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.

COOK WITH THE CHEF

5:30 pm

Thursdays

Through Oct. 7

Santa Fe Farmers Market

1607 Paseo de Peralta, 989-5362

santafealliance.com/farmtorestaurant/cook-with-the-chef/ for a full schedule of events

Santa Fe Reporter