Celebrate the bounty of the fall harvest with local farmers market findsTry chef David Sweeney’s recipes for a three-course vegetarian meal

Squash and Japanese Sweet Potatoes — Crystal Organic Farm and Le Tre Lune

Fresh Turmeric and Ginger — D&A Farm

Fresh Chestnuts — Crack in the Sidewalk Farmlet Fuji Apples — Mercier Orchards

Daikon and Leeks — Crystal Organic Farm

Peppers and Cilantro — Cosmos Organic Farm Eggs — Riverview Farms

Recently, Sweeney started a blog where you can find his musings and more info: www.davidsweeney.net.

With fall in the air, it’s time to turn to the fresh produce of the season, such as winter squash, sweet potatoes, apples, chestnuts, mushrooms, hearty greens and leeks.

We asked Atlanta chef David Sweeney to help us create recipes for a vegetarian meal to celebrate some of the best fall flavors to be found at farmers markets.

Sweeney became known for creating imaginative and elegant vegetarian fare at his Edgewood Avenue restaurant, Dynamic Dish. Until recently, he was in charge of the lunchtime offerings at the bakery at Cakes & Ale in Decatur.

Currently, you can find Sweeney at the Grant Park Octane Coffee, where he presents a weekly Sunday evening menu of curated “Fresh Market Bites.”

“I’d wanted to do something at Octane for a while,” Sweeney says. “It’s near where I live, I love the space, and I’ve been so excited by the Grant Park Farmers Market, because it’s right there at the back door. The menu is always based on what’s available from the farmers that week.”

Sweeney has always sought out and promoted natural and organic ingredients and most of his dishes are created by starting with the flavor of the vegetable he’s working with and enhancing it with other elements.

In the fall, he finds inspiration in hard-skinned winter squash, a versatile ingredient for all kinds of dishes that has the added advantage of a long shelf life.

“You can keep them in cool storage and use them all winter long,” Sweeney says. “And you can do so many different things with them. You can simply roast them or make a soup or get even more creative.”

For one of our fall recipes, Sweeney combined Japanese purple sweet potato and red kuri squash to make Japanese-influenced, Swiss-style rösti topped with turmeric sour cream, fresh chives, jalapeño and cilantro.

“The red kuri grow a little smaller, so they’re easier to deal with,” Sweeney says. “The squash originates on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, so I thought I’d use some Japanese-influenced ingredients, like turmeric, umeboshi plum vinegar and shoyu, to create an entire meal.”

A longtime favorite from Dynamic Dish mixes oyster mushrooms and leeks in a hearty combo that’s roasted and seared to bring out caramelized umami and sweet flavors.

“Oyster mushrooms are available almost all year, and in the fall even more so, here,” Sweeney says. “Like so many other things, there are great oyster mushrooms in abundance at farmers markets, right now.”

Recipes

These dishes created by chef David Sweeney from farmers market finds during harvest time are intended to be served together to create a fall vegetarian meal. The salad and the mushroom recipes are vegan and gluten free. But the entire meal can be made gluten free by substituting potato starch for flour in the rösti recipe.

Photos by Renee Brock. Styling by David Sweeney.

Raw Kale Salad With Chestnut Dressing, Daikon, Scallions and Fuji Apples

Serves: 6

Hands on: 45 minutes. Total Time: 1 hour

This hearty vegan salad combines sweet and sour flavors and a healthy combination of acid and fat. The addition of miso adds richness to the flavor of the kale, while mirin adds sweetness. Buy chestnuts that are very fresh and have been kept in cool storage. Do not buy chestnuts that have already been opened. A freshly peeled chestnut should have a very light mustard color without dark spots or blemishes. Any hearty green can be substituted for kale in this recipe.

For the dressing:

13 peeled raw chestnuts

3 tablespoons minced ginger

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup umeboshi plum vinegar

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon Juice

zest of one lemon

¼ cup mirin

1 tablespoon chickpea miso

For the salad:

2 bunches medium sized kale, washed and stems removed

1 medium sized daikon root, peeled and thinly sliced

6 scallions stemmed, washed and thinly sliced

2 Fuji apples, sliced just before serving

Freshly ground black pepper

Peel the raw chestnuts with a very sharp paring knife. First, cut off the pointed tip, then crack and tear open each chestnut with the tip of the knife. The outer membrane should be removed and squeezing the peeled chestnut between your fingers will help release it.

Place the peeled chestnuts into a Vitamix, blender or food processor with a sharp steel blade. Add the remaining ingredients and emulsify. The texture and appearance should be similar to an aioli.

Layer the kale leaves one by one on top of each other in two separate piles. Starting with the first pile, roll all the leaves up. Cut them lengthwise and then across in 1-inch slices. Do the same for the second pile. Place them into a large mixing bowl and toss them with your fingers, loosening all the cut pieces.

Starting with 1 cup of dressing, dress the kale and evenly coat with the dressing using your fingers.

Plate and top with scallions, daikon and freshly cut apple slices just before serving.

Per serving: 442 calories (percent of calories from fat, 73), 2 grams protein, 28 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams fiber, 37 grams fat (5 grams saturated), no cholesterol, 18 milligrams sodium.

Japanese Sweet Potato and Hokkaido (Red Kuri) Squash Rösti With Turmeric Sour Cream, Fresh Chives, Jalapeño and Cilantro

Serves: 4

Hands on: 1 hour Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

If you like latkes, you will love this version using red kuri squash and Japanese sweet potato. Many Georgia farmers have been experimenting with growing the Japanese purple sweet potato. Not to be confused with the Peruvian potato, it is white on the inside and is firm, not mealy. The red kuri squash is one that many farmers grow now, too. Once cut and seeded, the squash keeps well in the refrigerator wrapped tightly in plastic wrap. The DeKalb Farmers Market now carries fresh turmeric.

For the rösti:

1 cup grated Japanese purple sweet potato (see grating instructions below)

2 ½ cups grated red kuri squash (see grating instructions below)

1 teaspoon salt

¼ cup all purpose flour

2 eggs

1 teaspoon ground coriander seed

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup canola oil

For the topping:

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons peeled, grated turmeric (grating instructions below)

3 tablespoons diced jalapeno (seeds removed for less heat)

½ cup chopped chives

½ cup cilantro leaves (stems removed)

Prepare your toppings first. Note that the turmeric will leave stains on your fingers, wooden cutting board and anything else you might touch while you are peeling and grating, so its best grated into a bowl or onto a plate. Mix the grated turmeric, add it to the sour cream and set aside to reach room temperature. You will dollop it onto the rösti and add the other toppings just before serving.

Before starting to prepare the rösti, have a bowl of cold water ready for soaking the sweet potato. You will also need a sturdy cloth napkin or tea towel that will be used to squeeze the juice and water from both the potato and squash. Peel the sweet potato and grate it into long strips, using smooth strokes to run the potato across the grater (using a mandolin or food processor with a fine grate attachment also works well for thicker strips). Immediately place the grated potato into the bowl of cold water and soak for about 15 minutes.

While the potato is soaking, start to peel and seed the squash. Cut it into large pieces that are easy to hold onto as you grate it. While grating, position the squash in order to make the longest strips possible. Place the grated squash in two batches into your towel or napkin and squeeze liquid out. Once you have completed this process with all the squash, place it into a bowl and do the same thing with the sweet potato. All water must be removed in order for the rösti to become crisp when you fry it.

In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs, and then add the flour, salt, pepper and coriander. Using two forks, or your fingers, combine the egg mixture with the potato and squash and distribute until evenly coated.

Add oil to a large skillet to measure ¼ inch deep. Heat the oil over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Scoop the squash mixture into the oil with an ice cream scoop or large spoon. Fry five or six at a time until golden, about 5 minutes on each side. Change the oil if it turns brown. Drain the rösti on paper towels and hold in a warm oven.

Arrange 2 rösti on each plate. Garnish with a heaping tablespoon of the sour cream and top with cilantro, chives and jalapeno. Serve immediately.

Per serving: 777 calories (percent of calories from fat, 79), 9 grams protein, 31 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams fiber, 70 grams fat (12 grams saturated), 132 milligrams cholesterol, 657 milligrams sodium.

Seared Oyster Mushrooms and Leeks

Serves: 4

Hands on: 45 minutes Total time: 1 hour

This is such an easy recipe. But it does require a two part cooking process. Once the first part is done, the vegetables can be kept at room temperature, until you are ready to complete and serve.

For the mushrooms:

½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup shoyu or tamari

¼ cup and 1 tablespoon olive oil

2 garlic cloves minced (or grated with a micro plane)

½ lb oyster mushrooms

For the leeks:

½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup olive oil

3 leeks trimmed and washed and cut into pieces 1 inch wide

Preheat oven to 375.

To prepare the mushrooms:

In a medium bowl, combine the salt, shoyu, olive oil and grated garlic. Whisk until blended. Separate the mushrooms into “leaves”, leaving the stems and place them into the bowl. With your hands, coat the mushrooms evenly and then place them onto a baking tray or glass casserole dish. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove and set aside, leaving mushrooms in their juices

To prepare the leeks:

In a separate bowl, combine salt and olive oil. Carefully toss the leeks in oil, making sure they do not separate. Place them cut side down onto a baking tray or glass casserole dish. Bake for 15 minutes, covered with foil, so they sweat a little. Remove foil and set aside.

To finish the mushrooms and leeks:

Heat a cast iron or thick stainless steel skillet to a medium heat. With a paper towel, coat the skillet with oil and place the mushrooms in the pan leaving a little room between them. Sear them on each side for about 4 minutes, adding oil as necessary, then set aside.

You can use the same skillet for both the leeks and mushrooms.

The leeks should be lifted with a spatula so they remain intact and seared in the skillet the same way as the mushrooms. They should be turned until golden brown on each side.

To serve: Arrange the mushrooms and leeks on a plate and drizzle with pan juices.

Per serving: 187 calories (percent of calories from fat, 64), 4 grams protein, 14 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 14 grams fat (2 grams saturated), no cholesterol, 800 milligrams sodium.