Banh Xeo

I wish a camera followed me around for the creation of this week's recipe- it was very comedic gathering ingredients all over the city for Banh Xeo.

I had no idea the crepes were made with soaked and ground mung beans...I didn't even know what mung beans were but I figured I'd be able to find them in NYC. During my research into these Vietnamese crepes, I also read that some vietnamese cooks think it's sacrilegious to use canned coconut milk and insist on pressing their own coconuts for juice. I thought I could probably manage that too. My quest for mung beans wasn't easy. I found them in Flushing at a shop whose name I couldn't read but boasted fresh rice cakes made by hand on the hour, every hour. The hunt for coconuts was less fruitless. I guess it's not coconut season, or maybe I gotta seek out a black market for them because everyone I asked for coconuts looked offended. I took this as a sign it's not coconut season? I'm not sure- either way it's probably a blessing in disguise- just imagine me trying to ride my bike through Manhattan with a bunch of coconuts.

So, minus freshly pressed coconut juice, these are traditional Banh Xeo and Nuoc Cham recipes adapted and adjusted a little from Hot Sour Sweet Salty.

A day at the farm...

Eggplant

Ever had caponata? This is kinda like that...in pasta sauce form.

Holy Beets!

Alright...they were a little smaller than I'd thought they'd be. I showed up to harvest some beets today and after pulling a few, I realized it would take the entire bed of beets just to yield one of the "chilled beet and yogurt soup" I was dreaming up. Since they're so mini, I made some mini- crostinis with beets two ways, raw and roasted. The crostinis turned out beautifully! Enjoy...

Ground Cherries

This is officially my favorite farm recipe so far! I must admit I just ate three of these before sitting down to write. They are unexpectedly addictive!

Here are some pictures to get yourself through this recipe.

Start by removing all of the husks. For this recipe you need 2 cups of shelled ground cherries, that looks like a whole lot more to start!

Hopefully this helps you get to that half moon shape easily.

Remember to keep both your surface and your hands pretty well floured during this process, if the dough starts to stick, it can get pretty frustrating. If your shell rips, just patch it up with your fingers.

When you reduce the baking temperature to take them out, brush them with a little melted butter and sugar.

Let them cool before sliding them out of the tart shells.

Pretty little tarts!