This past weekend was both the grand opening and the 50th anniversary of our very own Hitching Lot Farmers’ Market, and we are so back, y’all! I spend much of the year looking forward to May because that’s when it’s finally time for me to walk a block from my apartment in downtown Columbus to buy beautiful, fresh, local produce.
I was really impressed with the community turnout last weekend, but was even more impressed by our amazing local farmers – so much abundance and variety on display! There were so many varieties of vegetables, herbs, greens, mushrooms, preserves, honey, eggs, pickled goods, bread and baked goods, and even locally raised beef available – and all of it was grown, raised, canned or baked with love right here in Mississippi.
My own haul included Parisian heirloom carrots from Rosewater Farmstead, fresh chives and garlic from Trinity Bottom Farm, radishes and fresh salad mix from Posterity Farmstead, as well as sweet potatoes and broccoli from HalleluYAH Gardens. The produce was all so bright, so fresh and so beautiful that I was filled with weekend recipe inspiration by the time I got everything into the crisper drawer.
Local radishes were my main objective when I came into the market, and I was lucky enough to snag the very last bunch from Joe and Callie Cain at Posterity Farmstead’s booth. I had Sunday brunch on my mind with it being Mother’s Day weekend, and specifically decided to use a recipe I found from Nasim Lahbichi of the blog “LAHB Co.” for a promising-looking Spring Veggie Tart (lahbco.com).
This tart struck me as both simple and elevated, topping a premade puff pastry base with spicy cream cheese filling and asparagus and finishing it with a fresh radish and sugar snap pea salad! Nasim created this recipe out of a desire to make something for him and his friends that felt special and fancy without costing fancy restaurant prices, and I was inspired to follow suit.
In an effort to avoid a trip to the store, I ended up heavily tailoring this recipe to what was already available in my pantry and refrigerator. I really wanted my only grocery run this weekend to be to our local market, and that challenged me to be resourceful and see what kind of magic I could pull off.
A few weeks ago, I snagged a fancy Dufour puff pastry sheet from the freezer clearance section for 75% off, so I grabbed that as well as a bag of frozen asparagus spears I had on hand. In lieu of cream cheese, I used the last little bit of ricotta cheese I had in the fridge and exchanged Nasim’s listed harissa paste for a popular Korean chili paste that I always keep on hand: gochujang.
You can find gochujang in the Asian food section of any grocery store, and I wouldn’t skip this ingredient – it adds a beautiful complexity of flavor, and it’s quite mild, so it doesn’t turn your dishes spicy hot.
For the salad, Nasim used preserved lemons, but that is a specialty ingredient I haven’t been able to get my hands on yet, so I just used some fresh lemon zest and juice in its place.
This tart turned out to be such a testament to the way simplicity can lead to surprising or even stunning results! It honestly reminded me of a quiche served with a side salad, except the salad was included in every bite.
It was the perfect dish to serve and enjoy for brunch on Mother’s Day this past Sunday, and all of the local ingredients really shined both in presentation and taste! If you try this one out, I promise you won’t regret it – and you definitely won’t regret popping down to the Hitching Lot Farmers’ Market this season to support our local growers and snag some amazing local food.
SPRING VEGGIE TART (WITH LOCAL RADISHES)
Ingredients:
Tart:
8 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon gochujang
Salt, to taste
1 bunch asparagus (fresh or frozen)
1 puff pastry sheet, thawed
Egg wash (1 egg + 1 tablespoon water)
Garnish:
Sesame seeds
Salad:
2 radishes, thinly sliced
1 cup sugar snap peas, thinly sliced vertically
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon gochujang
Salt, to taste
Garnish:
Lemon zest
Parmigiano Reggiano
Directions
■ Defrost puff pastry (typically overnight in refrigerator or on counter for one hour) and preheat oven to 400 degrees with a rack in the middle.
■ Make the ricotta filling by combining it with egg, honey, gochujang and salt to taste. Set aside.
■ Roll out puff pastry, then lay on top of a 9-by-13-inch parchment-lined baking tray with some of the pastry hanging off the edge. Score the perimeter of the puff pastry, then prick the center with a fork.
■ Spread the ricotta filling evenly over the center, then fold the pastry edge over to enclose the filling.
■ Cut the ends of the asparagus to fit the center of the puff pastry and layer over the filling. Make the egg wash by mixing 1 egg and 1 tablespoon water, then brush the edges of the pastry with it. Garnish the edges with sesame seeds for added crunch.
■ Bake for 25-35 minutes or until edges are golden brown.
■ Make the salad: Thinly slice snap peas vertically and radishes. In a bowl, combine olive oil, sesame oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, gochujang and salt. Add snap peas and radishes, then toss to coat.
■ Remove pastry from oven and let cool for 20 minutes. Cut into six slices, then garnish with the snap pea salad.
■ Garnish with Parmigiano Reggiano and fresh lemon zest. Enjoy!
Kristin is a Columbus local and a graduate of MUW’s Culinary Arts Program. She lives downtown with her husband Jon and her naughty cat Sokka. In her free time she enjoys baking, making stained glass art and hanging out with her friends. If you see her in town, say hi!
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Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 32 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
