Pauline's Lucky Market Garden

We have been digging sweet potatoes this week and are bringing them to our  booth at the Artisan Alley Farmers Market in downtown Deland. We have two types: the orange flesh one that most folks are familiar with and another with dark reddish skin and a white flesh that stays firm when cooked (this one is especially good in soups and stews).  Use your sweet potatoes along with your turkey leftovers to make a lovely chowder. Go to our recipes page and scroll down to find our new favorite farm recipe!

HIBISCUS FLOWER CAKE                     It's Hibiscus flower harvest time at our farm, and we are having some more fun with them in our farm kitchen. This time we used them as a cranberry substitute and baked them into this lovely, moist cake. Try it yourself using our recipe. We sell our hibiscus flowers at our farmers market stand at the Artisan Alley Farmers' Market in Deland FL.   It will take a bit over an  hour. Also called "roselle" and  "Florida cranberry" the part we use and call "hibiscus flower" is not truly the flower but actually the seed pod surrounded by tart tasting sepals. These are removed and can be used dried or fresh. We used them fresh in our cake. This delicious cake makes 10 servings INGREDIENTS 4 cups hibiscus flower sepals (start with about 68 whole fresh flowers ~3/4 lb) 1  1/2 cups sugar 2 cups water zest from 1 orange 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 teasp

Summer on the farm is coming to an end.  That is great news for us at our central Florida tiny farm! As it cools down below 90 degrees it is time to regrow all the great greens, herbs and veggies we had in the spring backwards!  After months of scorching weather here we CAN'T WAIT to have cucumbers, zucchini again and then afterward beans and GREENS!!! But before we seem ungrateful for the veggies that got us through the heat, I have to say how nice it has been to have had a fruitful crop of eggplants that have given us all kinds of good eating! So as we approach the last eggplant harvests we are sharing another yummy recipe. We hope you like it! To make a lovely EGGPLANT SPREAD:  "Baba ghanouj" Ingredients 6 small EGGPLANTS (skin on halved lengthwise) 1/2 cup tahini 3 cloves garlic 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (2 lemons) fresh minced parsley to garnish optional Salt and pepper to taste Method Preheat oven to 350 ° f. Roast  eggplant halves  cutside

The following recipe has been my favorite for years. It's a curry with a tomato base wonderfully flavored with cumin seeds and raisins. I love this served with rice EGGPLANT SUPREME CURRY From Kathy Cooks 2 tablespoon oil or ghee 1/2 cup diced onions 2 cups eggplant in 1/2 inch cubes 1 green bell pepper thinly sliced 3 tomatoes chopped 1/4 cup raisins 1 tablespoon oil 1 teaspoon cumin seeds 1/4 teaspoon chili seeds 2 teaspoons curry powder 1 teaspoon soy sauce Sauté first 3 ingredients together for about 5 minutes. Add bell pepper and sauté for another 5 minutes. Add next 2 ingredients cover pan and cook over medium heat for another 5 minutes. In a separate small pot, mix together the next 4 ingredients and cook on high until spices are toasted and aromatic. Uncover the pot with the cooking vegetables and pour in the oil with the toasted spices. Add soy sauce. Mix well and serve. Makes 3-4 servings. Great hot or at room temperature

I remember as a child my mom made this dish as a light dinner and served it with salad. I am sure she made it at the height of zucchini season when it was summery and we would eat dinner at our picnic table in the yard. She stopped making it when we moved to a home with a yard too small to grow squash. I asked about it as an adult and she never told  me where the recipe came from which surprised me because I think the dish was always emptied when she made it. I finally rediscovered it in my mom's copy of The Jewish American Cookbook. They call it Zucchini with Cheese. In my version I used a blend of cheeses where their recipe called for American Cheese. I know my mom would not have used American Cheese but whatever good quality Cheese  she had on hand. I urge you to try this version.  Cheesy Zucchini Casserole.............. 4 servings 3 small Zucchini 2/3 cup grated cheese (harvarti or sharp cheddar mix) 1/4 cup milk 1 egg well beaten 3 tablespoons butter Preheat oven to

Mediterranean Lemon & Garlic Salad Dressing  My mom made our salad dressing like this all the time although she claims she didn't use any sweeteners. It is the perfect compliment to our spring mix , arugula and LETTUCES! Crumble some feta cheese on top to make it even better! (makes 2 1/4 cups, easy to make half recipe) INGREDIENTS: 2 cloves garlic 2 1/2  lemons 1 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper 2 tsp black pepper 2 tsp locally produced honey 2 cups canola oil DIRECTIONS:  Mince garlic and crush with the back of a spoon in a medium sized mixing bowl.  Squeeze lemons and add juice to bowl.  Stir in salt, pepper and honey.  Blend well. Slowly whisk in oil pouring it into bowl in a thin stream.  Store in a glass jar.  Use within 5 days.