This delicious and hearty salad was inspired by Cooking Light’s Grilled Peaches over Arugula with Goat Cheese and Prosciutto. It makes for a great side to grilled pork chops or can stand on its own as a delicious and healthy lunch!

¼ cup Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tablespoons Honey
Cooking Spray
2 Peaches, pitted and cut into wedges
1 tablespoon olive oil
Dash of ground black pepper
Dash of sea salt
5 oz (1 box) of fresh spinach
¼ cup goat cheese to crumble on top
¼ cup sliced almonds

Directions:

• Bring vinegar to a boil in a small saucepan then turn down heat; simmer to reduce for about 2 minutes. Remove pan from heat and stir in honey. Let cool to room temperature.
• Prepare grill or grill pan to high heat, coat with cooking spray.
• Place peaches on skewers and grill each side for 30 seconds. Remove from grill, set aside.
• Toss spinach with oil, salt and pepper. Top with peaches and almonds. With a spoon, drizzle salad with balsamic syrup and then top with goat cheese crumbles. Enjoy!

Last week while in San Francisco, I had the pleasure of chatting with Luke’s Local founder Luke Chappell over a delicious Blue Bottle coffee in the Ferry Building.  His recently started Bay Area based company brings fresh produce and prepared meals to commuters who frequent the Hillsdale train station and shoppers in twelve grocery stores throughout San Francisco.

It’s a simple concept yet brilliant at the same time. Basically, the five people who make up the Luke’s Local team – including chef Jessy Manuel whose resume includes stints at Quince and RN74 – make 300 prepared meals each day using local ingredients (sourced primarily from VegiWorks and Golden Gate Meat Co.) and sell them in grocery stores for $7.99.  True, it is more than some of the frozen meals out on the market, but I guarantee if you look on the back of one of Luke’s Local packages, you’ll actually recognize all of the ingredients! Plus, what you’ll find inside is far from the mushy mac n’cheese and frozen peas other prepared foods offer. The menu changes every week – including items such as salmon and brown rice salad with wild mushroom risotto – so you’re bound to get variety with what you eat…check out this week’s menu to see what I mean.  And when they aren’t preparing the meals, they run a daily pop-up produce market at the Hillsdale train station during the morning and evening commute times.

Luke told me that he started Luke’s Local in 2009 after seeing how much oil was being spent on food transportation.  He was also inspired by reading books including Michael Pollan’s, The Omnivore’s Dilemma (a personal inspiration as well!) and working on a 200-acre farm on Nantucket Island off the coast of Massachusetts. “In the process, he was able to sharpen his understanding of the importance of small local farming in today’s food supply chain,” his bio boasts.

The new company focuses on obtaining all its ingredients within “a day’s drive” and strives to give consumers a “gourmet experience” while eating on the go. At the same time, Luke said he tries to keep produce affordable for consumers by having a team member pick up fruits and veggies directly from growers rather than having it delivered and closely monitoring their inventory so produce isn’t wasted.

So next time you’re at the Hillsdale train station or find yourself in a Blue Fog Market, be sure to check out what Luke’s Local has to offer… since I’m guessing it isn’t long before you hear this company’s name start popping up all over the Bay Area food community.

For those of you living in Colorado, you’ll know that there can be slim pickings when it comes to the local summer fruit selection. That is to say except for that glorious month and a half when Colorado’s grocery stores and farmers’ markets are overrun with juicy, delicious, and mouth watering peaches! Close to the Colorado River  and surrounded by cliffs, Palisade, CO is known as the Peach Capital of the state and is world-famous for its excellent fruit harvest. Typically, the season begins mid-July and lasts until the end of August but I touched base with High Country Orchards – a family owned and operated orchard – and learned that this year’s harvest is running about 10 days behind normal. We can expect to see High Country peaches at local Whole Foods, Tony’s Markets and a few other grocers beginning today and lasting until about mid-September. So, get to the stores people and fill up on this delicious stone fruit before the season ends!

• How to Pick: Peaches should have a rich and aromatic smell and won’t ripen much after being picked from the tree. Unless you like your peaches firm, then you should choose a peach that has a little give to it when gentle pressure is applied. If the peach is the same shade of yellow around the stem area as it is on the rest of the peach it’s ready to eat! Avoid peaches with a green tint as these are not yet ripe.
• How to Store: Peaches should be stored in a cool place but not in a refrigerator as this slows or stops the ripening and sweetening of a peach. If a peach has completely ripened and you would like to eat it a few days later, it can be placed in the refrigerator as a last resort.
• How to Use: Peaches are quite the versatile fruit. You can eat them fresh or frozen, or make them into salsa, jam or bake them into pies!
• Recipe Ideas: I like to throw sliced peaches in with my yogurt for a refreshing breakfast. For a twist on a classic try out Bon Apetit’s Peach Pie with Peach Pie with Pecan Streusel. Peaches hold up well on the grill too so tune in Friday as I share my spinach salad topped with grilled peaches, goat cheese and balsamic glaze.
• Fun Fact: Peaches originated from China and are a part of the Rose family.
• For the Coloradoan’s: If you’re a peach fanatic, then check out the Palisade Peach Festival where you can visit local peach orchards including High Country!

Sources: High Country Orchards, Palisade Chamber of Commerce, Wikipedia

After spending a glorious weekend in Capitola, my honey and I stopped in Half Moon Bay for an impromptu lunch. We stuffed our faces full of deep-fried tacos a la Flying Fish Grill and then checked out a local fish market across the street called Half Moon Bay Fish Market. For those faint of heart, do not venture further…

This little mom and pop shop is brimming with tanks full of live lobster, crabs and shrimp and the ground is lined with crates full of fish of every size. I made the rookie mistake of wearing flip-flops and got my toes wet with slimey seawater and fish scum. Oh and the smell…I had to cover my nose with my sweater. Needless to say, this place ain’t Whole Foods but the fish is fresh!!

I chatted briefly with one of the fishmongers who told me that the majority of their seafood is caught or sourced locally. There is a wide selection, ranging from the mundane salmon to the slightly more exotic sea bass. We ended up with a pound and a half (which set us back about $18) of fresh, local halibut.

Later that evening, we prepared Chili-Glazed Halibut with Avocado Tomatillo Sauce and it was absolutely delicious!

If you’re ever in the hood, I definitely recommend checking out this quaint fish market! There’s also a small shop next door with fruit and vegetables and pantry staples.

As some of you probably know, when I made the leap to the East Coast not only was I getting a new apartment and new city life. I finally got to make the jump to working on food in my professional world too. So now I’m embarking on my first roadtrip a la a country-wide Farmers Market Tour (I mean seriously? This is my job?)

Throughout July and August, Epicurious will be making stops in San Francisco, Chicago, Minneapolis, Boston, and New York. Epicurious editors will be in the Epicurious booth sharing market tips and recipe ideas, handing out goodies, and giving cooking demos. Plus, in support of the White House’s new initiative “Chefs Move to Schools”, local chefs in the program will join Epicurious on the market tour. Read more about it here and visit me and Epicurious’ editor-in-chief Tanya Steel at the Ferry Building between 10am and 2pm. Hope to see you there!

Chut·ney: a thick sauce of Indian origin that contains fruits, vinegar, sugar, and spices and is used as a condiment.

Take advantage of all of the amazing stone fruit overflowing in the market right now and try making a chutney of your own! For this verision, I used apricots. But a combination of peaches, nectarines or cherries would also be interesting.

4 1/2 to 5 pounds apricots, pitted and quartered
1 pound red onion (about 1 large)
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 1/2 to 2 cups sugar
3/4 cups red wine vinegar
1/2 cup golden raisins
2 cinnamon sticks
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

Makes approximately 14 cups.

Combine all ingredients in a large, heavy bottom pan or dutch oven. Heat over medium low and simmer for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

This is what 4 1/2 pounds of apricots and one large red onion look like!

And here it is all chopped up and ready to simmer!

Serve with lamb chops, pork tenderloin or goat cheese and crackers. Preserve and can any leftovers for holiday gifts (or to help you get through a long winter full of chard, beets, and the liks). It will keep in the fridge for up to one month.

• How to Pick: Apricots have a very short season and hit their peak in July. So when you see them in the market stands, grab some by the armful! Choose apricots that have a rich hue and give slightly when pressed (like peaches or nectarines). Avoid ones that are hard or greenish; they will be bitter and won’t ripen.
• How to Store: If ripe, eat apricots as soon as possible or store them in the fridge for a few days. Keep them at room temperature or in a paper bag to help ripen them.
• How to Use: Take care when rinse and drying apricots as they bruise very easily. They can be eaten raw, used to prepare jam or chutney, dried, preserved whole or frozen for later use.
• Recipe Ideas: I made this Roast Pork with Apricot and Shallot Stuffing a few weeks ago and it was legit. Great dinner party fair. Next weekend, I want to try Smitten Kitchen’s Breakfast Apricot Crisp or Food & Wine’s Pan-Seared Apricot dish. On Friday, swing back for my Apricot Chutney that is loaded with yummy spices!
• Fun Fact: California produces 95% of the nation’s apricots, according to Apricot Producers of California.

Sources: Williams-Sonoma.com, Apricot Producers of California, and California Apricots.

Last weekend, for a regularly scheduled weekend adventure, Kele and I headed out to D.C to visit his grandparents and catch a ball game. Our San Francisco Giants (you can take the girl out of the city, but you can’t turn me into an East Coast sports fan just yet) took on the Washington Nationals. After a day full of hot dogs, beers, and fly balls skimming my head, my old friend called and asked for a next-morning date at the local farmer’s market in Dupont Circle. Of course I jumped at the chance.

And WOW. I was the grownup version of a kid in a candy store, with my wide eyes and my mouth salivating as I took it all in. Peaches and summer squash and sweet corn overflowed every stall. Fresh seafood and grass-fed meat sat near homemade breads and just-made empanadas. It wasn’t a gigantic market – like my beloved Marin Farmers Market – but the quality and variety in every stall made it hands down the best market I’ve visited since leaving the West Coast! Every grower I talked to was helpful, the prices were remarkable, and the produce looked to be some of the freshest I’ve seen.  Plus, it was full of locals, unlike NYC’s Union Square Market and San Francisco’s Ferry Building Market, which are great but often overrun by tourists….so here you could actually buy great food at amazing prices, rather than just coming as a look-e-loo!

If you ever find yourself in our nation’s capitol, check out the Dupont Circle Farmers Market, a must stop for any market-lover. Oh, and if you’re looking for a nearby spot for a delish meal, try Founding Farmers, a “farm-inspired American” restaurant focused on supporting local farmers. The prices are reasonable and it boasts adorable décor. I had the slow-cooked pork sandwich on homemade ciabbata bread and a late harvest salad, both highly recommended!

If you’re trying to eat locally or seasonally, then you’re undoubtedly basking in summer’s bounty right now! There is so much amazing fruit to be had that you might have forgetten all of the dreary days in winter when you were relegated to only eating citrus and pears.

Stone fruit – above all other summer produce – holds a special place in my heart, which is why I’m totally in love with Frog Hallow farm, an organic farm located on the Sacramento River Delta. This 133-acre farm produces 25 varieties of peaches, nectarines, cherries, apricots, pluots, plums, as well as pears and grapes later in the year. They supply fruit to restaurants like Chez Panisse as well as local farmer’s markets, including the Ferry Building, Castro and Inner Sunset locations.

I spent some time at their stand pestering the workers about the different apricot varieties. The staff couldn’t be nicer as they explained all of the nuances between the types. Ultimately, I ended up with an assortment, which I transformed into Apricot Chutney (check back on Friday).

Here are the three I picked out:

• Golden Sweet – The name says it all. This is the sweetest variety, delicious eaten while still warm from the sun! When I was in the booth, a customer took home a whole 10-pound box. He told me he makes jam with this variety every summer and it is to die for. Yes, please!

• Blenheim – This is a new variety for Frog Hallow. It is the same size as the Golden Sweet variety, but not as sweet. It’s great for jam or chutney.

• Robada – These babies are pretty big when it comes to apricot standards. As such, they are also the most bitter. They have a beautiful color and are great for savory purposes, like bread stuffing.

I’m still getting used to waking up to a sweltering apartment that even blasting A/C can’t help. Don’t get me wrong, I’d pick being too hot over being too cold any day of the week. It has been a serious treat to wear a tank top and shorts around my place without the constant need to grab a blanket. But the heat has altered my morning meal routine. Gone are the days of my Overnight Oatmeal and Six Minute Eggs, as I can’t bear the thought of turning on the stove. Now, I’m a smoothie maniac. This version includes oatmeal, which gives the smoothie a bit of texture that I love. Plus, it adds some complex carbs to your bfast (great especially if you’re out of toast!)

Makes 2 smoothies.

2 cups blueberries, frozen*
1 banana, frozen
1 cup low-fat or fat-free plain yogurt
¼ – ½ cup rolled oats (depending on what texture you like)
Juice from ½ lime
A few tablespoons water

Place blueberries, banana, oats, yogurt, limejuice, and water in a blender and blend until you’ve reached your desired consistency for your beverage. If your ingredients get stuck, just add a bit more water to help loosen everything up. Drink immediately (sometimes smoothies get a little funky in texture if left out for too long!)

*I wash my blueberries and stick them in my freezer beforehand. You can always buy frozen berries at the supermarket too, if it’s not berry season any longer!