We headed back over to Bastrop Cattle Company today to pick up some grass fed beef (2 pounds of hamburger and a flank steak), but I have to admit I was most excited to see what was in the garden basket. We had such fun cooking with the last assortment, I was anxious to see what this week’s selection of seasonal veggies held.
This week’s basket contained:
Gorgeous. With more thought, this could be a still life! Instead these will be in our bellies.
Several oriental eggplant
white onions.
A zucchini
Habanero peppers
Fresh oregano
Lemon grass
Black eyed peas
Talking to the proprietress of Sand Holler Farm, she explained the lemon grass was a deliberate pairing with the oriental eggplant for a Thai dish. I’ve already found several recipes online and am quite excited to try one.
I’m also pleased about the fresh oregano. I’m having a bumper crop of fresh basil, and am thinking something Italian is in our near future.
Still mulling over the peas and habaneros… any suggestions?
Speaking of habaneros, we also stopped at the Bastrop Farmers Market this week and picked up some handmade peanut brittles, one of which is seasoned with habeneros. It’s wonderful, not too spicy, which is a trick with those.
Pork Shoulder Bacon. Lean, gorgeous, smoky deliciousness.
We also picked up some gorgeous grass fed pork bacon. The US is unique in using pork belly for bacon; in most of the world, bacon is made using pork shoulder, as is what we purchased. Smoked with garlic, this was tasty this morning for breakfast, paired with some fresh duck eggs. Duck eggs are just like chicken eggs only bigger (and more expensive). Obviously would be a difficult substitution for baking, and I’m not quite sure that the higher price is justified, so may pass on these in the future unless I’m in the mood for a really BIG omelet.
Sweet Potato Greens. Cook them like spinach. A new addition to our cooking repertoire.
Also picked up another bunch of sweet potato greens. We enjoyed them so much last time, when I saw she had them again this week I snatched them up. Not sure if I’ll prepare them the same way as before or try something new…
Will update you on how we built meals around this week’s basket soon!
