Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Pesto Potato and Green Bean Salad


salad, before tossing

[ts]
After loading up on -- or HOARDING, I should say -- all sorts of pretty produce the first time we went to Richmond Country Farms Market, we had to sit down and strategize: what are we making with all of these items?

Here's some basil...


potatoes (JS loves their peeling/blistery selves)...


and green beans.


First on the list of things to make, this pesto potato and green bean salad.

Look at this huge and pretty garlic.




It's the same length as my pinky!

It joined olive oil, basil, Parmiggiano-Reggiano, and perhaps pine nuts (I forget if we had some on hand), to make pesto. Salt, too, of course.



I boiled the potatoes, blanched the green beans and grated even more Parmiggiano. I added the basil and they were very happy together.


left: separate; right: together

I shaved some more cheese on top after tossing the salad.



We're off to a good start, don't you think?

----

Market Loot Series
Pesto Potato and Green Bean Salad
Yellow Beans, English Peas, Radish and Dill Salad
Grilled Corn
Fried Green Tomatoes
Chimichurri with Flank Steak
...

25 comments:

  1. That was one huge garlic. It looks like a garlic on steroids. First time I've seen it that big.

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  2. Basil pesto, hmmm, one of our all-time favorites. I've seen the humongous cabbage (from your market post), now the humongous garlic. Wow! Will my kids grow humongous too if I transplant them there right away? :)

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  3. Garlic with pink skin? I thought they were shallots. No wonder some say we are in sync coz we are both on green beans! :P

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  4. Love the colors! So brilliantly green. But, I'm thinking you lot must have huge werewolves in Vancouver if you need to grow garlic that size! :)

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  5. Woah, such a big garlic! All the food ingredients look so fresh, yum :)~

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  6. I've got alot of basil left and this is a great option for the ensuing pesto...nice!

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  7. Ning, I think it's in the water in Vancouver.

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  8. Great idea for a potato salad! I only wish I could find garlic that big around here. It would save me time from peeling all those little tiny cloves :)

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  9. I've never seen garlic that big. Should there be a Congressional inquiry (er - Parliamentary inquiry) into the use of steroids in major league garlic growing?

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  10. what a great looking salad though that is some mutant garlic you've got there

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  11. Delicious combination! Was the huge garlic milder than smaller cloves?

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  12. that looks good and.. OMG. that garlic is huge.

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  13. I think it's an elephant garlic? Supposed to be milder than normal.

    Nice haul at the farmer's market! We like going toward closing time on Sunday as the farmers are more willing to deal and push their products out. Got some great deals on peppers, lettuce, green onions, and peas the other day.

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  14. This potato salad looks seriously good!

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  15. That is such a fresh and flavourful salad. Want some.

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  16. You two are always making me hungry right before bed...

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  17. I haven't been to the Richmond farmer's markets but you've inspired me to go. Hope they're still on. Great looking salad. Love all the flavours.

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  18. This is quite the salad, I love it! I mean the flavors sound perfect together.

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  19. Gorgeous produce and you're putting it to good use. Nice job!

    At what time is dinner? :-)

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  20. I'm loving your use of pesto here - you've been stumbled!

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  21. Ning:
    It didn't help us moving here, growth-wise. But maybe it was just too late for us. =D

    tom:
    Actually, I don't even remember us buying that humongous garlic! Obviously we did, since there's photographic evidence. Haha.

    Joelen:
    I know! We still find it so hard to peel garlic!

    Fearless Kitchen:
    Haha. A scandal!

    lisa:
    May be. The pesto was so flavorful I couldn't tell! =(

    Nate-n-Annie:
    Haha, nice trick! If we do that at the smaller markets, stuff would be gone. The Richmond one is a ways away... so we don't have that luxury of waiting. Haha.

    Sweet Bird:
    Only check our blog in the morning!

    syrie:
    Just this weekend we went. They looked liek they were still going strong. There were so many people when we arrived!

    Zen Chef:
    Usually around 6:30pm ot 7pm. ;)

    Allen:
    Thanks!

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  22. It's always the way when you've been to the market, isn't it?

    You're still excited by all the smells and colours, so you try and get them all onto the same plate - and it always works!

    Case and point, your salad. It looks fantastic.

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  23. You have me longing for summer looking at that, it looks amazing!

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  24. Good grief - is that elephant garlic? The pesto looks awesome, as does the salad.

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