21 August 2008

Basil, Beans, Eggplant, Garlic, Lettuce, Onions, Peppers, Paper Lantern and Anaheim or Ancho hot peppers, Potatoes, Squash, Tomatoes, Cherry tomatoes

           It has been my habit over the years to celebrate Washington County Fair week by offering cooking tips inspired by the food available at the fairgrounds.  Actually, the standard suggestion is that you leave the bag as it comes packed, dip the whole thing in a light batter and deep fry it.  It is hard to quibble with the simplicity of the preparation.  At most, all you would need to accompany it is a dipping sauce, and in my estimation you would do far better merely to sprinkle on some sea salt and a little malt vinegar.  If you find yourself still a bit peckish after polishing off the bag (you will want to eat it all right away; fritters do not age well) you might consider getting some fried dough or a funnel cake, always an excellent way to end a meal.

         I cannot, for some reason, get over the feeling that nobody has yet followed this cooking advice.  I am aware that some people have minor health concerns about fried foods, even fried vegetables, though as we all know vegetables are good for you.  But I suspect these concerns have little to do with it, and that it is instead in large part due to nothing more than a lack of proper equipment.  After all, how many of us have a large enough deep fat fryer at home to handle an entire bag of vegetables at once?

         If this is indeed what is stopping you right now from whipping up that batter and heating that oil, you might consider several possible solutions.  The most obvious, of course, is finally purchasing that industrial sized fryer you have had your eye on all these years.  And why not treat yourself.  You will be amazed just how many kitchen tasks become easier once you have that baby up and running. 

            If you find yourself balking at switching to commercial equipment, you could of course take the various vegetables out of the bag and fry them up separately.  The effect, both visual and culinary, of the final dish will not be quite the same.  But I think you will find the results entirely satisfactory. 

         And if that does not work for you, I guess you could always toss out the share and head to the fair, where you will find plenty of people with adequately sized fryers waiting to help you up your grease intake.

         On the way there this Saturday, you could stop in at the farm.  You may not find any fried foods here (and then again, you might).  But you will have a chance to walk around the fields (many parts of which may even have dried out by then), meet the large pig (bigger by far than any of the pigs at the fair) and pull up a weed or two.  The folks who came out to the farm last Saturday for Weedfest—many thanks to all of you who did—were kind enough to leave a few of them (though a lot fewer of them) for someone else.  There’s much to be said for weeding.  It’s great (and surprising rare) to have tangible results for your efforts.  It gives you a useful sense of what it takes to produce food.  It helps the farm.  But best of all it is a proven way to increase your appetite, which will come in handy later in the day at the fair as you eye a second funnel cake.  So come to the farm this Saturday between 10 and 2.  We will provide drinks and snacks and enough weeds to go around. 

         Oh, and in case you were wondering, many of the vegetables in your share this week can be eaten unfried—if absolutely necessary.  That includes the small red hot pepper in the cherry tomato bag, which while well short of lethal certainly packs enough heat to add a notable spiciness to any dish.  I bet it would be excellent pureed into some batter for spicy eggplant fritters and onion rings.

 

 

 

Directions to The Alleged Farm:

 

1. 787 north to exit for Route 7 east toward Troy and Bennington.
2. Take Route 7 east (Hoosick St) to second stop light and turn left onto Route 40 north (Oakwood Ave).
3. Go 18+ miles north on Route 40 and turn right onto Meetinghouse Road.
4. Follow the paved portion of Meetinghouse Road for 1.5 miles to a sort of fork in the road, where you will bear left (straight) onto the dirt road portion of Meetinghouse Road (paved road curves off hard to the right and becomes South Cambridge Road).
5. Go 1 mile on the dirt road portion of Meetinghouse Road (up and over the hill) to the intersection with Cooke Hollow Road. The Alleged Farm is on the right at this intersection – blue house with red barns.