Farmers’ Market Porn…burgers, tomatoes, and cherries…oh my!
On Saturday morning Alex and I got up early and headed for the Westside Farmers’ Market in Madison. I knew that there might be tomatoes, sweet corn, and sour cherries so I was antsy to get there early and not miss out on the good stuff. I wasn’t disappointed. WoooHooo…that is one perfect burger. Just looking a the photo makes me hungry. It’s made with ground beef from Jordandal Farm, lettuce and slices of succulent Brandywine tomato, and red onion all from the FM. Yes, you can envy my burger…but don’t hate me for it.
These tomatoes look like fiery jewels. They’re a little bigger than a golf ball and when sliced into wedges and served with Dreamfarm’s Rosebud goat cheese they make for a sweet, zesty flavor explosion. I love them.
I’ve never had gooseberries before and I’m so glad I got them…so far I love them on cereal, in muffins (see below), and eaten as is out of hand. They’re tart with a hint of sweetness. I think I like the red ones best but the green ones are so pretty. Who knew they could be so good. These were grown by the great folks at JenEhr Farm.
These glistening, shiny, seductive orbs of cherrilicous goodness are Balaton Sour Cherries. Once I got back home with my precious ones I whipped up my usual galette dough recipe and stuck it in the refrigerator to chill. A few hours later I seeded the cherries using a partially unbent paper clip, added 1/2 cup of sugar, 4 tablespoons cornstarch, and a teaspoon of vanilla. Once that was all stirred up it became apparent to me that my typical flat galette was going to have no chance in hell of holding in the juicy goodness that these cherries were going to dish out. So I quickly buttered my cast iron skillet, rolled out the dough, and gently rested it in the buttery pan. I added the cherries using a slotted spoon because my research showed that it wasn’t feasible to keep all that juice. I folded in the edges as usual, brushed them with water and sprinkled them with sugar and then I baked it at 400F for 35 minutes.
This was the finest, freshest, most flavorful cherry pie I’ve ever had. The cherry flavor was so intense and appealing and the crust was crisp and tender. I wish I had another piece right now but it disappeared in record time. Cooking it in the skillet was a perfect solution and I’m sure that I’ll use that technique again when I have sloppy fruit for pie.
Finally we have the red currants grown by the JenEhr Farm. I bought these because they were so beautiful but now I’m not sure what to do with them…any suggestions dear readers?
8 Responses to “Farmers’ Market Porn…burgers, tomatoes, and cherries…oh my!”
1 erin 16 July 2007 @ 5:22 pm
You’ve got me drooling on my keyboard. That burger looks sensational. As for the currents, last August I used some to top a chocolate thumbprint cookie with a cream cheese center and the tart-sweetness worked well.You can see pics here: http://erinskitchen.blogspot.com/2006/08/martha-and-me-guess-which-ones-i-made.html
2 Lydia 16 July 2007 @ 8:12 pm
I have burger envy! And those gooseberries look wonderful. They’re in season now in Rhode Island, too, but I haven’t yet brought any home to cook with them. Now I’m tempted…
3 Katiez 17 July 2007 @ 2:53 am
Summer Pudding! The perfect use for red currents… I’ll even give you a link to my recipe… http://thymeforcooking.com/recipe/baked_stuff/summerpudding.html
You can adjust how many of which berries to use - it’s a pretty flexible pud - just a bread pudding after all. The first time I had it was in London in July and it is absolutely wonderful…and I hate bread puddings!
Your market day must have been fab!
4 Holler 17 July 2007 @ 4:53 pm
My mum calls gooseberries, goosegogs and absolutely adores them! I think they can be a little tart myself! Oh bad pun! I have never tried the red ones before, do they taste any different?
5 Caty 17 July 2007 @ 5:25 pm
It all looks fantastic but I’m craving a slice of that pie!
6 Ferdzy 18 July 2007 @ 7:13 am
Wow, all this lovely fruit… I adore sour cherries; they’re the best!
I’ve posted three jams based on currants, and today I will be making currant catsup, which will probably get posted tomorrow.
http://seasonalontariofood.blogspot.com/search/label/Berries
When I went to a local U-pick they had green, red and purple gooseberries. I didn’t try them, but I’ve been wondering about them ever since. I’ll just have to go back…
7 vanessa 18 July 2007 @ 9:09 am
erin, katiez, and ferdzy: thanks so much for the great ideas. I checked them all out but then I realized…I’ve already chowed down on at least half of the currants…and I didn’t have that many to begin with. They are fabulous in pancakes. Perhaps I can by some this weekend and make jam…currant jam is a favorite of mine.
Holler, the red ones are definitely different…not better, just different. I finished the whole batch off last night as I worked a crossword…they were wonderful and now I’m a huge fan.
Caty, that pie was the bomb. I think I’ll try to get my hands on more cherries so I can freeze them for winter pies.
Ferdzy, I can’t wait to see the currant catsup! Get the goosegogs (see above)…they are an unusual delight.
8 Trig 20 July 2007 @ 11:28 am
That burger does look very mouthwatering, Vanessa. I’ve never seen red gooseberries before, so I’ve learnt something new already.
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