garden to table

though I don't really like hot days, I do love summer evenings. Soft light, comfortable temps, and the garden starts to pay for itself and forms the basis for a little frugal experimentation in the kitchen.

witness: peas and purple chard (the latter doggedly overwintered our snowstorms this year. good plants! good garden!)

I added some things we had knocking around in the pantry and fridge and this is what we came up with:

The rice pilaf is just some arborio (2 c.) I cooked up with the last of the black olive tapenade (Trader Joes), about 3-4 Tbl; the last half of a preserved lemon (Sur La Table), chopped; all of the chard, roughly chopped; a few scraps of roasted red pepper (Trader Joe's), chopped; and about 15-20 dried Turkish apricots (PCC), quickly sliced into strips. I tossed everything in with the water at the beginning, and aside from stirring periodically and adding more water about halfway through, it cooked up like normal rice. We topped it with a bit of goat cheese (Trader Joe's) that I have on hand for stuffing roasted peppers tomorrow. The apricots we found to be a particularly good mix with the olive and preserved lemon.

For the peas, I thinly sliced the last two good onions in the pantry and tossed them in a saute pan with some olive oil (too much, really). We caramellized them over med-low heat while the arborio was cooking away. When they started to really get good and brown, we added the peas and began stirring, adding a couple pinches of sel gris, about 2 tsp. brown sugar, and a liberal dusting of freshly ground pepper as they cooked. When crisp-tender (and just before the peas lost their brilliant green colour), we turned off the heat and let them sit until the rice was done.

voila! We served this up with a drink also made from leftovers: a bit of simple syrup infused with juniper berries that I made for the solstice, the last cup of pear nectar, some sparkling mineral water (long since gone flat), a couple shots of gin (Tanqueray's brilliant Rangpur Lime offering), and some ginger ale for bubbles. Delish.

Finshed the book on Havel. Working away at cleaning my closet, the shibori dress, and reading Annie Dunne, and perhaps tomorrow I'll have more to show and say.

more forthcoming...

a bit dusty around here, eh? Sorry about that - spring quarter was about the maddest one I've yet had. The last four weeks I've done nothing but exams, then fall desperately ill, defend said exams, traipse off to the Czech Republic, and return with five days to write two seminar papers and grade a ton of stuff for my 101 students. Upon completion, I plunged immediately into house cleaning and preparation for tonight's annual Midsommar party. Whew. So, photos forthcoming, and more real work to show around here after summer really kicks off.

In the meantime, I've been thinking a lot about summer. Here's that dreamy ideal summer goals list that I always fail to complete (partly because I add to it as I go along!):

Summer

Reading:
Acts of Courage - Open Letters - Swann’s Way - To the Lighthouse - Between the Acts - Something on William Morris and the Arts & Crafts movement - Julia Child, My Life in France - Glass Bottom Boat (Herman’s new book of poetry) - Dylan Thomas; look for “Poem in October” - Anais Nin's diaries (?) - Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man?

Work:
Overhaul Yeats paper - Research Trial of Six - Work on Thorne research?

Paint:
CK buildings/red roofs - and then...?

Sewing:
Green silk blouse (BBW pattern) - Lengthen Moroccan blue dress - Shibori stitch, dye, lengthen, and embroider Maggy London dress - Use tussah cocoons: collar on blouse (neutral Japanese twill)? Dress from ice blue silk? - Make pale green knit into cowl-neck tee? - Vest from one of the two vest fabrics - Marc-Jacobs-esque obi/waist corset-esque belt from lemon plaid - Buy BBW jacket pattern, make up in lilac wool? - Shopper bags – 2-3; (+ tulle produce bags?) - Doll - Plush

Other Needlework:
Finish beaded bib necklace - Cut apart openwork sweater, rework with brown merino in crochet? - Finish stitching fulled vessel.

Other hand work, etc:
Get rough diamonds? - Stud a pair of shoes. For kicks. - Make 2-3 new pairs earrings - Make hair thing for fall (acorns?) - 5 things post from facebook: DO.

quick eats

made these for dinner a couple weeks back and boy were they ever good. Then we had leftovers that I ate for a few days. I've been meaning to share them, because they were so simple and quick. I think they'll be really nice this summer. We could make them smaller and they'd be great as part of a cool dinner on a hot night, or as hors d'oeuvres.

johnnycakes with chili jam and goat cheese

1 1/2 c. flour
1/4 c. sugar (I reduced this to about 1/6 c.)
1/2 c. yellow cornmeal
1 Tbl baking powder
1 1/4 c. milk
2 large eggs, room temp
1/3 c veggie oil, plus a bit for the pan
2 Tbl unsalted butter

1 15-oz can of corn kernels, drained

4-8 oz goat cheese (we used chevre)

pepper jelly (we got pepper jelly with ancho chilis - it was all we could find at whole foods, but it was so excellent I encourage you to do the same! It was nice to have a little heat with the sweet)

Whisk dry ingredients together in a bowl. In a separate bowl whisk together wet ingredients. Add wet to dry and stir until batter is just combined; fold in corn kernels.

Heat a saute pan or cast iron skillet over medium heat and rub with enough oil to coat surface. Working in batches, drop batter into the pan - basically, you're making pancakes. Make them whatever size you like. Cook about 60 seconds per side or until golden brown and heated through.

Spread each johnnycake with the jam and top with crumbled goat cheese.

We served ours as part of a makeshift feast for five, with some sauteed kale, some cherry tomatoes roasted with reduced balsamic vinegar and a fruit salad. yum.

rainy night comfort food

there's a reason there are 1274 reviews of this recipe on Epicurious: the Double Chocolate Layer Cake is incredible! I don't really even like cake, normally, but this one is extra-special. The trick is pulling out before you think it's quite done: it results in the darkest, most moist chocolate cake I've ever had.I've never made their ganache coating, actually, but I've mixed this with a range of other fillings and frostings; it's such a reliable go-to-base. I'm not sure how many times I've made this now - maybe seven different birthdays? No birthday tonight; I promised C some soft, delicious sweet cake to comfort her. Maybe not the best thing for someone having tooth problems, but comfort is comfort, right? Right!

So I made one cake layer for her, and poured the rest as cupcakes so the bf could take them into the office tomorrow. But we'll have at least one tonight ourselves, with this big Sicilian blood orange that I bought as a special treat for us. It's been a wet and windy day, a bit on the cold side, and I have given up trying to force light "spring" meals for a few days. Nope, tonight we're going to have a potato gratin with leeks and fennel (and provolone and parm...) on a bed of frisee for dinner. And then you-know-what for dessert!

recycling!

I hate to throw things out. I think that's because my parents always showed me (by example) how many things could be reused in creative ways; well, that and I'm kinda cheap. I like to get the maximum mileage out of stuff.

My friend E gave me a really nice clove-spice-scented soy candle a year ago, in a little mason jar. I used to call it the "study candle" and light it before I would read; it just kind of make the atmosphere nice and cozy-comforting, good for working and not feeling like I was missing out on life somehow. Anyways, I finally burned through the last of it, and put the candle in the freezer a couple weeks ago (I learned this trick from Martha; I freeze all candleholders to easily remove wax). Due to the odd shape of this jar, though, a lot of the wax wasn't burnt, and it seemed such a shame to waste. So after I carved it up and pried it out, washed the jar (we use mason jars to hold homemade salad dressings, chutneys, reduced vinegars and etc. in the fridge), I set the wax in a little metal bowl I could stand to sacrifice.

A bit of reading suggested that my linen kitchen twine might work as a wick (I'll let you know if this turns out to be a bad idea!). I cut a length of it and tied the end around a small ball of wax, squishing it into the bottom of a candle holder. I wrapped the extra around a pencil set over the top of the candleholder. I melted the wax in the metal bowl over a pan of simmering water. I was worried that pouring it all in right away might make that button at the bottom melt and release the wick, so I used an old plastic spoon to ladle the wax in, bit by bit at first, pouring the rest in after I was sure I had a good layer of solid wax holding that wick down.

turns out there was just enough wax to fill the candle holder, how perfect is that? I don't know if this is a new low (melting down and repouring candles), but I'm pretty excited to have another study candle. Obviously, I'm procrastinating at this very moment, so I probably need one to get me back on track!

(yet another) lunch for one

School breaks can get a little lonely around here; everyone else is still working, and I haven't established strong social ties to the community at my program yet. Plus, on top of everything else, I'm a terrible hermit. My breaks are centered on long lists of things I want to get done in order to be a happy, well-rounded, and satisfied person for the next three months in which there will be no time for creative expression, gardening, or home repairs - and while it makes me rather productive and satisifed with life in general while in grad school (I recently received an email from the president of a graduate student body in my field that described our education as "the horror of graduate school"; I not only disagree with the sentiment but also am rather taken aback by such negative language!), it does leave me rather lonely at times.


I've found that putting time and consideration into the small rituals of the day is a good way to remind myself that this time off is a luxury, even if I'm alone. It seems to help put things in proper perspective. So, one day, I cooked the last of the salmon raviolis (recipe below), and served it up with leftover salad (greens, half a plum, sliced, and a small handful of toasted walnuts tossed in a dressing of equal parts walnut oil and mirin, with a bit of dried thyme, and salt and pepper) and some leftover beets (tossed in a bit of olive oil and lemon juice, with grated lemon zest) topped with a bit of chevre we had in the fridge. And nice big glass of water. I put on some Bach (performed by the lovely Lara St. John) and lingered long over lunch and Stoker's Dracula.


And life is good again. Yes, I know, I'm easy to please.

Salmon Raviolis (adapted from The New Cook by Donna Hay)

1 package fresh pasta sheets, or about 40 wonton wrappers (I bought fresh lasagne noodles and cut them to the size I wanted; no measuring really necessary)

cold water

filling:

approximately 6 oz. salmon fillet, skinned, boned, and chopped

1/6 c. creme fraiche or sour cream

2 (heaping) Tbl ricotta (I used part-skim)

1/4-1/2 tsp wasabi powder (I used a heaping 1/4 tsp, but wish I had used more.)

1 Tbl chopped fresh dill

cracked pepper

mix filling ingredients together. Place a bit of filling on a square of pasta or wonton wrapper. Dip your finger in the cold water and wet the edges of the square. Wet the edges of another square and press over the first. The water will make these edges sticky/gluey so that they will seal together better. Try not to trap too much air between the sheets, but avoid pressing down on the filling and making it ooze out between the layers. Press gently with the tines of a fork to help further "seal" edges, being careful not to press too hard and punch holes in the pasta.

I placed all of my raviolis on a baking sheet that I'd lightly coated with a dusting of semolina flour. I cooked some of them right away (6-8 minutes in boiling water on the stove), but the rest I put in the fridge. The fridge helps to dehydrate them a bit, which I find make them hold up better when they cook, so it's actually my preferred approach to refrigerate them for 8-12 hours before cooking, if possible.

The original recipe served these in a cream sauce, but I like them better (and it's easier on my stomach) served with a light drizzling of olive oil, and a bit of salt and pepper.

A Tale of Two Silks (some spring sewing)

Let me just say that I expected this project to fail. I am, as a rule, NO GOOD at all with delicate silk fabrics - they slip, they slide, they move all over the place when you're trying to sew them. It's a mess. I also tend to work only in solid fabrics, or in random all-over patterns (you might have noticed?). There's a reason for this. I in no way expect to be capable of cutting patterns properly on the grain; I've done it in costume shops, but I seem to be far too impatient to manage it at home.

So, stripes and silk, what was I thinking? And yet ... it turned out perfectly. (You might not be able to tell from the photo, but just trust me - if those weren't perfect 45- and 90-degree angles, I'd own up.) I even matched the stripes on the front-to-back pieces of the body, so they wrap around continually.

I'm still not sure how that happened.

This is a Built By Wendy pattern for Simplicity. I guess the pattern is technically discontinued, because when I tried to buy it at my local fabric store this summer (and thus avoid paying shipping fees), they told me as much. However, in September, I was still able to order it from Simplicity's website, so if you think you might want to make this someday, I recommend snapping it up sooner rather than later (the only caveat is that this pattern runs small - it only comes in sizes 4-12, and size 12 has a 34" bust and 26.5" waist).

The only alteration I made to the style A garment (blouse) was to cut it with the style B (tunic) length, so that later I could set the hem where I wanted it to be on my rather tall frame. I had a 3-yard piece of silk, so that I could have the freedom to rotate the pattern pieces and change the angle of the stripes. I have a fair amount left over, but I'd still recommend using at least 2.5 yards if you want to play around this way.

And it must be simple, because I didn't mess it up. Granted, I found the inset (the diamond-piece on the front) so difficult that only sewed the bottom seam and part of the each side seam on my machine. I left perhaps an inch or more on each side unsewn, as I could NOT seem to get that corner to lay flat on the machine. After botching it for the third time, I realized I could leave that little bit, and then by turning it right and pressing, I could get that corner point to lie perfectly flat and just hand-stitch. Hey, whatever it takes to get the job done, right?

Here's the back. Isn't that bias finish on the neckline (and ties) fantastic? The finishing is great on this garment - the yoke and inset are all self-lined, and there is even a nice bias facing for the armholes. Everything is covered and contained, which is probably good for such a delicate fabric. When I saw how nice the yoke was when all finished, I decided to use french seams on the sides, to do the whole process justice. In short, it's as pretty on the inside as the outside.

And though this isn't nearly as impressive, I also took the hem down on this beautiful silk dress by Laundry that a friend bought for me way back in September. We'd been out cruising secondhand clothing stores together at the end of our visit and I tried on this dress and, well, it was perfect, if a little short. "Oh, if only it had about 3 inches of hem to let down," I sighed - and turned up the hem to find (voila!) three inches to let down.

But even with this kind of miraculous clothing-wish-granting, I couldn't justify the $36 price tag and left it behind, on hold. My clever girlfriend, KNEW I wouldn't go back until long after this beauty was gone - and that I'd regret not getting it - secretly stopped by and snapped this up on her way out of town. True to form, two weeks later I went back. It was gone. I was sad.

And then it showed up as a late bday gift. Gotta love those old friends, who know us oh so well!