Grilled Zucchini Salad with Roasted Tomato Vinaigrette

Zucchini--it's one of those veggies that just seems to come at you non-stop through the whole summer.  You can saute it, bread it and fry it, make muffins or bread, even make pickles out of them.  You have to be fairly creative to come up with different ways to make zucchini without getting into a rut.

Well, at my Blooming Glen Farm demo last week, I made a delicious dish using zucchini and the wonderful tomatoes and herbs that are available now.  This should help you out of that zucchini rut.  And it doesn't get much better when you use farm-fresh veggies!

GRILLED ZUCCHINI SALAD WITH ROASTED TOMATO VINAIGRETTE (adapted from Hot and Sticky BBQ by Ted Reader)
Serves 8

INGREDIENTS
6 plum tomatoes
5 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, divided
1 Tbsp garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp oregano, chopped
Salt and pepper
4 zucchini, sliced lengthwise into 1/2" thick slices
1 large sweet onion, sliced into 1/2" thick slices
1/4 cup basil, chopped
2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

• Preheat grill to medium-high.  Clean grill grates.
• Place tomatoes on grill.  Reduce heat to medium and roast, turning occasionally, 10-15 min or until charred and tender.  They will be soft and the skins will split.  Remove from grill and let cool.  Remove skins and place tomatoes in food processor.
• To the tomatoes, add 3 Tbsp oil, 2 Tbsp vinegar, garlic and oregano.  Pulse until smooth.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside.
• Place the zucchini and onion on a sheet pan or in a large bowl.  Toss with 2 Tbsp oil, 2 Tbsp vinegar and salt and pepper to taste.  Oil grill grate and grill vegetables for 10-15 min or until tender and slightly charred.  Remove and let cool slightly.  Chop into bite-sized pieces.
• Transfer zucchini and onion to a bowl.  Add vinaigrette, toss and season to taste.  Garnish with basil and Parm. 

Fried Green Tomatoes

Alas, tomato season has come and gone once again.  A sure sign that summer has passed. 

But no need to despair just yet!  There's still a great way to enjoy those tomatoes on the vine that never got to ripen.  Don't throw out the green tomatoes--make the classic Southern dish, fried green tomatoes.

Perhaps you've had them before--or even tried to make them.  When made right, they're so tasty--tangy and crispy.  But when not made right, they can be mushy with the coating either soggy or falling off.

As usual, Cook's Country magazine has a recipe that allows you to make fried green tomatoes the way they should be made.  They come out so crispy, they're hard to resist.  In fact, I ate a bunch of them as I was frying up the rest of the batch.  Really addictive.

Give them a try and make use of those stragglers in your tomato patch.

FRIED GREEN TOMATOES (from Cook's Country)
Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 lb green tomatoes (about 4-5), cored and sliced 1/4" thick
2/3 cup cornmeal
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
2 cups peanut or vegetable oil

1. Place tomatoes on paper towel-lined rimmed baking sheet.  Cover with more paper towels, let sit for 20 min and pat dry.  Meanwhile, process 1/3 cup cornmeal in a blender or food processor until very finely ground, about 1 min.  Combine processed cornmeal, remaining 1/3 cup cornmeal, flour, salt, pepper and cayenne in a shallow dish.  Whisk buttermilk and egg together in a a second shallow dish.
2. Working one at a time, dip tomato slices in buttermilk mixture, then dredge in cornmeal mixture, pressing firmly to adhere; transfer to clean baking sheet.
3. Heat oil in 12" skillet over medium-high heat until 350 degrees.  Fry 4-5 slices until golden brown, 2-3 min per side.  Drain on wire rack set in baking sheet.  Bring oil back to 350 degrees and repeat with remaining slices.  Serve.

Pump Up the Flavor!

What's the most important thing about a meal?  Some might say the ingredients need to be fresh and local.  Others may say you first see a meal with your eyes, so the appearance of the plating is key.  Others still might say that nutrition is first and foremost.

In my mind--even though all these things are very important--the bottom line is flavor.  A beautiful plate of fresh, nutritious, local ingredients doesn't mean anything unless it tastes good, right?

So I thought I'd write a few posts with some tips about how to help the flavor of your foods be the best that they can be.  As usual, thanks go to my old standby, Cook's Illustrated magazine for some of these tips. 

I hope it helps!

Today, I'll be writing about things that you can do to improve the flavor of your food before you start cooking. 

• Try not to chop or mince onions and garlic until closer to the time that you're going to use them.  The odor and flavor of both these aromatics intensify as time goes on.  If you're going to use raw onions (in a salad, for example), soaking them in cold water helps to tame the strong flavor.  Cook's suggests soaking in a solution of 1 tablespoon baking soda for every cup of water.  Be sure to rise before using.
• Speaking of garlic, always remove any green sprouts from a garlic clove before chopping or mincing.  It doesn't mean you can't use the rest of the clove, but the bitterness of the green part can really ruin a dish.
• Many recipes call for the removal of the seeds and that jelly-like stuff in the middle of a tomato.  Sometimes it's for good reason--usually to cut down on moisture in the dish.  But most of the flavor can be found in the guts of the tomato, so if can, use the whole thing.
• When marinating meat, poke the meat all over with a fork.  This allows the marinade to penetrate deeper into the meat--and gives flavor to the whole thing. 
• Marinating in a zip-top bag is a great way to marinate.  Squeezing out the air not only allows you to get the marinade more in contact with the food, but also gets the food flavored up in less time.  If a bag doesn't quite work for the food you're making, marinate in a baking dish covered with plastic wrap.  Either way, flipping the bag or turning the food halfway through the marinating time will help make sure the everything has been in contact with the flavor.
• You've probably heard that fat equals flavor.  That's especially true with meats.  When making stew, it's OK to trim hard fat and other tissue from stew beef.  There's plenty of fat in the meat to keep it flavorful and moist.  Pork is a different story.  Since pork doesn't have the marbling that beef does, keep a thin layer of fat on the pork.  It will melt during cooking, adding flavor and moisture.
• Other fats--such as butter, oils and nuts--add flavor as well.  But these also go bad fairly quickly.  Be sure to store them so that they stay as fresh as possible.  Store sticks of butter in a zip-top bag in the BACK of the fridge (the coldest part).  They'll stay fresh for about 2 1/2 weeks that way.  Any longer than that, keep in the freezer.  Vegetable oils should be stored a dark part of your pantry.  Nut and seed oils (like sesame, walnut, etc) should be refrigerated.  You can store nuts in the pantry if they'll be used in a month or so.  I store all my nuts in the freezer in zip-top bags.  They stay fresh longer and can be used pretty much right out of the freezer. 

Next, we'll talk about how to add flavor during the cooking process.

Tomatoes!

Tomatoes are really starting to ripen now.  Our counter top is starting to get filled up.  But that's OK with me.  I'd eat fresh tomatoes with pretty much anything--or nothing.  Give me a little salt and I'll eat them all by themselves.  Mmmmm....

Part of last year's crop.  Not as many this year--yet.

Here's a link to an article that I wrote for Bucks County Taste that gives a little history and some tips about what I think is the best tasting thing about summer--the tomato.  While you're there, read about some of the other great food-related stuff going on in Bucks!

Bounty of the Garden

Here's another shot of just some of the veggies I picked from our garden on Sunday, including some really cool yellow and orange striped heirloom tomatoes.  Yes, the squash continues to come.