I’m not sure what’s going on this winter with the old blog here. I have limited motivation for posting, but we really are eating very well from our freezer and pantry. It’s this time of year that I really feel good about all that work I did over the summer and fall to can and freeze. Even though it’s March and lots of people are talking about Spring, we’re still months away from fresh, locally grown foods.
Lest you think we’ve been slacking, here are a few meals we’ve enjoyed, mostly from local ingredients.
I’ve discovered Vermont Smoke and Cure Pepperoni. What better to do than try it on a pizza?
I prefer a crust that’s crispier more than deep-dish, but this was yummy, nevertheless.
Local: pepperoni, frozen tomato sauce, Cabot cheese. Not-so-local: crust ingredients, mushrooms.
Then, there was this little beauty:
A sirloin from Rock Farm, cooked rare and served with super-tender parsleyed potatoes I picked up at the Seacoast Eat Local farmer’s market on Saturday.
The meat looks super-rare in the photo. It wasn’t quite as bloody as it looks! Along with this meal we enjoyed a salad with FRESH GREENS! from the farmer’s market. Heaven.
Local: sirloin, potatoes, Cabot butter, greens. Not-so-local: parsley, cucumber, carrot, salt and pepper.
The FRESH GREENS! have shown up in meals all week.
Tonight, it was alongside some mini-frittatas.
Quite yummy!
Local: eggs, milk, FRESH GREENS!, bread. Not-so-local: salami, parmesean, cucumbers, carrots, cranberries, S&P.
The farmer’s market was great. In addition to the FRESH GREENS! I scored some chorizo and a ten pound bag of fresh Atlantic shrimpies, now stashed in the freezer. I’m wondering if most people cook these and then pop the heads and shells off, or peeel ‘em before cooking? Ali? What’s your advice?
Finally, we’ve been eating home-made desserts, too. I made a batch of vanilla ice cream that we ate with this heavenly thing, and now we’re enjoying it with apple/peach crisp made from fruit I froze this summer.
All’s well!
Shrimps, mmmmm mmmmm mmmMMMMM!
As for how to cook, well, I’m a big fan of pre-peeled, myself, cause I hate peeling ‘em, but the shells do make good broth. Once they are frozen though, it depends on what you are in the mood for. I find it is best to let them defrost slowly overnight in the fridge, then cook to the bare minimum to retain texture. I really like them in chowder, or baked Rockefeller style, or in tortilla soup, or with angel hair pasta….
They are so sweet, I don’t care for scampi style, too much garlic overwhelms. Really, though, thinking about it I usually peel then cook. And since you have the shells, make broth!
Fresh greens! Like you, I like a crispy/thin side pizza crust. Though I could cook a thicker crust and just eat it on its own spread with roasted garlic and nothing else….
The apple/peach crisp sounds so good. Did you let the fruit thaw before using it? I’m still trying to figure out how to prevent the sogginess that keeps cropping up for me….
Hi Kim. I wish I had known you were going to be at the farmer’s market. It would have been nice to see you.
I too got a bag of shrimp. By the time I finished beheading and peeling them, I didn’t think I would have an appetite for eating them. It was a long and not-so-pleasant task. We tossed them in a little bit of orange sesame dressing and grilled them (in a grill basket) for less than 5 minutes. They were very tasty! I served them over greens. They were so good, we did the same thing the next day for lunch and made wraps with them. Some made it to the freezer, but I’m wishing I’d bought more.
What was your recipe for the mini frittatas? They look delicious.
Kathy: I didn’t even think to let you know – I forget you’re down in those parts! Those shrimp sound fantastic! We’ve had some before that my husband peeled and then blanched, but I think we’ll try cooking them up quickly in some boiling water this time, then peeling them all. We’ll see. I posted the frittata recipe from Giada…it’s yummy and super duper easy.
Those mini-frittatas are making my mouth water, do you have a recipe?
Kristi: It’s Giada DiLaurentes’ recipe (super easy!): http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/mini-frittatas-recipe/index.html.
Does Cabot make mozzarella, or did you make the pizza with cheddar? Pizza sounds really, really good right now.
Veg: Cabot does make mozzarella. It’s already shredded, though, so it’s not quite as “whole” as it could be.
Yum! Your meals are inspiring. Our freezer and shelves still contain many of the foods we put up in the fall, but I am feeling quite blah about eating them. The fact that our garden is still under a foot of snow hasn’t been helping matters.
After reading your post, I am ready to dig out some apples and make a crisp!
Thanks, Jen! Isn’t March tough? It seems like spring should be right around the corner, but we won’t have anything fresh-picked for months, still! Ahhh, New England.