This Saturday, after a wonderful Friday dinner of pasta primavera and some serious garlic bread (see recipe below), Jim and I decided to spend the day shopping lazily at any market or seller of fresh foods we could find.
First stop was the recently opened West Windsor Farmer’s Market in the Princeton-Junction train station parking lot (a wonderful spot for a weekend market). This early in the season, there wasn’t much available, but we learned of a great farm that sells free-range chicken and tons of other products, Griggstown Farm, and picked up a huge bag of their dried mushrooms and some asparagus. We also bought scarlet strawberries and ate a delectable, doughy, sugar-fried doughnut from Terhune Farms that plunged Jim into nostalgia over his high school years of hanging out at the Farm eating those golden rings of deliciousness.
Later in the afternoon, after a pit stop at the dog park, we drove up to Homestead Farm Market in Lambertville, picking up some ripe, heirloom tomatoes, NJ wildflower honey, various lettuces and radishes (which I need to figure out what to do with soon). We also stopped by the Highland Market to get some pictures of the beautiful animals raised there. These girls are huge!
Driving the scenic route back home, through Hopewell Township, NJ, we happened upon someone selling Duck, Chicken, and Goose eggs from there home. After spotting the sign out front, we pulled up a driveway-hill to find a yard full of squawking chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese. No cages, just an expansive green grassland for the animals to run around as they pleased.
Welcomed inside by a little old lady with a Russian accent, we learned we could adopt some ducks if we wished. After snapping some pictures of the adorable babies, I had to muster the courage to turn down her offer.
Instead, we bought a dozen chicken and a dozen duck eggs. Almost twice the size of chicken eggs, with yolks at least doubled in size, duck eggs are extremely creamy. I bet they would be fantastic in egg salad!
Our long drive ended up at Whole Foods, since we were craving some kind of meat for our Saturday date-night cooking in. Luckily, we found some grass-fed beef there, and purchased two gigantic rib-eyes.
Jim did a wonderful job cooking the steaks, which take much less time than grain-fed. First, he cooked bacon in a skillet, to use the rendered fat as the steaks’ cooking medium. Then. he seared the steaks quickly in the hot skillet, and transferred to a pan and covered in a garlic infused oil, cooking in the oven for about 10 minutes at 375. We covered the steaks in caramelized onions and ate a delicious fresh Caesar salad with dinner. The meat was tender and perfectly cooked. With grass-fed beef, you get no mouthfuls of flavorless fat because grass-fed is much leaner. The taste of the beef is almost indescribable. All I can say is that once you try it, you realize that its what beef is supposed to taste like.
Sunday morning I woke up to a superb breakfast of duck eggs, left over rib-eyes and potatoes. A perfect way to start the day.
Super Garlic Bread
Time: 20 minutes including prep
Oven Temp: 350°
- Loaf of French or Italian Bread
- 1 whole stick of butter, softened
- small handful fresh basil, chopped
- 8 cloves of garlic, minced
- Parm cheese for sprinkling
- Cut bread into halves.
- Mix softened butter, basil, and garlic in bowl.
- Butter both sides of bread, lay in a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.
- Bake for 10 minutes, open oven and sprinkle cheese on bread, bake for another 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is golden (watch to make sure you don’t burn it!)
- Enjoy!
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