Episode 136: Patch to Plate Retrospective (Part 1)

It’s harvest time and also time for some more retrospective episodes. These are a series of previously aired short segments on a common subject that have been packaged together for easier listening. In this case, it’s all about Patch to Plate, which provides lots of ideas on how to prepare all the fresh produce from your garden and/or local farmer’s market and make delicious meals in your home kitchen. Annie Scibienski, discusses how to prepare multiple seasonal vegetables to awaken your taste buds.

The first segment features root vegetables such as radishes, beets, carrots, etc. Carrots love butter, sugar, lemon, maple sugar, etc. Maple- glazed carrots anyone? Similarly, have you ever heard of a hidden beet pound cake that uses pureed beets to add nutrition to a basic cake recipe? Annie provides lots of tips on how to do this and what to check for to ensure that the batter is just right.

The next segment focuses on winter squash (e.g. butternut, acorn, honeynut, etc.), and cabbage. These squashes are delicious served roasted, or in soups. Sage, onion, garlic, and salt, butter, nutmeg, lemon, lime, can complement and enhance the squash flavor. Cabbage wedges can be roasted. There are easy ways to prepare cabbage which can then be served with walnuts and/or toasted seeds.

The third segment features winter vegetables like sweet potatoes, onions and dried beans. Annie describes a recipe that combines all three of these ingredients that goes great with pasta. Garlic, onion, chili peppers, and dairy (cheese, butter, etc.) complement these main ingredients. But they can also be used to create delicious scones. One of the keys to success is to ensure that each scone is of a consistent size so that they bake at the same rate.

The fourth segment in this episode focuses on potatoes. Annie talks about the nutritional benefits of potatoes, as well as the need to focus on serving size. There are lots of different types of potato, including starchy potatoes for baking, or others for general purpose uses. She provides lots of great tips on how to successfully bake potatoes so that they have a crispy skin and a nice, fluffy interior. Tips including not wrapping them in foil or microwaving them to avoid steaming them. Listen to her suggestions on ingredients to combine potatoes with and let your imagination savor the flavors.

Host: Jean Thomas

Guest: Annie Scibienski

Photo by: Teresa Golden

Production Support: Linda Aydlett, Deven Connelly, Teresa Golden, Xandra Powers, Annie Scibienski