Cook Like a Pro

If you happen to be driving down Paseo de Peralta after work on a Thursday, you might notice a white tent set up in front of the Santa Fe Farmers Market building. This innocuous setup is the site for Cook with the Chef, a series of free cooking demonstrations, which highlight local chefs who participate in the Santa Fe Alliance’s Farm to Restaurant Program, a combination marketing and distribution program that connects local restaurants with regional food producers.

“[People] learn something that they can then turn around and buy at the farmers market,” Kathleen Chambers, the Santa Fe Alliance’s program coordinator, says. “They can buy those ingredients, go home and make it. So it’s pretty immediate gratification.”

This week’s chef was Dinner for Two’s Andy Barnes, who shared the recipe for spiced lamb meatballs with curry and onions, served with apricot sauce in phyllo cups. The meatballs were tender and faintly nutty, while the sauce, made with New Mexico apricots, honey and whole grain mustard was sweet, with a gentle texture that was both palatable and refreshing. The meatballs were served on top of little cupcake-shaped cups of baked phyllo with the sauce on the bottom, which made for a simple but elegant presentation.

Some upcoming events that Chambers is looking forward to include: La Boca’s James Campbell Caruso on July 22; 315 Restaurant & Wine Bar’s Louis Moskow making his famous squash blossom beignets on July 29; long-time local food supporters Roland Richter of Joe’s Restaurant on Aug. 26 and and Patric Gharrity of La Casa Sena on Sept. 16; and Jambo Café’s Ahmed Obo on Sept. 30.