I stopped at a roadside stand in Georgia this week, and picked up some of the sweetest peaches, ever. The vidalia onions were enormous and irresistible, so those went into my market bag, too. I’ve been eating the peaches all week, but the onions were waiting for today…
Wednesday means the Waynesville Farmer’s Market is open! So, Wednesday afternoon found me making a quick stop at the King Harvest Farm stand for tomatoes (eaten immediately) and yellow beans (asking Terry King about the difference, she said, “They’re yellow.”) and fingerling potatoes.
Today, the full-on market was in swing, so I buzzed down there and bought scallops (Hillbilly Shrimp Market) and rainbow chard (and I’m so sorry I didn’t get the name of Justin’s farm) among other things, and headed home with my haul.
First, the bacon. I rendered the grease from just a couple pieces of bacon, in a cast iron pan. I set aside a tablespoon of the drippings, and then deep-fried the potatoes and beans. (If you’ve never tried flash fried beans – I don’t care what color they are – do yourself a favor. It’s lovely.)
Then it was time to quickly saute the chard and onions in the remaining bacon grease.
I deglazed the pan with a bit of white wine and set it aside as a sauce for the scallops. Then it was time for these babies: I added a fat pat of butter and the reserved bacon grease to the center of the pan and let them do their thing.
Meanwhile, my dish is ready! On a bed of sauteed chard and onions, topped with lightly salted fingerlings and flash fried yellow beans, I crumbled a slice of bacon on the top for good measure.
Then it was time to add the scallops and drizzle with that phenomenal sauce…
And voila’! So fresh, local produce, and I know there’s one last peach in the kitchen for dessert, later. I’ve poured myself a glass of the pinot grigio I used to deglaze the pan (hey, that insures it will pair nicely, hmmm?) and it’s time to dig in.
I was keeping a friend posted all throughout this adventure, and was asked later if they came out well.
I’m going with yes.
