Photo courtesy of Jason W. Kaumeyer
Maria Baldwin, who helped launch several school gardens in Santa Rosa as part of the School Garden Network, has gotten quite a lot of press since moving to Charleston, S.C., five years ago.
Now a full-time farmer at Thornhill Farm in McClellanville, S.C., Maria is also an accomplished cook who is driven by a desire to nourish others with healthy, organic and sustainable food.
Her recipe for cooking a heritage turkey ran in Time Magazine last November has part of the magazine’s Thanksgiving coverage. Last Wednesday, Maria popped up again in the national press, this time in a New York Times article about rock-star chef Sean Brock, who is reviving crops such as Sea Island red peas to serve at his new restaurant, Husk, in Charleston.
“Husk was hailed as possibly the most important restaurant in the history of Southern cooking, even before it opened in November,” New York Times columnist Sam Sifton wrote on the front page of the Feb. 9 Dining section. “Every grain, protein, green and spice placed on a plate in the restaurant would come from the South.”
While supplying Brock with much of his produce, eggs and other local ingredients for his two restaurants – including McCrady’s, the city’s oldest restaurant – Maria has launched her own take-home food business called Kitchen Table Cuisine. Of course, it also revolves around healthy, local foods that are grown organically and sustainably.
If you want to shout out a “hey” to Maria and learn more about her lowcountry life, check out her website is ourlocalfoods.com. Here’s a recipe from Maria for those of you who have been growing your own braising greens this winter: kale, chard, mustard, bok choy.
Spring Braising Greens Frittata
Serves 2 to 3
3 or 4 large farm fresh eggs
½ cup fresh milk
Dash of nutmeg
Pinch of salt and white pepper (if you have it)
4 ounces braising greens (about 6 leaves))
Fresh cracked sea salt and pepper
1 bunch spring onions or green garlic, chopped
¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced fresh mushrooms or artichoke hearts
Fresh Parmesan or Asiago cheese (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
Mix the eggs, milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper in a bowl.
Wash and chop the braising greens into large, 1-inch pieces, removing stems.
Slice the spring onions or green garlic and add to braising greens. In a non-stick, oven-ready skillet, lightly sauté the greens and onions together in olive oil until just beginning to wilt. If you want, add about ¼ cup chopped sun-dried tomato, sliced fresh mushrooms or artichoke hearts.
Add the egg mixture to the pan, and stir to coat the bottom of the pan. As soon as the custard begins to set, place in the oven to finish for about 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and dust lightly with freshly cracked sea salt and pepper and ribbons of fresh Parmesan or Asiago cheese.
