Homegrown Rosemary

Rosemary

Rosemary is considered a perennial in the Roanoke area (which is considered plant growing zone 7).  It grows in full sun, stays green year round, and was growing in my mother's garden when I visited last weekend.  And according to Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs, an old wive's tale says a vigorously growing rosemary bush in a home garden means the woman is the head of the household.

I used it to make the Rosemary Chocolate Chip Cookies from the Isa Does It cookbook.  The recipe can also be found on her website at the following link:

http://www.theppk.com/2013/10/rosemary-chocolate-chip-cookies-video/

It calls for 2T of rosemary, but I didn't clip enough, so I had to halve  the recipe, unfortunately.

Mix it into the coconut butter.

And it makes for an unusual, buttery cookie that you will be glad you tried.

More Tomatoes

Professor's Garden Market Table in the Afternoon

I don't think there is anything I like more than homegrown tomatoes.  If you go to the grocery store, the only tomatoes you may have ever tried are Roma tomatoes, tomatoes-on-the-vine, grape tomatoes, and the ubiquitous tomato.  But if you go to either the West End Market on Tuesdays or the Grandin Market on Saturdays, you can see the Professor's Garden.  They grow varieties I have never seen before, like green sausage tomatoes and garden peach tomatoes.

My Tomato Collection

They have gardens at two different sites in Roanoke County.  They also have a blog where you can find out more about what they will have at the market, what it is like being a market vendor, and what is growing on the farm.  From the pictures, it looks like turnips are on their way.  Very exciting.

You can find more information here:

http://theprofessorsgarden.wordpress.com/

Tomato Tatin

It is still tomato season here in Virginia and I walked down the to downtown city market to buy some for a recipe I saw on Yahoo Food.

The recipe can be found here:

https://www.yahoo.com/food/you-put-tomatoes-on-your-pasta-you-make-salad-93927265766.html

I'm a pretty lazy cook, so I skipped the peeling step.  I substituted the butter for olive oil, but it may be better if you use vegan butter.  I also thought it was a little too sweet.  I would reduce the amount of sugar and maybe try it with brown sugar next time.

I also didn't have an ovenproof skillet, so I scooped the contents into a pie dish, covered it with the pie crust, and baked it according to the directions.

It makes a striking presentation.

Eggplant

Last Saturday, I went back to the Grandin Village Market and found some good looking eggplants available from Patchwork Farms, located in Floyd, VA.  Their produce is Certified Naturally Grown, which means an independent group confirms that the farm utilizes certain standards of organic practices.  They also had kohlrabi, but I didn't know what to do with it, so I skipped it.  The farm can be found on Facebook at  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Patchwork-Farm/242636842582772.

I used the produce to make Eggplant & Breadcrumb Fettuccine from Isa Chandra Moskowitz's new book, Isa Does It, which is available for check out through Roanoke's library system at rvl.info.

It is my new favorite cookbook.

Fried Eggplant and Bread Crumbs

Then, paired with fettuccine and a garlicky tomato sauce.

An easy and delicious weeknight kind of dinner, especially if you already have prepared pasta sauce.

Paw Paw Picking

Image from Virginia Cooperative Extention
http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/438/438-105/438-105.html

I didn't know pawpaws grew in Roanoke, but they are currently in season.

The Community Garden Association is planning an event this weekend to pick pawpaws with one of their board members and it is open to the public.  For more information, you can contact the director of the Garden Association and his information can be found at this link:  http://www.roanokecommunitygarden.org/contactnew.htm

The following is the meet up details:

• Saturday, September 6 at 9:00am
• Green Hill Park, 2501 Parkside Drive, Salem 24153
• Meet in parking lot and bring your own container

Come out and get your pawpaws!

Plums

Right now, plums are available from Good Food, Good People, a collection of farms with CSA shares.  They have a wide selection of organic produce to choose from, but please be aware that they also sell meat.  You can find out more information about their operation at goodfoodgoodpeople.net.

They currently have stands at the following farmers' markets:

• Grandin Village Market (Saturdays, 8:00am-12:00pm)
• West End Market (Tuesdays, 3:00pm-6:00pm)
• Greenbrier Nursery Market (Thursdays, 2:00pm-7:00pm; Saturdays, 10:00am-3:00pm)
• Carilion Roanoke Memorial Farmers' Table (Thursdays, 2:00pm-6:00pm)

One drawback to buying local produce is that I am not sure how much longer plums will be available.  However, as of today (Sept. 2), they are still on sale at the West End Market, located at the Freedom First Credit Union on Patterson Avenue.  

I purchased some last week at the Grandin Village Market.  Plums are good by themselves, but they also make really great pies.  Plum pies are also easy to make vegan.  I made a no-rolling-pin pie crust with canola oil.  You could also use a store-bought crust.  The filling is about a pound and a half of plums, half cup of sugar, 1/4 cup of flour, a little bit cinnamon, and some lemon juice.  

 

Then, I topped it with a streusel topping of sugar, flour, walnuts, cinnamon, and coconut oil.  Delicious.

*A little baking tip I just learned:  For thickeners like cornstarch to activate, they have to reach a boiling point, so make sure it bubbles before you take it out.  If you ever have a runny fruit pie, it probably didn't get hot enough and needs to bake longer.