ST. John's Farmers Market



Click on pictures for a larger view.



The Market

The farmers markets in general are starting to look a little bit like my garden. Some of them have shut down for the season. A few hardy ones are determined to squeeze out one or two more rounds of fruit. St. John's Farmers Market was alive and well on our visit. Located a few blocks east of the beautiful St. John's bridge in St. John's square. I thought parking was a bit difficult, but that may have been me being unfamiliar with the area. St. John's square is a very cool and welcoming meeting place feeling kinda small community even though the surrounding area is substantially populated and bustling. Another plus for this market is the proximity to Sauvie's Island with easy access to the bountiful crops grown there. The market itself was well attended and well represented by a rounded vendor set. The square where the market lives is very inviting and a lot of people were just hanging out. There was a lot of fresh produce still to be had and fresh food for purchase. The local coffee roasters and the very locally grown produce made you feel that this was truly the neighborhood's marketplace. We ended up buying some fresh spinach and and a fresh baguette. The other products at the bakery were really intriguing, but we were able to avoid temptation.

The Table

Lori did the cooking with the spinach. She made a wonderful fall dish called Cheesy Shells & Greens.

12 oz. medium shell pasta shells (I used whole wheat pasta)*

1 tbsp. unsalted butter

2 tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 1/4 cups whole milk

1 tbsp. Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Pinch Cayenne

6 oz. extra-sharp Cheddar, grated (1 1/2 cups)

Kosher salt and pepper

1 bunch spinach, thick stems discarded, leaves roughly chopped

*I cooked a 13.5 oz. box of pasta shells and had more pasta than needed. I felt that the casserole was somewhat dry so I added additional milk prior to broiling. Afterthought, maybe recipe should have read 12 oz. of cooked pasta. Hmm......

Cook the pasta according to the package directions.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes; whisk in the milk. Cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 5 minutes.

Whisk the mustard, nutmeg, cayenne, 1 cup Cheddar, 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Add the pasta and spinach and toss to combine.

Heat broiler. Transfer the mixture to a 1 1/2 qt. broiler-proof baking dish or 4 12oz. ramekins. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup Cheddar and broil until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes.