We’re finally enjoying some cold weather, and looking forward to the holidays. This is a great time to hit the farmers market, when there are so many more interesting offerings than during the dry, hot summer months. Here’s a salad plate I made for my husband (trying to offer him something healthy after one of his bike rides), using some leftover duck confit, espresso-rubbed cheese, and seasonal produce from the farmers market. Pretty, isn’t it?
There are watermelon radishes, pomegranate arils, arugula sprouts, and dried figs:
and persimmons, baby mustard greens with a sweet lemon vinaigrette, and slivers of candy-striped chioggia beets:
We only recently discovered the fuyu persimmons at the farmers market, and we’re crazy about them. When they’re first ripe, they’re firm and crunchy, with a taste like a combination of apple and carrot. As they ripen, they become slightly softer, but develop this wonderful sweet honey-like flavor..
Although I’m not cooking for Thanksgiving this year (hallelujah!), I couldn’t let the holiday pass without making a batch of Fresh Cranberry Relish. I was introduced to this recipe by my mother-in-law, and I love the freshness of the ingredients and the sweet/tart pop of flavor, not to mention the beautiful color it adds to the Thanksgiving plate.
- 1 large honeycrisp apple (or favorite apple), cored and coarsely chopped, including peel
- I medium orange, seeded and coarsely chopped, including rind
- ½ pound fresh cranberries
- ¼ cup pecans
- ⅓ cup sugar, or to taste
- Place apple in bowl of food processor and process until coarsely chopped. Transfer apple to a medium bowl. Repeat with orange, cranberries, and pecans, [b]processing each separately[/b] and then transferring to bowl with apple. Add sugar and mix until all ingredients are combined. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Cranberry Relish gets gobbled up fast!
