Quinoa Paella with Shrimp, Chorizo & Chicken Recipe via Marcia Selden Recipe Features Recipe Marcia Selden Catering September 25, 2017 Take a break from the classic paella, and mix up your healthy grains with Marcia Selden's recipe for Quinoa Paella with Shrimp, Chorizo + Chicken. We appreciate a one pan meal and this dish has great rich flavor from the chorizo and saffron. Interesting food fact: Coming from the dried stigmas of the saffron crocus, it takes 75,000 blossoms or 225,000 hand-picked stigmas to make a single pound which explains why it is the world’s most expensive spice. Enjoy this recipe and send us feedback. Read More
Bartaco's Ancho Steak Taco Recipe Features Recipe Recipe Tacos Bartaco Stephanie Webster September 09, 2017 Ever wondered what makes that steak taco at Bartaco taste oh so good? We've got the word on the secret seasoning right here. Heat up those tortillas and get the grill going because this is the perfect end of summer dish. For best results, we encourage you to source your Pico ingredients at your local farmers' market. Read More
Tomato Montadito w/ Goat Cheese Recipe via Barcelona Wine Bar Features Recipe Recipe healthy Stephanie Webster August 22, 2017 Tomato season is in fill swing in CT and Barcelona Wine Bar is featuring this gorgeous local bounty. There is nothing simpler than this recipe for Tomato Montadito w/ Goat Cheese but some things are better left simple. Read More
What's Cooking at Clarke? Bay Corn! (sponsored post) Recipe Features Recipe CTbites Team August 12, 2017 Chef John Craig is cooking up something great again at Clarke, New England's Official Sub-Zero & Wolf Showroom and Test Kitchen in South Norwalk. Nothing says summer like fresh corn and this is a great way to prepare it! For this recipe, you'll use the Convection Broil setting on your Wolf Convection Oven to perfectly melt that mozzarella cheese. This recipe for Clarke's Bay Corn is a simple, delicious side dish for any summer meal. Read More
Tamarind BBQ Swordfish + Pineapple Skewers Recipe via Marcia Selden Recipe Recipe Marcia Selden Catering August 08, 2017 Summer grilling is in full swing in CT, and with that in mind, Marcia Selden has shared a great recipe that leverages both Connecticut's proximity to some excellent seafood and our favorite culinary friend, the grill. A little flame goes a long way in this dish, Tamarind BBQ Swordfish & Pineapple Skewers. There is nothing better than grilled pineapple, and you can use the excess for a great cocktail. Enjoy! Read More
Summer Microgreen, Kale and Blueberry Salad Recipe via Embody Features Recipe Recipe Farmers Market healthy Stephanie Webster August 01, 2017 Embody believes in eating local, keeping things simply and honoring ourselves by eating real food! This summer salad with edible Nasturium flowers makes for a beautiful dish to bring to parties or just to enjoy on your own. Takes only 15 minutes to make! Also, the majority of the ingredients are LOCAL (from the Westport CT Farmers Market) and all are organic. Read More
Chef Geoff Lazlo's Farm Egg Thin Crust Flat Bread Recipe Recipe Features Recipe Chef CTbites Team July 12, 2017 Chef Geoff Lazlo, of Mill Street Bar and Table in Greenwich has created this Farm Egg Thin Crust Flat Bread recipe as part of The Westport Farmers' Market recipe program. The farm egg flat bread was inspired by the beautiful eggs we raise at the Back 40 Farm in Washington, CT. It is essentially the pizza version of a bacon egg and cheese breakfast sandwich, which is why it is perfect for brunch. View additional farmers' market inspired recipes here. Read More
Celebrate Bastille Day w/ Ávert Brasserie's Steamed Mussels Recipe & A Party Features Recipe Recipe French Stephanie Webster July 11, 2017 Ávert Brasserie in West Hartford is celebrating Bastille Day with a festival Abounding with French cuisine, musique, dance, and myriad attractions for the whole family. This farm fête populaire invites locals to revel in the flavors, sounds, and joie de vivre of France!If you would like to host your own Bastille Day party, here is their great recipe for Steamed Mussels with Mustard, Curry and Cream. Yum. Check it out below. Read More
Matt Storch's Bun Thit Nuong Cold Noodle Salad Recipe Recipe Features Recipe Noodles Stephanie Webster June 19, 2017 Chef Matt Storch will be at The Westport Farmers' Market June 22nd serving up this delicious Vietnamese dish, Bun Thit Nuong Cold Noodle Salad. This is an amazing delicious cold refreshing dish for a hot summer day. If you can't make it to the market, you can enjoy this great recipe at home be following the directions below. Read More
What Can You Do with a Convection Steam Oven? Mini Carrot Cakes Recipe via Clarke (sponsored post) Recipe Features Recipe CTbites Team June 09, 2017 Every week at Clarke, New England's Official Sub-Zero & Wolf Showroom and Test Kitchen in South Norwalk, the staff exemplifies how these extraordinary appliances can enhance your life. The Wolf Convection Steam Oven offers features that can only be appreciated by actually cooking on it. Here's a recipe for Mini Carrot Cakes with Cream Cheese Frosting, which was recently prepared by Chef John Craig at Clarke SoNo to illustrate some of the hidden features (convection humid mode) of this extraordinary appliance. If you own a convection steam oven...do try this at home! Read More
Mini Sesame Crab Cakes Recipe via Marcia Selden Recipe Recipe Entertaining Catering Marcia Selden Catering May 24, 2017 This recipe for Mini Crab Cakes comes just in time for Memorial Day entertaining. Thank you Marcia Selden Catering! We don't know about you, but we like a crab cakes loaded with fresh crab meat and not a lot of extra filler. This one fits the bill. Enjoy these are your next party...or just dinner for two. Read More
Stuffed Roasted Beets with Kale and Carrot Slaw Recipe via Terrain Cafe Recipe Recipe CTbites Team May 22, 2017 Chef Jes Bengsten of Terrain Cafe in Westport is the guest chef at the Westport Farmers' Market this week. She will be showing lucky shoppers how to make a beautiful and healthy dish, Stuffed Roasted Beets with Kale & Carrot Slaw. Don't worry...you'll also get a taste. This is the perfect farewell to the cooler months as we move forward towards summer. Read More
Anthony Kostelis' Kohlrabi & Radish Salad with Goat Feta and Zesty Breadcrumbs Recipe Recipe Recipe healthy Farmers Market Stephanie Webster May 10, 2017 Chef Anthony Kostelis will be one of the many guest chefs at The Westport Farmers' Market for the 2017 summer season. The complete lineup will be released shortly. In the meantime, Chef Kostelis has shared one of the recipes he will be demoing at the market, Kohlrabi & Radish Salad with Goat Feta and Zesty Breadcrumbs, made with local ingredients from CT farms. When you create this salad at home we encourage you to seek local purveyors at a farmers' market near you. Kohlrabi and Radish Salad with Goat Feta and Zesty BreadcrumbsServes 2Prep time: 20 minutes Read More
Aperol Flip Recipe via Olives and Oil in New Haven Features Recipe Cocktails Recipe Recipe Video New Haven Bar Katharine Ortiz April 06, 2017 What is “electric Italian?” It is defined by well executed small plates, wood fired pizzas, and perfectly rendered cocktails, all to be found at Olives and Oil in New Haven. The menu is overseen and curated daily by Executive Chef and recent ’40 under 40’ winner John Brennan, who cooks traditional Italian cuisine in a funky retro location. Superb visuals, food, and of course cocktails await you. Olives and Oil was gracious enough to invite me in to sample a few of their cocktails recently.We enjoyed a perfect Aperol Flip (recipe and tutorial below) as well as a classic Negroni Sbagliato - with a house pressed ice cube for JUST that finishing touch. Bartenders don’t ALWAYS give up their cocktails secrets, so enjoy making this at home or try it the next time you’re in New Haven. Read More
Easter Cooking: Wild Alaskan Halibut A La Cataplana Recipe c/o Chef Renato Donzelli of Basso Cafe Recipe Features Recipe Seafood Chef Talk Holiday healthy Stephanie Webster April 06, 2017 Cataplana is a Portuguese seafood dish originating in the southern region of Portugal in Algarve, and it is about as traditional a Portuguese dish as you can get. It uses a copper cooking device also called a Cataplana which unique to the Algarve region. If you don’t have this vessel you simply can use a pan with a lid.This dish we are going to make is a variation using a fresh fish like Halibut, littleneck clams, and Spanish chorizo. Cataplana is perfect for making this dish because it efficiently contains the flavor and heat of the contents in the dish to provide a uniquely flavored and scented dish, simply without any fuss. Read More
Fennel-Pear Salad with Grapes + Pecans via Marcia Selden Features Recipe Recipe healthy Marcia Selden Catering March 29, 2017 We couldn’t be happier that spring is here! Savor the season with this light and yummy Fennel-Pear Salad. It's packed with flavor and just takes a few minutes to prepare. Read More
One-Tray Chicken Dinner Recipe via Chopped Champion Silvia Baldini Recipe Recipe healthy Chef Talk Silvia Baldini March 20, 2017 Mushrooms are one of the few natural sources of vitamin D and they promote immune boosting functions by increasing production of antiviral proteins. Some of my favorite mushrooms are Shiitake. They are simply delicious and they taste particularly divine in this, always fool-proof, oven roasted lemon and parsley chicken one-tray recipe. It takes 35 minute in the oven and minimal prepping. Even my children, those little rascals always poo-pooing mushrooms, after falling from their chairs laughing when they heard the word SHIITAKE, gobbled these ones down! Read More
Beef, Prunes Chickpeas Slow Cooked Pot Recipe via Silvia Baldini Recipe Features Recipe CTbites Team February 08, 2017 Prunes, chickpeas and ginger combine their forces in to this crammed with hearty flavors slow cooked pot, a perfect combination for a jolt of much needed energy to help us sustain our daily actions.Prunes for fiber, chickpeas for nutrient-rich energy, ginger as an antioxidant and a generous amount of fork tender bits of beef; this pot is a darling at my house on wintery Sunday family dinners, when warmth and restoring strength are very much a necessity. Let’s put power back in to the right hands and the force of sustenance in to our family bellies. Read More
Falafel Waffle with Israeli Salad Recipe via Marcia Selden Recipe Recipe Breakfast Marcia Selden Catering December 27, 2016 We’re slightly obsessed with this recipe for Falafel Waffles. They have tons of flavor, lots of color and are a fun and unexpected surprise at any gathering. Whip out that waffle iron and get cooking. Read More
Celeriac Apple Soup w/ Pancetta Recipe via Westport Farmers’ Market Recipe Farmers Market Recipe Lynn Felici-Gallant December 15, 2016 Come clean. Celeriac is downright intimidating. Just what is that knobby-looking thing and how does one cook with it? Fear not, celeriac is not the province of chef menus only. Armed with a few facts and a killer recipe, you’ll want to run, not walk, to the Westport Winter Farmers’ Market this weekend to pick up the root and impress your friends and family. Let’s start with what it is. Celeriac (Apium graveolens var. rapaceuem), is a species of celery in the family of plants that includes parsley, carrots, anise, and parsnip. Like many of its cousins, celeriac is a root vegetable that is often harvested during fall when the vegetable is sweetest. Indeed some species can remain underground throughout winter with mulch and protection; this is the reason it is often plentiful at winter farmers’ markets. While the root is most-often harvested when it is about 4 – 5 inches round, smaller bulbs can pack a more sugary punch. And the vegetable can be stored for 4 to 6 months at 32 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit once purchased. Celeriac is delicious sliced and eaten raw but – as Chef Silvia Baldini demonstrates below Read More
