Ramah Farmers' Market - For a Growing Community

Recipes & Cooking Links

A Cook's Garden - by Barbara Damrosch Washington Post Column

Zucchini Relish
Shared by Lesley Mooseman
(An old recipe by Velma Jenkins)

12 c. chopped zucchini
4 c. chopped onion
2 chopped peppers (red, yellow, orange, or green or any como)
5 Tbsp salt

Mix the ingredients listed in a bowl or kettle. You can make multiple batches at one time. Cover and refrigerate 24 hours (overnight or longer). The next day (I have waited up to a week): Drain and rinse well with cold water. Press out the excess water. An old flour sack towel works best for pressing out the water. Line your colander with the towel and then dump in the relish. Rinse well and then wrap the towel around it to press out the water. You can also use an old pair of panty hose if you don't have a suitable towel.

In a kettle that will hold all the relish put the following ingredients:

     2- 1/2 c. vinegar (your choice)
     5 c. sugar (my original recipe called for 6 cups. 5 is still pretty sweet. You can use less or use a
               sugar substitute. Experiment for the sweetness you like!)
     1 tsp nutmeg
     1 tsp celery seed
     1 Tbsp dry mustard
     3 Tbsp cornstarch
     1 tsp turmeric
     1/2 tsp black pepper

Cook until thick. Then add the relish mixture and cook at least 30 minutes until you have the desired consistency. Put into jars while hot and seal with the lids while hot. That seems to give a good enough seal for the relish to keep. I keep it in the refrigerator for at least up to a year if it lasts that long!

Green Chile Rellenos
Shared by Pam Davis

Recently harvested fresh green chiles

Roast chiles, either on a gas grill or on a baking sheet in a very hot (450-500 degree) oven. Place chiles into plastic bags and freeze. Prepare frozen chiles for rellenos by thawing out, peeling and deseeding under running water.

Cheddar cheese
Eggs, separated
Flour
Water
Oil

Stuff chiles with cheddar cheese. Combine egg yolks, water, and a little flour to make batter. Fold in beaten egg whites. Flour the stuffed chiles and dip them in batter. Fry in oil. Another method favored by Pam’s mom JoAnn - that she liked because it was less fattening - is to skip the batter part, and place the cheese stuffed rellenos into a medium hot pan with very little oil and fry, turning once, until the cheese is melted.

Braised Okra and Tomatoes
shared by Kirk Shoemaker

4 cups sliced okra
      (frozen okra works just fine)
3 or 4 fresh tomatoes cut into chunks
      (or 1 can stewed or whole)
2 - 3 garlic cloves - chopped
1 small onion - diced
1 Tbs cooking oil
1 cup chicken or beef broth
      (2 cups if rice is added)
1/2 cup uncooked rice (optional)

Saute the garlic and onions in the hot oil until onions are translucent. Add the broth, okra, tomatoes and optionally rice. Bring to a slow boil and cook for 10 - 15 minutes, or until the okra and rice reaches your preferred "doneness".

* I cook this from an aging "memory" and the ingredients amounts are a "ballpark" estimate, and may be liberally adjusted to your preferences. Also find other similar recipe ideas and ingredients by G oogling "okra & tomatoes"

Prosciutto and Arugula Pasta
Shared by Katherine Clark

1 package Prosciutto or
thinly sliced ham
Arugula
Basil
2 medium fresh tomatoes, diced
Red or white wine (optional)
Basil
Parmesan
Garlic (optional)
Fresh Italian parsley (optional)
Linguine

Argula

Dry prosciutto or ham in a saucepan on low heat or place on rack in oven, until you have a slightly dried, soft 'jerky" effect.

Sauté fresh tomatoes, about 2 medium, for 1 package of prosciutto, and
add garlic at this time. A splash of any leftover red or white wine is always
good.

Get our linguine going and have the arugula ready to add. As soon as sauce looks cooked but intact, about 15-20 minutes, drain pasta, (always reserve as the Italians do, a small amount of pasta water in case you want sauce juicier), and toss sauce and raw arugula in with pasta. Distribute prosciutto on top. Place parmesan on table for grating and serve immediately.

Open Face Oyster Poor Boy - Shared by Kristi Davis

Dredge raw oysters from a jar in flour, egg and bread crumbs. Sauté lightly in butter until done. Prepare French bread open face by spreading with garlic mayonnaise. Add fresh sorrel leaves and oysters.
Voila!

Classic Sorrel Soup - Shared by Kristi Davis

Simmer very gently a few minutes until sufficiently wilted, 2 cups of sorrel leaves in 4 or 5 cups of chicken broth. Season to taste with garlic. Put into blender with whipping cream and puree. Serve.

Check back for more recipes from
our Ramah Farmers' Market Growers

Soon you will be able to save recipes to
your computer and easily print them

What is
this Stuff?

(And how do I cook it?)

Growers receive many questions about the produce they grow and sell at the market: Here is a brief primer on some of the less familiar greens now available at the Market:

Okra?
Perhaps next year at the Market!

Who said Okra won't grow way up here at 7200'
in our short 3 month growing season?

While not yet available at Ramah Farmer's Market, I thought some of you might be interested in my "Garden Lab" experiment to grow Okra.

First off... What is Okra? And How do I Cook It?

Okra is indigenous to Africa , and was brought to the United States and the West Indies by African Slaves some 3 centuries ago. Since then Okra has become a popular food vegetable, especially amongst African Americans in the Southern United States, where the climate is well suited for it's growth.

Okra is a member of the Mallow family and is closely related to the Hibiscus and cotton plants, it bears large yellow flowers and is sometimes planted in flower gardens for the display of yellow flowers it produces.

Okra is a mucilaginous plant as such it gives off a slippery/sticky substance when cut. This substance gives okra it's thickening properties. This is why it is so useful in soups and stews. However, when used raw or as a vegetable it shouldn't be cut into too small pieces, as the more it is cut, the stickier it becomes.

Okra is used raw, pickled or cooked on it's own and compliments tomatoes, onions, eggplant, corn and peppers. Many people prefer to eat Okra fried or breaded as this reduces it's slipperyness. Read More

Here are some Okra recipes:

Okra Soup Curried Okra Fried Okra
Fried Okra & Potatoes Okra & Shrimp
Chicken & Okra Gumbo
see recipe - left column

Back to my Okra Experiment. Before I moved near El Morro last September, I lived in SE Texas from 2000 - 2009. During the last 6 years, after I retired and started gardening, I became familiar with, and a fan of Okra. The hot, humid south east Texas Summer resembles central Africa's climate, and is ideal for growing Okra. My plants grew to over 11' tall and by September I had to climb a ladder to harvest the Okra pods.

This spring, in late May, I decided to plant some Okra seeds in the "Green Box" (raised bed) that Vicky and Frank left behind. Several local gardeners told me Okra would not grow here, but I went ahead anyway. Well, the seeds did sprout and grow, and even though their 3 foot stature is dwarfed by my 11+ feet Texas plants, they still are producing the beautiful yellow flowers which are turning into the okra pods. I imagine that if I had planted the seeds indoors in March or April and transplanted them outdoors in June in fertile ground with full sun, that they would have produced enough Okra to make several tasty Gumbos!! (just one this year).

So perhaps, we will see some Okra for sale at Ramah Farmer's Market, next August and September... who knows?

Kirk Shoemaker, El Morro, hobby gardener

In his book Four Season Harvest, Eliot Coleman in Maine, and a Zone 5 gardener (like us), describes how his visits to the Provence region in France enlightened him to the enormous variety of greens the French value as additions to their year round salads. He has this to say about mixed species salad greens:

“The best salads are patterns of mixed greenery. These (see below) enhance that mix by adding new shapes, textures and flavors… The following are probably unfamiliar to many gardeners. If you are one of the unacquainted, give them a try. They are jewels of the winter garden. Once you try them, you will share our enthusiasm”.

The following three greens from Coleman’s list are offered at the Ramah Farmers’ Market:

Arugula (eruca sativa) - has long been a popular crop in Europe. "…when grown under cool conditions it has a mild but distinctive flavor. September plantings of its hardier wild relative Sylvetta (Diplotaxis tenuifolia) (Wild Arugula) are harvestable through the winter months.” Arugula is also known as "Rocket". Both do well In Ramah, with its cool summer nights.

Mizuna (brassica rapa) - is a mild and delicate oriental plant with a slight mustard flavor. Its deeply fringed leaves are as lovely in a salad mix as they are delicious.

Sorrel (rumex acetosa), also called garden sorrel, shares the lemon piquancy and tang of the common weed from which it was developed, but it has larger leaves and is much more productive. Sorrel holds a unique place among salad greens because it is a perennial…Half a dozen plants …will provide plenty of leaves for salads and classic sorrel soup…

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