fruit and vegetable market, Ibiza

Going beyond chocolates & flowers...

Have you ever seen those commercials for Edible Arrangements and wondered if they're really all they're cracked up to be? Let me be the first to tell you, if you're getting one from the Burlington location, they are! I had always wondered what they were like, and I guess at some point I mentioned that while watching their commercial. For Valentine's Day this year, my boy picked me up one of these. The fruit was fresh, perfectly arranged, and overall -- delicious! For a fruithead like me, it really ranks in the top ten gifts.

Oversized Strawberry!

My favorite homework snack lately has been a bowl of juicy green grapes and strawberries. It's the perfect pick-me-up between hours of productions management math problems and hours of business-plan-planning. All was normal until one day when I stumbled upon this gigantic strawberry! I just had to take some photos. Check it out...

My delicious bowl of fruity goodness!














The gigantic strawberry next to a normal strawberry!














And just for size comparison...

Stuffed Cupcakes for my Valentine

This year, I made some cupcakes inspired by these, except I made them more Valentine's Day friendly by adding CHOCOLATE!

I stuffed devil's food cupcakes with strawberries, and frosted them with vanilla buttercream.









































A new outlook on chocolate-covered strawberries. =)

"welcome, baby" cake

French vanilla cake with pink raspberry buttercream and fresh raspberries!

i've got the blues...

Yay!

We are in pick-your-own-blueberry season! The bushes at Willow Hill Farm are laden with berries, and although we have been hammered by rain for the last two months, the berries are in great shape!

There are so many berries on the bushes that you don't have to move around too much to pick a flat or two.

Willow Hill Farm's blueberries are NOFA (USDA) certified organic and there are 9 varieties of blues in the field. The bushes are located between two pastures, so you can pick to the sounds of ewes, lambs, and the many birds that frequent the area (keep your eyes peeled for the baltimore orioles!).

Berries are $4/lb for pick-your-own, but if you don't have time for picking or we get rained out (since it seems to be a pattern this year), there are two other ways to get some of our lovely berries:

1) You could drive up to our little store in the cheese plant (look for the sign on the road that says "cheese") and there are usually prepicked blueberry pints in the fridge, along with a delicious selection of Willow Hill Farm artisanal cheeses. The store is also a viewing room that overlooks the "make room" in the cheese plant.

2) Pick up a prepicked pint of berries at the Burlington Farmers' Market. The market is open from 8:30-2:00, but when it comes to berries, coming earlier is better!

As always, we recommend calling first (802-893-2963) to check hours for the day, since they depend on weather conditions and staffing. And, no need for the GPS! There are directions on the machine. =)

dinner party dessert

Some friends of mine threw a party two nights ago, and I was in charge of putting together the desserts. I used to sell these little blueberry tartlets at a farmers' market, but I hadn't made them recently, so I kind of revamped the recipe.

I put together a dough of ground almonds (done in my food processor), sugar, butter, a pinch of salt, and some ice water. After toasting them up, I filled them with a light cream (housemade sheep ricotta, sheep yogurt, whipped cream, and powdered sugar -- all folded together and spiked with a little amaretto). I topped each tartlet with a gigantic Willow Hill Farm blueberry.

fruit-roasted chicken

I started out searing off some chicken thighs, then sautéing some onions, garlic, and apples. I then added some chicken and vegetable stock, stirred in some dried currants, then poured the whole sauce over the chicken thighs. I roasted the chicken in the oven until tender. The result? Sweet roasted garlic, slight tartness from the apples, and moist and tender chicken. Delicious!

fresh fruit and yogurt cup

I was loosely following Eating Well's Fresh Fruit Tart recipe the other day, and I came out with a little extra filling. I filled a ramekin with the extra yogurt mixture, and it hit me. If you are trying to cut calories, why not take out the crust (it's made with graham crackers and butter)? Don't get me wrong, Eating Well's recipes are already designed to promote healthy eating, but sometimes you just don't want the crust (ok, I admit, I've never felt that way, but some people might!). Either way, it's tasty, and you can top it with (or mix in) any summer fruits that you like. Drizzle the top with a little bit of the marmelade or jam mixture (here I used a mixture of tangerine marmelade and raspberry preserves) and let it set. Yummy!

Bites in Granada

First things first: If you need a place to stay, check out La Casa de Rafa (also called El Numero 8). Innkeeper Rafael is awesome, and very knowledgeable about Granada. He actually meets you a few streets away before you check in (it's very hard to find the place if you don't know where you're going!), and on the way to the hotel he shows you a few local restaurants.

One restaurant, Mesón del Trillo (Callejón del Algibe de Trillo, 3) serves up a wonderful array of delicious cuisine. For starters, their bread is clearly NOT frozen, and before you can decide what you'd like to eat, they place an apertif in front of you (our server told me they take one of their dishes and make a puréed version since they don't offer soups on the menu). The one we had included fava beans (habas en Español) and was very tasty. For an app, try the tomato salad.
Between the salad and our main dishes, we were presented with a second tiny glass, this time a palate-cleansing shot of pineapple sorbet.
For the main dishes, try the pork medallions with mustard sauce, or their delicious house-specialty rice dish (it includes artichokes, fava beans and small clams).
For dessert, try the cheesecake, the blackberry "cake" or the bizcocho de avellana con chocolate caliente.
This very well may have been the best meal I have ever eaten, and the servers are well-deserving of a 15% tip (VERY generous, judging that it is common to not give tips at all). Also, the local Granada wine on the menu adds yet another enjoyable facet to the meal. I highly recommend this establishment.

If you are not in the mood for going out and you want to cook in your own kitchen (or the one in your aparthotel), check out the Mercado Central. There is an abundance of fresh fruits and veggies, seafoods, meats and cheeses.

There are also a number of fruterías scattered around the city, and I even stumbled across a spice/tea market.



As far as tapas go, you really do get them for free in Granada. With the order of any alcoholic beverage (try the tinto de verano -- vino tinto + Fanta limón) or refresco, you can expect a selection of tapas. We visited one bar and received small ham & cheese sandwiches on bagel-type bread, a heap of tuna & pasta salad, and tater chips with a ketchup-like sauce and creamy dip. Of course, you can always go to a bar and order raciones (plates) of tapas, but you'll have to pay for them, and there's only one rule: They have to be tasty.

Bites in Córdoba

Mesón de la Luna (c/ Luna, 1) offers a delicious menu-of-the-day. For starters, try the "fruit salad" with ham (Ok, Spain, here I draw the line. It's one thing to have ham in nearly all of the vegetable dishes I've enjoyed, to add ham to most pizza options, and even to have ham-flavored Pringles and potato chips, but it's completely different when you add ham to my fruit salad.) and "crave stick" (aka "fake crab" -- Thank you to all of those restaurants out there that offer an English translation of the menu that proves to be more confusing than reading the Spanish one.) or the mini-raviolis with roquefort and wild mushrooms. For a main dish, try the grilled swordfish or the "pluma" (fillet mignon of pork and absolutely delicious). For dessert, fresh fruit -- green apples or juicy melon. You can enjoy your lunch under in a tiny shaded plaza... Fabulous.

Mini-bite :: La Gloria de Montera

The other night, at La Gloria de Montera, I had a delicious dessert. Fresh strawberry soup with a scoop of tarragon ice cream. I know it sounds weird, but it is amazing. The "ice cream" tastes a bit more like a sorbet, but it is tasty. Give it a try. =)

Pizza Jardín

If you're in the mood for pizza, check out Pizza Jardín (c/Goya, 5, and other locations). They, of course, have classic combinations, like sausage and onion, or mushroom pizza, but if you are in the mood for something a little more daring, you'd be in the right place. They have everything from the classic Margherita to the Cuatro Estaciones ("four seasons" -- tomato, mozzarella, mushrooms, York ham, shrimp and tuna -- a regular item on pizza menus here), the Calzone (which includes olives and asparragus), the Piamontesa (goat cheese, onion confit and apple), the Jamaica (which includes roquefort and banana), the Texas (chicken & BBQ), and the Hawaiian Tropic (which has not only pineapple, but mandarin, too). Last night, I opted for La Cosa Nostra (tasty cheese pizza topped with stuffed mushrooms -- filled with ham & garlic), and my friend had the Texas. All in all, they have more than 25 different pizza options, as well as salads, pastas, entradas (apps), and fondues. Their desserts are quite tasty, too -- try the chocolate fondue with fresh fruit. =)