Fresh Harvest, LLC

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Fresh Harvest, LLC
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Tallahassee May
tally@wildblue.net
JohnDrury
john.drury@att.net

Recipes

Baked Orzo with Eggplant, Tomatoes, and Mozarella

another recipe from The Smitten Kitchen

Serves 4

1 1/2 lbs eggplant, cut into 3/4-inch dice
Salt and black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 celery stalk, in a 1/4-inch dice
1 medium onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
8 ounces orzo, a rice-shaped pasta, rinsed
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock or water
1 to 3 tablespoons fresh oregano, chopped (half the amount if dried)
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest or more to taste, up to the zest of a whole lemon
4 ounces mozzarella, firmer is better here, cut into 1/3-inch dice
1 1/2 ounces parmesan, grated
3 medium tomatoes, diced

Sprinkle your eggplant generously with salt and let it drain in a colander for 30 minutes. I used this time to get the rest of my ingredients ready. After 30 minutes, rinse it well and pat it dry on towels.

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the oil and once the oil is shimmering, add the eggplant. Fry for 8 minutes, stirring pieces occasionally. Using a slotted spoon or spatula, transfer them to paper towels to drain. Add celery and carrots to remaining oil and cook for 3 minutes before adding onion and garlic. Cook together for 5 more minutes on medium heat. Stir in the orzo and tomato paste and cook for two minutes more. Off the heat, add the oregano, mozzarella, parmesan, tomatoes, fried eggplant, lemon zest, 1 teaspoon table salt, many grinds of black pepper and the stock and mix well.

Transfer mixture to an 8×11-inch (about 2 quarts) ovenproof baking dish. Cover with foil and bake 20 minutes, then bake 20 minutes without the foil. (You can increase the ration of foil-on to foil-off time if you don’t like a crunchy pasta lid.) Let rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Market News

Hello!

We have a great variety of crops this week in this transition from summer to fall. It is impressive what we are able to offer you from our local farms and other producers.

The first of the greens are back, with some lettuces and Asian greens. And the next round of tomato plants seem to be pulling through and beginning to ripen, so we have some beautiful red slicing tomatoes and cherry tomatoes for you as well. And also, the wonderful eggplant, potatoes of all kinds, peppers, summer squashes, okra and other veggies of late summer.

If you haven’t stocked up on pesto for the winter, now is the time to do so. The basil is beautiful and bountiful right now, and pesto is such an easy thing to make a freeze.

And to go along with all this veggie deliciousness are our other wonderful food offerings – eggs, meats, wood fired bread, an amazing selection of artisan cheeses, and baked treats! New this week from Dozen Bakery are apple galletes – what a wonderful treat to bring in the cooler weather!

Earthwind Botanicals has her great selection of bulk soaps, good smelling oils, and aromatherapy sprays.

Thanks so much for your support, and we look forward to seeing you on Wednesday!
John and Tallahassee

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