Laura Avery chats with chef Mark Gold, three-star Los Angeles Times Food section chef and former chef of Leatherby's Cafe Rouge in Orange County and Cafe Pinot. He is working with one of his favorite farmers, Alex Weiser, grilling a griddle full of Weiser Farm veggies: Nantes carrots, Cipollini onions, whole garlic, potatoes (purple Peruvian, red Chilean, Russian Banana,) plus some early eggplant. To roast these veggies, cut the carrots, potatoes, and eggplant length-wise, and leave the skin on the Cipollini onions and garlic. The skin peals right off when they're done. Chef Gold will be opening a new restaurant called Eva.
Marinade for the veggies - use Adams Ranch olive oil from Santa Monica market, tossed with fresh rosemary and salt.
Salsa Verde
Recipe courtesy of Chef Mark Gold
- 2 shallots, minced
- 3 Tablespoon champagne vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon chopped oregano
- 2 Tablespoon chopped mint
- 3 Tablespoon chive, minced
- 4 Tablespoon chopped parsley
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
Place the minced shallots in a bowl with the champagne vinegar. Let steep for 1 hour. Combine all of the herbs along with the salt in a mortar and grind to a fine paste with a pestle. Add the herb paste to the steeped shallots along with the olive oil and mix well.
Allison Hensley of Peacock Family Farm talks about summer squash varieties: Pattypan, Sunburst and Satellite star-shaped squash, as well as the Mexican variety Ronde de Nice, which are round and light green, and great for stuffing. Bake the squash first, hollow it out, put your stuffing in (goat cheese & spinach, for example), then bake at 350° until fork tender.
Music break: Father by The Quantic Soul Orchestra