For meats...either the market or the local metzgerei (butcher) in Oerlikon ( Ziegler )
For breads...either the market, make our own, or local bakery
For general household goods & dairy products...Migros or Coop
For chocolate...make my own!
Jack
For fruits & vegies... always the market !
Nice recipe Nick... I will be making a post about June/July in the next couple of days, and you are correct...figs are showing up right now! The purple ones are mostly coming from Turkey and the green ones are coming from Italy. Your recipe is interesting, and sounds quite good! Personally, I find the early-season figs a bit lacking in flavor...they have flavor, but it is a bit hidden. To encourage the flavor to come out, I like to caramelize the figs... Slice in half lengthwise and give the cut side a bit of fresh lemon juice. Lightly coat the figs with some sugar, and place them on a very hot, non-stick frying pan for about 1 minute...Be careful to not overload the figs with sugar or cook them too long as this will make them a bit bitter...You can also throw in a small knob of butter right at the end and swirl around off the heat...The figs will have a nice shine and a very sweet exterior...
Jack
Hi Jack,
I prefer the dark ones too. The recipe takes on a whole different character with the darker figs. It works best if you try and get a little bit of everything on the fork when you eat this salad; so you get all the taste sensations together - sweet, creamy, salty along with the lemon and basil.
Cheers,
Nick
Here's a bump for this popular post along with a question.
I've noticed that Coop has started offering brown bell peppers which are completely new to me. Frankly, they look odd and unappetizing, but I'm fairly adventurous so I'll probably pick one up soon.
Has anyone ever eaten one? How does the flavor compare with other bell peppers? Any special recipes to offer?
Jack, I had a meal in Geneva the other day and had a vegetable that my friend and I did not know what it was
I thought it was a spring onion as it had a top like a spring onion but the texture of the inside was like a bland boiled potato.
It was rather tasteless, can you please tell me what it was?
Hi Jack
Im making a habit of drinking feshly squeezed lemon juice with water every morning- my latest health kick, trouble is they're so damm expensive for single one- and wondering if its worth to buy lemons which are lot cheaper in a bunch from Spain ..downside is they're prix garantie so am wondering how come they're so cheap?
Also what do you think of garlic from China (again a budget brand) but they're the nicest galic I've seen in a long while.
L
One final tip to consider is the lemon . Lemons are often overlooked and not considered as a fresh seasonal product. But, lemons do change in their flavor, and there are plenty of reasons to search for fresh alternatives.
Chiguy... Thanks for the bump... Brown bell peppers are a ripened variety of the common bell pepper. It is mostly combining attributes from the red bell pepper (red carotenoids) and the unripened green bell pepper (chlorophyll). They tend to have a stronger taste than the more mellow red or ripened yellow pepper. When cooked, some of the color will leech into liquid... It has been a trend the last couple of years to introduce new and different looking vegetables...but remember, bell peppers are not yet in season here, which means these are coming form somewhere sunny or with lots of greenhouses... I would consider tasting one and deciding then how you would like to use them... They could be interesting sliced very thinly and simply used in a salad, or perhaps make a frittata with them (combine with a sharp cheese like a feta cheese)...If you've never made a frittata, then think omelet...pretty similar...I am sure there are plenty of resources out there to find a nice recipe...
Smackerjack... Hmm...pretty difficult to tell without a bit more information. Perhaps it was a very young leek, which if overcooked, can be rather bland tasting...
Killy killy... First with garlic... I'm not a huge believer of buying products that have to travel great distances to get here...especially if they are readily available more locally. Garlic is just coming into season in Italy and France, so I would really suggest giving them a try... Look for the very nice and mild white or purple garlic varieties from France, or try some fresh garlic. You can find more about garlic by following this link: more about garlic
Lemons... Citrus fruits are one of the most susceptible vehicles for delivering harmful pesticides, and unfortunately, many places in Spain and Italy use high amounts of pesticides to their lemons...The problem is not necessarily on the skin, but rather the leeching into the fruit flesh, which cannot be washed away. I take eating and buying lemons seriously, so I stay away from the mass-produced products. I look for natural or organic lemons, which still have the wax on the skin (prevents moisture loss), but a much better taste and high concentration of juice. Don't store your lemons in the refrigerator...you will notice a big change in flavor...
Enjoy and thanks for the questions... You can read more about April season by visiting our blog ...
Jack
I actually find all figs I ever tasted here (even the Italian ones bought on the market) quite disappointing compared with those that you can get in Croatia (more precisely the Dalmatian coast) in late July and early August. They don't look like much and you should buy the mushy, slightly bruised ones rather than the firm, better-looking specimen, but they melt in your mouth and taste absolutely divine.
But for all those that are at the other end of Switzerland and do not feel like making their own chocolate, Tristan's chocolate shop in Bougy-Villars ( http://www.chocolatier-tristan.ch/en...ntree.html) is is) THE place to go.
Thanks Jack for the very useful info. As I do food combining I eat a massive amount of fruit and veg and your thread is really helping in my choices.
Ursula
You're most welcome...and thanks for the encouraging words!
Actually, Turkish figs are the best.
Cheers,
Nick
You are probably right, but I don't think I ever tasted them. In any case, they probably do not end up on any of the Geneva markets, otherwise I would have remembered something even better than what I am used to eating in Dalmatia.
Do Dalmatian figs have black spots?
Cheers,
Nick
They look like this:
Hey, Jack. May I ask about potatoes?
Which kind is good for potato salad and which is suitable for mashing?
Do I just look at the picture on the packaging of the 1.5kg packs?
Also, 1.5kg is too much for two people. Even if I keep them in the pantry in a dark, cool spot, they still grow 'eyes' after a week or two and start getting wrinkly and soft. Is it true those eyes are poisonous and should be removed before cooking?
Hi,
For mashed potatoes you need flury or "mehlig" potatoes. For potato salad you need waxy or "festkochend" potatoes.
If the rest of the potato looks okay, removing any eyes and green parts should make it safe to eat. The green part of the potato is chlorophyll - indicating that the potato has been exposed to sunlight. And where the potato has been exposed to light is where a natural toxin in the potato (solanine) becomes concentrated at harmful levels.
Solanine is a natural defense mechanism of the potato to ward off fungus and pests. It will also be triggered when a potato is bruised, so if your potato is at all damaged or bruised, discard it.
Cheers,
Nick
Well stated Nick...
Hello Argus,
If you are looking for more on cooking with potatoes, then perhaps you may want to re-visit an earlier posting on cooking with potatoes
We still offer our booklet on cooking with potatoes in pdf format... You can download it for free (we do appreciate donations, however, which we pass on to support Pro Specie Rara
Hope this helps...
Jack