Archive for June, 2008
A Vanilla Rose
I bet you and your friends have a few summertime traditions. Maybe an annual girls or guys day at the beach? An annual 4th of July BBQ? Maybe even a camping trip? A group of my friends, who have long scattered across several state lines and life stages (singles, newly weds, divorcees, and new parents are all among them), come together once a year on a Saturday in June to sit under the same tree in a big back yard, drink a lot of beer, play horseshoes and pretend for a little while that we’re still carefree and 20.
Quite frankly though, I’ve outgrown what little taste I had for a keg of lager beer. So, this year I decided I’d try a taking along the ingredients for a cocktail. While I do like some traditions, I’m always on the hunt for a brand spankin’ new culinary concoction, drinks recipes being no exception. Plus, like any reunion attendee who’s honest with him or herself, I wanted to bring something funky and interesting to boost my “cool” factor.
Beauty Bounty
I haven’t been cooking much due to being sick. But I have finally had time to edit some beautiful snap shots I’ve taken while touring some gardens. I thought I’d share them with you while I come up with some new creative dishes in the kitchen.
A beautiful variety of chicory that reminds me of black pearls
Pitcher plants are fascinating to me
Here’s a whole greenhouse full of pitcher plants!
Peak rose season is just starting to pass us by…
…The best rose is the kind that smells like cheap perfume – heady and sweet…
…Have you stopped to smell a rose today?
One Last Idea
Life here has not exactly been “peachy” this past week. A little run-in with a deer tick left me flat on my back, shivering and sweating buckets at the same time, for several days. I’m on the mend now and am on a new crusade to raise awareness about Lyme Disease. Seeing as how this is a food blog, I’ll spare you all the gross images and descriptions and just summarize: if you live in an area that’s known to have Lyme Disease and you start getting a very high fever with tremendous joint and muscle pain, get thee to a doctor immediately!! Do not, like your truly, keep putting it off until you literally can’t move. That’s very dangerous! According to my doctor, he’s never seen so many cases as he has already this year so those nasty ticks are on the move!
Not-so-fun health topics aside, I thought I’d throw this stir-fry recipe at you as one last idea for what to do with your edible chrysanthemum, should you still be finding it at the farmer’s market. Obviously, you can mix and match the vegetables according to what you have on hand. I know the recipe and combination is not overly creative, but the creative juices haven’t been flowing much lately. I personally enjoyed the “bite” or acidity the mum leaves added to the stir-fry. However, I’ll warn you that D did not like it. So it’s probably wise to taste test as you add the leaves, starting with just a small handful. They cook so quickly, you can adjust to individual tastes quite easily.
Philadelphia Urban Farm Bike Tour ’08
We’re planning another Philadelphia Urban Farm Bike Tour for this summer, starting again at Weavers Way Farm, which has grown by leaps and bounds since last year, and ending up again at Yards Brewery–same place, but new brews and a new name–Philadelphia Brewing Company. The ride’s planned for Saturday, July 19th, 8:30 a.m. to roughly 3:00 p.m.
There will be a few changes and additions this year. Here’s a quick overview of those changes:
1. We’re looking to add another farm to the urban mix–Teens4Grow, at 8th and Poplar (not far off the path to GreensGrow Farm).
3. We’re asking for a donation of $10, payable at the start of the ride in cash, to help support the farms we visit (it will be split evenly between them) — and to pay for the pizza that will be delivered to the brewery at the end of the ride.
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Tell your friends about the ride. I’d love to hear if any of my readers are going to be joining us! More details, including a full route, will be available closer to the time. Rest assured you don’t have to be a rockstar cyclist to complete this tour. We go slow and talk a lot along the way. And most every hill is downhill, I swear!
Apologies
I apologize for not posting much this week. I’ve been struck down by some type of flu that’s putting me to bed right after work each day. But I didn’t want to leave you for too long without a recipe, in case you’re headed to the farmers market this weekend and might be interested in what to do with a bunch of colorful swissh chard.
I did want to be sure to include a refersher for “how to prep swiss chard”, since there are a lot of new readers that weren’t here for last year’s tutorial. Basically, make sure you cut out the tough center stem (see picture). Generally recipes call for it to be cut into ribbons, which you achieve by stacking the stem-less leaves in a pile, roll into a cigar, and then slice crosswise. Easy-peezy!
A very quick note on making superb Israeli couscous too: toast the dry uncooked couscous in a large skillet until it’s beginning to turn a darker shade of tan. Add to boiling water and proceed as normal. This toasting helps elminate some of the startch that would make the couscous clump otherwise.
Hopefully I’ll be back and raring to go soon! In the meantime, I thought I’d throw out the idea of a Q&A on vegetables you might be seeing in season in your area but don’t know how to prepare. Put your questions in the comments below and I’ll try to collect them all into an informative post.
Three-Cheese Swuss Card Couscous Bake
Adapted from The Six O’Clock Scramble
1 C. uncooked Israeli couscous
1 C. pasta sauce
½ C. grated parmesan cheese
2 C. (about one market bunch) swiss chard, cut into fine ribbons
2 eggs, lightly beaten
½ C. low-fat ricotta cheese
¼ t. freshly grated nutmeg
½ C. mozzarella cheese
Salt
Pepper
Preheat oven to 375 F and lightly grease a 9-inch glass pie plate with non-stick spray. Set aside.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the couscous just until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain and put in a medium bowl. To the cooked couscous, add half a cup of the pasta sauce and the parmesan cheese. Season with a pinch each of salt and pepper. Stir and spread the mixture out in the prepared pie plate, reserving about a cup for later.
In another bowl, place a tablespoon or two of water and the cut swiss chard. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high for one minute. Remove and drain off water. To the swiss chard, add the eggs, ricotta, nutmeg, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir to combine and spread over the pasta in the pie plate. Top with the remaining couscous, spreading as evenly as possible. Sprinkle the top with the mozzarella.
Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese in melted and slightly brown. Serve hot.
(serves 6-8 )
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