No. 304: Feta & Farro, Grilled Naan Pizza, Chicken Brochettes, Crispy Granola
Plus: meatballs and meatloaf, plant sales and restaurant openings
🧑🏼🌾 The farm & feta report
The lilacs are starting to bloom in West Tisbury. Wild lowbush blueberries are covered with tiny white bell-shaped blossoms. My lettuce is thriving in the garden (so much rain!) and my peas seem to have (finally) all germinated and launched into overdrive. Last night we had edible flowers and tiny herb leaves in our salad – hurrah! Best of all, it’s plant sale time on the Vineyard. (For a complete list, see below.) I stopped by Grey Barn on Sunday, where they are hosting a sale of Milkweed Farm’s seedlings. They looked awesome – a lot of interesting varieties of peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, greens, and squashes.
I also stopped by Mermaid Farm for – you guessed it – feta! It’s that time of year when I get excited about putting feta in everything. Also a stop at Mermaid is always a good idea to check to see what farmer Caitlin Jones has for plant offerings. On Monday, there were some pawpaw tree seedlings.
🌟 Feta times two from The Martha’s Vineyard Cookbook
One of the main reasons I had feta on the brain was due to two new recipes from The Martha’s Vineyard Cookbook. If you’ve seen the latest issue of Martha’s Vineyard Magazine, you’ve probably read author Julia Blanter’s feature about how the cookbook came to be. But if not, you can read it here. And, if you haven’t bought the book yet, you can try out two delicious-sounding recipes that just happen to have feta in them.
The first is an easy and quick recipe from Kaila Allen-Posin of Allen Farm. She makes these Lamb and Feta Meatballs (photo on left) for her family for quick suppers. Often the kids help her with rolling and shaping. The second is from Milkweed Farm’s Mallory Watts (how appropriate!). She combines roasted and fresh vegetables with warm farro and a pesto-lemon dressing in her Farro Salad with Cherry Tomatoes, Spinach & Pesto (photo on right). Of course it is topped with crumbled feta.
🥗 Feta Favorites
My favorite things to do with feta? Believe it or not, without a stove, I’m actually wishing right now I could make myself a Little Kale and Feta Frittata with Chorizo and Mint. Take note: mint is a bright foil for kale – don’t be afraid to combine the two in other things.
Is it too early to make a Grilled Naan Pizza with Whipped Feta and Roasted Cherry Tomatoes? I think not! Except I’d have to use sundried tomatoes in place of the roasted cherry tomatoes (unless I want to make them in the toaster oven!).
Having a batch of that Whipped Lemon-Thyme Feta on hand is always a good idea for a variety of quick toast concoctions.
When I get the new oven, I’ll definitely make a Glazed Market Meatloaf with Feta and Farm Veggies, because leftovers are great cold for lunch!
I actually have squid in the freezer so I could grill it and make Cathy Walthers’ Greek Salad with Grilled Lemony Squid (and Feta!) – if I had a little more prep area to work with. But soon!
🔥 More asparagus! More grilling!
For supper this week, use that Morning Glory asparagus in Katie Leaird’s Spring Risotto.
If you’ve got large (fat) stalks of asparagus, my very favorite technique for cooking them is brown-braising. Try that in this recipe for Quick-Braised Asparagus with Dijon-Thyme Pan Sauce.
You could serve those with Grilled Rosemary Garlic Lamb Loin Chops.
Yes, I’m leaning a little heavy on grilling these days. That’s why we’ll be making Grilled Spiced Chicken Brochettes this weekend and serving them with either Simple Barbecue Sauce or Lemon Dill Yogurt Sauce.
Looking for something easy to bake this weekend – that you can eat all next week? Why not make a batch of Judson’s Crispy Granola?
Happy cooking, and as always, if you have a question, leave a comment here or feel free to email us at cookthevineyard@vineyardgazette.com.
— Susie Middleton, editor
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⛴️ What’s happening around the Island
🪴 Plant Sales
Beetlebung Farm is running their plant sale through the end of May. They’ll be putting out new seedlings each week, starting now with kale, arugula, parsley, peas, flowers and moving into the warmer veggies like cucumbers, tomatoes, eggplants and peppers.
The Greenhouse of Martha’s Vineyard in Oak Bluffs continues its annual plant every Saturday and Sunday, now through the second week of June, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The Martha’s Vineyard Garden Club will hold their annual plant sale on Saturday, May 24 and Sunday, May 25 at the Old Mill in West Tisbury, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The annual Polly Hill Arboretum plant sale will open for the season on Saturday, May 24, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Check other farmstands, including Morning Glory Farm and Grey Barn, for seedlings.
🍔 Restaurant Openings
Chef Johnny Graham just opened Revel Galley and Provisions at 342 State Road in Vineyard Haven where the Model Deli was last year. Soups, sandwiches, dinner takeout. Open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
L’etoile in Edgartown opens for the season on Thursday, May 15.
Also in Edgartown, Atria will open for dinner in the cellar on Thursday, May 15, (walk-ins only) and upstairs on Thursday, May 22.
🥕 Farm Stands, Spring Schedules
Ghost Island Farm is open every day, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Beetlebung Farm is open Thursday to Sunday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Morning Glory Farm is open daily, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Grey Barn’s farm stand is open Thursday to Monday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
North Tabor Farm’s farm stand is open daily, dawn to dusk.
Mermaid Farm is always open!
🐟 Seafood Markets
The Fish House at the airport is open Monday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Net Result in Vineyard Haven is open Monday to Saturday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Larsen’s Fish Market in Menemsha is open daily, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Menemsha Fish Market is open Monday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.
Edgartown Seafood is open Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
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Photos: Lamb meatballs and farro salad, Jocelyn Filley; squid salad, Cathy Walthers; soft serve, Tim Johnson; all others, Susie Middleton.
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Is it possible to “grill” the brochettes on a stove top griddle pan with ridges?