Adventures in food - a new series!

Since I'm experimenting so much with new ingredients at the various Farmer's Markets as the seasons keep changing... I might as well start a series...

So tonight's new items:

Broccoli Rabe & Jonagold apples. Not together, though.

I did a simple blanch and saute of the Broccoli Rabe.

I brought a pot of salted water to a boil, added the chopped Broccoli Rabe & cooked it for about 2 minutes. I let it drain over the sink and sit in the strainer while i heated some Adam's Ranch Olive oil & sliced 4 cloves of garlic. When the oil was hot, I added the garlic until the perfumes were released - then added a sprinkling of crushed red pepper flakes I bought last week when I went to Penzey's (they have the best spices!). Then I added the well-drained Broccoli Rabe... tossed to coat & heat through... & voila!

Originally I was going to cook this with Hot Italian Sausage (from trader joe's - not organic, i know) & pasta - but as I'm trying to lose weight - I opted for just the veggies.

Easy & delicious.

I also bought Chinese Broccoli, which the lady at the market said was more bitter than the BR. It has a coarser leaf, with a little ruffle, and a darker color. I'll try cooking that the same way to see how it compares. That will be tomorrow's side dish.

Broccoli Rabe ***
not really my fave, but it was good. I'll have to try it with other things. I had this alone, so the meal was - well, it was comprised of Broccoli Rabe, Garlic, Oil & Red Pepper Flakes. (note to self: go easy on the red pepper flakes when they are new & fresh - they are so much more potent than the stale old ones...)

Jonagold Apple **1/2
I prefered its flavor over the Old-Fashioned Red Delicious's - but it still reminded me of that apple flavor I knew growing up when I didn't like apples. The texture was not all that mealy but there was something to it that made me not like it.

When I was a kid - the fruits we had in the house mostly comprised of apples, bananas, grapes & oranges (in the summer we'd get melons, strawberries & stone fruits - and other seasonal items occasionally). Boring! Needless to say - i wasn't much of a fruit eater.

My dad loves apples. but he eats mindlessly. he just eats an apple while reading a magazine or the newspaper. he doesn't seem to pay attention to the flavor or texture. he just eats them. he'd always get Red Delicious. Back then, we used to shop at Alpha Beta on Pico & Beverwil... and all I knew about apples were the 3 colors - Red, Golden Delicious & Granny Smith (green). I'd go with my mom to the market, and that was the routine - getting a bag of Red apples.

I never really questioned it. It was just what we'd get. Eventually I noticed there were Jonagolds & Jonathans - and sometimes we'd get those too. I never enjoyed them. I never wanted to eat an apple. I never craved apples. In fact - I hated them!

Alpha Beta was eventually bought out by Ralph's - and our regular store (which was really going downhill and had a pathetic selection near the end) closed down.

We started going to Vons in Cheviot Hills. Maybe that's when I noticed the Galas and the Fujis. They were more expensive than the cheapo Reds (by what - a nickel or two?) but we eventually tried the Galas. I liked them a little better.

For some reason, we never got the green ones. My dad always reached for the Red.

Eventually, when I hit my teens, i did start questioning this - and would start getting green apples instead. Hey - I was finally eating apples - that's a good thing, right?

But I didn't try the Fujis until i was in my 20's and moved out of my parents' house. I love Fuji apples.

I was actually craving apples during the early summer months - when they were out of season locally. The only ones they had at the farmer's markets were the ones kept in cold storage from the previous season. Not good. And buying Washington Apples (let alone New Zealand) goes against my buy local philosophies.

Now that they're back - I'm taking this opportunity to try as many varieties as I see to really find out which ones I like best, & which ones I like least.

Most of those fruits I grew up with - the Red apples, green grapes, oranges & bananas - are now my least favorite fruits. At one point, during High School, I ate a banana almost daily with my lunch. But one day, my tastes just changed - and I was disgusted by them. I still don't like them much. I'll have a banana bread muffin once in a while - or I'd occasionally have a smoothie back in the day (when I could still tolerate milk) with a banana... but most of the time, the thought of the flavor simply repulses me.

I like these experiments... keeps things fresh and exciting. I'll get in a routine for a while, then switch it up. I enjoyed the figs, berries, peaches, apricots, cherries et. al. during the summer - but now i'm enjoying apples, pears & grapefruits again.

The 3rd apple I bought last sunday was the Mutsu (also known as the Crispin locally), I have yet to try it - it's still in the fridge.