Brian focused his recipes on items that our members would find in their CSA shares in the coming weeks. He made items that some people find hard to use, such as Swiss chard, beet tops, and eggplant, into delicious dishes.
His first dish were some light and healthy beet chips. You can find a recipe for beet chips on here.
After the chips he served a yummy Reuben dip, made with corned beef and cabbage. Reuben's are my favorite kind of sandwich so I particularly enjoyed this dish. He served it with some simple pita chips.
Next was a delicious creamy sweet corn and Swiss chard soup. I could have just eaten a large bowl of that soup. Swiss chard is something many people ask how to use when we put it in the shares and I highly recommend this soup. Plus you will receive plenty of our sweet corn during corn season!
After the soup he made a simple lettuce wrap. Many people see lettuce and think salad but there are a few other ways to use this simple seeming crop. Brian sauteed some zucchini with eggs, garlic powder, and salt and pepper and wrapped it in a leaf of Boston lettuce. Sounds plain but it tasted great. I would eat it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Now on to the main courses. First was a pork chop with a cherry rosemary glaze. He reduced the cherries lightly with some white wine and a sprig of rosemary. Take the rosemary out before serving and pour the cherry glaze over the pork. It was delicious. Not too sweet but just enough.
Chicken breast with a blueberry balsamic reduction sauce came next. I love balsamic vinegar and use it often in cooking. He reduced the blueberries with the balsamic vinegar until it thickened. Then he topped the chicken. You would think the blueberries would give it an overpowering sweetness but the balsamic vinegar evened it out to a nice tart flavor.
Next, those hard to use beet tops. Chef Brian just sauteed them in some olive oil with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Next he sliced up some purple eggplant, skin on, into thick circles and light sauteed them, making sure they did not get too soft. Top them with the beet tops and you have a healthy, surprisingly delicious dish. I was not a fan of either until recently and would never had though I would like a dish that paired the two together. Chef Brian surprised us all. It was great.
Lastly was dessert. Another easy recipe that tasted awesome. Just a simple peach and raspberry compote. Saute the fruit with a small amount of sugar and vanilla until softened and then serve warm over your choice of ice cream. Who doesn't love the combination of hot and cold. It was a great and tasty end to a fun and educational class. We can't wait for the next one to see what Chef Brian comes up with for us to taste. We are looking to have our next session towards the end of August. We hope to see you there!
Another thank you to Chef Brian for his great work and the delicious food he made for us. Try some more of his creations at Streets Cafe in Chester, NJ, open Tuesday-Sunday, 11am-3pm.
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