Something’s Cooking at Evening of the Arts

Tonight’s Evening of the Arts in downtown Bryan wasn’t just an opportunity to highlight some of the great art talent in the Brazos Valley. It was also an opportunity for the Brazos Locavores to showcase some of our local cooking talent. 

Three of our fellow locavores provided a variety of dishes for the event including tortilla de patata, cheese puffs, goat cheese and bagel bites, and mini egg salad sandwiches.

In front of each platter, a small card included both the recipe and local source of the ingredients as well as information on the Brazos Locavores. While everyone was nibbling, I had the opportunity to speak with some of the guests about the benefits of eating locally as well as point out what a wealth of local resources we have here in the Brazos Valley.

A special thanks to everyone who submitted a dish. As a special treat, I’ve listed the recipes below.

Happy (and mindful) eating!

TORTILLA DE PATATA

• 4 large potatoes (Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market)
• 5 eggs (Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market)
• 1 onion (Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market)
• olive oil (Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market)
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Peel and thinly slice the potatoes and onion
2. Heat olive oil in a skillet and add the potatoes and onion. Fry until soft over medium heat (stir the mix occasionally to help it cook evenly)
3. Whisk eggs in a bowl
4. When the potato and onion mix is ready, remove to a plate covered in a paper towel to drain the remaining oil.
5. Add the potato mix to the beaten egg.
6. Remove all the oil from the pan and return it to the stove. Set the burner to high heat. When hot, add the mix and spread evenly. Lower to medium heat and cook for about 5 minutes. With a plate the same size as the pan, turn the tortilla over and return to the pan to cook the other side for 5 minutes.
7. You’ll know when it’s ready when it’s brown on the outside but still moist on the inside.

A national dish in Spain, tortilla can be served hot or cold. You can cut it into slices and serve it on ciabatta bread as a “tapa” with mayonnaise or aioli.

GOAT CHEESE ON RYE BITES

• 1/2 lb package goat cheese (Wateroak Farms – can also be purchased at Village Foods or Brazos Natural Foods)
• Rye Bites (Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market)

Instructions:

1. Slice cheese finely
2. Place one slice on each rye bite 
3. Enjoy

It just doesn’t get any easier than that!

MINI EGG SALAD SANDWICHES

• mini whole wheat rolls (whole wheat flour, honey, and olive oil from Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market) – The recipe I use is here; for rolls, bake at the same temperature but reduce bake time to 15-20 min depending on the size of the roll.
• 1 dozen eggs (Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market)
• onion, chopped (Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market)
• mayo
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Boil, peel, and chop eggs.
2. Add chopped onion, mayo to desired consistency, and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Slice each roll in half
4. Top with egg salad.
5. Serve

SAVORY CHEESE PUFFS / GOUGERES

•  1 cup milk (Sand Creek Farm and Dairy)
• 4 tbs unsalted butter
• 1/4 tsp salt
• dash cayenne pepper
• 1 c. whole wheat flour (Leaning Tree Farm/BV Farmers’ Market)
• 2 large eggs (Brazos Valley Farmers’ Market)
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 tbs rosemary
• 1/4 cup dried red onion
• 1 cup chevre cheese (Wateroak Farms)
• course salt to sprinkle on top

Instructions:

1. Bring the milk, butter, salt, and cayenne to boil in a saucepan. Remove from heat, add flour all at once, and mix vigorously with a wooden spoon or spatula until the mixture forms a ball. Return the pan to the heat and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally for about 1 minute to dry the mixture a bit. Transfer mixture to the bowl of a food processor, let cool for 5 minutes, then process for about 5 seconds.
2. Add the eggs, paprika, and rosemary to the processor bowl and process for 10-15 seconds until well mixed. Transfer the dough to a mixing bowl and let cool for 10 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with a reusable nonstick baking mat or parchment paper. Add diced onion and chevre cheese to the dough. Stir just enough to incorporate. Using a tablespoon, scoop out a level tablespoon of the dough and push it off the spoon onto the cooking mat. Continue making individual puffs, spacing them about 2 inches apart on the sheet. Sprinkle a few grains of coarse salt on top of each one. Bake about 30 minutes, until nicely browned and crisp. Serve lukewarm or at room temperature.