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THE FARMER'S MARKET DINNER

8/03/2005

The great thing about Vermont in the summer is the farmer's markets where you can shop the way we were meant to, directly from producers and growers. And one of the wonderful challenges is putting together a dinner entirely from food bought that morning.

In Montpelier, we have a terrific market that runs on Saturdays in the summer and fall. One recent morning I bought beautiful baby onions with the greens still on, small gold and red beets, also with their greens, and a pasture-raised rack of lamb.

That night I cleaned the onions and left a handle of greens on them and then I slow-carmelized in a skillet with butter. I removed the beets from their greens and then cubed them, rolled them in olive oil, salt and pepper and roasted them until tender. I washed the beet greens, chopped them, and then threw them in a hot wok with some oil and lots of sliced garlic. I frenched the rack of lamb and covered it with a mixture of mustard, rosemary, garlic and olive oil, then dredged it in panko bread crumbs. This went in a hot oven to cook to medium rare.

I put the beet greens on the bottom of a platter, the roasted beets on top of them, and then the rack of lamb, sliced into individual chops on top of this. I scattered the whole carmelized onions around everywhere. A drizzle of good balsamic vinegar finished it.

It was an excellent--healthy--meal no matter what. But it was so much better knowing who grew it and the land from which it came.