Adding summer fruits to dishes with Town & Country Market

Come on, say food. Yes, it's time to shake up the summer dinner menu. We have Town and Country Markets who is here to help us make the most of this peak produce season. And joining me today is the developer, recipe developer and food stylist, Joya Pettigrew. Hi there. Hello. Thank you for having me. I'm thrilled to be back. It's so good to see you again. It's so fun to be here. And you know, we want to talk about the fact that Town and Country has been an independent and family run business for nearly 70 years. That is such an accomplishment. Yes, the first store opened on Bainbridge in 1957. That is so cool. And when families are going into the stores and they're looking at that beautiful summer produce, what do you think really sets y'all apart? Well, you know, I think there's always so much care in the produce department all throughout the market. Our staff is so informed, knowledgeable. They're excited to help you. And really it's the partners and the growers behind the produce. We have these relationships with our growers that goes back 20, 30 years and it matters and it shows. Yeah, I love. I'm so grateful. I love that there is so much care there, but I love that you're going to show us how to make some delicious treats as well. So what are we working on? All right. So we have so much amazing summer produce to deal with. I brought all my favorite fruits, but let's start first with kind of a more savory fruit side dish. Savory fruit. A little bit. Okay, let's try it. So this is a Thai inspired melon salad. It's kind of like a spin on the green papaya salad that some people might be familiar with. Very good. But we get these beautiful melons in the summer from Turlock. They're absolutely incredible. There's so many varieties from the cantaloupe to orange honeydew to crenshaw. There's Santa Claus melons. They're so great. So this works with a lot of them. Let's jump right in. So let's mix the dressing. I'll have you do that first. So we're going to add into this bowl. Let's add lime juice, olive oil, shallots. We're smelling those. I was nipping everything because I was like, something smells amazing. Lime zest to really make it pop. Important is the fish sauce. That gives it that kind of savory flair. These are Thai chilies. They're also known as bird's eye chilies. They're very spicy, but they just... So some or all? Let's go all. We're not afraid here. And then a little brown sugar. So we got the sweet, the salty, the savory. We got it all. So let's mix that up. And then we will toss it with the melons. We'll give it a little pinch of salt. A pinch of salt is never a bad thing. That's right. Okay, great. Wow, that looks beautiful. I know. Already, right? So let's just top that onto our melon. Oh, right up here. Okay, let's do it. And then we'll just give it a mix. Mix her up right here. Now this looks delicious all by itself. We're going to build something more. Well, we're going to make it even more beautiful. Okay. And I think some of the best things about this kind of cuisine are the fresh herbs. So let's take some of that. We have cilantro, we have mint, Thai basil, and let's just throw some in there, rip it up, and it'll give it such a freshness. Should we get some of that basil? Yes. All right. So if you want to toss it, give it a mix, and then we'll give it a little crunch, and we'll get some salted roasted peanuts. Maybe just some of those. Yeah. Wow. I wish I could describe to you guys how fresh this smells. It's so beautiful. Yeah, and this is really fun to bring to any kind of barbecue. People are surprised by the flavors. It can sit well. So here, let's just put some on this plate for you, and then you can try a little. All right. So it goes with any great grilled meats. I love it with salmon. The salmon this time of year is just extraordinary. The fresh wild salmon in town and country markets always has great deals on it, so you just do not want to miss out on salmon this time. And you know, while I'm trying this, tell us your trick about salmon. So I personally love the tail pieces of salmon. Lots of people love those thick center cuts, and they're gorgeous, but if you're ever concerned about having bones in your fish, I recommend the tail. The tail does not have any of the pin bones down the center, so it's just a great little trick. This is absolutely delicious. Now, we have about a minute left, but I want to walk through some of these other dishes you've brought. Talk to me about that. So these are balsamic roasted cherries. We get great Washington grown cherries this time of year. We have amazing partnerships with our growers. They're so good with goat cheese. They have a savoriness. They could even be good with grilled meats and fish. Oh, that's delicious. This is a simple tart. So really, I developed this recipe to have with apricots, but the nectarines were calling my store. They were just calling my name in the market this morning, so I went with the nectarines. And that, I love that. You can break rules, you know? Yes, you were telling me that, and I love that. You can do what you want. Do what you want, yes. Use what looks delicious to you. It usually will work, you know? Oh, that's awesome. So over here, I have our freezer jam. Beautiful. So this is my favorite way of using up the berries. The berries this time of year, we get some from Storino Farms. They're absolutely extraordinary, and then they don't go bad. So freezer jam, you really capture the fruit flavor because you do not cook the fruit. Oh, that is delicious, and these are amazing ideas. Joya, thank you so much for hanging out with us today. More information on our website. That's fox13seattle.com slash studio13live. Thank you for joining us. I'm going to jump into this, okay?