Market to Table

Two tasty, five course meals prepared by real live culinary students from ingredients found at your local Farmars' Market.

We went to a Farmer's Market in the Pearl District of Portland, OR, on the corner of 10th and Johnson. You can easily get there by streetcar. As we arrived, the market was open and busy, and we took a look around to see what kinds of quality ingrediants were available. Fresh vegetables and fruits, such as tomatoes, organic salad mixes, blueberries, cherries, and peaches.

Decide what kinds of foods you would like to use, and then purchase them. Some farmer's markets accept credit cards at an information booth, but some only accept cash, so be prepared when you arrive.

With all of the wonderful ingredients, we came up with two five course meals. The menus are:

Meal 1:

Appetizer: Hummus and Tomato and Avacado salad in a pita.
Salad: Autumn Fruit Salad
Main:Pan seared salmon with lemon cream sauce
Side: Angel Hair with Garlic and herb compound butter
Dessert: Baked Pears

Meal 2:

Appetizer: Bruschetta
Salad: Orange and Fennel Salad with Pomegranate Dressing
Main: Pasta Primevera
Side: Cucumber Salad
Dessert: Cherry Fritters

Hummus:
1 cup coooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans) drained and rinsed
1 tsp. tahini (sesame paste)
1 tsp. lemon juice, or to taste
1 tsp. olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
Salt and Pepper to taste

Combine all ingrediants Puree in a food processor adding water if needed. Adjust seasoning with lemon juice and garlic.

Tomato and Avacado Salad:
1 fresh tomato (we recommend heirloom)
1 ripe avacado
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. lemon juice
Salt and Pepper to taste

Chop tomato, set in a bowl. Dice avacado by cutting around the pit, then scooping out insides. Mix ingrediants in a bowl, season to taste.

Open pita pockets and spread in hummus in a thick layer. Then stuff with the salad mixture. Enjoy!

1 red delious apple
1 banana. sliced
1 granny smith apple
1 bartlet pear
1/4 lbs. red grapes
3 Tbls. slivered almonds, toasted
1/4 cup vanilla yogurt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 Tbls. apple cider

Wash and core apples and pear, peel if desired. Cut into one inch chuncks. Slice banana 1/2 inch thick. Wash grapes and cut in half. Combine fruits and almonds in salad bowl. Mix yogurt and spices with cidar. Pour over fruit salad and stir to coat evenly. Chill. Serve on a cold plate.

4 salmon steaks, weighing 4 oz.
1 tbs. shallot, minced
1/2 Tbsp. garlic, minced
1/4 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup butter
1 cup cream
1/2 cup white wine
2 oz. parsley, chopped.
Salt and Pepper to taste.

In a large pan, saute garlic and shallots in a small amount of butter. Then sear the salmon steaks on both side in that pan. Finish in oven, about 200 degrees, for about 5 minutes or until flash is light pink and flakey. Remove salmon from pan and set aside to keep warm. Deglaze the pan by adding the white wine. Add the remaining butter and the cream. Reduce this by one quarter. Add lemon jiuce, salt and pepper. Plate fish on warm plate and top with sauce, garnish with parsley.

1/2 lbs. angel hair pasta
4 oz. garlic herb compund butter (recipe follows)

Garlic herb compund butter:
1 lbs. butter (softened, room temperature ok)
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. chopped parsley
1 tsp. chopped thyme
1 tsp. chopped sage

Mix soft butter with herbs and garlic in a electric mixer, or by hand. Roll tightly in plastic wrap adn set in refridgerator until ready to use. Boil pasta in salted water until al dente, drain. Mix 4 oz. of compound butter with pasta, toss and serve.

2 pears, halved, peeled, and cored.
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. lavender
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
4 Tbsp. butter, softened
4 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 cup whipped cream, or vannila yogurt (optional)

Place pear halves in a greased pie plate, arranged like spokes with the narrow ends pointed towards the center. Sprinkle pears with cinnamon, lavender, and nutmeg. Cover and set aside. Cover and set aside.
In a small bowl, combine the butter and brown sugar, then carefully spread mixture over the pears. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes. Top with whipped cream or vanilla yogurt.

1 loaf Italian or fench bread
1 fresh tomato
1 cup. olives
1 cup feta cheese
3 Tbsp. chopped parlsey
3 Tbsp. olive oil.

Cut the loaf of bread in half lengthwise. Spread olive oil on top. Chop tomato and pit and chop olives, toss together with feta cheese and spread in an even layer on the bread. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bread is crispy. Sprinkle the parsley on top, cut and serve.

Dressing:
1 cup bottled pomegranate juice
3 med. meduim lemon, juiced
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 Tbsp. grated and peeled gingerroot.
1 tsp. fennel seeds, toasted.
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. fresh rosemary leaves, minced
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. rose water
Salt and pepper to taste
Balsamic vinegar to taste

Salad:
1 med. fennel bulb, thinly sliced
4 oranges, peeled and segmented
1/2 cup chopped kalamata olives
4 cups mixed salad greens
1/2 cup shredded raddicho or endive

In a small bowl, mix together all dressing ingrediants until well blended. In a large bowl, combine fennel, oranges, and olives. Add enough dressing to lightly coat and toss. In a seperate bowl, toss greens with enough dressing to lightly coat. Arrange salad greens on a plate, top with orange mixture and top with shredded raddicho or endive.

1 lb. Spaghetti
1 cup fava beans
1 cup sugar snap peas
5 oz. asparagus spears
1 oz butter
1 cup cream
2 oz grated parmesan cheese.
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta in a large pan of salted boiling water. Drain, rinse, and return to pan to keep warm. Cook beans in a pan of boiling water for 2 minutes. Plunge into iced water and then drain. Remove and discard the skins from the beans. You can usually squeeze and they will come out, or you may have to make a slit on the side with a knife. Trim peas and asparagus spears. Cut asparagus into short lengths. Melt butter in a heavy large pan. Add vegetables, cream and cheese. Simmer gently over mediuim heat for 3-4 minutes, or until peas and aparagus are bright green and al dente. Season with salt and pepper, pour over the warm pasta and toss. Serve and enjoy.

1 sweet cucumber
1/2 onion, sliced thin
1 cup sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. paprika

Peel cucumbers, but leave some skin on for color. Slice as thin as possible and dry with a paper towel. Place in a bowl with onion slices. Season with salt and pepper and let sit 10 minutes. drain any excess liquid
Toss with sour cream to coat. Mix in paprika and cayenne pepper and chill until needed. Serve.

2 eggs
2 oz plain flour
1 Tbsp. powdered sugar
pinch of salt
1 Tbsp Rum (we find that Port wine makes a good substitute)
Oil for frying
1 lb. fresh cherries with stems attached.
Granulated sugar and cinnamon to top.

Place eggs, flour, powdered sugar, salt and rum in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth. Set aside for one hour. Heat oil in a deep large pan. Dip cherries into batter and dip a few at a time into frying oil. Fry until golden and crisp. Transfer to draning rack or paper towels. Once cool enough to handle, toss around in cinnamon and sugar mixture. Serve on warm plate, with a side of ice cream.

All five of us greatly enjoyed this project and hope that we are able to help other people to make great meals and great food by going to your local famer's markets!