Perro Salado Shares Farmers Market Secrets

It was a bustling morning at the Aquidneck Growers' Market on Saturday, where in addition to the local produce, meat, dairy, and baked goods on offer, market goers enjoyed a savory treat courtesy of Perro Salado of Newport.    

Throughout the season, the Aquidneck Growers' Market hosts a cooking demonstration for attendees, inviting local restaurants to share a dish they have prepared with ingredients purchased at the market. On Saturday, market goers got a taste of a Mexican-inspired strata prepared by Dan Hall, chef and co-owner of the popular Mexican restaurant on Charles Street. Strata is an egg casserole, described by Hall as "an inside-out quiche."

"We shop at the Aquidneck Growers' Markets twice a week, so this is our way of giving back to the farmers market, supporting it, while promoting the restaurant," Hall said.

Perro Salado uses as much local produce as possible during the growing season, and often specials are designed to highlight a particular vegetable that is in season.  

Judging by the exclamations of "Perro's our favorite restaurant!" and "We were just there last week, the ribs were amazing!" Perro Salado already has plenty of fans in town, and they seemed to have garnered some new ones Saturday morning, as people sampling the strata asked for information about the restaurant. 

Jennifer McCabe, the market's manager, says that the demonstrations are a win-win.

"The demonstrations allow us to highlight a local business and connect them to the community, while also offering people new ideas for utilizing the ingredients available at the weekly markets," she said.

The restaurants bring copies of the recipes they prepare and encourage attendees to take one.

"It's also nice for patrons of the restaurants to see the chefs outside of the kitchen, where they shop," McCabe said. "It's a unique experience."

Robyn Kestler of Middletown had one word to describe the strata: "delicious."   

The Aquidneck Growers' Market is held on Wednesdays from 2 to 6 p.m. on Memorial Boulevard in Newport and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Newport Vineyards. For more information on the market, call 401-848-0099. Perro Salado is located on Charles Street in Newport, around the corner from the Jail House Inn, and is open nightly at 5 p.m., as well as for brunch on Sunday from noon to 3 p.m. For information or to make reservations, call 401-619-4777. To get a peak oat their menu, visit www.perrosalado.com.  

Basic Strata

Courtesy of Perro Salado

1 loaf French or Italian Bread, cut into 1-inch cubes

2 cups grated or crumbled cheese

4 cups any combination of chopped vegetables (ex. Corn, tomato, spinach, onion, pepper) and/or cooked bacon, sausage, or ham

8 eggs

1 quart heavy cream

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13x9 baking dish, set aside.

Combine cubed bread, cheese, vegetable and/or meat in mixing bowl. Press evenly into baking dish. Whisk eggs, heavy cream, salt and pepper in a separate bowl. Pour evenly over bread mixture. (Note, this can be done the night before and refrigerated.) Bake 20 to 30 minutes, stirring once to ensure even cooking.  Remove when golden brown on top and eggs are set in the center.