FoodieTots.com

Even on the road the foodie tots never pass up a chance to find fresh local food — throw in a hayride and cute farm animals to feed and pet and the kids are delighted. The Queens County Farm Museum is a perfect kid-friendly outing when we visit family in New York. I met up with the family there and my toddler couldn’t fill me in fast enough: “Feed goat! Pet baa! Moooo!”

The farm stand sells produce they grow on site every Wednesday through Sunday — and we spotted them again at the New Amsterdam Market in the city. They had beautiful raspberries last weekend that we took with us to a nearby diner for lunch. Yum.

What food finds have you come across this summer?

It may sound strange, but the mild winter we had actually was not a good thing for our region’s fruit farmers. Cherries in particular have had a hard time, between blossoming too early and heavy rains during harvest.

From Kuhn Orchards:

Mother Nature was not kind this year, but we made the most of it.  During evenings that reached freezing temperatures, we sprayed water on our cherry trees to insulate the blossoms with the frozen water to try to save the crop. After the blossoms were pollinated and the fruit set, the cherries were very small and eventually aborted and fell off the tree. …

Cherries, in fact, can absorb water through their skin – again, causing them to crack.  So, Mother Nature’s Power of rain in regard to cherries is two-fold.

After light showers, Rusty, our farm manager, will use the air blast sprayer to blow air through the cherry trees and try to blow off any excess moisture so it won’t be absorbed through the cherry’s skin.

We take great measures even to just harvest a little crop.

— from Kuhn Orchards newsletter

So if you spot sour cherries at market this weekend, snap them up — and thank your farmer!

(You can find Kuhn at the Vienna, Fairfax, 14th & U, Lorton and Palisades Farmers Markets this weekend. Toigo may have sour cherries as well — and look for gooseberries from Black Rock. And if you need some pie inspiration, check out the world wide #PieParty2012 on Facebook — or my bourbon cherry cobbler recipe.)

This past weekend, the husband and tot hit up the new Westover Farmers Market in Arlington. It was near the end of the market so I didn’t have high hopes for too many goodies, but was pleasantly surprised when they brought home a basket of squash blossoms and sour cherries. Edible flowers are always fun to share with kids, but flowers that you stuff with cheese and fry? Talk about hitting the jackpot. The foodie tot had a lot of fun “helping” me prep them for frying. Of course, she was booted from the kitchen for the actual cooking.

Squash blossoms are best eaten the day you buy them. After your toddler holds up each one for its photo opp (or maybe that’s just mine…), gently pry open the petals, check for intruders,* and reach inside and pinch the base of the stamen to remove it. (*I’m no fan of insects on my supper, but this is a good time to mention to the kids that we buy organic foods that aren’t sprayed with bug-killing chemicals. You can’t blame a bug for being drawn to the same pretty, fragrant flowers that we are!)

I mixed fresh Blue Ridge Dairy ricotta with a little nutmeg, salt and black pepper. You can use some finely chopped fresh herbs, like parsley or oregano, if you have them but I like to keep it simple. The batter is simply flour, milk and another pinch of salt. After gently spooning the filling into each flower, give the end a gentle twist to hold in the good stuff.

Frying them takes just a few minutes — then let them cool a little on a paper-towel lined plate to absorb the excess oil. Be sure to eat while still warm!

Recipe: Fried Squash Blossoms
Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

• 12 squash blossoms
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup milk
• kosher salt
• pepper

Instructions:

1. Fill high-walled frying pan with 1/4-inch of oil. Heat over medium high heat (to 350 degrees if you have a thermometer).
2. Pick over and remove stamens from blossoms. Set aside.
3. In a small bowl, combine ricotta, nutmeg, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
4. In a larger bowl, whisk together flour, milk and another pinch of salt until smooth.
5. Holding blossom by the stem end, gently fill with a teaspoon full of ricotta mixture. Give the petal ends a gentle twist to hold in the filling. Repeat until all are filled.
6. Quickly swirl the stuffed blossoms through the batter and gently transfer to pan. Fry, turning occasionally, until golden brown — about 3-5 minutes, total. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Let cool slightly before serving.

~

What’d the kids think? The boy took a bite, then paused to ask, “Did this use to be a plant?” The tot ate the middle section of hers. Have you ever eaten squash blossoms with your kids?

Aside from frying, you can also use squash blossoms in soup or my squash blossom succotash, or bake them for a healthier take. And if you’re in the Northeast, check out Narrangasett Creamery ricottas, reviewed over on Cheese and Champagne today.

It warms my heart around this time each year when my old garlic scape recipes suddenly see a spike in traffic — because it means people are hitting the farmers markets and trying something new. Garlic scapes, or curls, as our CSA farm calls them, are one of those things you won’t find in the grocery store.

The early shoots of the garlic plant, they pack a potent punch and crisp bite. I like to thinly slice them and toss ’em in salads or scrambled eggs. Garlic scape pesto is a classic and easy way to jazz up pasta or chicken salad. My garlic scape chimichurri makes a great topping for grilled bison steaks. You can throw the whole scape on the grill, too. I’ve even quickly blanched them, cut into 1-inch pieces, and frozen them for stir-fry use later in the year. And I keep meaning to make garlic scape vinegar (perfect for salad dressings) — maybe this year I’ll finally get to it.

How do you like your scapes? Do you grow your own garlic?

I made a quick stop at the Falls Church Farmers Market this past weekend for Memorial Day grilling supplies, where I spotted the scapes pictured above. There were a couple other new arrivals at market this week, including kohlrabi nearly as large as bowling balls, broccoli and sugar snap peas a plenty. Coming soon: English peas and sour cherries.

The younger foodie tot and I stopped by the H Street NE FreshFarm Market last weekend to finally scope out one of the few markets on the east side of town. At a new location this season (on 13th at H St., NE) , it’s a great little neighborhood market with some well-known vendors (Atwater’s Bakery, Quaker Valley Orchard and Keswick Creamery) as well as ones I’d yet to shop with. And, the fabulous new Gordy’s Pickle Jar was there as well. Made in the District, their Sweet Chips have already won an award at the International Pickle Festival (yes, there really is such a thing) — and, won over a new fan in the foodie tot as well. (I loved their Thai Basil Jalapeños and will be back for a jar of them next.)

The balloon artist was there as part of the Food Revolution Day festivities (we unfortunately missed the cooking demo) — while our ladybug was adorable, the little girl ahead of us took home a ballerina in a pink tutu modeled after herself. So cute!

I don’t think I have to tell you that asparagus and strawberries are the stars of the season at market right now. We also found beautiful red rhubarb as tall as the toddler and delicious Red Russian Kale. And for all your upcoming pie needs, Cedarbrook Farm sells lard. If you live on the Hill, or are just looking for a more mellow (and kid-friendly) market experience than Dupont Circle in the summer, give H Street a try.

(And after, stop by SOVA for an Intelligentsia coffee treat for mom and dad. The front window seat is perfect for toddler people watching.)

H Street NE FreshFarm Market
at 13th St. & H St., NE
Saturdays, April 21 – November 17
9am – 12noon