Farmer's Market Skillet puts fresh farmer's market finds to good use in a creamy, wholesome skillet.
I’m creating a summer’s worth of Farmer’s Market friendly recipes to keep on hand after coming home with your Farmer’s Market haul.
The first recipe in the collection is Farmer’s Market Skillet!
This protein-packed, quinoa-based dish features in-season, local produce including zucchini, sweet corn, and tomatoes, stirred together with melty feta cheese and herby, fresh basil. Plus it’s made in just one skillet!
I use what’s available to me here locally in the Midwest, but use whatever produce you’ve got available in your area to make this a Farmer’s Market friendly meal wherever you live.
Start the Farmer’s Market Skillet by cooking 1 cup quinoa in 1-3/4 cups chicken broth. You could make this dish completely vegetarian by using vegetable stock instead.
Cook the quinoa until the broth is absorbed, then fluff it with a fork, and let it cool slightly.
While the quinoa’s simmering, whip up the Honey Lemon Vinaigrette for the skillet. It adds the best light, bright flavor to the dish!
Honey, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper swirl together to create the most magnificent flavor combo. I just love it!
If you don’t feel like going to the trouble of making homemade dressing, a good olive-oil based Italian dressing would be divine as well.
Next heat 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet then add 2 cloves minced garlic and saute until golden brown, about 30 seconds.
Next, add in the veggies!
Like I said, my Farmer’s Market has a plethora of sweet corn, zucchini, and green onions, but you can use whatever is in season and available locally to you. That’s the whole point!
Add the veggies to the skillet, season liberally with salt and pepper, then saute until they’re crisp-tender, 4-5 minutes.
Next, add in the cooked and slightly cooled quinoa, then drizzle in half the Honey Lemon Vinaigrette and let that cook for about another minute.
I love the sweet-tart flavor contrast of raw lemon juice vs cooked lemon juice, so I add half now, then the other half when the skillet is off the heat.
Now add 1 chopped tomato,
(another classic Farmer’s Market find!)
and 1/2 cup feta cheese.
Finish up with 2 Tablespoons chopped basil then give everything a good stir, taste and add more salta and pepper if you need to.
Let the skillet cool for about 10 minutes, then dig on in!
Fresh and ultra flavorful! The crispy, chewy, poppy textures are too fun, while the sweet, herby, tangy flavors are totally mouthwatering.
I include a mandatory 10 minute resting period before eating this skillet, simply because it tastes so much better when it’s not piping hot. You can really pick out each individual ingredient when it’s come down a bit in temp. Enjoy enjoy!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1-3/4 cups chicken broth
- 1 cup quinoa
- 1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 small zucchini, chopped
- 2 ears sweet corn, kernels cut off the cob, ~1-1/2 cups
- 2 green onions
- salt and pepper
- 1 vine-ripened tomato, chopped
- 1/2 cup feta
- 2 Tablespoons chopped basil
For the Honey Lemon Vinaigrette:
- 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1-1/2 Tablespoons honey
- 1 garlic clove, microplaned or finely minced
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Directions
- Bring chicken broth to a boil in a saucepan. Add rinsed quinoa and place a lid on top, turn the heat down to medium-low, then cook until the broth is absorbed and quinoa is tender, about 25 minutes. Fluff the cooked quinoa with a fork and let cool slightly.
- Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for the Honey Lemon Vinaigrette in a jar or bowl, then shake or whisk to combine and set aside.
- Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and saute until golden brown, about 30 seconds. Add zucchini, sweet corn, and green onions, season with salt and pepper, then saute until barely tender, about 4 minutes. Add cooked quinoa and half the Honey Lemon Vinaigrette, then stir and cook for 1 more minute.*
- Add remaining vinaigrette, tomatoes, feta cheese, and basil to the skillet. Stir well, taste, and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
- If you want to make this a cold salad, cool cooked quinoa and veggies separately, then mix with the remaining vinaigrette, tomatoes, feta cheese, and basil, and chill completely.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
Thanks so much for coming up with Farmer’s Market themed recipes. I LOVE the DM Farmer’s Market and we belong to a CSA (The Homestead), so these recipes will come in super handy. Can’t wait to try this one!
Um yeah… Yum. Perfect for a meatless Monday!
I would love to see a picture of the plate under the food. It looks like burlap with French words on it. Where did you get it from?
OMG I absolutely LOVE your glass I see my hometown of Dubuque on there. This looks delicious. Now just need to motivate myself to get up early enough for the Farmer’s Market on a Saturday Morning. OY!
This just might be our dinner tomorrow night!
You need to check out the Victory Garden Cookbook if you haven’t already. It is a tad expensive if you buy it on Amazon… even a used copy is almost $30, but it is seriously amazing for farmer’s market cooking. It is organized by vegetable! First she lists all of the different ways to cook it, and includes her favorite way to eat it. Then there are a bunch of different recipes featuring that vegetable. She also has some growing tips at the beginning of each vegetable section. Seriously my favorite!
This looks so good. I live for farmers markets and I usually end up buying way too much (I’ve never walked away empty handed!). I love meal planning, but sometimes nothing is better than creating something on the fly.
This looks so delicious! I love the option to add some of the lemon juice at the end too. My trips to the farmers market in Madison always involved buying fresh cheese curds. I can’t wait to check out Iowa farmers markets!!!
You’re killing it with the quick meals. :-) Just last night, I used your “how to make dinner with things you already have” post to make dinner and loved it! And this skillet looks great too!
I love the color in this one – beautiful!
This link saved my life when we joined a CSA…so many recipes for greens! http://cheaphealthygood.blogspot.com/2009/07/cheap-healthy-leafy-greens-246-recipes.html
This is awesome and will come in handy when the kale and spinach start producing in my garden! :)
I definitely am guilty of this too! For some reason, I feel so much more in control of my weekly grocery shopping when I can buy it ALL from one place. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely LOVE going to the FM’s but I don’t like going there to do my weekly shopping.
This dish looks so delicious! My husband (who refers to salad as ‘rabbit food’ and thinks ‘healthy’ is a four letter word) leaned over my shoulder while I was reading this, and after an “Oooh, yum!” asked that I make it. This has actually been a common theme with your blog (healthy food my husband actually wants to eat), and for that I thank you!
And, yay for The Bachelorette starting! Much like my enthusiasm for healthy food, my husband is just not as excited about this as I am, haha. Enjoy watching the show tonight!