbean 07 June | 10:28
Can anybody help me find this movie? || Essexjan New York City meetup pics.

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