This Week's Food

Salmon 3 Ways: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

This week we are highlighting one of our favorites; gorgeous, fresh Atlantic Salmon fillets from Red's Best. We love working with Red's Best out of Boston. Their goal is "to sustain the livelihoods of American fishermen and their families while sustaining fisheries for harvest." What could be better than that?

These fillets, with their soft pink hue* can take on a variety of flavors. We've provided a few recipes that will let you eat this buttery fish all day long - breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

*Nerd Alert*
What makes salmon pink? This fish's flesh can vary from a very light pink to a deep orange color. The secret is that this this depends on the amount of carotenoid astaxanthin the fish have in their diets based on how much shrimp and krill they eat. Astaxanthin is a naturally occurring carotenoid pigment that's found in some marine plants and animals. It is recognized as being one of the most powerful antioxidants found in nature.

So eat up. This pink fish is good for you.

Posted on October 14, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

John's Secrets For The Best Chicken Pot Pie

Nothing says "Family Dinner" more than a prized recipe shared among friends. Here we are including the ultimate comfort food, Chicken Pot Pie, from our dear friend John Henry with whom we have shared countless meals, laughs and glasses of wine.

John's recipe, below, calls for a dark horse ingredient that adds a special bit of magic to the crust. Not necessary but if you have it lying around - it's a game changer.

PS: We are thrilled to be in our second month of working at our shared commissary space, Foundation Kitchen (Cheesy photo above!). Lots of beautiful food coming out of ambitious start ups here!

Posted on October 07, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

Bringing the heat!

This week we are highlighting some beautiful Organic Poblano Peppers from Brookford Farm. These peppers may look scary for those who don't love heat, conjuring up memories of the time you ate a Ghost Pepper chicken wing at your cousin's BBQ and nearly died. But you don't have to worry - poblanos are mild and versatile given their relative low Scoville Unit Measurement and can be approached without trepidation.

What the hell is a Scoville? (Nerd Alert)
According to Wikipedia: "The Scoville scale is a measurement of pungency (spicy heat) of chili peppers- or other spicy foods, as reported in Scoville heat units (SHU), a function of capsaicin concentration. Capsaicin is one of many related active components found in chili peppers, collectively called capsaicinoids. The scale is named after its creator, American pharmacist Wilbur Scoville. His method, devised in 1912, is known as the Scoville Organoleptic Test."

If you want the heat off a pepper but much less of the relative burn, remove the seeds and the ribs before cooking. They pair amazingly with the rich sirloins from this week and we have included a few ideas below.

Posted on September 30, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

Dinner and a Movie

Collaborating with Vagrants
This photo is just a little sneak peak of the video we are making with Dustin and Winston from Vagrants. These guys are amazing! They are highlighting the origin of Family Dinner products from farm to plate. We visited Luke and his family at Brookford Farm and spent yesterday on set chopping fresh organic vegetables. We can't wait to share the finished video with you. Stay tuned!

Posted on September 23, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

The world is your...scallop?

"Scallops are expensive, so they should be treated with some class. But then, I suppose that every creature that gives his life for our table should be treated with class." Jeff Smith

Scallops are an incredibly versatile and luxurious shellfish. Whether you like yours fried with tartar sauce, sautéed in butter, or served in a fresh, bright ceviche - this catch from Red's Best will not disappoint.

We asked Avery from Nella Pasta what he thought would pair nicely with the fish. He suggested linguine, and these long strands of dough were cut this morning. The recipes below have the makings of a wonderful weekend meal.

Posted on September 16, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

Shakshuka!

Shakshuka is is one of our favorite dishes of all time. It's perfect for a weekend lunch or for an elegant, but simple dinner to share with friends.

This humble but wonderfully satisfying dish is made of eggs poached in a tomato sauce with spices; often with cumin or chilis. The variations on it are myriad (we share a few options below) but sometimes the recipes can look intimidating from a spice perspective. If you don't have everything on the list, don't fret. You can be creative here; adding what you have on hand and whatever you are happy to see alongside tomatoes and eggs!

We like to serve it right in the dish, with a side of crusty bread and have people share family style. Bon Appetit!

Posted on September 09, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

It's Taco Time.

Happy Labor Day, it's Taco Time!

We're excited to share organic tortillas from Mi Tierra Tortillas in Hadley, MA. A local farmer teaming up with a couple of chefs to make beautiful products. Doesn't get any better than that. Here's their story:

"Mi Tierra started as a dream of Jorge and Dora's to bring authentic Mexican food to Western Massachusetts. We are continuing that dream by making tortillas in the ancient 'nixtamalazation' process, no chemicals, no additives, just 100% corn in the way our forefathers intended.

Mi Tierra Tortillas are made from 100% non-GMO, locally grown corn from the Connecticut Valley Region. Corn, water, and lime. Those are the only ingredients we use and the only ingredients they need!"

We hope you love them, we have focused our recipe suggestions around these little gems.

Posted on September 02, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

Let Them Eat Steak

This week's share includes a big, beautiful Sirloin Steak from Tad at Feather Brook Farms. We cooked Tad's sirloin in a cast iron pan and sliced it onto a flatbread pizza, pictured above.

The word sirloin comes from the Old French surloigne meaning above the loin. According to Wikipedia, there is an oft-repeated anecdote that says the name comes from a time when “King James I of England, while being entertained at Hoghton Tower during his return from Scotland in 1617, was so impressed by the quality of his steak that he knighted the loin of beef, which was referred to thereafter as "Sir loin".” Wikipedia goes on to say that this is held to be a myth, but we like the story of “Sir Beef”. Erin wants to use that as the name for our next dog.

The steaks are wonderfully savory and simple. As always, a cast iron or a grill treats 'em right. 3-4 minutes per side (130F for medium rare), a sprinkle of salt and pepper and you're ready. Don't forget to let them rest before slicing to add to your favorite sandwich, flatbread or directly to your face. Cooking the onions and mushrooms in the left over beef fat will introduce a lovely depth to your dish.

Posted on August 26, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

An Odd Couple

Corn and Pasta may seem like a bit of a strange pairing. You might think that adding a starch to starch would leave you with a leaden dish. However, if you cook the corn only slightly it brings a sweet, fresh bite to the pasta. If the idea of doing anything other with Summer Corn than boiling it and slathering it with butter seems appalling to you, we totally get it. That irresistible summer treat isn't going to be around for long. If you were willing to branch out a bit, try one of the Pasta recipes below.

Posted on August 19, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

Spice it up.

This week's share contains a little something extra, and we hope you love it.

We have started working with Curio Spice Co. on Mass Ave in Cambridge. Visit their storefront, it is beautiful! Their spice blends are inventive and delicious. More about them below.

This week we asked Claire, the owner, for a suggestion to pair with Chicken and Pita. She suggested her Kozani blend; a Greek herb/fennel blend with saffron. She also included a recipe for using the spice in a Tzatziki sauce - let us know what you think!

Posted on August 12, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

Nice Buns.

Nothing says summer like firing up the grill. For carnivores that means endless delicious charred, meaty treats. In this canon of deliciousness, creating the perfect cheese burger is a skill to be honed. There are dozens of ways to cook them and endless toppings. For the recipe, below, we kept it simple and brought it back to the burger you grew up with. Serve it with the quick pickles, corn and watermelon and you have a feast.

Posted on August 05, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

Lend Me Your (Little) Ears

Orecchiette is one of our favorite pasta shapes. Its name is a combination in Italian of orecchia (ear) and etta (little) and these little ears have a perfect shape for clinging to whatever amazing sauce you toss them with.

Salmon is an incredible fish year round, but its particularly versatile in the summer. There are dozens of ways to cook it; grilling, poaching, sous-viding, oven roasting. Wanna get fancy? Cook it in parchment. This fish from Red's Best is incredibly fresh and ready for your favorite recipe (or one of ours, below).

Posted on July 29, 2017

Erin Baumgartner

Where's the Beef?

We bought a cow!
We've partnered with Tad from Feather Brook Farms to bring you some beautiful beef. Tad is a pure joy and is SO passionate about food. As he shares his knowledge with us, we want to pass it along to you, so that you know your food AND your farmer. We've started with a bang and hope you enjoy this deliciously marbled bone-in rib-eye steak. Loving instructions on how to prepare it are below.

Posted on July 22, 2017

Erin Baumgartner