Field to Feast: A Moveable Blog Tour — Side Dishes

This year at SIBA, I had the great fortune to meet and speak with Pam Brandon, Katie Farmlad and Heather McPherson, the authors of Field to Feast. Sandy, Heather, Jill and I decided to run a week’s worth of foodie posts on this book because it’s an incredible look into the foods that Florida produces, processes and prepares. This is not your average cookbook. Each recipe is brought to you by a farm, chef or restaurant that resides in Florida. If you follow the tour in order, you’ll have a complete meal by the end of the week. Sandy started us off with the drinks and appetizers, which were mouth-watering and easy to create, then we hopped over to Heather’s blog for our main course. I’m up next with two side dishes that are both very different but wonderful to both the palate and the wallet.

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First up, I chose to make the Roasted Broccoli with Lemon and Parmesan, courtesy of Full Earth Farm located in Quincy, Florida. This recipe is very easy to make and the finished product looks and tastes incredible!

Roasted Broccoli with Lemon and Parmesan
Serves 4

• 1 large or 2 small heads of broccoli
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• ½ teaspoon coarse salt
• ½  teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
• 1 lemon zested and juiced
• ½ cup shaved Parmesan cheese

1) Preheat oven to 425, and Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside

2) separate broccoli crown and stalk. Cut crown into bite sized florets. Peel stalk with a vegetable peeler and cut into ½ inch thick strips.

3) Toss florets and stalk strips with oil in a large bowl. Add salt and toss to coat. Pour broccoli onto prepared baking sheet

4) Roast 20 minutes, tossing once or twice, until broccoli is tender and dark brown in places.

5) Transfer roasted brocoli into a large bowl. Add pepper, lemon zest, and 1 teaspoon of lemon juice. Toss to combine. Transfer broccoli into a serving bowl and top with shaved Parmesan.

It’s really a very easy recipe, and the shaved Parmesan can be substituted for grated, which is what we did. I had a friend over helping me cook these dishes and she couldn’t keep her hands out of the broccoli bowl! I had to threaten that she would be last to be served if she couldn’t stop nibbling these!! The result was a crispy and tangy masterpiece that was softened by the cheese, and it was a hit with us.

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The second recipe was for Hua Moa Tostones, brought to us by Chef Michael Schwartz from Michael’s Genuine Food and Drink, based out of my hometown of Miami. These tostones were a little more effort to prepare but they were delectable, and not many were left, as my sous chef once again got a little overeager and snapped them up!

Hua Moa Tostones
Makes 12 to 16 Tostones

• Unripe (green) hua moa plantains, peeled and sliced into 1 ½ inch rounds
• Vegetable oil for frying
• Coarse salt to taste

1) To peel plantains, make one shallow slit lengthwise, just through the skin. Place split plantains in boiling water for about 1 minute, or until skin turns brown. Remove and place in an ice bath; peel and discard skin. Slice peeled plantain into 1 ½ inch rounds.

2) Heat 4 inches of oil to 350 in an electric fryer or deep pot. If you don’t have a deep fry thermometer, a good way to test if the oil is hot enough is to stick the end of a wooden spoon or chopstick in it. If bubbles crce around the end, oil is ready.

3) Fry plantain rounds all together about 1 ½ minutes, or just until they start to turn golden.Remove from the fryer with a slotted spoon and transfer to an aluminium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rounds  sit 5 minutes. Leve oil at temperature on stovetop.

4) Place one round at a time, cut side up on center of a lightly oiled wooden wooden cutting board. Using both hands on each side, take another small oiled board or flat surface and press down evenly, flattening plantain round to a ½ inch  thick disc. Carefully lift top board. The plantain disc will now be about 4 inches in diameter. To remove, carefully slide a chef’s knife under disc and transfer to a plate. Repeat, placing sheets of parchment paper between layers of plantains

5) Fry discs, this time in batches of 3 or 4 without crowding, 2 to 3 minutes, or until golden brown. With tongs, transfer plantains to paper towels to drain. Season generously with salt and serve immediately.

These were seriously delicious and had all the flavor of the plantain with the  perfect amount of salt and crunch. I ate these like chips, and we made many more than the recipe actually called for. I also changed one of the steps and smashed my plantains  after their first frying between two pieces of wax paper and a rolling pin. So seriously yummy.

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If you’re looking for a cookbook that really delves into the tastes of Florida and you want to see some of the lovely little farms and restaurants that make Florida such a popular destination and a cool place to live, you seriously need to check out this book. Not all of the recipes have pictures to go along with them, but this is a cookbook that  shines beautifully with Florida’s native foods and the people who love them. An excellent foray into Florida cooking. Recommended.

Hop on over to Jill’s blog on Friday where our tour will end with a mightily magnificent dessert!

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This book was provided as a complimentary review copy.