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Soulful Swiss Chard
Swiss Chard, Onion & Cheese Frittata from Williams-Sonoma’s Taste blogby Dori Fern
If kale is today’s leafy green prom queen and spinach is the easy-to-love Everygreen, then think of swiss chard as the verdant, soulful-yet-populist artist type. With its buttery depth of flavor, chard is typically more supple than kale and has a bit more body than spinach.
June is the perfect time to enjoy swiss chard not only cooked, but also raw in salads. It’s a cinch to prep right now, since the stalks–which get bigger and tougher later in the season and are then best baked like slab bacon, cooked into lardons).
Swiss chard, in either the standard or red leafed variety, is my go-to weeknight veggie. Sometimes I’ll just saute it, with onion or a little garlic, but often I add it to make a simple one-dish meal. Think protein (ground or cubed meat, fish or beans), plus grain (pasta, farro, barley, etc, quinoa), plus green leafy vegetable (where the chard comes in) plus any tasty extras (maybe cheese or tomatoes or herbs or additional legume like peas or favas) and that’s dinner. And while it’s a familiar presence in Italian dishes, I often fancy using chard in Indian recipes.
When company’s coming, as a potluck take-along or when I’ve got time to spare on weekends, swiss chard dresses up real nice. Given its round, easy-to-love flavor and good body, chard makes a terrific star for tarts, gratins and frittatas.
Here are some tasty options to try, including this intriguing sweet tart by the inimitable David Lebovitz:
Alice Waters’ Swiss Chard Gratin (Serious Eats)
Goat Cheese, Chard and Herb Pie in a Phyllo Crust (The New York Times)
Swiss Chard Tart: Pasticcio di Bietole al Forno (Food Network)
Swiss Chard, Onion & Cheese Frittata (Williams-Sonoma’s Taste, pictured above)
And when I’m feeling particularly ambitious, I will make my daughter’s very favorite dish of all times, Malfatti a la Al di La. It will take some time and it’s impossible to overstate the need to thoroughly dry the chard, but the results are most rewarding when well done. On the other hand, you could always stick simpler swiss chard recipes at home and let Chef Anna Klinger–a longtime Bradley Farm customer–serve you the fancy stuff at their beloved Park Slope trattoria.
The Magic of Sorrel
Yotam Ottolenghi’s rhubarb, celery and sorrel salad Photograph: Colin Campbell for the Guardian
by Dori Fern
I fell in love with sorrel about a decade or so ago, when I came upon a recipe for Garden Vegetable Soup in a little-known cookbook called French Vegetarian Cooking that happened into my collection. Ray has sold sorrel, which is different from the hibiscus tea of the same name served mainly at Caribbean restaurants, for as long as I can remember. But until I stumbled on this soup recipe, I didn’t know what to do with it.
Sorrel’s distinctive, lemony flavor is wonderful if well-used, overwhelmingly sour if it’s not. The key is to balance sorrel’s built-in acidity with more lush ingredients. Yotam Ottolenghi, author of the wonderful and award-winning cookbook, “Jerusalem,” speaks to this point in “Sour Pour,” the piece — with recipes — he wrote for The Guardian website:
This startlingly sour leaf, if paired with more evenly balanced flavours, can turn even the most frugal of meals into something very special. As with lemon juice, the more sorrel you use, the more it has to be balanced with something sweet, starchy or creamy…
I’ve recently branched out from my one, go-to sorrel soup recipe. Last week I made the most incredible sorrel mayonnaise. Into a food processor I threw a handful of sorrel, a few big dollops of Hellman’s (I was in a rush to make lunch for my hungry son, but as food writer and Ray-regular Melissa Clark has pointed out , I’ve been known to make my own, too), 3-4 cornichons with a splash of their brine, plus a spot of Dijon, pinch of salt and some black pepper. I wasn’t measuring, but play around and taste for yourself. I mixed the mayo with oil-packed tuna, coarsely chopping in a couple more cornichons, then made the most perfect tuna melt, really, ever.
But still, that beloved Garden Vegetable Soup is my personal rite of spring. It’s like a Provençal Schav, the cold soup favored by Russian Jews (see “The Food Maven” and Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket regular Arthur Schwartz’s recipe here). The sourness of this vegetable soup, though, is buffered by spinach and all the greens are stewed to a comforting softness.
The recipe is a fine guide, but don’t let it limit you: any spring green I find at the market may find its way into the mix: beet greens (how anyone could throw away these sweetly tender tops, which I prefer to the beets themselves, is beyond me), garlic chives, spring onions, ramps — if that’s your thing — though they’re probably an overly costly addition to an otherwise humble soup. The one non-negotiable ingredient: sorrel.
Garden Vegetable Soup
Adapted from French Vegetarian Cooking by Paola Gavin
4 tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 leeks, thinly sliced
3/4 pound spinach, shredded
1/4 pound sorrel, shredded
4 cups water (or good-quality chicken or vegetable stock)
salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 egg yolks, lightly whisked (optional)
4 slices/wedges good-quality multi-grain bread, toasted (and buttered, if you like)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Heat the olive oil in a large pot and cook the onion, garlic, leek, and celery over a moderate heat for 5 minutes. Add the spinach, sorrel, water or stock, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20-25 minutes. If using egg yolks for added creaminess, whisk about a 1/2 cup of the hot broth into the yolks to temper, then return the yolk mixture into the soup.
Add one slice of toasted bread to each bowl, then ladle in the soup. Serve with grated cheese.
Nettle Recipes: What to Cook with this Prickly but Lovable Herb
photo from TheKitchn.comThe sting of raw nettles is definitely worse than its bite. Sure, you’ll want to protect your hands when handling raw nettles, but don’t be afraid of this fleeting, springtime flowering plant. A quick dunk in hot water (or any hot liquid) softens those stingers straightaway. And not only is nettle quite easy to cook (most anything you’d do with cooked spinach–which has a similar taste–can be made with nettle), it’s also incredibly nutritious and delicious in equal measure. Rich in vitamins A, C, iron, potassium, manganese, and calcium, in the peak of the season, nettle also purportedly contains up to 25% protein.* Some use histamine-rich nettle as a remedy for seasonal allergies, but most sources suggest using it in tincture form or freeze dried to get those benefits, which may be lost in the cooking process.
Nettle has long been a popular edible plant in Northern and Eastern Europe and in India. The English, Scottish and Czech even have a long tradition of making nettle beer (see recipe below). Visit Ray’s farm stand in May when he’s rich with the stuff. Here are some tasty nettle recipes to whet your appetite.
Nettle Soup (The Kitchn)
Stinging Nettles: 8 Recipes for Spring Cooking (The Kitchn)
Nettle Pasta (101cookbooks)
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s Favorite Nettle Recipes (The Guardian)
Make your own nettle beer (selfsufficientish.com)
*Source: Wikipedia
Slab Bacon – Great Recipes to Try
If strip bacon is trendy and ubiquitous, then slab bacon is strip’s heady, lesser-seen, deeper sibling. In his Bacon 25 Ways piece in last October’s NY Times, Mark Bittman calls this meaty cut both more flexible form and (typically) better quality.
We all know that if Ray’s selling bacon, whatever the cut, it’s going to be primo quality. But when he’s selling slab, don’t miss out on the opportunity to take some of this special stuff home to try.
Get inspired with even more recipes to get your culinary juices sizzling:
50 Things to Make With Bacon (FoodNetwork.com) – The following ideas would be our picks for Ray’s bacon, even though they don’t all specifically call for slab: Numbers 11 (Bacon Quiche, pictured above), 22, 28, 30, 31, 33-37, 43
Loa Ortiz tipped us off to this Epicurious recipe she recently discovered: “I can’t stop making this! Use Ray’s slab bacon [and, when they’re in season, his mustard greens] for a really delicious smoky flavor. There’s minimal cooking required, strong flavors that balance each other out, nothing overpowers anything else, and it’s bright, fresh and healthy but still rich and satisfying.”
* Loa’s recipe adaptations and notes:
- In place of the onion: Use 1 large shallot, cut in half-moon slices, not finely chopped.
- If your mustard green is young and tender, no need to remove the ribs.
- Doubling the recipe is highly advisable.
Enough About Ray: Loa Ortiz
If you’re a Grand Army Plaza Greenmarket regular, chances are you’ve run into Loaiza “Loa” Ortiz at Ray’s farm stand, likely with her impish three-year-old daughter, Viola. Loa and her husband moved to Brooklyn from Oakland, California in 2001 and, in the summer of 2007 and 2008, worked for Ray at the market. She’s been a member of the Bradley Farm family ever since. Viola even calls Ray “Grandpa.”
How did you wind up working for Ray?
I met Ray and Hardeep around 2005 when I started going to the market and I would hang out — Hardeep talks to everyone! — and one day, Ray says “You’re a teacher [Loa teaches middle school at The Mary McDowell School] and off for the summers, so come work for me.”
What was it like?
Oh my gosh, it was so much fun, putting up with all of Ray’s antics. There was a lot of teasing and joking — Ray says the most inappropriate things no one else could get away with.
Let’s hear the best and worst parts about working at the market
It was so social and awesome being part of the whole market community. That was the best part.
The worst part is that you can’t go [to the loo] until 10am when the bathroom opens!
What’s the difference between market culture in Brooklyn and California, where you’re from?
The most exciting thing about east coast markets is that, since there are such distinct seasons, you really anticipate the arrival of your favorites. On the west coast you can have good tomatoes all year. Here, you’re so excited for August–the anticipation makes everything taste better.
Loa and her daughter, Viola
Viola, here’s a question for you: What’s your favorite thing about “Grandpa” Ray?
[The toddler’s eyes narrow as she squeezes up her face into a mischievous grin, pulls in a breath and — we know who she takes after here — shouts…]
NOTHING!
Thank You to All the Friends of Bradley Farm
To everyone who supported Bradley Farm following the hurricanes of the 2011 season, thanks to you Ray is growing again. Special thanks to the following supporters for their generous donations: also, we know there were lots of folks literally stuffing cash into Ray’s pockets, so if you are not on this list, just let us know.
Anne Gehris • Michael Weiss • Lisa DeLisle • Daniel Freund • Betsy Herskovits • Lisa Goldberg • Linda Sklaren • Colin Schiller • Daniel Wickline • Marian Rice • Elisabeth Sher • Deirdre Winston O’Donnel • Heather Singleton • Paula Thesing • John Denver • Suzanne Creamer • Anna Klinger • Ray Leung • Sen Chan • Stephanie Wells • Emily Wassyng • Sonia Puschak • Amy Thesing • Richard Levine • Carol Sterling • Ellen Browning • Kathryn Schaper • Karen Fohrhaltz • Adam White • David Golub • Beatrice Ughi • Mary Crowley • Albano Ballerini • Kenneth Gross • Susan Dantzig • Liza Lorwin • Andrew Esterman • Marina Volchegurski • Christiane Baker • Rachel Zucker • Bethamie Horowitz • Melinda Moscow • Elizabeth Werter • Adam Fields • Melissa Clark • Miranda Stamps • Carrie Strauch • Sarah Fitzharding • Andrew Zalewski • Paula Pace • Connie Kolber • Sarah Johnson • Patricia Marold • Gretchen Cohen • Peter and Therese Kelman-Mageau • James Steele • Lynn Armentrout • Jw Choi • Naomi Allen • Richard Levine • Odella Woodson • Allison Friberg • Brock Adler • Petra Heist Spiegel • Rachael Pesner • Women in Jazz, Inc. • Susan Scanga • Ephraim Shapiro • Caroline Press • Emily Flake • Lori Cheatle • Mara Peteritas • Nancy Bradley • Judith Siegman • Mary Roma • Nancy Hallberg • Marc Stopkie • Karen McMullen • Gail Hunt Reeke • Linda Roscetti • Pamela Miller • Susan Brill • Lillian Cerrone • Diane Villani • Joan Brenner • Simon Metz • Marcia Jackson • Kenneth Karpel • Mindy Kaufman • Alexis Kraft • Susan Steingass • Angela Jane Weisl • Lawrence Brickman • Georgia Knisley • Susan Gill • Mary Morse • • Diane Duckler • Lillian Cerrone • Jackie Goodrich
Ray’s Turnips in the New York Times
Greenmarket customer and food writer Melissa Clark discovered Ray’s turnips and created this beautiful raw salad with arugula and prosciutto. Read the full article in her New York Times column, A Good Appetite.
photo © Andrew Scrivani for The New York TimesShaved Turnip Salad With Arugula and Prosciutto
Published: New York Times, November 28, 2011
Time: About 10 minutes
4 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 teaspoons honey
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Pepper
4 small turnips, about 5 ounces, peeled
8 cups arugula, wild if possible
4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, torn into bite-size pieces
1. In a small bowl, whisk the vinegar and salt until the salt dissolves. Whisk in the honey, oil and pepper.
2. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, slice the turnips into paper-thin rounds. In a large bowl, combine turnips, arugula and prosciutto. Toss with the dressing. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.
Yield: 4 servings.
Stories of Bradley Farm after the Flood
This week Ray was featured in the NYTimes, on Gilt Taste, and in an episode of the Perennial Plate. Here are the incredibly well-told and inspiring stories of how Bradley Farm and its neighbors are working to recover after the floods.
Flooded Farmers Learn to Be Creative
NY Times Food & Dining editor, Pete Wells wrote this piece about Ray and the Bradley Farm fundraising efforts after attending this past Sunday’s farm festival.
It Takes a Village to Save a Drowning Farm
This article on Gilt Taste tells about the losses suffered by Ray and his fellow farmers and how much the support of customers and friends means to them in these challenging times.
The Perennial Plate Episode 72: After the Flood
The Perennial Plate is an online weekly documentary series dedicated to socially responsible and adventurous eating. This week they tell the story of Ray and his neighbor, Pete Taliaferro, and the losses they’ve suffered in this amazing and moving video:
Thank you to everyone who came out to show their support at the Annual Farm festival on Sunday. We hope you had a great time and enjoyed all of the amazing food that Ray and his friends cooked for you. If you couldn’t make it to the event and want to help Bradley Farm recover from the floods, you can still make a donation or buy a ‘Fresh & Dirty’ t-shirt. See you at the market!
