The Minneapolis Farmer's Market is a fun place. It's not as fabulous as say, San Francisco's - what is? - but I still get a rush walking around, especially on Saturdays when it's crowded, buying beautiful veggies and thinking about all the ways I can use them. Today I picked up heirloom cherry tomatoes, for the garlicky tomato & bread gratin I made for dinner tonight (we had our neighbors the Hatzungs over for a chilly swim and warm din). I also bought (more) green beans, as well as raspberries and fingerling potatoes. We ate the green beans tonight, and the raspberries (atop a lemon picnic cake), but the potatoes I'll save for tomorrow or Monday.
Although, hmmmm, I'm not going to be making din tomorrow night since Kim, Suz, and I are heading to True Thai for our every-few-weeks dinner out. Well, luckily potatoes taste good even several days after being picked... Especially these little gems, I bought them once before from the same vendor and was pretty blown away by how
delicious they were. I'm thinking a little lemon-butter and salt will do them nicely. Can't wait.
Hey, look at that, I've been on Facebook for one full year! Thank you, Maud, for introducing another (very fun!) timesuck into my life! I think I've most enjoyed seeing everyone's pics, especially of their kids, especially of friends from high school and college that I don't get to physically see often enough. It's like an everyday reunion/Christmas card - nice! If (realistically, when) you join up, I suggest you become a fan of moderate epicurean (and painters staceyemeyer and maudbryt) to boot.
Sleep tight!
Moderate it: baking half of a cake is a nice way to not have a bunch of sweet leftovers hanging around - Whole Foods cake mixes make just one 9-inch layer. Works nicely with the lemon picnic cake recipe.
Getting Fresh
Mom Does the Minneapolis Farmer's Market
Mom and I headed over to the Farmer's Market early this morning and cashed in on lots of tasties. First off, a grilled brat for breakfast, smothered in sauteed peppers and onions, topped with kraut, relish, and mustard. With a 
beer, I would have been ready for a Badger football game! But no, instead we grabbed coffee and roamed the veggie stands, scoring sweet corn (first of the season for me), tomatoes, green beans, raspberries, potatoes, and radishes. We took a pass on the giant iced cinnamon rolls, but oh boy did they look and smell temptingly, stickily scrumptious.
I came home, pooled my treasure with booty from Thursday's CSA veggie share, and out of the bounty made myself one helluva vegetarian feast for lunch. I roasted myself an ear of corn - rarrr - then sauteed tofu with thin slices of garlic, onions, and jalapeno. I tossed pieces of summer squash, red onion, and red bell pepper with a bit of olive oil, salt, and minced fresh herbs, then skewered it all and grilled until soft and charred. And then, The Kill, I boiled a few fingerling potatoes
(tiny ones, more like thumblings, or even toelings, ha) and ate them tossed with a smidge of butter and sprinkle of Kosher salt. They were creamy and just a bit sweet (I personally don't like uber-sweet new potatoes), very potato-y, and absolutely delicious. I will most certainly be looking for those babies again.
Tonight we're heading to the Twins game for Bizarre Foods night at the Dome. Rumor has it AZ is offering Bizarre Foods-inspired tasties...I'll fill you in on any adventurous details later.
Enjoy your Sunny Saturday!
Moderate it: it's pretty hard to go wrong with food from the Farmer's Market - fresh, just-picked vegetables and fruits and locally-raised meats. Real food. Good food. Real, good-for-you food. I dig it.
Happy Bunny to You! Ahh, home. Nathan and I got off the plane from San Francisco this afternoon and went straight to my Dad & Susanna's for Easter dinner with my aunt Mary & uncle Bruce, as well as Stacey& Cooper. Couldn't ask for a sweeter way to ease back in to winter, you know? Garlicky, crusty leg of lamb with cucumber-yogurt sauce; creamy, deadly pommes dauphinoise (a Meyer-family favorite, I believe originating with my aunt Jean, recipe posted in comments below); fresh, warm bread; salad with pears and pecans; and lemon pie with whipped cream. Yeah, the food in San Fran was incredible, but home does not suck when Susanna and Mary are cooking! Even after four consecutive 70-degree sunny days, in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, it is (mostly) good to be
home - no small task, thank you Susanna & Dad!So, back to San Francisco for a moment...Nathan and I opened our Food Adventure with a Chinese dim sum feast at Tian Sing, near our hotel and very tasty. Shatteringly crisp spring rolls, delicate steamed shrimp dumplings, pillowy-soft steamed barbecue pork baos, and garlicky, crunchy Chinese broccoli... Happy start indeed, woo hoo!
Thursday we hopped on a cable car to always-hoppin' Fisherman's Wharf. It just happened to be lunchtime, so we ducked into
In-N-Out Burger before the madness hit (and oh did it hit, about three minutes after we ordered), a major highlight for Nathan. Easy enough to order at this California fast-food superstar - the menu consists of burgers and fries, baby, burgers and fries. Fresh beef + fresh-cut potatoes = deliciousness. We walked off the burger-y excess (ack) along the waterfront, cruising various piers, parks, and shops for the entire, sunny afternoon.Friday we boarded a ferry for a tour of Angel Island and Alcatraz. The appropriately named Angel Island - as in, heavenly - is the largest island in the bay and pretty much one of the most stunning places I've
ever seen. (Nathan and I ate a picnic lunch alongside this charming little cove, with a hill of fragrant eucalyptus trees behind us.) Alcatraz is stunning too, while at the same time entirely creepy and depressing. The audio walking tour is a must-do, lively and fascinating, narrated by gravelly-voiced former guards and inmates and punctuated with (very, sometimes overly!) realistic sound effects.We made it back to the hotel just in time to be picked up for dinner by my cousin Blake, who lives in San Franciso proper with his wife Tegan, daughter Gracyn (5), and son Knox (3). Blake and Knox (only the boys were able to join us for dinner) whisked us off to Sausalito (over the Golden Gate Bridge, woo hoo!) for bay-side deliciousness at Fish. Nathan had his first fish-n-chips dinner ever (thumbs up), while Knox enjoyed "chicken"-n-chips (wink), and I downed yummy grilled-fish tacos.
Saturday, sweet Saturday, we toyed with the idea of renting a convertible to drive up the coast, through wine country hills, and back to the city to catch all the breath-taking sights and scents of rural NoCal. (We decided we needed two more days - one to drive north of the city, one to drive south, to visit my aunt Jean and uncle Del - Blake's parents - in Carmel. Next time...) But we settled on an even better idea, thanks to Blake's suggestion to head first thing for the famous Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market. Oh Lord, if only we all had access to such glory! A beautiful bounty of fresh, locally grown produce and meat, available year-round (!), along the waterfront to make it, you know, ridiculously (painfully) gorgeous. Man, it was just insane. OK, I was just insane, walking around completely jealous of the locals casually buying fresh flowers, crusty bread, fresh 
pastries, organic meats, fresh fish and shellfish, artisanal cheeses, Napa Valley wines, local beers, fresh vegetables (including a whole stand of wild mushrooms!) and fruits. Picture our Minneapolis Farmers' Market (which I love) about twenty times more sophisticated and lovely. Foodie. Heaven.And then...Mexican tasties (yes, here I go again), giddily ordered at Mijita Cocina Mexicana, a permanent cafe in the Ferry Building. Fresh, authentic, a little Mexican cafe like this would clean up in Minneapolis, don't you think? I mean, I know there are lots of yummy little taquerias around, which I've admittedly totally under-explored, but this place was so accessible, and so real, I couldn't help but sigh a bit knowing there wasn't quite an equal 'round these parts. Which is probably a good thing, in the name of moderation and such... (After chowing down on carnitas with tomatillo salsa; a fresh masa quesadilla filled with cheese,
epazote, and roasted chiles; guac (of course); and chilaquiles drizzled with crema and served alongside creamy beans, we were a bit, uh, full. Good thing there's such a huge, cool Chinatown in which to walk off a Mexican feast!)Soooo...as I said, we're back in the black-n-white photo we call home, and it's...good? Lovely Easter dinner definitely smoothed the transition. A good night's sleep never hurts. It's a little sad that Spring Break '08 will soon be but a happy memory, but hopefully a spring of our own is coming to distract us - soon?!
I’m Stephanie Meyer. If you're looking for fresh, delicious food to share with those you love - welcome! In addition to the recipes you'll find here, I post Tuesday recipes at TC Taste/Minnesota Monthly magazine with a focus on local, seasonal ingredients. I also cook and take photos for Andrew Zimmern's Kitchen Adventures/Food & Wine magazine, and organize Fortify: A Food Community (formerly Minnesota Food Bloggers). Let’s eat!
