Feasting on Fresh

Since this is the height of the fresh fruit and vegetable season, I decided to prepare some of my favorites for Marilyn's Table.  This week the table is vegetarian from beginning to end.  Here is what's on the table:

Chopped Mexican Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette
Pesto Filled Oven Roasted Tomatoes
Fresh Peach and Brie Quesadillas with Lime- Honey Drizzle

Building the salad was a bit tedious because of all the chopping, but well worth it.  Not only is it pretty to look at, it's very tasty.  First one red and one orange pepper are cut in half lengthwise.  The stem, seeds and membranes are removed.  Two ears of corn are husked and the silk removed.  The peppers (cut side down) and corn are placed on a foil covered baking sheet, rubbed with EVOO and the corn salt and peppered.  They are roasted for about 20 minutes or until the peppers begin to blister. (rotate the corn once during roasting).  Cool until the skins of the peppers can be removed easily. Dice the peppers into bite sized pieces (keep separate piles) Do the same dice with tomatoes which have been seeded and cored, jicama, and avocado, and drained and rinsed canned black beans.  Cut the corn from the cob.  Arrange the vegetables in rows on a plate and drizzle with the dressing. Outstanding!

The dressing is made with mashed garlic and salt, lime and orange juice, minced shallot, honey and cumin.  Whisk together adding EVOO until correct consistency. I added minced mint leaves, a bit of black pepper and a bit more salt.

Early in the season I bought several large bunches of basil and made a large batch of pesto.  I poured it into ice cube trays and froze it.  I now have a large plastic bag of pesto cubes in the freezer to use as needed.  These tomatoes were straight from the farmers market.  The top cut off and the center core scooped out.  I filled the center with thawed pesto cubes and topped with Panko crumbs.  They were roasted on the same cookie sheet as the peppers and corn for the salad though they did take a bit longer.  One is served with a serving of the salad.  No question this is one of the most colorful plates ever.  I was very pleased with the flavor of the pesto in the tomato and the crunch of the Panko.

Dessert  featured the fresh peaches so readily available.  They are thinly sliced and tossed with a bit of sugar to wake up the juices.  Fresh chives are snipped and added to the peaches.  One tortilla is covered with thinly sliced Brie and covered with the peaches.  A second tortilla is laid on top and put in a heated skillet.  Flip after a few minutes when the cheese begins to melt.  When both sides of the tortilla have been browned transfer to a serving plate and cut into wedges.  Drizzle with a mixture of honey, lime juice and more snipped chives.  I served extra slices of peach on the top.  Yum!

This table was one of my favorites.  Next week more fresh produce will be featured. Stop by and check it out.