This week we got: six ears of corn, an onion, red bell peppers, tomatoes big and small (the farmer put TOMATOES in all caps in our weekly Email), red potatoes, carrots, and Anaheim peppers. I didn’t get to the farmer’s market this week, but over the weekend I went to Reading Terminal Market for nectarines, plums, extra tomatoes, and some more green vegetables.
Featuring my cat, for the second time
Wednesday night I made something like patatas bravas again, because I enjoyed it so much before and because I could leave it in my blue pot while I went about other business. I made enough for several meals, and since I had the luxury of some days off this week, I was able to scramble them with eggs and chorizo for brunches as well.
On Friday I found myself facing corn, tomatoes, and potatoes again, and by this time I was little worn out of the big rice and bean dish I’ve been making. I could have made corn on the cob, of course, and roasted wedges of potato. Or I could have combined the corn, potato, and some cheese and pork belly I had into this chowder from Food Network, which I made and enjoyed repeatedly last summer. But instead I halved my little tomatoes, cut the corn off the cob, chopped up the Anaheim pepper after tasting it to see if I had a bell pepper reaction to it (only a little), and coated the pork belly strips with chipotle and honey–and put everything in the oven to roast. Even something with a short roasting time like corn gives you the opportunity to walk away from the stove and, say, fold laundry and clean up the chopping tools. Mashed potatoes are pretty low-maintenance, too, so I made some of those for a change of texture.
Total prep and cooking time was about an hour, as usual. Roasting tends to concentrate flavors and get a nice sear on thing–a flavor I’ve been missing without access to a grill this summer. Even the Anaheim pepper, about which I was dubious, tasted okay when carmelized.
And that is all I cooked this week: two giant meals with a lot of leftovers. I have carrots and potatoes remaining, but those will keep.
