Spring is a moody time of year; the weather just won't make up its mind.
Do we wear T-shirts or sweatshirts? Are we hungry for crisp, light salads or a warming sauté?
Now that the farmers markets are open, you can't go wrong at mealtime. The choices are exhilarating.
Last weekend, I chanced on fiddlehead ferns, morel mushrooms, early peas and plenty of herbs.
Fiddlehead ferns are baby ostrich ferns, a regional specialty, and their season is definitely short. They look like the curled head of a fiddle and taste like a cross between asparagus and artichokes, mild and slightly grassy. Once they've matured and unfurled, the ferns turn bitter and inedible.
Several of the vegetable sauté recipes I've come across call for blanching the sturdier vegetables in boiling water before adding them to the pan. But I prefer to "butter steam" them so they cook in their own juices. (Perhaps it's my own laziness, as cutting out the blanching step seems to yield the same result with less work.)
It's simple to do. Melt butter or heat the oil in a sauté pan and add in the vegetables that require the longer cooking times (onions, carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, etc.) and toss to coat. Add a little water, stock or wine, cover the pan and allow the vegetables to cook until just tender.
Remove the lid, then add the quicker cooking vegetables (such as peas, fiddlehead ferns, etc.) and sauté until they're bright and cooked through. Toss in a little acid to pop flavors — lemon juice, mild vinegar or white wine — along with freshly chopped herbs, and salt and pepper to taste.
