A Return to Chase’s

By Lori Powell

As promised per my last post, I am blogging again about Chase’s Daily Restaurant in Belfast, Maine. Since corn, green beans (my own are almost done) and tomatoes are still so plentiful, I thought I would share my version of a salad I had at Chase’s that used those classic summer ingredients.

What’s nice about this recipe is that minimal cooking is required; the only thing that is cooked is the fresh green beans, which are just given a good blanching.

Blanching is the process of cooking something quickly in boiling salted water until crisp-tender, draining immediately and then refreshing in a bowl of cold water that includes a few ice cubes. This not only stops the vegetables from cooking but also helps to retain their vibrant color and crisp texture – the trick is to not undercook or overcook.

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Celebrate the Fourth with Corn

By Lori Powell

Too hot to cook…so don’t! Take it outside along with the rest of your Fourth of July BBQ dishes.

Now is the time to use the best produce the season has to offer and in this case, it’s corn, which is a bit early this year. It is the perfect pick of the crop right now.

Since my house is surrounded by fields of corn it only seems appropriate to celebrate the Fourth with some of the earth’s golden bounty.

Take the corn outside and give it a brief spin on the grill along with a poblano pepper and a good set of long tongs. This salad takes only minutes to prepare. My real goal is to give the corn a slight smoky flavor to complement its inherent sweetness and accent it with the slight heat of the poblano.

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Farmers Market Tour

By Andrew Hunter

Last month we wrote about Dirt to Dish and the importance of teaching our boys how their food gets from the farm to their plate. Ben and Nick are urban kids, but they’re old enough to understand the basic principles of sustainable food, planting seeds, harvesting fruits and vegetables, and the idea of cooking and eating without wasting.

So we’ve decided this will be a summer of farmers’ market tours. We plan on hitting all the local markets from the west side to the east side. The first stop of our tour is the Santa Monica Farmers Market on Main Street.

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Easy Fish Tacos to Celebrate Summer

By Jess Ziman

I remember perusing the farmers’ market eight months ago and wistfully bidding farewell to my favorite summer produce. There are seasonal gems all year round, but without a doubt summer is the most vivacious. I was so happy to go to the farmers’ market last week and take in the renewed abundance of color and variety – fresh tomatoes, asparagus, cherries and lovely golden peaches!

To me, these tilapia tacos with peach, corn, and black bean salsa are the perfect way to welcome the season. Nothing says summer quite like a lovely ripe peach and fish tacos instantly making me feel like a sun-kissed surfer. Not only are the tacos a refreshing, yet surprisingly filling meal, but they are quick to make so you won’t have to be indoors too long, missing the sunshine.

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Soup in a Hurry

By David Hu

There’s nothing quite like a nice, comforting bowl of soup when it’s cold outside. While many soups are time consuming, today’s Mexican-inspired chicken potato soup is not. From start to finish this recipe should take about 30 minutes.

If you have the time, let the soup sit for a day to allow the flavors to develop. But if you’re like me, you simply won’t be able to wait that long because it smells so good. I particularly love serving this soup with baked tortilla strips, which I like to add a little at a time to enjoy a nice crunch before it goes soggy.

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