Westhampton Beach Farmers Market is first on East End to accept food stamps

Just catching up on East End news... great to learn that the East End is finally accepting food stamps, SNAP, at the farmers market. Now that Westhampton has bought a terminal and set up a token system, I'm hoping the Southampton and Sag Harbor farmers markets begin to accept this federal nutrition program as well.

I know that Bob Lewis of the New York State Department of Ag and Markets met with Bonnie Cannon last year and sent her the forms for WIC and SNAP benefits but so far the Southampton Farmers Market only accepts cash.

For more information on NY State Farmers Market accepting EBT/SNAP benefits cards click here.

Anyhow, kudos to Victoria Hedberg-Kingwell in Westhampton!

Westhampton Beach Farmers Market is first on East End to accept food stamps
By Hallie D. Martin, Publication: The Southampton Press
Not everyone living on the East End can afford to buy fresh vegetables and other nutritious foods, and the Greater Westhampton Chamber of Commerce wants to help change that.

The Westhampton Beach Farmers Market, which the chamber operates Saturdays off Mill Road in the village, started accepting food stamps last month. Victoria Hedberg-Kingwell, the manager of the farmers market, explained that there are around 3,000 year-round residents in the greater Westhampton area, and not all of them have jobs right now. By accepting food stamps at its market, the chamber says it can offer some of those families the opportunity to put fresh and local produce on their tables.
“It provides healthy food for a clientele that does need it,” she said.

Ed Kurosz, the vice president of the chamber, said that everyone, regardless of socioeconomic classes, deserves the opportunity to purchase fresh meats and vegetables. “It’s not only the über-affluent,” he said.

The Westhampton Beach Farmers Market is one of only two in Suffolk County that now accept food stamps. According to the Federation of Farmers Markets of New York’s website, the Greater Bellport Coalition Youth Farmers Market, held on Sundays from July to October, also accepts them. Three markets in Nassau County, in Hicksville, Long Beach and Roosevelt, also accept them, as do dozens more in Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, Manhattan and the Bronx.

The food stamp initiative, called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Individuals who want to use their food stamp benefits at the Westhampton Beach Farmers Market must bring their Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card, a kind of debit card that is issued by the government, to the chamber tent at the market.

There, a chamber member will swipe the EBT cards at a portable terminal and deduct from them whatever amount that the cardholders request, according to Mr. Kurosz. The deducted money will be transferred to a special bank account opened by the chamber, and the cardholder will receive wooden tokens, in $1 denominations, in exchange. The vendors at the Westhampton Beach Farmers Market are able to accept the tokens as a form of payment and, at the end of the day, exchange them for vouchers. The vendors can then exchange the vouchers for payment, money that will come from the chamber’s dedicated bank account. Read more here.

RECIPE: Baked Peaches and Wine Jelly

This weekend, I made a compote of local blueberries, diced rhubarb (which I have in the freezer) and peeled and cut peaches. And, served this cooked slice of heaven over yogurt for breakfast.

Cooked on top of the stove for just a few minutes until the fruit softens. Compotes are easy, a lot like making jam but without the sugar (or the calories).

As I savored every bite, I was reminded of a flavorful and grown-up fruit dessert that I made last summer. It's peach season so give this a recipe a trip with dripping delicious and ripe peaches and a good wine jelly from your local winery. (Still kicking myself for not taking a photo.)

Baked Peaches and Wine Jelly - A Peach Melba for Grown-ups
4 servings

4 large ripe peaches
5 tbls. Paumanok Preserves Pinot Meunier Wine Jelly
2 tbls. Local honey
2 tsps. Lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1 tbls. Lemon zest
1/3 cup of water

Remove pits and cut out any bruised spots. Slice each peach into 8-10 pieces. In a bowl, whisk together wine jelly, honey, lemon juice, zest and water. Stir in cut peaches and toss, coating with the mixture. Transfer to a shallow baking dish (9” x 9”) and bake for 30-45 minutes until tender. Check every 15 minutes and baste peaches. Serve over ice cream, with plain yogurt or by itself.

Bees Needs Honey
Community Supported Apiculture for Eastern Long Island
4 Laurel Lane, Sag Harbor 11963
631-702-5657

Paumanok Preserves
PO Box 632
Center Moriches NY

RECIPE: Cajun Corn (aka Maque Choux) + Flounder

Photos (Lexi Van de Walle): Mache Choux and flounder, in the pan - maque choux, summer veggies, Lighthearted Locavore home grown tomatoes.

Pronounced "Mock Shoe", Maque Choux is a wonderful Cajun corn dish inspired by Native American recipe. It's even better when made with in season and local ingredients.

RECIPE
1 1/2 T local butter or olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
2 t Creole Spice Mix
6 ears of corn removed from the husk
1 large or 2 medium tomatoes
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup heavy cream

Melt the butter (heat the oil) in a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, jalapeno, Creole Spice Mix, and salt, and cook, stirring, until onions are soft (approximately 10 minutes). Toss in the corn and tomatoes and cook until heated through (about 4 minutes). Add the salt, cream and cook for an additional 2 minutes.

Serve as a side dish or over flounder, summer fluke or other flaky fish. Click here for the recipe.

Fab Locavore Finds: Savings, Prizes, Donations and Challenges

Recently, I received a few dozen requests from readers and business owners to promote their food product, raise money for their movie, circulate their survey or provide savings. Here's the best of the requests.... Photo (courtesy of Fresh Direct): Tom Wickham, Long Island Farmer and Fresh Direct Supplier

FRESH DIRECT, the online food delivery company in New York City and the Hamptons, recently expanded its local foods department -- I'm a huge fan -- with a terrific variety of local meats, dairy, fruits, and vegetables -- many from New York and the Hamptons. The SUPPORTLOCAL promo code* is good for 20% off their entire Local Market and is good all summer. Shop now and save on dozens of items.

FOODIELINK is New York's new and fast growing "good food" blog (I'm a contributor to the recipe and food politics sections and a fan). Take FOODIELINK's survey now and enter to win a chance for some cool local food prizes.


Northeast Organic Farming Association is tilling the soil for their upcoming NY Locavore Challenge running from September 1 to 30. NOFA offers local eating challenges for 1 day, 1 week and 1 month local food and will help you figure out whats in season, where to shop or dine for local food. I'm going to do the challenge -- and submit recipes too -- will you? Go ahead, take the locavore challenge.

HANDS THAT FEED. Check out the fundraising opportunity (just 6 days left) on KickStarter.com for the movie HANDS THAT FEED. I heard from Josh Levin, who's co-producing this non-profit film on Haiti's agricultural crisis and the grassroots sustainable ag-based recovery movement emerging there. According to Josh "Haiti is an amazing test-case of the failed models of the past, and we are making this film both to promote a new path for Haiti, as well as leverage this "teachable moment" for the world". Click HERE to see the video, learn more about the film and make a pledge ($10 and up) before the deadline which is just 6 days away.

* Limited time offer. Expires August 31, 2010. May not be combined with any other offer. All standard terms and conditions apply. Limit one use per customer/account. Residential orders only. Void where prohibited. Offer is non-transferable.

RECIPE: Curried Okra

Photos (Lexi Van de Walle): sliced okra, okra in the pan with curry, onions and home grown tomatoes

I can't stand okra in a gumbo -- its the slimy texture. I've never bought it, cooked it or eaten it on its own. In fact, I've passed on a lot of "star chef" gumbo dishes in New Orleans and beyond because of my distaste for (and fear of) slime.

But, I couldn't resist buying a quart at the Southampton farmers market on Sunday to experiment with. A brilliant green, fresh bundle of just picked, and crisp looking okra just wanting me to take it home. Too pretty to pass up, I wanted the challenge of making "edible" okra.

Before embarking on my experiment, I picked up a few tricks for getting rid of the slime (and couldn't help but think of the slimer in the movie Ghostbusters). The consistent advice was to soak it -- in milk or vinegar -- for 45 minutes, rinse it clean to de-slime it, and dry it before and after slicing. As well, it's important to keep the okra dry during cooking (a liquid stew, such as gumbo, brings out the slime from the pods).

I used the milk method as I was afraid the vinegar would leave an aftertaste, and sauteed the sliced okra -- which I had dried carefully with a paper towel before tossing it in the pan -- about 10 minutes in 2 T of olive oil and 2 t of curry powder until browned before adding a diced onion and some diced tomatoes from the garden.

According to JawJuh Peach on Southern Living Magazine's community board:

The milk method: Soak the slices of okra in milk for about 45 minutes. When you drain the milk, you'll see that the milk has pulled most of the "slime" out of the okra. Okra just naturally becomes slimy when cooked in a watery environment, such as in a stew or a steamer basket. Stir-frying or sauteing in hot oil, helps keep the slime within the okra pieces, or perhaps causes the moisture in the mucilage to evaporate, thus improving the pods' texture. Another trick to cut the slime is to wash it and dry each pod completely before you chop it. The knife and cutting board must also be dry. If slime collects on the knife, keep wiping it dry as you chop. Covering the pan while cooking also makes it ooze so that's another thing to avoid. when it is time to add it to a gumbo, or dish that has lots of liquid as the base, you do it when that dish boiling so it cooks quickly and does not have a chance to exude that slimy stuff.

Henry, my husband, a Southerner and foodie, was aghast. He's not a big fan of okra and still isn't despite my delicious sauteed and slime-free curried okra medley. I, however, am an official okra convert at least for the pan fry "dry" method way of cooking farm fresh and local okra. The whole quart is gone!

East Hampton Farmers Market faces possible shutdown

Photo (Lexi Van de Walle): Southampton Farmers Market, 2009

The crown jewel of the Hamptons local food scene is the weekly markets, including the one at Nick and Toni's. In today's East Hampton Star there is an alarming report that this weekly market site is in jeopardy.

Apparently, you need a "mass gathering permit" to operate the market and it's a no no for a restaurant to donate its parking lot as a public service -- not even for local farmers, cheese makers, fishermen and bakeries to connect with local eaters.

My head hurts even thinking about the closing of the Nick and Toni's market and the irony of it all. Instead of worrying about farmers and fishermen selling fresh, local food in a little parking lot in the village that does nothing more than help foster conversations between neighbors and let food purveyors make a living, wouldn't the East Hampton Board's time be better spent supporting the local food and farm economy by blocking developers from gobbling up the last of the Town's great agriculture parcels which are slowly being replaced with oversized McMansions?

Nick and Toni's farmers market has been in operation for four years but suddenly the Town is just noticing this little permitting oversight -- and now, mid-July, right smack in the middle of the growing season. What's up with that?

Perhaps East Hampton's Board should call Bonnie Cannon, the founder of the Southampton Farmers Market and Town of Southampton Trustee, and find out how hard she fought to have a farmers market in Southampton Village. Or talk to someone over at the Montauk Chamber of Commerce to better understand why local farmers, fishermen and bakers are important to the local economy.

Read more about Hamptons Farmers Markets on Lighthearted Locavore blog posts:
Click here: Southampton Farmers Market Opens After Long Battle
Click here: Montauk Farmers Market Opens (2009)

Publication: The East Hampton Press
"East Hampton Farmers Market faces possible shutdown"
By Katy Gurley

The fate of the East Hampton Farmers Market, the popular produce market at Nick & Toni’s restaurant on North Main Street in East Hampton, hung in the balance on Tuesday as the East Hampton Town Board planned to confer with its attorneys to figure out whether it is legal for the market to be held on the restaurant’s parking lot, even though it has been held there for the past four years and has been operating this summer.

Supervisor Bill Wilkinson said during the board’s work session on Tuesday morning that he hoped to resolve the situation favorably for the market by Thursday. The market was scheduled to be open Friday.

At issue is the board’s opinion that because the market is held on the restaurant’s property, it is an expansion of the commercial use of the property.

“It’s not that we don’t want it, it’s just that it’s an inappropriate use of the location,” said Councilwoman Theresa Quigley.

But Mark Smith, owner of Honest Management Restaurant Group, which owns Nick & Toni’s told the board that the restaurant does not make any money on the Farmers Market and allows the market to use the parking lot as a public service.

He said he applied for a permit to operate the market several months ago, but it was denied in May. He didn’t learn about the denial until early July.

Mr. Wilkinson apologized for the lack of communication about the permit.
Kate Plumb, who heads the market, asked the board if the market could continue operating until September, despite the board’s concerns.

“I fully support that idea,” said Councilman Pete Hammerle, who added that he disagreed with the rest of the board’s 
opinion, saying the previous Town Board gave permission 
to have the market operate 
on the restaurant’s parking 
lot under a mass gathering permit.

Ms. Quigley said the board has considered moving the market to town land, the Labrozzi/Lester Farm, across the street. But because the land was purchased with CPF funds, it would be illegal to have a profit-making business operate there.

A handful of farmers and other vendors who lease space from the market spoke at the public portion of the work session and said the closing of the market would hurt them financially.
David Falkowski, a farmer for seven years in Bridgehampton, said the farmers market contributed to a third of his revenues for the year.

“I plead with you to continue the market. It’s so important to the vendors,” he said.
Alex Balsam, owner of Balsam Farms, agreed. “I have all this perishable produce to sell Friday. You can’t shut this thing down. It’s a vital part of my business.”
His partner, Ian Piedmont, said, “If there’s any way you could allow the market to be open Friday, that would be important to us. I appreciate your legal concerns, although I don’t understand them.”

Donna McCue told the board she operated a small business at the market. “I couldn’t afford to have the market shut down,” she said.

In an interview Monday, Mr. Smith said he thought everything was okay when he filed for an application for a mass gathering permit in April. “But we got a notice of violation from the Ordinance Department telling us that our resolution was rejected. I called Bill Wilkinson’s office and was told it was denied because the town didn’t want to associate the Nick & Toni’s brand with the farmers market. But it’s not the Nick & Toni’s farmers market. We just provide a venue for farmers and fishermen.”

Mr. Wilkinson said repeatedly during the work session that the issue would be resolved by Thursday.

Last Updated Jul 20, 10 5:36 PM

ABOUT THE FARMERS MARKETS
2010 SUMMER SCHEDULE - Hamptons

Get locally grown fruits and vegetables, fresh baked bread and pies, fish and shellfish caught off of Montauk and Shinnecock and Peconic Bays, fresh made cheeses from cows in Mecox and a whole lot more at these farmers markets.

Thursdays
Montauk Farmers Market (hosted by the Montauk Chamber of Commerce) on the Green, 742 Montauk Highway, 9 am to 1pm

Fridays
Community Farmers Market at Hayground School, 151 Mitchell's Lane (at Butter Lane) in Bridgehampton from 3 pm to 7 pm.

East Hampton Farmers' Market at Nick & Toni’s Restaurant parking lot, 136 North Main St. 9 am to 1 pm

Saturdays
The Sag Harbor Farmers Market, 25 Bay Street, from 9 am to 1 pm.

Westhampton Farmers Market, near Historical Society on Mill Road and Glovers Lane, 9 am to 1 pm

Sundays
The Town of Southampton Farmers Market, behind the Parrish Museum, 9 am to 1 pm

RECIPE: Salad of Roasted Beets, Grapefruit, Goat Cheese + Mustard Vinegarette

Photo (Lexi Van de Walle): Roasted beets, grapefruit, goat cheese salad

I love beets. Of course, I was well into adulthood before sticking a fork in one and merely just liking it. But now that I only eat small, flavor packed beets that are grown locally, and which are truly superior to large and conventionally grown beets, it's true love.

Today, I roasted just a few uber nutritious beets ---many consider beets a tonic for the blood -- from Chubby Bunny Farm. Wrapped in foil and placed on the middle rack of a toaster oven at 425 degrees they were cooked through in about 40 minutes.

In the meantime, I de-membraned the grapefruit so only the juicy fruit remained and prepared a mustard vinaigrette with 2 T olive oil, the juice of a lemon and 1T of grainy mustard.

When the beets were cooked through -- check by piercing them with a fork -- and cool to the touch, I peeled and sliced them into 1/8 inch slices then layered them with the grapefruit using an equal amount of grapefruit and beets and sprinkled a taste of crumbled and local Coach brand goat cheese on top before spooning on the salad dressing. I didn't use all of the dressing so as not to overwhelm the deliciousness of the beet, grapefruit and cheese combination, and to keep the dish light.

A refreshing summer salad to kick off a summer, locavore meal.

RECIPE: Roasted Kohlrabi and Parmesan Cheese

Photo (Lexi Van de Walle): Roasted "Chubby Bunny" kohlrabi with sizzling hot cheese

After making three batches of kohlrabi and cabbage slaw with my CSA veggies, I decided to venture out with a roasted kohlrabi and Parmesan cheese dish. Not only was it simple, it deserves the 5 star rating on AllRecipes website. The roasted slices made for a light meal served with a green salad.

I sliced the peeled kohlrabi as thin as I could - all the same thickness - brushed them with olive oil and roasted in a 450 degree oven til brown, spooned on a small amount of grated Parmesan cheese and popped them back in the oven til the cheese melted. Crispy, delicious, tasty and healthy. Here's a good recipe to follow (I skipped the garlic) and some other ideas for kohlrabi from the Chubby Bunny Blog.

Kohlrabi, for those who are not familiar, is in season now and available at farmers markets and CSAs. I got mine from Chubby Bunny Farm's CSA. Mild and sweet with a hint of cabbage and broccoli flavor, kohlrabi is an excellent source of fiber and vitamin C, low in calories and rich with many trace minerals.

Local Peruvian Style Chicken and Chubby Bunny's Skinny Cole Slaw

Photos (Lexi Van de Walle): Peruvian spiced and local chicken; shredded and grated veggies for a slaw.

Last week, I got a hodge podge of fresh, spring vegetables from my weekly box from Chubby Bunny Farm's CSA and Fresh Direct had just delivered an Epicurean Farms Chicken to my house on Long Island. Peruvian style spiced grilled chicken had been calling my name ever since my stepson left for summer school last month -- moist, flavorful, yet not hot spicy. The combination of kohlrabi, spring cabbage, and radishes from the farm helped me decide to make a locavore cole slaw but not with the traditional and fatty dressing but rather a "skinny girl" creamy slaw made from low fat mayonnaise and zero fat Greek yogurt, local of course. I added some other veggies, and tossed in some herbs from the garden. The slaw recipe is not only delicious due to the crisp and flavorful kohlrabi, which is low in calories and rich in fiber and vitamin C, and cabbage, but creamy and under 100 calories per generous one cup serving.

RECIPES
Peruvian Style Local Chicken
After consulting several recipes, I came up with my own version of Peruvian "super chicken". While I had a whole chicken cut up in parts however the traditional Peruvian recipe is for a whole chicken. Parts cook for about 45 minutes and a whole chicken, about 4 pounds, is best on the rotisserie and takes approximately 1 1/2 hours to cook. Be careful to maintain a temperature of 300 degrees F no matter which recipe you use so the meat is tender and succulent and the skin doesn't burn. (I take the skin off to avoid too many calories.)

1 whole chicken, cut into pieces or whole (see note above)
4 tablespoons white vinegar
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons canola oil
5 cloves of fresh garlic, minced
2 Tbsp paprika
1 1/2 Tbsp cumin
2 tsps black pepper
1 tsp cayenne
1 tsp salt
Juice of a lemon

Combine all ingredients, except the chicken into a bowl. Mix well. Wash chicken and dry with paper towels. Put chicken pieces or whole chicken in a large bowl and pour spice mix over the chicken. Coat chicken completely, cover and put the bird in the refrigerator to marinate for at least 8 hours and up to overnight. I stirred the chicken and marinade several times throughout the marinating period to ensure all the pieces were evenly covered. The longer it's marinated the more flavor it will have (up to 24 hours). Think finger licking good and moist chicken.

Preheat grill to 300 degrees F (on my Weber Grill, I used two of the three burners set at medium). Place chicken on grill and cook for approximately 45 minutes trying to maintain the temperature at 300 degrees. Reserve the marinade to use during cooking.

Check the chicken every 10-15 minutes and turn the chicken over using tongs so you don't pierce the skin. Spoon on extra marinade after you've turned it over and until it runs out. When cooked, the skin should be separating from the meat and internal temperature on a meat thermometer reaches 165-170 degrees F. Chicken is done at 165 degrees F. (75 degrees C.). As indicated a whole chicken takes about 90 minutes whereas parts are done in approximately 45 minutes.


Chubby Bunny's Kohlrabi and Cabbage Skinny Cole Slaw
Vegetables:
1 medium kohlrabi, peeled, trimmed and grated
1 small head of spring cabbage, shredded
1 carrot, grated
5 radishes, trimmed and grated
1/2 red onion, diced or grated

Dressing
1 Tbs. local honey
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. cider vinegar or local white wine vinegar
4 Tbs. cilantro, minced
1/4 to 1/3 cup low fat mayonniasse
1/4 to 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt, 0% fat

Prepare the vegetables and mix together in an oversized bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the dressing ingredients and whisk together until blended. Toss the salad with the dressing and serve. Taste delicious the next day as the dressing flavors soak into the crisp cabbage and kohlrabi.

New Orleans, Locavore, Susan Spicer Sues BP

My kind of local food loving chef. Today, Louisiana's Susan Spicer is Tabsco hot in my book. I heard about the BP chef lawsuit over on Twitter -- Kim Severson tweeted about the breaking news.

My heart aches for New Orleans and its food culture. Its fishermen, oyster growers, shrimpers, restaurants...everyone. Not only are Spicer's restaurants great -- Bayona, Herbsaint and Cobalt -- but she's got the best garlic soup recipe I've every tasted (she gave me a copy in 1999).

Top New Orleans chef sues BP over seafood losses
Sun, Jun 27 2010
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Susan Spicer, one of New Orleans' most prominent and highly regarded chefs, has sued BP Plc for damages to restaurants that have lost normal seafood supplies because of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Spicer, who runs the restaurant Bayona in New Orleans' French Quarter, is seeking class-action status on behalf of restaurants and others in the seafood industry that have suffered damage since the April 20 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig.

In a complaint filed late Friday in New Orleans federal court, Spicer's lawyer Serena Pollack said the restaurants depend heavily on the availability of local seafood.

Because of the spill, they expect to lose customers because of lower tourism and convention business, contamination fears and significantly higher prices, the 18-page complaint said.

"Much of plaintiff's business is based on the unique quality of Louisiana seafood, as well as the chain of delivery of that resource from the initial harvester (be it fisherman, oyster grower or shrimper)," Pollack wrote. "Because this chain of delivery cannot be maintained, plaintiff's business has been, and continues to be, materially damaged."

BP spokesman Mark Salt said the British company does not comment on litigation.

Bayona opened in 1990, and according to its website has since 1995 been one of New Orleans' top five restaurants in the Zagat Survey.

Spicer has received a James Beard Foundation award, and appeared as a judge on Bravo's "Top Chef" and Food Network's "Iron Chef America." She has also opened the New Orleans restaurants Herbsaint and Cobalt.

The lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages from BP. It also names as defendants Transocean Ltd, which operated the rig; Cameron International Corp, which provided a blowout preventer; and a Halliburton Co unit that provided cementing services.

More than 250 lawsuits have been filed over alleged from the oil spill, according to the Westlaw database. Westlaw is a unit of Thomson Reuters.
The case is Bayona Corp v. Transocean Ltd et al, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, No. 10-01839.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel, editing by Maureen Bavdek)

Top 50 Blogs for Cleaner Eating...Lighthearted Locavore is #24

Photo (Lexi Van de Walle): Zucchini blossoms from Wells Homestead Farms, Long Island...

Lighthearted Locavore made it to the list Top 50 Blogs for Cleaner Eating (#24) -- and, got a pretty nice quote too, "This blog (Lighthearted Locavore) is full of beautiful photos and enticing recipes that use ingredients local to the east coast". Kind of cool to be in the company of Slow Food USA (#26) and La Vida Locavore (#22) if I do say so myself.

I poked around the nursing schools website, the folks that compiled the top blogs list, and found some interesting food and nutrition lists for healthy, green, organic, local, vegan, clean eating -- even weight loss techniques.

50 meditation and mind control techniques for weight loss
100 healthy recipes for lazy people
50 ways you can be a greener eater
Top 50 Blogs for Cleaner Eating

Local Squash Blossoms Deep-Fried

PHOTOS (Lexi Van de Walle):

Zucchini Blossoms, Egg and Polenta, Battered Blossoms, Deep-fried zucchini blossoms on paper towels.

RECIPE

Deep Fried Zucchini Blossoms

I love this recipe and bought a package of Squash Blossoms at the local foods department of Fresh Direct, that were grown and packaged by Wells Homestead Acres in Riverhead just a few miles down the road from us. www.wellshomesteadmarket.com. Use as many local ingredients as you can. I used Polenta from Farmer Ground Flour in Newfield, NY, eggs from my CSA, Chubby Bunny.

8 Zucchini (squash) blossoms

Canola oil

2 eggs, local and organic

1 cup of corn meal or polenta, locally milled

Sea salt to taste

Black pepper to taste.

If using fresh picked from the garden, check the blossoms for dirt and ants - wipe with a paper towel not water to preserve the texture.

In a bowl, scramble two eggs. On a plate, spread out polenta. Dip the blossoms in the egg batter then cover the blossom with polenta. Shake off excess polenta and set aside on a clean plate. When all the blossoms are battered, heat the oil in your deep fryer (or a deep frying pan) to 350 degrees. Use a deep-fry/candy thermometer to test the temperature. The temperature should be just right. If the oil is too cold the blossoms will become greasy. Oil that’s too hot will cause the blossoms to burn. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until golden brown and take each one out of the pan as it becomes golden and place it onto a dinner plate covered with 4-5 sheets of paper towel. Use additional towels to blot off excess oil. Sea salt and pepper can be added to taste. As with most fried food, zucchini blossoms are best eaten right away.