farm fresh feature: hill-stead museum

I often find myself up before most on weekend mornings. There is something about that magic time between 7 to 10 a.m. where it is still quiet outside and the day seems full of possibilities. For me, this is when I start to look at cooking blogs and think about food: where to buy it, new recipes, excuses to entertain, leftover produce in my fridge that needs to be used, etc. Growing up, I would often accompany my mom, list in tow, to the downtown Minneapolis farmers market. It is near the Basilica of St. Mary's on the edge of the downtown landscape. Under five to eight football length awnings, farmers sell local produce, cheese, and meats. If we were lucky, we would get a pastry to snack on while wandering around this lively place. Minneapolis has set a fairly high bar for farmers markets, and through this blog, you will start to see how much I love my home state (who doesn't love a good lake?).

Local. Fresh. Vibrant. #MplsFarmersMarket

But what I really learned to appreciate was local food. Local, fresh, vibrant! It's so beautiful how can you not be inspired to find new local farmers and produce stands. Plus, you promote our local economy, lessen your carbon footprint, and simply eat gorgeous, tasty food. This is the inspiration for The Hartford Social (THS) farm fresh feature. We will highlight various farmers markets and share our adventures cooking what we pick up. Simple preparation is all that is needed with such fresh ingredients.

During early Sunday morning, THS decided to take a ten minute trip west on Rt. 4 to the Hill-Stead Museum's farmers market in Farmington. Perched on top of a hill, Hill-Stead Museum has a beautiful view of the surrounding hills. Reusable grocery bags in tow, we did a loop around the market to see what were our options: organic duck & pork to pestos to blueberries and lettuce.

We decided to get some spinach pesto, local raspberries and blueberries, stemmed carrots, green beans, and fresh herbs. Our special purchase of the day was at the seafood vendor despite one of the THS girls not caring for seafood. The seafood looked incredibly fresh and sounded light and delicious on this steamy Sunday morning. We scooped up a half pound of Stonington sea scallops, a dozen of clams, and a dozen oysters.

A crisp wine or beer and raw oysters? That's my jam. One small detail: I have never prepared an oyster by myself. I am used to oysters appearing on ice with all of the fixing in the cute, little silver cups in the center of the plate. But at a dollar a piece at the farmers market, how can a New England-seafood-loving girl refuse?

Fresh oysters from the farmers market. Ensure that your vendor places your seafood on ice. With the hot summer temperatures, you want to ensure that it is kept cool enough, particularly if you will be enjoying your seafood raw.

THS thought that it would make for another fun "adventure" that we could share with our readers. My conclusion after this little experiment, shucking oysters is an art, and art should be left up to professional (unless stranded on an island or looking for amusement at the beach house).

Oyster Shucking 101
My father taught me at a young age that to complete a project, you need the right tools. He has corrected my improper tool choices over the years, and most of the time, he has been correct. Serrated knife? Yes, it is better knife for bread slicing, but I digress.

What do you need to shuck an oyster? Like any late-twenty-something-year-old, I turned to Google and watched a YouTube video of the Legal Seafood chef in Boston to learn what tools that I needed and what techniques had to be used to get these hard-shelled delights open.

Armed with knowledge, I now needed to find the tools - a sharp knife. I do not own an oyster shucking knife, but I do own old but sharp knives that I hoped would do the trick. Towel down, oyster poised, left hand on of oyster. Place the knife tip in the back hinge of the oyster, turn 60 degrees until the top lid pops open.

Remember, oysters are connected to the top and bottom parts of the shell. Run your knife along the top edge of the oyster shell and open completely. No two oysters are the same. Just because I rocked the first one does not mean that my eighth oyster looked like a mess. Clean any sandy residue with a paper towel and place on ice. Our fixings included cocktail sauce, hot sauce, and lemon. Pair your briny treat with a glass of sparkling wine or a crisp beer. Oysters and bubbly sounds decadent for a Sunday afternoon at home, but after figuring out how to shuck an oyster and breaking a knife, I believe that it was well work it.

Note: A certain fiance who did not watch the YouTube video about how to properly shuck an oyster and who wanted to use a butter knife to open said oyster was less successful in his shucking attempts. As my father taught me, it is all about the tools. Who wants to shuck oysters?