tribute to summer food

It's been a hot and muggy week here, and the cool rain this morning was a blessing. As much as I wanted to stay curled up under the covers, I got up to teach my 10 am Slow Flow yoga class. I've been teaching on Saturday mornings for a few weeks now, and I've been loving it. It truly was a "Slow Flow" kind of day. I actually felt a little chill in the air. Fall is coming...

But we are still being blessed with the late summer harvest. Thought I'd post some Instagram snaps here.

I love summertime produce... it's nature at its fullest expression: sweet, juicy, and colorful.

one of many, many tomato salads: heirloom tomato, fresh mozzarella, basil, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper

yellow heirloom tomato with purple basil, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper

more purple and yellow - color wheel contrast perfected by nature

a tabbouleh-inspired salad: Israeli couscous, cucumber, grape and yellow pear tomatoes, lentils, EVOO, lemon, parsley

shisito peppers, blistered in a searing-hot cast iron pan with olive oil and whole cloves of garlic, plus lime squeezed over top

green and purple basil - so pretty!

crunchy and peppery radishes, enjoyed simply with butter and coarse salt

And let's not forget the fruit, enjoyed in different ways...

jewel-like blackberries in a simple cake, about to go into the oven

apricot jam - a hint of black pepper and lemon was just genius (recipe here)

the best thing about August: peaches!

can't get enough...

chilled canteloupe and basil soup

panzanella and warm marinated olives

We've been getting a lot of different tomatoes lately, including grape tomatoes, yellow pear tomatoes, and beautiful heirloom tomatoes. It truly is one of the best things about summer. If I were really smart about this, I would have turned all these wonderful tomatoes into a marinara sauce to freeze and save for the winter ahead, but lately I just can't help myself. I can't stop eating them! Whether sliced and doused with olive oil and basil...



Or in a sandwich, with a schmear of mayonnaise, coarse sea salt, and lots of cracked black pepper...



Or in panzanella, which is an Italian bread and tomato salad. All this salad needs day-old crusty bread, and gorgeous tomatoes and fresh basil, and just a simple vinaigrette dressing. I made mine a little differently based on what I had in the kitchen; you can always play around with the ingredients. Maybe swap feta for the fresh mozzarella (it may not be traditional, but it's good!). Maybe add some shallots. Do what you like!

Panzanella

For the bread:

• a little shy of half a loaf of day-old, crusty artisan bread
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Slice the bread into cubes (about half an inch or so). I would estimate that I had about 4 cups of cubed bread (maybe!). Spread onto a baking sheet pan, then drizzle olive oil on top - not a lot, just a little bit to help the bread brown nicely. Season with salt and pepper. Toss everything together with your hands to distribute the olive oil, then bake for about 10-12 minutes until they are crunchy and golden brown around the edges.

This may seem like an unnecessary step; you might be thinking, why toast it and let it get crunchy only to soak it in dressing later? But I think letting it toast in the oven lets it dry out even further so that it can soak up all that flavorful dressing more.

For the rest of the salad:

• lots of tomatoes - I used one very large heirloom tomato, one medium red tomato, and about 10 sun-dried tomatoes, rehydrated in hot water for 10 minutes, then chopped (sun-dried tomatoes aren't necessary here, but I like them)
• 1 large garlic clove
• 1 small onion (shallots would have been better, but I didn't have any), chopped small; about 1/4 cup
• about 1/2 cup of fresh mozzarella, in small cubes
• about 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• about 1/4 cup of your best extra virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper
• lots of fresh basil

While the bread is in the oven, make the dressing. In a large bowl, mix the red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper (you can season generously as this makes a large salad!) Mince the garlic clove with a little salt - whenever I use garlic for a raw preparation, I like to do it this way because the salt helps break down the garlic a little bit. Chop the onion (or shallot). I didn't want raw onions in here as they might overpower the tomatoes, so I decided to roast the onion slightly in the oven as well (the oven was already hot anyway!) to sweeten them a bit and make them less pungent - probably not even 10 minutes. If I had shallots, I probably wouldn't have roasted them as they are more mellow than regular onions. Add the roasted onions (or shallots) to the dressing.

Chop the tomatoes and add them (including any tomato juice that collects on your cutting board) to the bowl. Add the crunchy bread as well, and toss everything together so that the bread soaks up the dressing. Toss in the fresh mozzarella, and simply tear the fresh basil leaves over the bowl.

Check for seasoning, and adjust as necessary. Allow the salad to sit for about 10 minutes (it gets better!), if you can wait that long :)

The salad was a study of contrasting textures and flavors: croutons softened by a slightly tangy, fruity olive oil dressing, plump, juicy tomatoes at the peak of their sweetness, chewy sun-dried tomatoes, and mild, creamy mozzarella, and fresh, sweet basil. Yum. As I was eating it, I was already thinking about how much I would enjoy the leftovers for lunch the next day. I know. I think ahead like that. 

This was an easy weeknight dinner, along with some warm marinated olives - simply a mix of a variety of olives from Whole Foods' antipasto bar, which I packed into a glass jar (with the olive oil it comes in), and set into a small pot of simmering water for about 20-30 minutes. This was inspired by a visit to Flour (a nearby Italian restaurant) last weekend. Warm marinated olives are a part of their appetizer list; and interestingly, we never ordered them before, thinking, oh, it's just olives - I can have them at home anytime, why would I order it at a restaurant? But we decided to get them on our last visit and it was a revelation. We were in olive heaven (a little dramatic, I know).  I've always loved olives. Little did I know that enjoying them warm takes them to a whole other level. (I'm not the last one to learn about this, am I?) Letting them sit in a hot water bath allows the flavors to bloom, and it's just worlds better than the usual cold olives in typical antipasto platters. I guess it's a similar concept as letting cheeses sit at room temperature for a little bit - not serving it straight out of the fridge - before enjoying it on a cheese platter. Believe me. Give it a try. You'll never go back to cold olives.

not your typical green beans... and a recipe for loubie bzeit

I know it must seem like I don't eat anything else but shortbread, ice cream, and cake, but I do eat real food. I mean non-dessert food. I promise. If in doubt, check out my food page here, and you'll see some variety in what I eat, beyond dessert.

Recently we got these beautiful dragon's tongue beans in our weekly produce bag from Fresh Fork Market.



Aren't they pretty? I love the purple striations against yellow. I've never cooked or tasted these before, so I was really excited thinking about what to make with them.

Unfortunately, after some reading on the Internet I found out that the purple striations disappear after cooking. Sad! Just like how the striations in Chioggia beets disappear after cooking as well.

At any rate, I suddenly thought of the Lebanese dish called Loubie Bzeit - a slow-cooked green bean stew with tomatoes, onion, garlic, tomato and spices. 

We also had these gorgeous tomatoes, which I thought would be perfect for this dish. I know - sometimes I think it's a crime to cook summer tomatoes, when they are at their juiciest and sweetest state best enjoyed as is, sprinkled with a little sea salt to bring out their sweetness, or in a caprese salad with basil and creamy, fresh mozzarella or the even more indulgent burrata.

However, A. also recently started requesting heartier "cooked" meals besides the light/raw summer salads I've been preparing. And you know me - when I get a culinary request, I deliver. Except when he almost threatened (in a good way) to enter me into the Food Network's Chopped. Highly unlikely as I don't have a single competitive bone in my body. And, forget about competing, I might just (shamelessly) join the judges at the judges' table and sample all the delicious meals cooked that day.

Anyway, I digress, as always... the stories just somehow sneak their way into my recipe writing.

So here's the recipe. I don't know if it's perfectly authentic...lest I offend any Lebanese cooks out there. Let's just say it's my version. Feel free to play around with the measurements; the spice measurements are only approximations as I didn't measure precisely. When in doubt, start with a small amount; you can always add more later.

Loubie Bzeit

• 1 lb green beans or, in my case, dragon's tongue beans, washed, trimmed, and sliced into 1-inch pieces (no need to be too precise here)
• olive oil - a generous glug, enough to cover the bottom of the pan
• half a large onion, chopped
• ground cinnamon - about 1/4 teaspoon
• ground allspice - about 1/2 teaspoon
• ground cumin - about a 1/4 teaspoon
• half a head of garlic, peeled and cloves left whole, or cut in halves if they are large cloves (I know it sounds like a lot of garlic, but I promise this makes it so good)
• 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• salt and pepper
• a pinch of sugar

Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottomed skillet, over medium heat. Saute the onion with a little salt and pepper (season as you go!) until soft. Add the cinnamon, allspice, and cumin; saute to bring out the flavors, but be sure to keep scraping the bottom so the spices don't burn or stick. Add the tomatoes (and any tomato juice that collects on your cutting board) and the garlic, and let cook until the tomatoes break down somewhat and the garlic infuses the tomatoes. Add the beans, season again with a little salt and pepper as well as a pinch of sugar, then add about 1/4 cup of water to help soften the beans. Cover the pan, then once the sauce is bubbling lower the heat to let it cook gently.

Unfortunately I didn't time how long this took - I would say at least 15 minutes after the beans are in, but possibly more (I should be better at noting these things down!). The beans should be very soft, but not mushy, and the sauce should have thickened (but it shouldn't be too saucy). If the liquid is too thin or watery, let it simmer uncovered to reduce the liquid. The garlic should be soft as well. Check for seasoning and adjust as needed.

Serve with steamed basmati rice or crusty bread for mopping up the delicious sauce. The beans were soft and sweet, but not overly so; the tomato flavor made more complex by the spices.

As A. is my daily food critic, I always ask: "Do you like it enough for me to make it again?" To that he mumbled, yes, in between mouthfuls.

I had the leftovers for lunch today, and discovered it's good even when cold or at room temperature as well.

Going...

Going...

...gone!

no-cook, heat-wave-friendly dinner

Whew!

It is HOT today in Cleveland. And I say that with great tolerance, being a girl from the tropics. But it is quite unusual for these parts. I had a feeling this would happen after our unusually warm winter.

Regardless, I hope you are all finding ways to stay cool - whether you enjoy some popsicles, run among the sprinklers, whatever. Because summer goes by in a blink of an eye.

For tonight's dinner, I decided not to turn on the stove at all.

Massaged greens (mustard greens and kale), roasted beets (from last night), chickpeas (also cooked last night), avocado, and feta - everything except the chickpeas and avocado are from Fresh Fork Market

We all know dark leafy greens are good for us, and thankfully we get some generous bunches from our weekly produce pickup. The greens this week were mustard greens and kale. Typically I would do a quick saute in olive oil and garlic, but even that did not sound appealing to me today. I wanted a filling, no-cook meal, but raw kale and mustard greens sounded a bit too much even for a veggie-lover like me.

This friend told me about massaging raw greens for a salad, so I decided to give that a try. So after washing and drying the greens, and tearing them up into bite-size pieces, I sprinkled some sea salt, squeezed a little lemon juice and added a dash of olive oil, and actually got in there with my (clean) hands and massaged the greens until they were soft and wilted.

Afterwards, I wondered why I waited so long to try it. All that TLC (along with the salt and the acid from the lemon juice) made the raw greens more palatable, yet they were still flavorful. I wouldn't do it for more delicate greens like spinach and arugula, but for kale and mustard greens this is a great technique.

I added beets which I had roasted the night before (here is a tip for roasting beets - no need to peel beforehand!), as well as some chickpeas. We tend to eat a lot of chickpeas and other legumes in our household as our main source of protein, so every week or so I soak about 2 cups of dry chickpeas overnight and cook them in a pressure cooker the next day - four whistles and it's done. Then I store them in smaller containers (immersed in the cooking liquid - great for thickening stews and for improving the texture of hummus) - some in the freezer, and some in the refrigerator for more immediate use. Sometimes A. snacks on them as is (drained of the liquid of course), with nothing but salt and Indian red chile powder. 

This was a really satisfying salad with great contrasting flavors and textures. That's what salads are all about in my opinion. Peppery greens, sweet yet earthy beets, mild chickpeas, creamy avocado, salty feta, tangy lemon juice. It was so flavorful, it didn't even need more dressing - just a little more salt and pepper (though you could always add a dressing of your choice).

What required the most effort in this meal was trying to get all my salad elements in one forkful.

The second most effortful thing about tonight's meal would be keeping myself from eating the entire pint of Jeni's roasted strawberry buttermilk ice cream. It tempts me each time I open the freezer door. But that's another story...

beat the heat

...with cold, fuss-free summer meals.

As much as I love to cook and bake, there are days when even turning on the toaster seems to heat up the kitchen. I did very minimal cooking this weekend - one meal involved a couscous salad (boil water/broth, add couscous, stir, turn off the heat, cover, and let sit for 5 minutes, and it's done... add vegetables and herbs of your choice, some kind of dressing, maybe some feta cheese). This is another one of those "non-recipes" as I like to call it, as you can do whatever you want! Choose a different vegetable. A different grain/starch. A different flavor profile with other herbs. During the colder months I would use a heartier grain like barley or spelt berries, but in the summer couscous is just perfect. I chose these vegetables because these are what I got from last Friday's produce pickup.

The trick here, I think, is to flavor everything from the start - for instance, instead of cooking the couscous/pasta/grains in plain water, I cook it in vegetable broth. If I happen to not have broth and just have water, I add other aromatics (garlic, onion, herbs, whatever) and salt in the cooking water too. And, in either situation, some olive oil. A little olive oil never hurt anybody. (And actually, having a little fat, like olive oil, with vegetables helps our bodies absorb the fat-soluble nutrients in the vegetables. It's a good thing!)

whole wheat couscous, chickpeas, carrots, tomatoes, kale lightly sauteed in garlic and onions, parsley + basil from my balcony (Yes they are growing! There's hope for cactus-killing, non-green-thumbs like me!), and sheep's milk feta (from Lucky Penny Farm), dressed in extra virgin olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt and pepper

Other meals involved cold soups just using the blender.

Cold soup #1: Cucumber Soup

There is a reason cucumbers are harvested in the summer.

• 2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 1 cup plain yogurt (I extended the yummy Velvet View Farmstead yogurt by saving a bit to use as a starter for homemade yogurt!)
• 1-2 cloves garlic, depending on how garlicky you want it
• 2 tablespoons of chopped spring onions
• half a jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped (optional, but I wanted just a tiny bit of a kick)
• a cup or so of vegetable broth (cold!) -maybe more, maybe less... just enough to get the consistency you want
• salt and pepper
• fresh herbs of your choice (mint, dill, parsley are good choices... I had some parsley on my balcony so that's what I used)

The most work here (which really isn't a lot of work) is prepping the cucumbers and garlic. When a dish calls for raw garlic, I like mincing it with a little salt so that it becomes pasty. Sometimes, big garlic pieces somehow escape the blades of the blender, so mincing it into a paste avoids that. The salt seems to tame the flavor a bit too. (I do the same for raw onions, like for guacamole - though I don't mash them, just sprinkle salt over chopped onions and let it sit for a few minutes).

Whizz everything in a blender until smooth, and it's done.

You might chill it in the fridge some more, but since all my ingredients were cold to begin with, I didn't have to.

Cold soup #2: Sopa de Ajo Bianco (Almond and Garlic Soup)

This soup is not for those who are lukewarm toward garlic. Even A., who really likes garlic, said it was a little much. Two cloves of garlic (instead of 3) would be just fine here. Feel free to adjust to your liking.

• 1 cup of almond meal (available at Trader Joe's; some grocery stores also carry the Bob's Red Mill brand of almond meal)
• a cup or so (around 2 slices) of cubed day-old white country bread, crusts removed, and soaked in enough milk to cover
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced with salt until pasty
• a dash of sherry vinegar
• salt and pepper

Again - whizz everything in a blender until smooth. To make it extra smooth, pour it through a sieve into bowls. I did this, but ended up not wanting to waste the almond bits that collected in the sieve. So I slathered it on bread. It was already flavorful, so why not?
 
Technically, this recipe calls for blanched almonds so you probably wouldn't even have to run it through a sieve since you won't be dealing with the almond skins anymore. But I didn't have blanched almonds, so it had to be almond meal. I think it worked out.

This soup also calls for green grapes, as a garnish or served on the side - like in this recipe. Unfortunately I didn't have any, but I imagine that would be really good here as a contrast to the creamy and garlicky soup. Note to self for next time.

Chill in the refrigerator before serving.

Hope it cools off this week! 

chocolate zucchini muffins

Summer brings an abundance of zucchini. There were 2 zucchinis (thanks to Fresh Fork Market) in my refrigerator crisper drawer, staring at me. Having already made two loaves of zucchini bread, I decided to adapt my zucchini bread recipe and add chocolate. You can't go wrong with chocolate, right?

For me, most muffins call for chocolate chips or nuts. I like the contrasting textures of the moist crumb and the crunch of chocolate chips or nuts together. So, I searched my pantry high and low for chocolate chips... and unfortunately none turned up. And I already used up my last 2 bars of Green & Black dark chocolate for my fleur de sel chocolate chip cookies yesterday. Really??? No chocolate in this household???

And then I found a box of dark chocolate coated marzipan. It was a gift to us, but neither of us are actually huge fans of marzipan. So in my determined-to-have-chocolate state, I decided to cut up all these chocolate marzipan bars and use the chocolate coating. I initially felt bad about tossing the marzipan interior (I hate throwing food away - that's the Filipino in me), but...voila, I had chocolate "chips"! After this long process, I ended up with about 3/4 cup of chocolate pieces. And I had a little shy of half a cup of walnuts. Score! (But I suggest you just grab a bag of chocolate chips while you are at the store.)

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins (makes 23-24 muffins)

• 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or all-purpose flour)
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 tablespoon instant coffee powder
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups turbinado sugar (or regular brown sugar)
• 3/4 cup virgin coconut oil (or vegetable oil)
• 3 tablespoons ground flaxseed, mixed with 6 tablespoons water (or 3 eggs)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups grated zucchini (grated in a food processor)
• 1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips, nuts, or a combination

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with paper muffin liners, or grease and flour the muffin tins. I actually just used one muffin tin and just baked them in two batches (Technically I think that once the wet and dry ingredients are mixed together, the batter has to be baked without delay... but I figured this wasn't such a delicate recipe and the second batch can wait a half hour or so before going into the oven. Anyway...)
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa, salt, baking soda, instant coffee, allspice, and cinnamon. I now mix a little bit of coffee into almost any chocolate recipe. Not that you actually taste the coffee, but it just adds even more depth of flavor. Coffee makes chocolate taste better! (Thanks, Ina Garten)
3. Measure out about a half cup of the flour mixture and place in a bowl with the chocolate chips or nuts. Mix together to coat the chocolate chips/nuts. This process (I think the technical term is dredging) prevents the chocolate chips/nuts from sinking to the bottom of the muffins as they bake.
4. In a large bowl, mix the sugar, oil, ground flaxseed mixture (or eggs), vanilla, and grated zucchini. As a side note, for those of you who are wary of coconut oil... you actually don't detect the coconut flavor in here. And virgin, cold-pressed, unrefined coconut oil is actually good for you!
5. Mix the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, just until combined (do not overmix!). Fold in the chocolate chips/nuts and the remaining flour mixture.
6. Using an ice cream scoop or measuring cup, divide the batter into the muffin cups (fill about 2/3 of the way up in each muffin cup). Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a small knife/cake tester/toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out without any liquid batter sticking to it (moist/dry crumbs are ok).
7. Cool in the muffin pan for about 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Well, the cooling process didn't quite happen for me. I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into one of these.

See how incredibly moist and chocolate-y they are?

Not that zucchinis are a bad thing, but you can't even detect them in here. Surely a great way to use up zucchini. I think my next zucchini experiment will be to make them into latkes.



PS: As a side note, my wire rack (middle ground of photo) looks like it's glowing!

saturday morning = pancakes

Last night, we got some blackberries in our produce haul from Fresh Fork Market.

I started thinking of different ways to enjoy these berries - in plain yogurt, with a little honey mixed in... in a salad... by itself... and then I remembered the cheese we got. And I remembered how much I love fruit and cheese combinations. Sweet and savory together is always a winner in my book. Like raspberries and Brie. Figs and gorgonzola. Watermelon and feta. Dark chocolate and sea salt.

We were supposed to get some feta from our CSA, but they ran out (it must be really good!). I was a bit disappointed, because this was supposed to be the real-deal sheep's milk feta, from Lucky Penny Farm. So they offered a substitute. We selected Camembert, which was from Mayfield Road Creamery.

The Camembert was amazing. When we got it, it was at the perfect room temperature (which is the temperature to fully enjoy cheese). It was smooth, creamy, and rich, but not too pungent.

As you can tell from the photo, we already did some significant damage to it after enjoying it last night and this morning. 

And, we also got something extra special from our produce pickup - yogurt!!! I was excited about this, thanks to this description from their website:

The next exciting product is our yogurt from Velvet View Farms in Big Prairie Ohio (south of Wooster).  This was my favorite new product last year, to the point that I take a 3 gallon bucket home each month.  The product has exceptional flavor and is very versatile.  It is very runny so I use mine in place of buttermilk in baking and sometimes even milk in recipes.

The yogurt has only one ingredient: cultured milk.  It has no stabilizers like pectin or added milk solids.  This keeps it runny but 100% authentic.  My favorite fact is that it is 17 ft 2 inches from the udder to the pasteurizing  tank.  When the cows are being milked, a valve is turned and the warm milk flows directly to the tank in the other room.  The temperature is brought up, the culture added, and 10 hours later they are ready to bottle yogurt.

It doesn't get any fresher than that. 

So this morning, I decided to make pancakes inspired by Smitten Kitchen's recipe for sour cream pancakes.

This recipe produces pancake batter that is a little runnier than usual, but I like it because I prefer moist, thin pancakes - nothing like the boxed kind that gets a bit dry. I remember when we were growing up, and pancakes were such a treat for us. My brother was great at flipping pancakes, and I remember how he used to flip them like a professional by shaking the pan and flipping the pancake that way, without using a turner. Back home, we didn't even have the real maple syrup (maple trees don't grow there), so we used the imitation "maple-flavored" syrup - which I now honestly think is horrible, after tasting the real deal maple syrup. But back then we didn't care - we had pancakes!

Anyway. This morning's pancakes. I halved the recipe (since there were just two of us) and did a few tweaks.

Sweet and Savory Pancakes, for 2 (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

This recipe makes about 5 pancakes.

• 4 tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour (you can add a bit more if you find this recipe too liquid-y after mixing or if you want thicker pancakes)
• 1/2 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt (the original recipe calls for sour cream, which is good too)
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• a pinch of fresh lemon zest
• Butter, for pan
  
• Blackberries (or any other fruit)
• Sliced Camembert (without the rind)
• Maple syrup

(I used a 2-cup glass measuring cup in place of a mixing bow, for easy pouring into the pan)

Heat a skillet over medium low heat so that it starts to get hot while you measure and mix. 

In a small bowl, take some blackberries and add just a little bit of sugar. Let it sit to macerate for 5-10 minutes so that the fruit releases some of its juices.

natural juices of the blackberries coming out

Mix all the wet ingredients into the measuring cup (or bowl), then add the dry ingredients. Whisk together just until incorporated; a little lumps are ok.

I think the key to making pancakes is to keep the heat on medium-low, so that it cooks through without the underside getting burned. Especially with this particular recipe, which has a greater proportion of liquid ingredients to dry, it needs time to cook through on medium-low heat.

Once the pan was hot (I used my cast iron skillet - which, once hot, stays hot very well), I melted a little butter then slowly poured pancake batter into the pan, letting the batter spread until it was the size I wanted (I'd say about 5 inches across maybe?).

Let it cook undisturbed until bubbles start to form:

The pancake itself will "tell" you when it's ready to be flipped. You should be able to insert your turner easily under the pancake to flip it over. If it fights against you, wait just a bit longer.

Then once it's flipped, top with a few slices of Camembert so that it melts a bit while the other side of the pancake cooks.

Once cooked, top with some blackberries (include some of the sweet juice that collects in the bowl after macerating). Pour a little maple syrup over, and serve.

YUMMMM.

I prefer not to stack my pancakes, as I want a just-right proportion of toppings to pancakes without overwhelming my plate. But that's just me. Feel free to stack as many as you want!

These pancakes are so light and moist - and flavorful from the tangy yogurt, bright lemon zest, and the little bit of vanilla. Of course, it was after I finished my pancakes that I remembered: some toasted slivered almonds or walnuts would be good in here...note to self for next weekend's pancakes.

weekend snapshots... and a recipe at the end

I'm all about pink flowers lately.

gerbera daisy

I'm usually more into yellow flowers. But it must be the baby girl fever happening all around me. I know 4 women around me who either have given birth to a baby girl or are expecting a baby girl this year. There's something in the water in Cleveland :)

peony petals starting to open...

I don't usually buy flowers for myself, but I went ahead and got some pink peonies... they truly are special, being available only once a year.

peony in bloom

 Last weekend a group of us hosted a baby shower for a friend, due in the end of July. It was an all-Indian group (except for me - although I've become an honorary Indian now, I guess!). So the weekend involved making a triple batch of palak paneer (spinach and cheese dish) - using 2 bunches of fresh spinach from the CSA and 3 packages of frozen spinach. But it turned out to be a hit - yay!

The baby shower was pretty fun. I planned a few baby games, and thankfully everyone was up for it...

Left: Each guest wrote a suggestion for the baby girl's name on a piece of paper, put it into a jar, and the mommy-to-be opened them one by one to guess who suggested the name. The most fun name in the bunch was Mirchi (spicy!). We all got a kick out of that.

Right: Guests cut a piece of string according to their best estimate of the size of the mommy-to-be's baby bump - without actually measuring her belly. The one with the closest estimate won a prize - a chocolate bar from yours truly. The one who won had the exact measurement! The others were pretty close. Well, what do you expect when half the group are engineers!

 Left: Indian tradition to bless the expecting couple

Right: guests wrote wishes for the baby, which will go in a scrapbook later

I ate. A lot. After coming back from India, I took a break from Indian food (believe it or not!). I do love it and typically crave it at least once a week, but I realized that eating it everyday 3x a day for 2 weeks (in India) took its toll on me. On our way home from our travels, even A. said, "I think we're both Indianed-out" (yes, that's a new technical term he came up with) and decided to have Chinese noodles and dimsum at our Mumbai airport layover.

But at the baby shower, everyone brought food and I ate a little bit of everything - samosas (dumplings with spiced potatoes), pakora (stuffed peppers, battered and fried), channa masala (chickpeas), dal (lentils), the palak paneer A. and I made, gulab jamun (doughnuts in syrup - like their version of beignets, I suppose). Whew. Everything was really good.

So the next day, I needed some lighter food again...

spring salad with radishes and minted peas

Just a few handfuls of lettuce, sliced peppery radishes, and minted peas...

Minted Peas, for the party-food-hangover

about 2 cups of fresh peas, shelled (or frozen peas)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper
zest of half a lemon
a few squeezes lemon juice
chopped fresh mint

I got these peas from last Friday's produce pickup. I realized later that I should have cooked these the very same day I got them - as fresh peas start converting its sugars into starch the longer it sits. Which is why frozen peas actually tend to be sweeter - because they are shelled and frozen right after they are picked. Although these peas were still good and had a nice snap when you bite into them, they had already lost some sweetness. Note to self...

(On a side note. I'm so thankful to have a husband who is not above shelling peas with me.)

Anyway...

Bring a pot of water to a boil. Salt the water (season from the start!), then add the peas. Meanwhile prepare a bowl of ice water. Once the water comes back up to a boil and the peas are bright green (this happens fairly quickly!), take the peas out of the boiling water and plunge them into the ice bath to stop cooking.

Heat the olive oil and butter in a skillet - I like combining the two for flavor, and also because the olive oil helps with the butter's low smoke point (so the butter doesn't burn quickly). Drain the peas and add them to the skillet. Let cook until heated through, then season with salt (if needed) and pepper, lemon zest, and lemon juice to taste. Add the chopped fresh mint at the end.

This can be a great side for another entree, or as a salad mix-in as we did. I didn't even need extra dressing for the salad, as the peas already had a minty and lemony olive oil and butter flavor. Just a tiny pinch of salt and a few grinds of black pepper over top, and it was good to go. It made for an easy, fresh, and light Sunday dinner after the (over)eating the day before. ;-)

Have any of you eaten fresh peas the same day they were picked? I'd love to hear, as it seems like a luxury nowadays - unless you grow your own, that is.

Off to work. Have a great week!

summer produce, week 1

This decision is long overdue, but we finally joined a CSA!

I've been wanting to join one for a while, but I was worried about the long-term commitment considering how crazy - but crazy-good - our life has been over the past year and a half (um, 3 weddings anyone? - see #1, #2, #3).

Now that we will finally be settling into a routine, I looked up some CSA programs in our area. I really wanted to join one that either had a pickup location close to us or a home delivery. Unfortunately, farmers' markets are at least a 30-minute drive for us (I'm not a huge fan of driving...). Our neighborhood grocery store does carry some local produce, but not a lot.

I found Fresh Fork Market, which has multiple weekly pickup locations - one of which is practically just around the corner from us. All their products are sourced within 75 miles, with the exception of a dairy farm that is farther than that.

image source

The nice thing too is that we were able to join for just a month (for now) to give us an idea of how much produce we will be getting. I always worry about having too much and wasting food, so this was a concern I had... although, I suppose it will encourage me to get more creative in the kitchen to use up all the produce.

this bag was nearly overflowing with produce!

Then, we can decide later if we want to subscribe for the rest of the season (which runs until November).

They have a variety of packages, and we got the small vegetarian package. Here is the produce haul for this week:

1 head kohlrabi

1 bunch collard greens

1 quart strawberries

1 bunch red russian kale

1 bunch garlic scapes

1 head green leaf lettuce

1 bunch radishes

1 quarter lb bag pea tendrils

2 bunches spinach

1 head broccoli
1 lb shelled peas

1 container feta cheese (4 oz)

1 lb sweet pea and black pepper linguini from Ohio City Pasta

What a list of goodies - Strawberries in season! Pea tendrils! Garlic scapes! (Pardon the multiple exclamation points, but yes I'm excited)

I was also intrigued by the sweet pea and black pepper linguine from Ohio City Pasta... fresh pasta is always such a treat. I couldn't help it, I cooked it for dinner already - just simply tossed with olive oil and butter (and of course the essential ladleful of starchy pasta water for the pan sauce), lots of freshly ground black pepper and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, a la cacio e pepe (which technically uses Pecorino Romano cheese as it is a Roman dish, but A. prefers parm). It was so darn good, it needed nothing else for flavor. I totally get it when Italians say that the pasta is actually the star of the dish, not the sauce... when the pasta itself is this good, it doesn't need a whole lot more than simple ingredients.

sweet pea and black pepper linguine

I can't wait to make this recipe with the kohlrabi... I have to admit I have not tried cooking with kohlrabi yet, so I'm really curious to see how this will turn out. It sure is a funny-looking vegetable.

One day, I'd like to actually work at a CSA/farm and learn about how to grow food - beyond potted herbs on a balcony. I think it will be a good learning experience for me, seeing that I can kill a cactus (and have actually done so before - though my basil and cilantro are starting to come out of the soil now!). There's something to be said about being close to the earth and the source of food and all that.

But in the meantime, I'll enjoy my weekly produce pickup.

peppery radishes (already enjoyed one with butter and salt!)

One thing's for sure... we'll be eating a LOT more vegetables this week! The gears in my brain are spinning as I think of new cooking experiments.

Maybe a frittata with the red russian kale...

Maybe I can replicate the sauteed collard greens from my favorite Ethiopian restaurant...

Then lots and lots of salad combinations with the very large head of Romaine lettuce. Thinly sliced radishes and some pea tendrils will be in one of the combinations...

Hello, summer.