Mushroom Tacos and the Farmer's Market

So our farmer's market, the Haywood County Historic Farmer's Market, has decided to add Wednesday hours! I am excited!

Today's Farmer's Market 6/19/2018 -tab opens in a new window

Can you guess where I got my mushrooms?

Every Saturday, I wake my husband up early and race to the farmer's market for the best produce. We wander from vendor to vendor, waiting in line, discussing recipes. Asking about kids and dogs. We talk to our farmers. We wander over to a stall from a local bakery, Just Simply Delicious and grab a pastry for breakfast. Usually a hand pie, but sometimes a muffin or cinnamon roll instead. I grab a loaf of bread or naan for the week.
We wash our breakfast down with a soda from the Waynesville Soda Jerks. I happily buy chicken or duck or quail eggs. Sometimes I buy the chicken or duck or quail itself to cook for dinner. We get pork from Keela at Woorley Farms, and then I sigh...because after all the chatting and the investigating and the eating....I get lettuce! All of the "good" stuff has sold.

So now there is Wednesday, little known, little attended. No meat, less eggs. But the vegetables! Picked just this morning (or maybe even after lunch). Even though I know the vendors have that squash or those cucumbers, maybe that tomato on Saturday, for some reason it just doesn't look as good as when I am in the market on a Wednesday afternoon, wandering slowly, trying to decide the inevitable question: What's for dinner?

So earlier today, I went to Lott farms both at the market. "Oysters!" I exclaimed. No, not ocean oysters, but oyster mushrooms. Golden oyster mushrooms to be exact. I bought a pound. Then Paul looks around conspiratorially and pulls out a small brown paper bag. "Do you want these?" he whispers? "Chanterelles!" I am practically jumping up and down with excitement. A little early in the season at these high elevations, Paul has brought them back from a recent camping trip somewhere...secret, and warmer obviously. I told Paul "You hide all the good stuff!". He replied "I save it for my favorites". I'm honored. And then I bought all of the chanterelles to go with those golden oysters. 

I wandered around, bought some baby kale, patty pans, some cucumbers, carrots, and early tomatoes. Then I went home. "Guess what!" I called out to my husband, Price. "What?" he asked. "I got Chanterelles and Oysters!" By this point, Price knows not to ask what kind of oyster...he knows. So...What's for dinner?

With a little feta left from the Saturday market, a Thai chili given to me by my favorite sushi chef, and some tortillas. I made magic. Mushroom Tacos. 

Mushroom and Kale Tacos-

Makes 8 tacos

Ingredients for the mushroom filling:

·      4 cups chopped mushrooms-about 2 grocery pints (I used chanterelles and golden oysters, which are wild, but feel free to sub Portobello or cremini mushrooms from the grocery)

·      2 onions (any type)

·      1 small hot pepper, such as thai chili or serrano, sub jalapeno for a milder dish

·      1 tbsp minced garlic (about 1 ½ garlic cloves)

·      2 tbsp butter-divided or 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil (yes, you must use butter!)

·      1 tsp cumin powder

·      1 tbsp parsley

·      1 tsp dried oregano

·      1 ½ tsp thyme

·      salt to taste

·      1 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Ingredients for the kale filling:

·      2 bunches baby kale or regular kale (about 6 cups chopped)

·      1tbsp minced garlic (about 1 ½ garlic cloves)

·      1tbsp butter or 1 tbsp olive oil

·      1 tsp cumin powder

·      ½ tsp dried oregano

·      1 tsp chili powder

·      Salt to taste

Other taco ingredients:

·      ½ c. feta or Mexican queso

·      8 flour tortillas

For the mushroom filling:-takes about 15 minutes once everything is clean

·      Gently clean mushrooms really well. Slice

·      Chop onions and dice pepper

·      In a non-stick 12” skillet, melt 2 tbsp butter or 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil on med-low heat

·      Add the onions, mushrooms, pepper, and 1 tbsp garlic. Sautee on med-low until the moisture from the vegetables starts to steam

·      Add cumin, parsley, oregano, and thyme. Add salt to taste.

·      Sautee on low an additional 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently

·      Increase heat to med-high, and brown mushroom mixture for 3-4 minutes. Stirring once.

For the kale filling:

·      Melt the butter in another large non-stick skillet on medium heat

·      Add ½ the kale. Then the spices. Add the other half of the kale

·      Stir frequently until the kale is wilted and slightly brown (but not crispy or burned)

For the Tacos:

·      Put about ¼ c. kale, ¼ c. mushroom filling, and a sprinkle of cheese on each tortilla

·      Enjoy!

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Step One on the way to avoiding GMO's (chicken pot pie)

I am a biology instructor. While that doesn't make me an expert, it certainly helps with the understanding of the new it topic in the news: gentically modified organisms, which are commonly called GMOs. 

A GMO is a biological organism, such as an animal, plant, or bacteria, that has been altered at the genomic level, in its DNA. The implications of this technology is phenomenal. From blue jeans to insulin to your favorite cereal, all are made or influenced by GMOs. It's an amazing concept really, take a little piece of DNA from a bacteria resistant to round-up that is put in corn and voila! Round-up ready corn. And the same concept applies to all GMOs. 

Now the question is, what does that mean for us Americans (who don't have labeling on GMOs like most of Europe), and our diets? I'll let you think on that for a while.

Meanwhile Chicken pot pie using local and GMO free ingredients! The only way to guarantee you are eating a GMO free diet is to eat organic or from local farmers you have talked too. Most local farmers will tell you what they grow and how they treat their crops. If they won't, don't buy from them!

You will need:
1 carton Pacific cream of mushroom soup (it's GMO free!)
2 large carrots, diced (buy organic or local)
1 potato, peeled and diced (organic or local)
1 cup peas (organic or local)
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 cup corn (organic or local)
1 cup milk, divided (organic)
1 cup flour (organic)
1 tbsp sour cream (organic)
1 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp vinegar
1/4 c. shredded cheese
2 cups cooked chopped chicken, preferably local
Olive oil or organic cooking spray

Here's How:
1. Mix the flour, 3/4 c. milk, parsley, vinegar, and salt together in a bowl. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 375.
3. Mix soup, remaining milk, and sour cream in a bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients. 
4. Coat an 8x8 baking dish with oil. Add in chicken cream mixture. 
5. Top with biscuit mix.
6. Bake for 25-35 minutes until biscuit is brown and cooked through. 
7. Serve warm with a salad or fresh fruit.

Enjoy!

Eggs Benedict: Suzanne Style

It's egg season again! And by egg season, I mean summertime! For those of you who don't know, local eggs are much harder to find in the winter because chickens will stop laying as the days get shorter. Commercial farmers force their chickens to lay in the winter with grow lights, which is rather cruel to the extent they do it, but small farmers usually just let their chickens be, well, chickens. 

Anyway...eggs!
Now a typical Eggs Benedict is a layered creation of an english muffin with Canadian bacon, topped with a poached egg and slathered in Hollandaise. About the only thing my version has in common is the Hollandaise and the egg. 

This Eggs Benedict has a buttermilk biscuit with local breakfast sausage, a slice of fresh tomato, and a poached egg, smothered in homemade Hollandaise with herbs. 

Now, lets get started.

Eggs Benedict: Suzanne Style, for 4

You will need:
2 biscuits (homemade is the best!), sliced in half.
5 eggs
4 sausage patties (I vote for local, but your choice)
4 slices of tomato
1 stick butter
2 tbsp lemon juice (I would say fresh squeezed, but this is where I always forget to buy lemons and end up using bottled juice. Oh, well, sigh)
1 tsp dried herbs, such as parsley, oregano, and thyme or 1 tbsp chopped fresh herbs
5 cups water
1 tbsp white vinegar

Here's what to do:
1. Cook the sausage patties on a skillet or griddle at med-high heat until cooked through. Flipping once, after about 5 minutes. Cook the 2nd side for 3-5 minutes until done. Place on a plate covered with a paper towel. Set aside.
2. Meanwhile, crack 4 of the eggs into 4 separate small bowls. I know this seems excessive, but when poaching eggs, it's important you work quickly and have the eggs separated.
3. Add the water and vinegar to a pot. Whatever you do, don't forget the vinegar. It keeps the whites together! Boil on high until bubbles start to form. Reduce heat to a simmer. For poached eggs, you want the water to be constantly boiling, but not rolling. 
4. Gently add the eggs one at a time, and cook for 3-5 minutes. The eggs are done when the whites look like fresh balls of mozzarella. Remove with a slotted spoon.
5. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a small saucepan over med-low heat. Whisk in the lemon juice. 
6. Now comes the tricky part. In a small bowl (one used earlier is fine), crack and whisk the 5th egg to combine it. You need to cook the egg into the sauce without scrambling it. A lot of cooks use a double-boiler, it's a little less temperature sensitive, but really, who has the time?
7. Add the egg to the butter and lemon and whisk constantly, for 1 minute. Remove from heat, and continue whisking until a thick (but not scrambled) sauce forms. Add in the fresh herbs.
8. On a plate, layer the biscuit, sausage, tomato, egg, and hollandaise. Serve warm with fresh fruit.

Enjoy!

I know this is a complex recipe. But I know you can do it with patience and practice!

Best, 
Suzanne