Monthly Archives: August 2019

Metropolitan Market’s Ode to Peaches

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Hurry to Peach-O-Rama to savor a Sweet Peach Brioche made by Macrina with Metropolitan Market’s sweet, just-picked peaches.  

Macrina Sweet Peach Brioche

Each Summer Metropolitan Market holds its annual Peach-O-Rama, and the aisles fill with lovers of sweet, juice-filled peaches. The many varieties of peaches have one thing in common: Each is picked at the peak of ripeness, packed carefully to prevent bruising, and trucked straight to the store.

Pence Orchards in the lower Yakima Valley is one of Metropolitan Market’s primary suppliers. A fourth-generation family farm run by Sharon and Bert Pence, Pence Orchards only picks the peaches when they have tree-ripened and have reached an ideal sweetness. The peaches don’t go into cold storage. Instead, they are carefully nested into single-layer packing. They arrive the next day in the produce section at Metropolitan Market just as succulent and perfect as they were when they dangled from the branch.

Peach-O-Rama started over 20 years ago and was inspired by the founder and chairman of Metropolitan Market, Terry Halverson. He says, “My family lived in Yakima when I was young, and we picked peaches for eating, jam, and canning. Mom made pies and we ate peaches for dessert often. They were as good as you could get. There was nothing like making a mess eating the fully loaded, juicy, aromatic peaches.”

That childhood love fueled the desire to find a way to get the best fresh-from-the-farm peaches into the store. The result is an ode to the peach, those juicy nectar laden gems. Of course, the celebration isn’t limited to the produce aisle. Wander over to the bakery and you’ll find Macrina’s ode to the peach: the Sweet Peach Brioche. Our collaboration with Metropolitan Market features slices of their juicy peaches with cinnamon sugar and sweetened fromage blanc in a lightly textured brioche bun, finished with a dusting of fine sugar. You’ll have a hard time stopping at one!

August Recipe of the Month: Blueberry Chipotle BBQ Chicken Sandwich

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Local blueberries are bountiful and in peak form right now. They add a tart sweetness to this mildly spicy BBQ sauce and give it a beautiful deep purple hue. The frozen blueberries will break down into the sauce while most of the fresh ones retain their form. The refreshingly zesty summer vegetable slaw gives the sandwich a cool crunch that lends balance to the assertive flavors of the grilled chicken. Serve this sandwich with a favorite potato salad or handmade roasted potato fries.

INGREDIENTS

Makes 4 sandwiches

BBQ Sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup sweet onion, small dice
1-1/2 teaspoons garlic, finely diced
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 tablespoon chipotle powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1-1/2 cups fresh blueberries
1-1/2 cups frozen blueberries
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons brewed espresso or rich coffee
4 skinless chicken breasts

Summer Vegetable Slaw
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
Zest and juice of 1 lime
2 teaspoons honey
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 head of cabbage, thinly sliced
1/2 sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 ear white corn, kernels cut off cob
3/4 cup cilantro, coarsely chopped

Assembly
4 Macrina Ciabatta Burger Buns
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) mayonnaise

DIRECTIONS

BBQ Sauce
Add the olive oil to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 2-3 minutes until translucent. Add the garlic, paprika, chipotle, black pepper and salt. Cook for 1 minute, then add both the fresh and frozen blueberries. Cook for 3-5 minutes to break down the berries. Use a potato masher or wooden spoon to help. You want some whole fruit and some to break down into sauce. Add the brown sugar, molasses, Worcestershire, ketchup and coffee. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until reduced. Let cool to room temperature.

Marinate the chicken breasts in 1-1/2 cups of the BBQ sauce. Cover entirely and refrigerate overnight.

Summer Vegetable Slaw
Prepare this slaw at least 30 minutes before assembling sandwiches. In a medium bowl, add the mayonnaise, sherry vinegar, lime zest and juice, honey and salt. Whisk until thoroughly combined. Add the cabbage, sweet onion, corn kernels and cilantro. With tongs, toss the ingredients together to fully coat the cabbage. Check for seasoning and add cracked black pepper to taste. Refrigerate until needed.

Grilling & Assembly
Preheat grill to 400°F.

Slice the Ciabatta Burger Buns in half and brush each side with olive oil. Set aside.

Brush the grill with oil. Place chicken breasts on grill and cook for 6-8 minutes on each side (to mark the chicken with hatch lines from the grill, rotate a quarter turn halfway through the grilling of each side). When done, chicken should reach 165°F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove breasts and let rest for 3 minutes.

Grill the buns cut side down, watching carefully to ensure they just caramelize and don’t burn.

Lay the toasted buns on each plate. Spread a tablespoon of mayonnaise on each top bun. Add a generous amount of slaw to the bottom bun, approximately 1/2-3/4 cup. Cut the chicken breasts into 1/2″ slices and arrange over the slaw. Top the chicken with 1 tablespoon or more of the BBQ sauce. Cover each with its top bun and enjoy!

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Fresh Fruit Crostata

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Fresh Fruit CrostataImagine you’re three years into owning and operating your dream bakery. Then imagine getting a call that Julia Child, the legend herself, wants you to appear on her show Baking with Julia. Back then, before Iron Chef, Anthony Bourdain and the Food Network, Baking with Julia was THE cooking show. It won both an Emmy and a James Beard Award.  

That was Leslie in 1996. After the thrill and shock wore off came the inevitable question, What will I cook? It had to both look and taste great, for Julia Child didn’t mince words.  

The Fresh Fruit Crostata, of course. 

The lattice topped crostata is a rustic Italian fruit tart. It can be made with any fruit but is best with at least two kinds, one firm and one juicy. In the kitchen of Julia Child’s imposing Cambridge clapboard house (where the show was shot) Leslie used raspberries and figs. The crostata came out perfectly, and Julia Child loved it.  

“That experience is one of the greatest memories of my life,” Leslie says. “All of the humor and wit and personal connection that you see from Julia Child on the show came across even more between takes. It was unbelievably stimulating and thrilling to be there.” 

This summer, we will be showcasing the crostata in our cafes with nectarines and berries depending on what is fresh or in season. Look for Leslie’s favorite, the nectarine blueberry, or the runner up, nectarine raspberry, to make frequent appearances.  

We make the buttery crust with a sesame almond dough. Hints of lemon zest and cinnamon add complexity to the fruit, and it gets a long, slow bake, which caramelizes the fruit sugars making it luscious and jammy at the edges.  

In classic Macrina style, the crostata isn’t overly sweet. Serve it at room temperature, or even slightly warmed, with lightly sweetened whipped cream or ice cream.  

Stop by a Macrina café this summer to try the crostata that Julia Child raved about.