It has been a while since I shared a Mark Bittman piece on this blog. It's not that they haven't been worth sharing but I wanted to avoid the trap of simply linking every week to the inestimable Mr. Bittman. Come to think of it, might not be a bad idea. His latest is a piece about a new organization under the arm of the AmeriCorps program called the FoodCorps:

50 new foot soldiers in the war against ignorance in food. The service members, most of them in their 20s, just went to work at 41 sites in 10 states, from Maine to Oregon and Michigan to Mississippi. (FoodCorps concentrates on communities with high rates of childhood obesity or limited access to healthy food, though these days every state has communities like that.)

For a total budget of less than $2 million (mostly from foundations), this crew will be out there teaching kids about nutrition, showing them how to create gardens and generally connecting them with their food so that maybe they start think of food as something that comes from the ground, not from a box. It's a great program considering how moribund and underfunded nutrition education is AND how much cash is poured into anti-nutritious marketing. ($2 million is what McDonald's probably pays for one spot during the NFL's big game.) So where could a co-op fit into this? Time to engage in the "vision" thing for a second. But first, this would be a good time to remind ourselves of the mission of the South Philly Food Co-op:

To open a member-owned cooperative grocery store that provides nutritious food to all residents of South Philadelphia while empowering the local community through sustainable practices, food-centric education, outreach, and community building.

That's the difference with a cooperatively owned grocery store. When the profits stay in the community, the member-owners can decide to put some it towards, say, "adopt a Food Corps" and helping to subsidize part of their $15k annual salary. In exchange, the Co-op would be the base of operations for this foot foot soldier (or squad of them) and become a working classroom where parents and children learn how to find the best food at the fairest prices and what to do with it once they get home. End result: a healthier, fitter community; healthy, active kids whose brains are on full power. Together, we will own not just a food store but a social club, a place to learn, and the best kind of health care facility: one that helps prevent bad health from happening in the first place. Oh yeah... and buy your Garden Tour tickets.

 

It's August, and that means tomatoes, so the first word that comes to mind whenever I'm trying to pull together a simple dinner is caprese. There are few food combinations that work as well as mozzarella, basil and tomato. You can melt them all together in a sandwich. You can toss them all together with pasta. You can stick them on skewers and call them appetizers, or just stack them in slices and call it a side salad.

I wanted to make a more substantial meal of it, and one easy answer for that is polenta. I had beautiful basil that I got at the farm market because I have officially killed my fourth basil plant of the season.

You can buy your polenta pre-made in a tube, or you can make it very easily with cornmeal, water and salt. Butter if you're fancy. Stock instead of water. I buy the cornmeal that's actually marked "polenta" because it's milled more finely and I prefer the texture, but really, it's just cornmeal. You can add herbs and cheese and all sorts of stuff while you're making it. I tend to make it boring so it's ready to be used in any application. You can make it up, cut it into cubes or slices or whatever and freeze it so it's always ready, but it only takes 20 minutes to make from scratch.

So start with some made up polenta, and let it chill a good while so it firms up. At least an hour, but a day works great. I set mine up in a pie pan, but whatever works for you. I aim for 1-inch cubes, but I don't bust out the ruler or anything.

So cube up the polenta (I used about a third of a recipe for this salad - I made two cups dry and used way less) and freeze any extra.

Coat the bottom of a pan with olive oil and turn up to medium high. Add polenta when the oil is hot (drop of water pops).

And shallow fry, turning to brown each side. About 3 minutes per side. Touch the polenta to check for crispness. It should have a nice toasty feel on all sides.

Drain the polenta on a towel and discard any remaining oil.

While the pan is warm and just slightly greased, add some tomatoes and turn to med-low.

 

Toss them around in the hot pan a bit, to warm them up, but not enough to make them mushy.

I used massaged kale for the base, because I have a kale addiction, but you could do this over any sort of lettuce.

A few pieces of polenta,

a good bit of fresh mozzarella,

 warm tomatoes,

 and lots of fresh basil.

Toss that together with some reduced balsamic vinegar and a pinch of salt and pepper and you have a chunky and filling salad.

This made three nice servings, and of course we had leftover polenta to freeze.

This recipe is cross-posted at Saturday’s Mouse, where I’m working on making food out of food. 

Ingredients

• 12 1-inch cubes polenta


• 1/2 cup basil, chopped


• 2 large tomatoes, cut into pieces


• 2 tablespoons olive oil


• 1 cup fresh mozzarella balls, cut in quarters


• 3 tablespoons balsamic reduction


• kosher salt to taste


• 2 cups massaged kale or other salad greens

Instructions

• Shallow fry polenta in olive oil until lightly browned and crispy on all sides.


• Remove polenta to towel to drain.


• Drain remaining oil from pan and add chopped tomatoes. Toss to warm.


• Add polenta, tomatoes, mozzarella and basil to greens or kale to make salads.


• Drizzle with balsamic reduction and sprinkle with salt to taste.


• Makes three servings, serve warm.

Details

• Prep time: 5 mins


• Cook time: 15 mins


• Total time: 20 mins


• Yield: 3 servings

 

It's August, and that means tomatoes, so the first word that comes to mind whenever I'm trying to pull together a simple dinner is caprese. There are few food combinations that work as well as mozzarella, basil and tomato. You can melt them all together in a sandwich. You can toss them all together with pasta. You can stick them on skewers and call them appetizers, or just stack them in slices and call it a side salad. I wanted to make a more substantial meal of it, and one easy answer for that is polenta. I had beautiful basil that I got at the farm market because I have officially killed my fourth basil plant of the season. You can buy your polenta pre-made in a tube, or you can make it very easily with cornmeal, water and salt. Butter if you're fancy. Stock instead of water. I buy the cornmeal that's actually marked "polenta" because it's milled more finely and I prefer the texture, but really, it's just cornmeal. You can add herbs and cheese and all sorts of stuff while you're making it. I tend to make it boring so it's ready to be used in any application. You can make it up, cut it into cubes or slices or whatever and freeze it so it's always ready, but it only takes 20 minutes to make from scratch. So start with some made up polenta, and let it chill a good while so it firms up. At least an hour, but a day works great. I set mine up in a pie pan, but whatever works for you. I aim for 1-inch cubes, but I don't bust out the ruler or anything. So cube up the polenta (I used about a third of a recipe for this salad - I made two cups dry and used way less) and freeze any extra. Coat the bottom of a pan with olive oil and turn up to medium high. Add polenta when the oil is hot (drop of water pops). And shallow fry, turning to brown each side. About 3 minutes per side. Touch the polenta to check for crispness. It should have a nice toasty feel on all sides. Drain the polenta on a towel and discard any remaining oil. While the pan is warm and just slightly greased, add some tomatoes and turn to med-low.   Toss them around in the hot pan a bit, to warm them up, but not enough to make them mushy. I used massaged kale for the base, because I have a kale addiction, but you could do this over any sort of lettuce. A few pieces of polenta, a good bit of fresh mozzarella,  warm tomatoes,  and lots of fresh basil. Toss that together with some reduced balsamic vinegar and a pinch of salt and pepper and you have a chunky and filling salad. This made three nice servings, and of course we had leftover polenta to freeze. This recipe is cross-posted at Saturday’s Mouse, where I’m working on making food out of food.  Ingredients

• 12 1-inch cubes polenta
• 1/2 cup basil, chopped
• 2 large tomatoes, cut into pieces
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup fresh mozzarella balls, cut in quarters
• 3 tablespoons balsamic reduction
• kosher salt to taste
• 2 cups massaged kale or other salad greens

Instructions

• Shallow fry polenta in olive oil until lightly browned and crispy on all sides.
• Remove polenta to towel to drain.
• Drain remaining oil from pan and add chopped tomatoes. Toss to warm.
• Add polenta, tomatoes, mozzarella and basil to greens or kale to make salads.
• Drizzle with balsamic reduction and sprinkle with salt to taste.
• Makes three servings, serve warm.

Details

• Prep time: 5 mins
• Cook time: 15 mins
• Total time: 20 mins
• Yield: 3 servings

(In the interest of blogger etiquette, you'll have to click through the links below to see the charts since I didn't create them myself. But keep reading for even more fuel for the why we need to change our food system argument and how a co-op can do its small part.) I've been meaning to share this post from Grist's food section for a long time. You can see the date, I've had it sitting in my queue since April. Better late than never! The main point is that from 1970 to 2008 the American food system has gone from producing 2,168 calories per day per person to 2,673 calories per day per person. As if consuming about 500 more calories per day weren't bad enough (not to mention the toll that producing 500 extra calories per day per person for about 105 million more persons takes on the environment), the portion of those calories that come from added sugar and added fat (the sugar and fat not naturally found in whole foods but added to food during its processing) has gone from 37 percent to 41 percent. Basically, on average, we're producing/consuming 300 more calories from added sugar and added fat per day than the average bell-bottom wearing, Grand Funk Railroad listening 1970 American. So if you click through to the Grist post it will take you to another post that has a fun (wait, I mean horrifying) chart that shows the change in the make-up of the American diet between 1970 and 2008. 2008 is the last year of available data. I have a feeling it hasn't gotten better since then. Silly Grist even suggests that if the food processing industry simply cut the number of calories per person per day that it produces down from 1100 to 550, our total caloric intake would be back around where it was in 1970. You know... when everyone was skinny (though, in fairness, a lot of the skinniness was achieved by smoking). As if those numbers and charts weren't enough to send you into a rage for change, Vegansaurus rages on about another pretty well known inequity in our food system: the percentage of agricultural subsidies that go towards meat and dairy (that would be 63) vs the percentage that goes towards fruits and vegetables (that would be 1). Grains, sugar, starch, oil and alcohol combine for 35 percent. I highly recommend that you click through to read what she has to say if you're looking for some colorful language to take with you to your next cocktail party when you can preach to your friends about these issues (which probably explains why I don't get invited to as many cocktail parties as I used to). She says something about a breast pump and social change that you won't want to miss. So, loyal readers, any idea what we can do about this situation? Even more importantly, how can a co-op become an agent of this change? This isn't a quiz so there are no wrong answers. Fire away in the comments. (Oh yeah... and if you haven't done so already "Like" us on Facebook and vote for us in this great contest sponsored by Intuit. We could part of $50,000 in grants toward start-up costs!)

(In the interest of blogger etiquette, you'll have to click through the links below to see the charts since I didn't create them myself. But keep reading for even more fuel for the why we need to change our food system argument and how a co-op can do its small part.) I've been meaning to share this post from Grist's food section for a long time. You can see the date, I've had it sitting in my queue since April. Better late than never! The main point is that from 1970 to 2008 the American food system has gone from producing 2,168 calories per day per person to 2,673 calories per day per person. As if consuming about 500 more calories per day weren't bad enough (not to mention the toll that producing 500 extra calories per day per person for about 105 million more persons takes on the environment), the portion of those calories that come from added sugar and added fat (the sugar and fat not naturally found in whole foods but added to food during its processing) has gone from 37 percent to 41 percent. Basically, on average, we're producing/consuming 300 more calories from added sugar and added fat per day than the average bell-bottom wearing, Grand Funk Railroad listening 1970 American. So if you click through to the Grist post it will take you to another post that has a fun (wait, I mean horrifying) chart that shows the change in the make-up of the American diet between 1970 and 2008. 2008 is the last year of available data. I have a feeling it hasn't gotten better since then. Silly Grist even suggests that if the food processing industry simply cut the number of calories per person per day that it produces down from 1100 to 550, our total caloric intake would be back around where it was in 1970. You know... when everyone was skinny (though, in fairness, a lot of the skinniness was achieved by smoking). As if those numbers and charts weren't enough to send you into a rage for change, Vegansaurus rages on about another pretty well known inequity in our food system: the percentage of agricultural subsidies that go towards meat and dairy (that would be 63) vs the percentage that goes towards fruits and vegetables (that would be 1). Grains, sugar, starch, oil and alcohol combine for 35 percent. I highly recommend that you click through to read what she has to say if you're looking for some colorful language to take with you to your next cocktail party when you can preach to your friends about these issues (which probably explains why I don't get invited to as many cocktail parties as I used to). She says something about a breast pump and social change that you won't want to miss. So, loyal readers, any idea what we can do about this situation? Even more importantly, how can a co-op become an agent of this change? This isn't a quiz so there are no wrong answers. Fire away in the comments. (Oh yeah... and if you haven't done so already "Like" us on Facebook and vote for us in this great contest sponsored by Intuit. We could part of $50,000 in grants toward start-up costs!)

I had these poblanos, because I went to Headhouse for one poblano (and other things) and they were going for next to nothing by the pint. This is how I ended up with all those jalepenos that one time. But poblanos are nothing to worry about. They're a notch or two above a bell pepper, in terms of heat. But what to do with them? Luckily it rained. Why is that lucky? Because poblanos do well roasted or baked. They get slightly sweet and tender and they just want to be cooked in the oven. And finally, we had a cool night. I mean right now, it's 72 degrees out. Quick, make a lasagna! Put on a sweater! We'll be back to the 90s tomorrow. So late-ish in the evening, Sous Chef Brian and I were staring at the whiteboard in the kitchen, the one that lists all the stuff we have to use up. Damn if I can find a way to use fresh mozzarella without fresh basil or fresh tomatoes, so that was out. Carrots. Yeah, carrots. Yogurt. Blueberries. But I also had good local corn. So good that the corn salesguy (you know, the guy who sells you corn) said it'd be a waste to cook it, and that we should eat it raw. So corn it was. Note the cooked corn sacrifice. So I got to Googling stuffed poblanos. Not that I can't put my own stuff inside a pepper, and I did, but I wanted to know what was out there. You know what's out there? One recipe. Everyone makes the same thing. It's from a Martha Stewart Cookbook, and seriously, there are a dozen re-creations out there. I'm no Martha fan, but that woman deserves royalties on this one. I make the mistake of imagining everyone is exactly like me. I search recipes when I'm going to cook something new, to find out what others have learned before me. Do I really need to marinate it? Should I take off the lid towards the end? But in the end, I aggregate what I've read and what's in the fridge. If it's close, I cite the source (see Martha above), but unless it's something totally unfamiliar, I make stuff out of what I've got. And I write my blog imagining you do the same. Here's how I do it, now do it your way with your own fridge. But apparently this one was hot enough for lots of folks to replicate. So I followed some of Martha's guidance. But mine has a peppery sauce and roasted corn and no cornmeal or cumin. Let's begin. We started, of course, with the poblanos. Two each.

 Uncapped them.

And Sous Chef Brian hollowed them out.

 

Hollow them out carefully - one got slashed in the process, so we cut it up and set it aside. I had a backup, so we're still at two each.

I put an ear of that beautiful, fresh, eat-it-raw corn on the stove. Just on it. If you don't have a gas stove, use your grill, because a match would take forever.

I moved it around a few times, and then Sous Chef Brian un-cobbed it. Shucked it? I don't know. Set it free. We also diced up a cippolini onion, because that's what we had, and set half aside and put the other half in a bowl with the corn.

I added just a few tablespoons of black beans. Soaked and cooked, canned, or even drained out of soup would work.

And some jarred jalepenos, because it's what I had, but fresh is best.

 And cheese. We had a fairly boring local cheddar, but I'd love to have used my favorite Hillacres Pride smoked cheddar. Or some pepperjack or something.

That all goes into the bowl with the corn and the beans and such, and we call it stuffing.

 Stuff the peppers.

More than that. Wedge it in there.

I used a chopstick to make sure it got all the way in. Now the oven. Don't do this when it's 90 out. Dial it up to 450. Ok, breathe a moment and make sauce. I had nearly two cups of tomatoes without skins but with juice. You could use a 14oz can of whatever for this. Plus the reserved half an onion.

And the poblano from earlier that didn't make it. Seriously, buy five, and the one that suffers the most in the hollowing-out process gets added to the sauce. So worth it.

I also added half a can of these, but you could just roast your own red pepper, like the corn above. Pepper, stove, paper bag, 10 minutes, rinse. I used about 4oz of roasted pepper.

 And some terribly-photographed salt and pepper. 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/4 tsp kosher salt.

And blend until smooth. Then I searched my kitchen for the baking dish that would fit the peppers the tightest. I thought crowding the pan would keep them together and keep the sauce on top of them. This was the best I could do. And sauce. Be sure to get sauce under the peppers as well. And I had a bit more cheese on hand, so I added it now, but you'd do better to wait. 40 minutes covered, then cheese and 15 minutes uncovered. Note my burned cheese. Leaving it uncovered at the end helps the sauce thicken (thanks, Martha). My sauce looks like it's had a rough day. This would be good over rice, if you're rice-oriented. I am not. Four peppers served two pretty well (see the rice note). Might still be an ice cream night. They were outstanding. I added no dried spices (ok, salt and pepper, but really) and they were bright and fresh tasting. Just cheesy enough. The jalepeno added just enough heat to start to hit the back of your throat, but not enough to send you for the milk. This recipe is cross-posted at Saturday’s Mouse, where I’m working on making food out of food.  Ingredients

• 5 poblano peppers
• 1 ear corn
• 1 small onion
• 3 tablespoons black beans, cooked
• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar
• 1 3/4 cups tomatoes, seedless, skinless in juice
• 2 tablespoons jalepeno, sliced
• 4 oz roasted red pepper
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Hollow out four poblanos, and chop one and set aside. Reserve caps.
• Roast corn on gas stove or grill, turning regularly until charred. Remove kernels from corn with a sharp knife.
• For filling, dice an onion, reserve half and add half to filling bowl. Add corn, jalepeno, black beans and most of the shredded cheese to stuffing bowl.
• For sauce, Blend tomatoes, roasted pepper, reserved poblano, reserved onion and salt and pepper.
• Preheat oven to 450. Stuff poblanos with filling, using fingers, chopsticks, or whatever's necessary to get it to the bottom of the pepper. Use all the filling, if possible.
• Arrange poblanos in a small baking dish, and replace caps. Cover with sauce.
• Bake covered for 40 minutes at 450. Remove cover, add any remaining cheese and bake another 15 minutes.
• Serve with remaining sauce from pan.

Details

• Prep time: 20 mins
• Cook time: 1 hour
• Total time: 1 hour 20 mins
• Yield: 2 servings

I had these poblanos, because I went to Headhouse for one poblano (and other things) and they were going for next to nothing by the pint. This is how I ended up with all those jalepenos that one time. But poblanos are nothing to worry about. They're a notch or two above a bell pepper, in terms of heat. But what to do with them? Luckily it rained.

Why is that lucky? Because poblanos do well roasted or baked. They get slightly sweet and tender and they just want to be cooked in the oven. And finally, we had a cool night. I mean right now, it's 72 degrees out. Quick, make a lasagna! Put on a sweater! We'll be back to the 90s tomorrow.

So late-ish in the evening, Sous Chef Brian and I were staring at the whiteboard in the kitchen, the one that lists all the stuff we have to use up. Damn if I can find a way to use fresh mozzarella without fresh basil or fresh tomatoes, so that was out. Carrots. Yeah, carrots. Yogurt. Blueberries. But I also had good local corn. So good that the corn salesguy (you know, the guy who sells you corn) said it'd be a waste to cook it, and that we should eat it raw. So corn it was. Note the cooked corn sacrifice.

So I got to Googling stuffed poblanos. Not that I can't put my own stuff inside a pepper, and I did, but I wanted to know what was out there. You know what's out there? One recipe. Everyone makes the same thing. It's from a Martha Stewart Cookbook, and seriously, there are a dozen re-creations out there. I'm no Martha fan, but that woman deserves royalties on this one.

I make the mistake of imagining everyone is exactly like me. I search recipes when I'm going to cook something new, to find out what others have learned before me. Do I really need to marinate it? Should I take off the lid towards the end? But in the end, I aggregate what I've read and what's in the fridge. If it's close, I cite the source (see Martha above), but unless it's something totally unfamiliar, I make stuff out of what I've got. And I write my blog imagining you do the same. Here's how I do it, now do it your way with your own fridge. But apparently this one was hot enough for lots of folks to replicate.

So I followed some of Martha's guidance. But mine has a peppery sauce and roasted corn and no cornmeal or cumin. Let's begin.

We started, of course, with the poblanos. Two each.

 Uncapped them.

And Sous Chef Brian hollowed them out.

 

Hollow them out carefully - one got slashed in the process, so we cut it up and set it aside. I had a backup, so we're still at two each.

I put an ear of that beautiful, fresh, eat-it-raw corn on the stove. Just on it. If you don't have a gas stove, use your grill, because a match would take forever.

I moved it around a few times, and then Sous Chef Brian un-cobbed it. Shucked it? I don't know. Set it free.

We also diced up a cippolini onion, because that's what we had, and set half aside and put the other half in a bowl with the corn.

I added just a few tablespoons of black beans. Soaked and cooked, canned, or even drained out of soup would work.

And some jarred jalepenos, because it's what I had, but fresh is best.

 And cheese. We had a fairly boring local cheddar, but I'd love to have used my favorite Hillacres Pride smoked cheddar. Or some pepperjack or something.

That all goes into the bowl with the corn and the beans and such, and we call it stuffing.
 Stuff the peppers.

More than that. Wedge it in there.

I used a chopstick to make sure it got all the way in.

Now the oven. Don't do this when it's 90 out. Dial it up to 450.

Ok, breathe a moment and make sauce.

I had nearly two cups of tomatoes without skins but with juice. You could use a 14oz can of whatever for this. Plus the reserved half an onion.

And the poblano from earlier that didn't make it. Seriously, buy five, and the one that suffers the most in the hollowing-out process gets added to the sauce. So worth it.

I also added half a can of these, but you could just roast your own red pepper, like the corn above. Pepper, stove, paper bag, 10 minutes, rinse. I used about 4oz of roasted pepper.

 And some terribly-photographed salt and pepper. 1/2 tsp pepper, 1/4 tsp kosher salt.


And blend until smooth.

Then I searched my kitchen for the baking dish that would fit the peppers the tightest. I thought crowding the pan would keep them together and keep the sauce on top of them. This was the best I could do.



And sauce. Be sure to get sauce under the peppers as well.



And I had a bit more cheese on hand, so I added it now, but you'd do better to wait.

40 minutes covered, then cheese and 15 minutes uncovered. Note my burned cheese. Leaving it uncovered at the end helps the sauce thicken (thanks, Martha).



My sauce looks like it's had a rough day.



This would be good over rice, if you're rice-oriented. I am not. Four peppers served two pretty well (see the rice note). Might still be an ice cream night.

They were outstanding. I added no dried spices (ok, salt and pepper, but really) and they were bright and fresh tasting. Just cheesy enough. The jalepeno added just enough heat to start to hit the back of your throat, but not enough to send you for the milk.

This recipe is cross-posted at Saturday’s Mouse, where I’m working on making food out of food. 

Ingredients

• 5 poblano peppers


• 1 ear corn


• 1 small onion


• 3 tablespoons black beans, cooked


• 1/4 cup shredded cheddar


• 1 3/4 cups tomatoes, seedless, skinless in juice


• 2 tablespoons jalepeno, sliced


• 4 oz roasted red pepper


• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• Hollow out four poblanos, and chop one and set aside. Reserve caps.


• Roast corn on gas stove or grill, turning regularly until charred. Remove kernels from corn with a sharp knife.


• For filling, dice an onion, reserve half and add half to filling bowl. Add corn, jalepeno, black beans and most of the shredded cheese to stuffing bowl.


• For sauce, Blend tomatoes, roasted pepper, reserved poblano, reserved onion and salt and pepper.


• Preheat oven to 450. Stuff poblanos with filling, using fingers, chopsticks, or whatever's necessary to get it to the bottom of the pepper. Use all the filling, if possible.


• Arrange poblanos in a small baking dish, and replace caps. Cover with sauce.


• Bake covered for 40 minutes at 450. Remove cover, add any remaining cheese and bake another 15 minutes.


• Serve with remaining sauce from pan.

Details

• Prep time: 20 mins


• Cook time: 1 hour


• Total time: 1 hour 20 mins


• Yield: 2 servings

Here we are, in the throes of summer heat! Personally, I love the all the food that comes with summer. Whether you’re talking about a fresh tomato, juicy watermelon, or a grilled piece of meat, I’m all about it. It’s great to be eating and drinking al fresco too, but when the temperatures climb close to 100 degrees, it’s just too hot to do anything, let alone cook in a hot kitchen. But you have to eat, you can’t eat take-out every night, and who has the energy to cook when it’s so stupid hot outside? This dish is an almost no-cook meal, especially if you buy a grocery store rotisserie chicken. Great for a summer time dinner or to pack for your honey’s lunch. It goes together in a few minutes. Serve on pumpernickel with some tender butter lettuce or watercress. And some potato chips. What? I love chips. Apricot Almond Chicken Salad with Lemon Poppy Buttermilk Dressing Serves 5-6 people

• 1.5 lbs bone-in skin-on chicken breasts (usually 2 breasts, or buy a whole chicken from the deli section of your grocery)
• 1.5 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp canola oil
• fresh ground black pepper

1. Dry brine your chicken breasts by rubbing the salt all over them and resting in the fridge for 3-4 hours. Then dry off the chicken and season with canola oil and pepper. 2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and roast your chicken for 40 minutes or until it reaches 163 degrees. Don’t worry it’ll keep cooking, and you chicken will be perfect and moist. 3. Chill the chicken. Or if you are using a grocery store chicken...you are here already. 4. Pull the chicken off the bone and large dice. Place in a medium bowl with....

• 10 dried apricots, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup toasted almonds, sliced or slivered
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
• 1/3 cup celery, finely diced

Stir together the following to make the yummy dressing and combine with the chicken and other ingredients:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 3 tbsp buttermilk
• 3/4 tsp lemon zest
• 3 tsp poppy seeds
• 1/2 tsp fresh black pepper
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

That's it. Enjoy!

Here we are, in the throes of summer heat! Personally, I love the all the food that comes with summer. Whether you’re talking about a fresh tomato, juicy watermelon, or a grilled piece of meat, I’m all about it. It’s great to be eating and drinking al fresco too, but when the temperatures climb close to 100 degrees, it’s just too hot to do anything, let alone cook in a hot kitchen. But you have to eat, you can’t eat take-out every night, and who has the energy to cook when it’s so stupid hot outside?

This dish is an almost no-cook meal, especially if you buy a grocery store rotisserie chicken. Great for a summer time dinner or to pack for your honey’s lunch. It goes together in a few minutes.

Serve on pumpernickel with some tender butter lettuce or watercress. And some potato chips. What? I love chips.

Apricot Almond Chicken Salad with Lemon Poppy Buttermilk Dressing
Serves 5-6 people

• 1.5 lbs bone-in skin-on chicken breasts (usually 2 breasts, or buy a whole chicken from the deli section of your grocery)
• 1.5 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp canola oil
• fresh ground black pepper

1. Dry brine your chicken breasts by rubbing the salt all over them and resting in the fridge for 3-4 hours. Then dry off the chicken and season with canola oil and pepper.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and roast your chicken for 40 minutes or until it reaches 163 degrees. Don’t worry it’ll keep cooking, and you chicken will be perfect and moist.
3. Chill the chicken. Or if you are using a grocery store chicken...you are here already.
4. Pull the chicken off the bone and large dice. Place in a medium bowl with....

• 10 dried apricots, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup toasted almonds, sliced or slivered
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
• 1/3 cup celery, finely diced

Stir together the following to make the yummy dressing and combine with the chicken and other ingredients:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 3 tbsp buttermilk
• 3/4 tsp lemon zest
• 3 tsp poppy seeds
• 1/2 tsp fresh black pepper
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt

That's it. Enjoy!

Let's talk seafood.  Have you seen Otolith at your farmers market and wondered what it was all about?  We were curious last summer and found out that they are a CSA for seafood - or CSS (Community Sponsored Seafood).  There are several different sustainably harvested fish programs you can participant in such as salmon, sablefish, Dungeness crab, and halibut.  Last year we decided to order salmon and loved every bit of it.  We received 15 lbs of line caught wild salmon from Alaska for $180 - 5 lbs. of Coho, 5 lbs. of King, 3 lbs. of Sockeye and 2 lbs. of Pink.  Salmon is full of Omega-3 fats and other nutrients lacking in farm-raised "Atlantic" salmon.  One of additional perks is that we pay less than retail price for the best quality. Salmon similar to this would sell for about $18/lb. at a Whole Foods.  The fish is cleaned, portioned out, flash frozen at -40 degrees and arrives to us vacuum sealed at our farmers market.  It's the best! This year, we decided to get both salmon and sablefish (Black Cod).  We just picked up our first bit of the sablefish and I baked it spanish style with olive oil, lime juice, fresh tomatoes, red onions, and homegrown jalapeno.  It was so delicious that I have a feeling it will be a staple dinner in our house this summer. For more information about signing up for your own share, please visit Otolith's website.  They also have a store that you can visit by appointment, I promise you won't be disappointed!