The Davis Farmers Market Cookbook captures the spirit of the market and the farmers who sell there. This book is for anyone who frequents a farmers market and wants to cook with fresh produce.”
– Thaddeus Barsotti
We are pleased to announce a new cookbook giveaway for a book close to our hearts and our farm history. Our farm’s founders, Martin Barnes and Kathleen Barsotti, co-founded the Davis Farmers Market 40 years ago to bring about change to the food system. Their children, our current farm owners, Noah, Thaddeus and Freeman, grew up working the market.
Photo of Martin Barnes (left), Freeman Barsotti (front left), and Thaddeus Barsotti (right)
The Davis Farmers Market Cookbook (revised edition) by Ann M. Evans with a foreword by Alice Waters features 75 recipes organized by season. Lovely color photographs of the market, its farmers, and the recipes are taken by award-winning photographer Craig Lee and help to illustrate the beauty of the market, the produce and the dishes that will grace your table.
This revised edition also includes 20 new recipes and a year of festive monthly menus. The book also highlights the role of second-generation farmers at the market and programs that bring farm fresh food into the schools.
We are so proud of our farm’s role in the founding of the Davis Farmers Market and of the hundreds of farms that sell their produce each week at markets around the country creating a direct relationship from farmer to consumer.
Freeman Barsotti and his son Jamison Barsotti at the Davis Farmers Market
What is your current seasonal favorite at the farmers market?
For a sneak peek at some of the recipes inside, see below for a seasonal selection. If you aren’t chosen for the giveaway, do not fret, we are selling signed copies of the book in our online market stand.
No purchase required. Limit one entry per person, please. Entries will close at noon on Tuesday, November 29, 2016. Winners are chosen by Random Number Generator and will be announced on our blog, Wednesday November 29th.
Our 10 Winners Have Been Chosen & Notified:
Cookie, Erica, Diane, Nancy, Royalty, Diane, Alan, Laurie, Thomas & Rose
Thank you all for participating and supporting your local farmers market!
Photo by Craig Lee
White Bean Soup with Meyer Lemon
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups (about 1 pound) Corona or other dried large white beans
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 fresh rosemary sprig
2 dried bay leaves, or 3 fresh bay leaves
4 fresh thyme sprigs
6 cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons sea or kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Wild or small cultivated arugula leaves, coarse stems removed, for garnish
Narrow strips of Meyer lemon zest for garnish
INSTRUCTIONS:
To prepare the beans, rinse them well, then place them in a large bowl, add water to cover generously, and let soak overnight. Alternatively, place the rinsed beans in a saucepan, add water to cover by 2 inches, and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from the heat, cover, and let sit for 1 hour. Drain the beans and reserve.
In a Dutch oven or other large, heavy pot, warm the butter and olive oil over medium heat. When the fat is hot, add the onion, rosemary, bay leaves, and thyme and sauté until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until the garlic begins to turn golden, 30 to 45 seconds.
Add the beans to the pot and stir to coat with the oil, onions, and herbs. Add the water, salt and pepper, stir well, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the beans are tender yet firm and not at all mushy, about 1 hour. The timing will depend on the age of the beans and how long they were soaked.
Ladle into warmed bowls, garnish with the arugula leaves and lemon zest, and serve immediately.
Serves 6
Persimmon Flan
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup sugar
2 or 3 very ripe, soft Hachiya persimmons, peeled, seeded, and cut into 11/2-inch pieces
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
6 eggs
1/2 teaspoon fine sea or kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS:
Spread 1/2 cup of the sugar in an 8-inch metal pie pan and place it over medium heat. Holding the edge of the pan with a hot pad, tilt the pan from side to side as the sugar melts and caramelizes so that the bottom as well as the sides is coated with the syrup. When all of the sugar has melted into a golden to dark brown liquid, remove the pan from the stove. Set aside.
In a saucepan over medium-high heat, cook the persimmon pieces, stirring often to prevent sticking or burning, until they release some of their moisture and thicken a bit, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
Transfer the persimmons to a blender and purée until smooth. Pass the purée though a chinois or a fine-mesh sieve. You should have about 3/4 cup purée.
Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Fill a teakettle with water and bring the water to a boil.
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the cream and milk and heat until small bubbles form around the edges of the pan. Remove from the heat. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs just until blended, then add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, the salt, and the vanilla and whisk until thoroughly combined. Slowly pour the hot milk-cream mixture into the eggs while whisking or stirring continuously. Stir in the puréed fruit.
Place the caramel-lined pie pan in a shallow roasting pan just large enough to hold it. Pour the custard mixture into the pie pan, filling it to the rim. Pour the boiling water into the roasting pan to reach halfway up the sides of the pie pan.
Bake the flan until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes.
Remove the roasting pan from the oven, then remove the flan from the roasting pan. Let cool to room temperature. At this point, the flan can be refrigerated for up to several hours.
To unmold the flan, slide a knife blade or thin metal spatula around the inside edge of the pan to loosen the flan sides. Invert a shallow serving plate on top of the pan and, holding the pan and the plate firmly together, flip them. Lift off the flan pan. To serve, cut into wedges.
Serves 8 to 10
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups (about 1 pound) Corona or other dried large white beans
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 fresh rosemary sprig
2 dried bay leaves, or 3 fresh bay leaves
4 fresh thyme sprigs
6 cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons sea or kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Wild or small cultivated arugula leaves, coarse stems removed, for garnish
Narrow strips of Meyer lemon zest for garnish
INSTRUCTIONS:
To prepare the beans, rinse them well, then place them in a large bowl, add water to cover generously, and let soak overnight. Alternatively, place the rinsed beans in a saucepan, add water to cover by 2 inches, and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from the heat, cover, and let sit for 1 hour. Drain the beans and reserve.
In a Dutch oven or other large, heavy pot, warm the butter and olive oil over medium heat. When the fat is hot, add the onion, rosemary, bay leaves, and thyme and sauté until the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté until the garlic begins to turn golden, 30 to 45 seconds.
Add the beans to the pot and stir to coat with the oil, onions, and herbs. Add the water, salt and pepper, stir well, raise the heat to high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the beans are tender yet firm and not at all mushy, about 1 hour. The timing will depend on the age of the beans and how long they were soaked.
Ladle into warmed bowls, garnish with the arugula leaves and lemon zest, and serve immediately.
Serves 6
Photo by Craig Lee
Persimmon Flan
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup sugar
2 or 3 very ripe, soft Hachiya persimmons, peeled, seeded, and cut into 11/2-inch pieces
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
6 eggs
1/2 teaspoon fine sea or kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS:
Spread 1/2 cup of the sugar in an 8-inch metal pie pan and place it over medium heat. Holding the edge of the pan with a hot pad, tilt the pan from side to side as the sugar melts and caramelizes so that the bottom as well as the sides is coated with the syrup. When all of the sugar has melted into a golden to dark brown liquid, remove the pan from the stove. Set aside.
In a saucepan over medium-high heat, cook the persimmon pieces, stirring often to prevent sticking or burning, until they release some of their moisture and thicken a bit, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
Transfer the persimmons to a blender and purée until smooth. Pass the purée though a chinois or a fine-mesh sieve. You should have about 3/4 cup purée.
Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Fill a teakettle with water and bring the water to a boil.
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the cream and milk and heat until small bubbles form around the edges of the pan. Remove from the heat. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs just until blended, then add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, the salt, and the vanilla and whisk until thoroughly combined. Slowly pour the hot milk-cream mixture into the eggs while whisking or stirring continuously. Stir in the puréed fruit.
Place the caramel-lined pie pan in a shallow roasting pan just large enough to hold it. Pour the custard mixture into the pie pan, filling it to the rim. Pour the boiling water into the roasting pan to reach halfway up the sides of the pie pan.
Bake the flan until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes.
Remove the roasting pan from the oven, then remove the flan from the roasting pan. Let cool to room temperature. At this point, the flan can be refrigerated for up to several hours.
To unmold the flan, slide a knife blade or thin metal spatula around the inside edge of the pan to loosen the flan sides. Invert a shallow serving plate on top of the pan and, holding the pan and the plate firmly together, flip them. Lift off the flan pan. To serve, cut into wedges.
Serves 8 to 10
