I found out I don't know squat about quats!

I mean I know kumquats. I am quite familiar with loquats. Ditto limequats, and orangequats. I have even eaten dishes prepared with the least quatly named of the quats the calamondin.

But I gotta admit I never even heard of the quat I quaffed recently from the Hollywood Farmers Market. It's called a mandarinquat, and it doesn't take a genius to figure out that this little fruit is a cross between a kumquat and a mandarin. And I didn't need to be a genius to decide to choose these as the subject for my weekly Market Matters post. After all, it's citrus season, and I mean look at these little beauties! They've got Sup! written all over them.

The farmer who grew them said, they are best eaten raw– simply popped in your mouth like a kumquat. He said they were sweeter than a kumquat, with the same yummy skin as a kumquat. Sounded pretty good to me. So I left the market with a couple of pounds, quite pleased to suggest to all of you to do just that.

It happened again. I ripped off KCRW’s Good Food. This time my victim was Jean Francois Meteigner the chef at La Cachette Bistro in Santa Monica.

When I left the house this morning for the Hollywood Farmers Market I had an open mind about what I would find for my weekly Market Matters post. I was determined to pick something this week that I was unfamiliar with– something new to me, something that would necessitate putting my brain in gear. Stretch myself. Grow a little. Try something new!

I saw English shelling peas in the pod, they super tempted me. Not that they are all that original. I cook with peas almost every week of my life. Still when they are fresh from the market, it’s easy to throw all your other plans out the window. But I decided that the peas were not really peaking yet, and I’d rather wait a few more weeks and be rewarded with perfect peas. Besides there was that promise I made: Stretch myself. Grow a little. Try something new!

Today I have a pumpkin pas de deux. As elegant a moment as you will ever see here at SippitySup. Because, as promised, I am presenting Thanksgiving standards in two ways every day. And I know you know that pumpkin is the Thanksgiving Gold Standard!

Now if you are unfamiliar with the pas de deux, let me enlighten you. In ballet, a pas de deux (French, step/dance for two) is a duet in which ballet steps are performed together. Popular pas de deux appear both in Swan Lake and The Nutcracker. There was even a gorgeously animated outer space pas de deux in the movie WALL-E. It was every bit as stunning and thematically correct as any I have ever seen on stage.  So who says robots can’t be artists?

Of course the obvious thing about a pas de deux is it takes two. I could have said it takes two to tango because in fact a tango is a form of the pas de deux, with out some of the rigid standards the ballet version requires.

For today’s Market Matters at the Hollywood Farmers Market I brought home adorable little mini-sized apples. This is the 5th recipe in my An Apple A Day series and it is an entirely original recipe. I am calling it Pecan Stuffed Tempura Apples.

The thing about making up a recipe and posting it on a blog all in one day is that you have to realize it is a work in progress. I had to make this recipe one apple at a time, changing my method slightly each time until I got something I was happy with.

There may still be room for improvement here and I am open to your suggestions.

Although this recipe was delicious and I am very happy with the flavor combination. I will admit I had some trouble with the texture. My first attempt I stuffed a raw apple then battered and fried it. But the apple did not quite get cooked enough. As I had hoped, the interior stuffing got hot enough so that when I cut into the apple the pecan stuffing oozed out in a very satisfying manner. But there was just too much crunch left in my apple.

Another day, another apple. After all “an apple a day” is a pretty straightforward phrase.

Today’s apple comes in the form of a cake. An Applesauce Cake. Yesterday I made applesauce because I knew I needed it as an ingredient in this cake. Ordinary store-bought applesauce would not do for this special cake. Thinking ahead is what separates Sup! from a snail...

I know you have heard me say (write) that I am not much of a baker. Which is indeed a true statement. But I am learning to push my boundaries in this regard and baking a bit more (at the insistence of the Nicks at Imafoodblog and Macheesmo; you may even see bread here one day). But for now, my baking focus has been cakes. Simple, rustic cakes. Cakes that are neither too sweet, nor beyond my skill level. Towering layer cakes may be in my future, but let’s take that on in baby steps, shall we?

TomatoMania is winding down here at SippitySup. I still have one last contest winning entry to make and I know Scott has a few parting thoughts. But those will have to wait for another Monday.

Because, the funny thing about the end of the tomato-growing season is this. There are still soooo many tomatoes to love.

This is when we start canning, preserving and freezing our crop. I am still trying to come up with ideas to use up a lot of our great garden tomatoes with out really wasting their bounty.

Sauces are always a good idea. Especially if you have the time and inclination towards canning. Sauces, well put up, will last practically forever in a properly processed jar.

While I am not here today to discourage you from hanging onto the last of your tomatoes in these traditional methods, I am here to say, why not try something a bit different this year?

I still have a taste for spicy. I don't mean hot like the Spicy Vietnamese Shrimp from yesterday though. This time I am looking for a deeper, earthier more nuanced spice blend.

This is a Spiced Seared Salmon. To "spice" it I am turning to chili powder and cinnamon. Which may seem like an odd combination to you. But, not really when you consider an amusing little fact that I am hoping will amuse you! Cinnamon and chili powder are the most common spices found in American households.

Plus the combination is not entirely unheard of especially in Indian cuisine. So those two facts tell me that I can make a good spice rub with just these two powders and a bit of salt.

I am going to rub this combination on some gorgeous Copper River Sockeye salmon fillets. These babies and their deep red flesh are the real deal. The "pinker" Atlantic farm raised salmon (that is way too common in our groceries stores) is artificially colored with chemicals.