The Weblog
Weblog Entry
Good afternoon, everyone.
The Wednesday Market is open for orders. Please place your order by 10 p.m. Monday, and orders are ready for pick up Wednesday between 3 and 6 p.m. Check the website for this week’s product listings. Here is the link: http://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
What could be better on a dreary rainy day than creating something hot and tasty in the kitchen? That is my goal today! At the least, I have two birthday cakes to prepare – one for my husband and another for a friend who works at our favorite restaurant. Joe and Karina share the same birthday, Feb. 23.
Tomorrow night the boys and I are going to make one of Joe’s favorite meals: pork tenderloin with herbed roasted potatoes, fresh baked bread, and mixed green salad with homemade dressing. For a side vegetable, we will choose steamed broccoli or fresh spinach sautéed with garlic. And for dessert, we’ll have devil’s food cake with fudge frosting served with vanilla ice cream.
Joe loves flavorful food, and this menu is a showcase for the flavors that he loves: rosemary, garlic, red pepper flakes, oregano, and freshly ground black pepper.
Do you use herbs in cooking? Having grown up with a parent who shunned anything but plain meat and potatoes, I have enjoyed learning how to use herbs and spices to create all kinds of different dishes, savory and sweet. Here are just a few of the many herbs that are commonly used in cooking: basil, mint, rosemary, oregano, thyme, cilantro, parsley, chives, dill, sage, and tarragon. All of these herbs are available in dried form, but I encourage you to experiment with using fresh herbs whenever they are in season. And, fortunately for us within The Wednesday Market community, we can purchase these wonderful herbs from several of our farmers!
Here is a simple recipe for a tasty dipping sauce for hot, fresh baked bread. You can use dried or fresh herbs, and you can tweak the recipe to use more of the herbs you really like and less of the ones you do not prefer.
Easy Herbed Dipping Sauce for Fresh Baked Bread
Oregano
Basil
Rosemary
Kosher Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Red Pepper Flakes
Fresh Minced Garlic
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Start with ¼ teaspoon EACH of oregano, basil, rosemary, and kosher salt, and mix together in a small dish. Add freshly ground pepper to taste, along with a pinch of red pepper flakes. Add about 2 cloves of freshly minced garlic. Top with about ¼ cup of extra virgin olive oil and stir gently to combine. Taste, and adjust seasonings to suit. This makes enough for about 4 servings (depending, of course, on how much bread you have and how much you like dipping it!). I always make a lot more because my boys really love this sauce.
To learn more about the use of herbs in cooking, please follow this link to an article from Cooking Light magazine, “11 Herbs Every Cook Should Use,” http://www.cookinglight.com/cooking-101/essential-ingredients/all-about-herbs-slideshow
Thank you for supporting locally grown agriculture and for choosing to buy locally. We’ll see you Wednesday!
Beverly