Food From The Islands, Vermont that is...

Sofrito Ingredients

Clockwise: Sweet pepper, yellow onion, garlic,  fresh cilantro & oregano, Sea salt & Black peppercorns, lemon, and green pepper. Center stage: tomatoes from Mr Harvest.

Finished product

Recipe for Sofrito

Fresh cilantro & oregano (the oregano came out of my garden)

1 medium bell pepper, chopped (Mr Harvest)

1 clove garlic, crushed (Mr Harvest)

1 medium onion, chopped

1 sweet pepper, chopped

8 small to medium tomatoes, chopped (Mr Harvest)

Lemon juice, fresh squeezed from 1 lemon

Olive oil & Achiote oil* (oil typically used in Spanish cooking)

Salt & pepper to taste

Add olive oil to medium saucepan to heat; chop all veggies necessary to recipe. When oil is heated, add garlic to saute for 1 min. Add onion, both peppers & saute for 3 mins. Add tomatoes, saute for 5 mins. Add juice from lemon, chopped herbs, and lower heat to simmer. Simmer for about 10 mins, then add achiote oil for color; salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat. Once cool, can be transfered to a jar for storage; you can also transfer to a Mason jar and allow heat to seal the lid.

*This recipe can be put through a food processor and used the same day, if needed. I prefer to saute my ingredients, store, and use as necessary. I'm not a "fresh sauce made every day kind of girl." I'm a busy mom who chooses to prepare ahead of time, and when needed, then use what I've prepared. Quicker for me, and I think the "aging process" adds more flavor to the dish.

Kale Chips (Mr Harvest)

(recipe to be added on another post)

Bruschetta (the tomato part [tomatoes from Mr Harvest])

[recipe to be added on another post]

Mr Harvest

South Burlington Farmer's Market, Summer 2012

Yes, I opened this post with a recipe. And there are recipes to follow on future posts.

Writing about a produce vendor is different than writing about specialty food vendors. And this is my first. Based out of South Hero, VT, Mr Harvest is a certified organic farm by NOFA-VT (Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont). http://nofavt.org/programs/organic-certification There is also a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) available, which can more information can be found on www.mrharvest.com

What I purchased initially from this family was strawberries, garlic, garlic scapes, and tomatoes. Each week, I try to pick up more, such as the kale one week to make kale chips (they didn't last long, they were so good!)  Some of the produce available this market season:

-beets

-bell peppers

-tomatoes

-garlic (& scapes)

-lettuce

-peas

-swiss chard & kale

Mr Harvest can be found at the following places:

-Their farmstand in South Hero, VT

-South Hero Farmer's Market (South Hero, VT)

-Essex Farmer's Market (Essex, VT)

-Fletcher Allen Health Care Farmer's Market (Burlington, VT)

-South Burlington Farmer's Market (South Burlington, VT)

-local area stores

-CSA program

I will be adding more information about Mr Harvest as the season progresses, along with other produce vendors (I made the bruschetta using ingredients from Mr Harvest & another produce vendor I'm hoping to highlight here). Here's to another fabulous market day!