Cookin' with Karl
Farmers market flatbread
I had the pleasure this past Saturday to emcee the first of hopefully many live cooking demonstrations at the Medina Farmers Market in the historic Medina Public Square.
Chef Ryan Marino, of The Corkscrew Saloon in Medina, invited me to host and help out with the live cooking demonstration, which was put on by Medina Restaurant Group and the Healthy Medina Initiative, which is a collaboration between the Cleveland Clinic and the Medina Community Recreation Center.
The idea was to show attendees what incredible meals you can make with the ingredients you find fresh and local, at places like our local farmers market. The ingredients were donated or highly discounted by farmers market vendors like Richardson Farms (tomatoes, onions and arugula), Valley City Fungi (garlic), Yellow House Cheese (the Styx Mountain Cheese and a sausage), Green Vista Farms (two types of sausage) and The Olive Tap (olive oil and balsamic vinegar).
More importantly, it was to show people that eating healthy can also be very tasty and fun. Ryan and his chef de cuisine Alan Carroll came up with a great name for a great summer meal: The Farmers Market Flatbread. I had so much fun. My son, Sam, and his friend, Brendan, liked this dish so much, that I thought I would share this recipe with all of you. The idea is take the recipe, modify it however you like and try it out on your own grill.
The ingredients are basic, but also key. Buy them fresh and local. Here is what they used: Flatbread (from Corkscrew Saloon), onions, garlic, tomatoes and arugula, several sausages (chorizo, mild Italian and a pizza-flavored sausage), olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar and a great cheese like a Pecorino Romano (or Yellow House Cheese’s Styx Mountain).
Take the flatbread and char it on the grill just enough to crisp it up and leave grill lines. Set it aside. Grill up the sausages, chop them, mix them together and set that aside. Caramelize the onions (thin sliced) and garlic (whole cloves, in a little olive oil in either a pan or on a grill wok). Chop the garlic up after it is cooked and set that and the onions aside. Slice the tomatoes into 1/8- or 1/4-inch slices and grill them until they are hot and soft. Grill woks work great for this. Set those aside.
Toss the arugula, caramelized onions, chopped garlic in a bowl with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Set that aside.
OK, so all the ingredients are prepared. Now to build the Farmers Market Flatbread. Take a charred-crisp flatbread, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with oregano. Add a layer of the grilled tomatoes, which will act as a sauce. Add a layer of the combined crumbled and chopped sausage, then top this with the mix of arugula, caramelized onions and garlic tossed in the olive oil and balsamic (lightly, I hope). Top this with the shredded or crumbled Pecorino Romano cheese. Bam! You now have a tasty, healthy and light summer meal. Chef Ryan cut these into squares for appetizer size portions, but you can serve them as a larger portion, too, or a great handheld meal for your outdoor dining.
Have picky eaters in the house? Substitute ingredients. The great thing about this dish is that most of it can be prepped outside in your grill area while you are entertaining.
The most important thing is to use locally-sourced fresh ingredients. This helps the local economy in so many ways and gives you a quality end product. It is important to note that most independently-owned local restaurants, like The Corkscrew Saloon, and others also use locally-sourced ingredients for the same reason.
By the way, I would be remiss if I did not put an extra mention in for Yellow House Cheese, owned by Kevin and Kristyn Henslee. Mr. Henslee is also a teacher at Claggett Middle School in Medina. He is not only an incredible science teacher, but also a fantastic example of a quality local farmer that raises lambs, pork, chicken and makes some fine cheeses.
Feel free to email me photos of the Farmers Market Flatbreads that you make, or any other healthy summer recipes you would like me to feature. I can be reached at kgerhard@thepostnewspapers.com
Chef Ryan Marino, of The Corkscrew Saloon in Medina, invited me to host and help out with the live cooking demonstration, which was put on by Medina Restaurant Group and the Healthy Medina Initiative, which is a collaboration between the Cleveland Clinic and the Medina Community Recreation Center.
The idea was to show attendees what incredible meals you can make with the ingredients you find fresh and local, at places like our local farmers market. The ingredients were donated or highly discounted by farmers market vendors like Richardson Farms (tomatoes, onions and arugula), Valley City Fungi (garlic), Yellow House Cheese (the Styx Mountain Cheese and a sausage), Green Vista Farms (two types of sausage) and The Olive Tap (olive oil and balsamic vinegar).
More importantly, it was to show people that eating healthy can also be very tasty and fun. Ryan and his chef de cuisine Alan Carroll came up with a great name for a great summer meal: The Farmers Market Flatbread. I had so much fun. My son, Sam, and his friend, Brendan, liked this dish so much, that I thought I would share this recipe with all of you. The idea is take the recipe, modify it however you like and try it out on your own grill.
The ingredients are basic, but also key. Buy them fresh and local. Here is what they used: Flatbread (from Corkscrew Saloon), onions, garlic, tomatoes and arugula, several sausages (chorizo, mild Italian and a pizza-flavored sausage), olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar and a great cheese like a Pecorino Romano (or Yellow House Cheese’s Styx Mountain).
Take the flatbread and char it on the grill just enough to crisp it up and leave grill lines. Set it aside. Grill up the sausages, chop them, mix them together and set that aside. Caramelize the onions (thin sliced) and garlic (whole cloves, in a little olive oil in either a pan or on a grill wok). Chop the garlic up after it is cooked and set that and the onions aside. Slice the tomatoes into 1/8- or 1/4-inch slices and grill them until they are hot and soft. Grill woks work great for this. Set those aside.
Toss the arugula, caramelized onions, chopped garlic in a bowl with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Set that aside.
OK, so all the ingredients are prepared. Now to build the Farmers Market Flatbread. Take a charred-crisp flatbread, brush with olive oil and sprinkle with oregano. Add a layer of the grilled tomatoes, which will act as a sauce. Add a layer of the combined crumbled and chopped sausage, then top this with the mix of arugula, caramelized onions and garlic tossed in the olive oil and balsamic (lightly, I hope). Top this with the shredded or crumbled Pecorino Romano cheese. Bam! You now have a tasty, healthy and light summer meal. Chef Ryan cut these into squares for appetizer size portions, but you can serve them as a larger portion, too, or a great handheld meal for your outdoor dining.
Have picky eaters in the house? Substitute ingredients. The great thing about this dish is that most of it can be prepped outside in your grill area while you are entertaining.
The most important thing is to use locally-sourced fresh ingredients. This helps the local economy in so many ways and gives you a quality end product. It is important to note that most independently-owned local restaurants, like The Corkscrew Saloon, and others also use locally-sourced ingredients for the same reason.
By the way, I would be remiss if I did not put an extra mention in for Yellow House Cheese, owned by Kevin and Kristyn Henslee. Mr. Henslee is also a teacher at Claggett Middle School in Medina. He is not only an incredible science teacher, but also a fantastic example of a quality local farmer that raises lambs, pork, chicken and makes some fine cheeses.
Feel free to email me photos of the Farmers Market Flatbreads that you make, or any other healthy summer recipes you would like me to feature. I can be reached at kgerhard@thepostnewspapers.com