Potatoes with octopus and lemon. Steamed white and purple potatoes from Visser Farms. Add chopped octopus and calamari poached two hours on low in olive oil. Topped with lemon, basil, and parprika.
We just completed 17 CD release concerts since August and while we performed and traveled nearly every weekend this fall, we certainly made up for it during the week with our home cooking. Here are some of our best of dishes that have kept us eating well. We made a lot of these with ingredients from the Fulton Street Farmers Market which is two blocks from our house in Grand Rapids.
Grape Tart. Boiled and strained Concord grapes spiced with lemon and cinnamon. Baked in a spelt butter crust.
Orecchiette with sweet potato and spinach. Add steamed spinach and sweet potatoes with the pasta. Bake in the oven for 30 min with goat cheese.
Spaghetti with romanesco and local goat feta.
Egg noodle tagliatelle stroganoff. Big thick egg noodles with beef tongue and cream. Add lots of garlic and aged goat cheese.
Rye and cabbage panade. Adapted from Deborah Madison. Sauté cabbage with crushed juniper berries then layer in a pan with rye bread and cheese. Cover with your favorite broth and then bake 45 min.
Beef tongue ramen. Udon noodles in a rich chicken beef bone broth. Topped with sliced beef tongue and steamed spinach. Toppings: homemade sauerkraut, limes, home cured sesame leaves, thinly sliced poblano peppers. Sprinkle with soy sauce and rice wine vinegar.
“Montagne noire.” Hickory Knoll Farms Creamery artisan cheese. A layer of cow milk and a layer of goat milk separated by vegetable ash.
Supper Brussels sprouts. Fatty jowl bacon from Rakowski Farms tossed with steamed brussel sprouts.
Salad and cheese course. First course Sunday dinner: spicy greens with olive oil and salt, aged Irish cheddar, French aged goat cheese, and local bourbon barrel aged cider from The People’s Cider Co.
Chicken tomato pizza. Spelt olive oil crust with fresh whole roasted chicken breast, halved cherry tomatoes, pesto and mozzarella.
Empire apple tart with pine nuts and candied lemons. Whole wheat coconut oil crust with local Michigan empire apples tossed with sugar, cinnamon, roasted pine nuts and candied lemon peel.
Squash shallot pie. Buttercup squash pie with oven roasted shallots from Brickyard Farms. Spelt flour crust. Served with a red leaf lettuce salad.
Flourless chocolate torte with honey bourbon ganache. Basic flourless chocolate cake recipe topped with homemade ganache flavored with honey bourbon and vanilla then dusted with cocoa powder.
Whole roasted duck. Whole fresh duck from Rakowski Farms. Roasted in the “Green Egg” with choke cherry wood.
Duck mole tacos. Left over roasted duck combined with a mole made from home dried Ellens’ Acres farm peppers, duck stock, pine nuts and flax. Put in homemade masa tortillas with toppings: cilantro, radishes and their greens. Serve with lime wedges.