Neighborhood Chef Series with Upward Projects

As the weather begins to cool down, Uptown Farmer’s Market is heating up with our new weekly Chef demonstrations called the Neighborhood Chef Series. Each week we will be featuring a local Chef from the neighborhood to whip up something fresh, beautiful, seasonal and using local products from the market. This is a great way for our guests to have the opportunity to purchase those ingredients and prepare an amazing dish just like the Chef!

This weekend we had Chef Chris Newstrom from Upward Projects restaurants, you know, Postino Wine Cafe, Joyride Taco House, Federal Pizza, Windsor & Churn join us. Chef used produce from TJ Farms, Maya’s Farm and McClendon’s Select to make a couple sauces.

With the help of two student Chefs from C-CAP AZ, Chef Newstrom took some of the fresh tomatillos from the market and added some avocado, cilantro, onion and a hint of Chile de arbol. With the help of a blender, these ingredients became the perfect companion for chips. Tomatillos look like small green tomatoes with a husk on them but they are actually related to the Cape gooseberry. They are a little bit tart, a little bit refreshing and a big staple in Latin cuisine.

Chef Newstrom also used some tomatoes from the market and blended those together with savory Spanish almond butter and a medley of roasted red peppers to create a delightful Romesco sauce. Chef paired his sauce with some tasty fresh veggies but it also goes well with meat and we think it’s be just as delicious on a nice slice of Noble bread. We even learned that Romesco sauce was made in Northeastern Spain by the fisherman to eat with their catch. As if two delicious tastings weren’t enough, we raffled off 4 $50 gift certificates to Upward Projects.

Thanks to Chef Newstrom from Upward Projects for supporting our market. Up next at the market will be Chef Cullen Campbell of Crudo and the new Okra Cookhouse & Cocktails. We can’t wait to see what he’ll be using from the market and we’re equally as excited to taste what he’ll be preparing for us.

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