The season’s bounty is finally showing up at local farmers markets.
Spring onions, sweet sugar snap peas, fresh baby lettuce, strawberries and cherries from Eastern Washington all are available. And more farm-fresh goodness arrives each week.
The spring weather may have been damp, the harvests a bit late, but that shouldn’t wilt your appetite for using local ingredients to cook up a fabulous feast.
That’s exactly what local chef Margaret Boys-Wolf plans to do for the second annual Dinner in the Field scheduled for July 25 at Swans Trail Farms near Snohomish.
“The weather has been pretty dubious at best,” Boys-Wolf said.
Still, she’s planning a multi-course meal that will be served outdoors near the fields where the food is grown.
“We’re going for the ‘ooh, ahh’ factor,” she said.
Two local farms already are growing the fruits and vegetables Boys-Wolf hopes to use in the dinner, which is a benefit for Sherwood Community Services, a Lake Stevens group that provides help for children and adults with disabilities.
She said it’s easy to be creative in the kitchen when there’s an abundance of produce available. If spring rains continue into summer, she may have to change the menu, but here’s what she’s sketched out for the big night:
For nibbles, she’ll use zucchini and cucumber stuffed with couscous or a mousse, both flavored with fresh herbs.
Fresh raspberries will appear in salads, cherries will be used to stuff a pork loin and edible flowers will dot cupcakes.
Food will be served family-style to encourage people to talk about the food.
“That builds community,” Boys-Wolf said. “It’s not just about being served.”
Jackson Holtz: 425-339-3437; jholtz@heraldnet.com.
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