CelinaBean

What to do with your farm-share veggies: Roasted beet salad

2009-07-15T02:27:15Z

I’ve been thinking a lot about roots lately. How they are buried in the dark, below everything else, unseen and oft unappreciated. And yet roots are how we connect, to our strength, to the memories in our minds and in our veins, to the means of life.

Of all the things you can pull from the ground, beets hark back to my roots with an unmatched force. There is blood in there, a metallic sweetness, mixed with a darkness that is part safe earth and part haunting. These aren’t easy favors with the kind of light sweetness and airy crunch that is more common with early summer vegetables. And, yet, there in my farm-share bag every week are the beets, looking at me like some kind of overly serious kid sitting quietly in the back of class with a worn copy of Atlas Shrugged while the rest of the kids yammer on about the prom. What are beets doing in there with all the lightweights? Zucchini? Five minutes in a pan with olive oil, or one quick slice and slap it on the grill? Salad greens? Wash and toss…easy. Swiss chard? Dice, sauté and throw on some pasta. And so the week goes, until we are five or six days in, and the beets are left lonely at the bottom of the vegetable drawer. Deal with me, they seem to say.

OK, OK.

Beets have always seemed demanding to me. There is a pay off but it required deep commitment, time and heat. In the past, I’ve chunked and roasted them in the oven or boiled them like potatoes. My favorite beet recipe is borscht. But who wants to make soup or steam or waft in oven heat in July?

]]> Well, last week after several days of procrastinating, I dug out the beets. Roasted, caramelized flavor is what I wanted, but without the meaty intensity of big pieces done in the oven.

I was also looking for anything that might make it seem like I wasn’t making salad greens for dinner, yet again. My kids and meat loving husband are open-minded folks, but this time of year salad greens dominate every menu.

I had a sudden flash of some long ago salad bar that had little cubed beets in a back tin somewhere. I used to love those, even if they did taste like a can. OK. OK.

I peeled the beets and cut them into small cubes, just slightly smaller than a playing dice. Tossed them with a good douse of olive oil, coarse salt, pepper, and some thyme. Then I laid them out in one layer on a tin-foiled sheet and stuck them into the toaster oven at 450 degrees.

After about 10 minutes, I jiggled them a bit and put them back in. They were done by the time I had boiled a pot of water and cooked a pound of pasta. Onto the top of the salad they went with some crumbled goat cheese. The roasting intensified the beets’ sweet dankness, but in small bites mixed in with greens and a lemony dressing it was pure summer, but a summer with memories, and an earthy depth, and roots.

]]> Quick Roasted Beets Ingredients:

4 medium beets
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
1/4 teaspoon Dried ground thyme
A toaster oven

Instructions:

Preheat toaster oven to 450.

Skin the four beets and cut them into small squares, just a little smaller than a playing dice.

Toss the beets with enough olive oil to coat them well. Sprinkle with the salt, pepper and thyme.

Spread beets in one thin layer on a baking sheet covered with tin foil.
Roast in toaster oven for about 20 minutes. Turn them once about half way through. Sprinkle the beets on a salad and enjoy.

Review: Baba Louie's, Hudson, NY

2009-07-06T13:18:01Z

Here is a link to my review of Baba Louie's in the Albany Times Union.

One note: I am sorry that I haven't been posting much recently. I love writing celinabean and the community I've found here, and it makes me sad to neglect it. I've been swamped with big writing projects (the paying kind) and also with chasing kids who are no longer in school. I promise to get back to a more regular schedule soon. Please don't give up on me.

Review: Chipotle Mexican Grill, Wilton, NY

2009-06-22T13:34:49Z

Here is a link to my review of Chipotle in the Albany Times Union.

Mystery #4 solved: EJ's wrap at Anton's, Albany, NY

2009-06-15T13:53:12Z

Boy, I'm going to have to try harder with these mysteries. This is the first time that no one even had to think about it. I guess with something as good as the EJ wrap, I shouldn't have assumed it could stay a secret for long.

I’ve wandered into Anton's a few times for lunch and been neither impressed nor put off by their food. Just kind of, OK, whatever. I do like the sampler of spreads that comes with warm pita slices. I get the hummus, eggplant, and carp roe spreads. All are tasty with nice creamy textures, although I wish the roe spread had a little more roe in it. Still at $7.25 the sampler is a great deal. I can see this as my new save-face trick for one of those times when I get invited to a potluck and then forget about it until 10 minutes before I'm supposed to be there.

But, really, in terms of appreciating Anton's, I was going for the wrong meal. Breakfast it is.

They will tailor the EJ wrap ($5.25) to your order. You can choose the cheese you want and the fillings, going upstate-NY style with sausage and American or adding Greek items like gyro meat. I went for the full Greek treatment with feta, eggs, gyro meat, sautéed onions and peppers and pieces of fried potato. I wouldn’t change a thing.

]]> The thinly sliced meat was juicy and full of flavor, and the feta sort of half melted into everything. So if you are one of those people who doesn’t like melted feta, steer clear. The fried wedges of potato kind of put everything over the top. The sandwich was huge and filling, but it was so good I couldn’t help myself. I finished the whole thing. I was so full I forgot to eat lunch until 3 pm. I then did a five-mile exercise walk. I’m not sure I can come up with a way to consider this a healthy sandwich, but all the health experts say that if you are going to pig out, you should do it at breakfast, so there we go.

I’ve told myself I can have one once a month. I’m counting the days.

Oh, I almost forgot....the winner. Drum roll, please.

Travis, the sandwich is yours! I will email you the details. Congrats, and enjoy.

(Thanks to AOA for helping select the winner.)

Celinabean Mystery #4: Greek breakfast wrap

2009-06-09T21:35:51Z

My friend B comes from a family where vigorous nodding counts as enthusiasm, so I was surprised when she called the other day, her voice in a full bluster. Something about gyro meat wrapped with eggs and cheese and fries. Did she say fries? Breakfast sandwiches can do this to people, even New England types. In fact, maybe it’s especially New England types, because if you can’t work up some passion about breakfast sandwiches in this part of the country you really should live some place where at least there is more sunshine.

Well, obviously I had to investigate. I’m not sure breakfast sandwich is even the right term. It is more like “breakfast feast,” or “everything thing you’ve ever loved all wrapped up in one bundle,” or maybe just the “now I have to go jogging but I don’t care because I am happy” sandwich. Something like that.

So if you can name the spot where I found this sandwich, I will arrange a free one for you. The jogging afterward is up to you.

As always, if there is more than one correct answer, my friends at AOA will pick a name out of a hat.

Strawberry, basil, and goat cheese salad

2009-06-06T13:46:35Z

The only thing you should do with something as perfect as spring’s first strawberry is pop it in your mouth. And today, at the market, I ran into some friends who were swinging a pail with strawberries from their garden. They let me plunder a bit, saying they had already had plenty. And so standing there in the pasta aisle, I closed my mouth on a little heart-shaped globe that bled warm sweetness with each bite. Spring is my favorite season, and the first strawberry is one of the reasons why. Ahhhh, friends who will share their berries are good friends indeed.

But should you be so lucky to have an abundance of strawberries, and you are ready to branch out a little, this is one of my favorite salads. I wait all year to make it each June.

]]> And since this week is the start of our local strawberry season, I thought would share it with you. I prefer Boston lettuce for this salad. Its succulence and sweetness go well with the strawberries and the basil gives you all the contrast and depth of flavor you need. I used a green leaf lettuce this week, because that’s what came in my farm share. It was a little bitter and crinkly for this salad, but it was still awfully good. Enjoy.

]]> Strawberry, basil and goat cheese salad Ingredients:

Boston lettuce is the best for this salad, but use whatever you have that is freshest and least bitter. (about 4-5 cups, ripped in to bite-sized pieces.)
About 15 strawberries, sliced length wise so they make hearts
About 3 – 4 tablespoons soft cherve, crumbled
About 7 -10 basil leaves cut into ribbons
Good olive oil and balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper

Instructions:

Put the lettuce leaves in a big salad bowl with the basil and toss. Drizzle the leaves with olive oil; toss till everything is nicely coated. Add a small amount of balsamic vinegar (1/2 a cap to start). Toss and adjust to taste. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Then add the strawberries. Toss again. Then put the salad on the serving plates and top with crumbled goat cheese.

Vietnamese-style shrimp with rice noodles with My Linh's nuoc mam

2009-06-01T23:54:30Z

Sometimes I cook just to watch my son’s face. This is one of his new favorite meals. He will take a bite, shut his eyes and smile. As a cook, it doesn’t get any better than that.

I made this dish to try out the new line of Vietnamese sauces from My Linh. You can buy the sauces at the restaurant; I picked up mine at EATS Gourmet Marketplace in Stuyvesant Plaza. The standard nuoc mam seemed like a good place to start. And it’s so good, I’m not sure how I will get around to trying the others. But there is a vegetarian version, as well as a plum sauce, and a spicy nuoc mam.

Yeah, my summer just got a lot better.

]]>

Here's the recipe.

One note: For those who don't like seafood, this is also really nice with leftover roast beef, sliced into thin strips, or leftover roast pork, or, for that matter, leftover BBQ chicken.

]]> Vietnamese-style shrimp and vegetables over rice noodles Adapted from the recipe on the bottle of My Linh’s Nuoc Mam
(makes enough for 5)

Ingredients:

1 package rice sticks (the long thin white ones from Vietnam or the Philippines, not the Chinese ones)
30 shrimp (use the precooked ones for ease or poach them)
1 cucumber, peeled and cut in thin strips
½ cup scallions, minced fine
½ cup peanuts, chopped fine
One small head iceberg lettuce, cut into ribbon strips
1/3 cup mint, chopped fine
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped fine
1/3 Thai basil chopped fine
One bottle My Linh’s Nuoc Mam Finishing Sauce

Instructions:

In a large pasta pot, boil water, add a little salt, and put the rice noodles in. Boil the noodles for about 3-4 minutes, until just soft. Drain and rinse.

Defrost the shrimp (or poach them in simmering water until just opaque and then cool them). Cut each shrimp in half, length wise.

Chop all the vegetables and herbs. Grind peanuts in a spice grinder, or chop them fine.

Arrange the herbs, vegetables, and shrimp in little bowls for the table.
For each serving, make a bed of lettuce strips. Then put a pile of noodles on top. Then add the veggies and shrimp, and then sprinkle with peanuts and herbs. Then spoon over the nuoc mam. Start with a couple of tablespoons, toss and add more to taste.

Hello summer (weather anyway)

2009-05-25T00:33:40Z

Celina

Irises

2009-05-22T16:56:58Z

Celina

Questions? Looking for an ingredient in the Albany area? Ask Celinabean.

2009-05-20T19:14:44Z

Are you looking for a place to buy a freezer lamb? Do you wish you could find fresh chrysanthemum leaves? Or maybe you've got answers. Are you holding out on the best fresh pasta or the yummiest takeout sushi. Come on now, give it up. Pleeeeeaaaasssse.

This is a place to post your food and food community questions and answers.

(05-20-09)

So in my continuing quest to try, well, pretty much everything, I’ve been delving into mango chutneys lately. It seemed like the right time. The other day I actually managed to make room for a carton of milk in my fridge, which clear meant that I didn’t have enough condiment jars. And my husband, who is always battling the invasion, was out of town. Hee, hee. Mooooore condiments!

I’ve tried several mango chutneys and most are too sweet for me. More like a mango jam or something. This one, while plenty sweet, is also a wee bit spicy and gingery enough to tweak your nose when you take the cap off the jar. It’s also got a nice chunky texture.

It is so good if I’m not careful I may start putting it on pasta. Like those people who put ketchup on everything from eggs to spaghetti, well I could get dangerous with this stuff. I’ve slathered it in all the obvious places -- on lamb, in the corner of a bowl of rice and dhal, on naan and veggie curry. But that is only the beginning.

]]>

So far my favorite thing to do with it is dress up ordinary, mid-week, oh-shoot-I-forgot-to-plan-dinner-so-let’s-broiling-something chicken. In other words, Wednesdays I pull out the mango chutney.

Grill some meat and dollop some of this on the side to dip the pieces in. Or dress up a turkey sandwich, kind of a twist on cranberry sauce. The only thing I haven’t tried it with is fish. It seems a bit overwhelming for most fish, but I could be wrong here. Pasta anyone? I dare you….

Oh, I got this in the British part of the international section at the Westgate Price Chopper.

(09-15-08)

Hey CB folks...

Here's my find of the week: lime leaves at the Slingerlands Price Chopper.

Here are a couple of recipes to try if you want to experiment. I haven't given them test drives yet, but they looked fun. Recipe 1. Recipe 2.

(06-25-08)

Hello Celinabean folks, I've got both answers and notes this week. Let's start with the answer. Matty Hart, a farmer, asked how much he should charge for shiso leaves.

Matty, Kim's is the only place I know of in Albany that sells them. I went to check out the price yesterday. For a two-fist bundle of the larger leaves, they charge $2.99. They don't sell the smaller leaves that are best for pairing with sashimi. I've seen the smaller leaves for sale in NYC. Usually they are 10 leaves or so for $2-$3. I'm not sure where you are selling, farmers markets, your own stand, wholesale to restaurants (hint hint), etc… That would make a big difference in terms of price. Also, are you selling to people who know and appreciate shiso? Or do you need to introduce people to its charms?

A little shiso goes a long way, unless you are cooking it down. So, if you are selling the small tender leaves, I'd probably start with a small handful for $2 or so.

Here's a picture of my shiso plants in the garden.

In other notes, my favorite find this week is Full Circle Organic refried beans.

Price Chopper has been selling them for 88 cents a can. Yes, that's right. I'm not sure how long the price will last. It's been that way for several weeks. But they are great, and did I mention they were 88 cents a can. Cheaper than the non-organic kind, and much better tasting than most "healthy" brands. They are vegetarian, too. These are playing a big role in my take out prevention kit. As long as I've got a couple cans of these and some tostadas (see below) or some tortillas, we are good to go. Seems like college all over again.
....

This week: tostadas, mirin, and CCK update.

My new find is this bag of Charras tostadas that I picked up at Price Chopper.

These are the jalapeno flavor, but they have plain as well. Wow, yum! They are crisp, but they don't shatter in your mouth. The corn flavor really comes through, along with little kicks of salt and heat. They aren't all that spicy, though. My friend's daughter who only likes mild food had no problem with them.

They are about $2.39 a bag, and we've gotten three meals out of the bag so far. Mostly we are topping them with refried beans, cheese and veggies, but a breakfast version would be great, too. And then, of course, there's ceviche, which I've never made, but now I'm inspired to try.

In this week's notes, I went back to CCK a couple times for dinner. Both times Chef Peter was there. The first meal was good and the second great. I tried the salt and pepper squid with black bean sauce and chow fun. I love the way he makes chow fun and the squid was very tender. I'm definitely going back for that one.

I still can't say anything about lunch. I think I will stick to dinner for the moment.

And for the person who asked about finding real mirin locally, I haven't forgotten you. I've been looking. I haven't seen it at any of the Asian stores. I called some of the bigger wine shops with no luck. Basically, they said that they want to carry it, but they can't get it from their distributors.

So here is your best bet, if you happen to be heading to NYC, stop off in Fort Lee, NJ. Mitsuwa has it. I've seen it there in the past, but I haven't been in quite a while. I called, and they confirmed that they still have it.

***

This week, a few notes and a question:

As many of you know I've been a big fan of CCK and still am. But since the close of Ocean Place it seems like it's been a little rocky over there at lunch as some of the Ocean Palace staff moves over to CCK. (I'm not sure what is happening with dinner.)

In general, my approach on Celinabean is to tell you about things I like. If I don't like a place, I just don't write about it. But since I've raved about CCK in the past, I just want to note that there are some transition issues going on right now.

I'm going to go back next week when chef Chan is cooking. I will report back more then. If you've been there recently, do share.

As for the question…

I'm thinking of joining a CSA this year (if it's not too late.) Can you recommend some good ones? I've done Roxbury before, but not for a few years. Here is what I'm looking for: a pick up in Albany, lots of greens, lots of cucumbers and zucchini, and a fruit share if possible.

I found a list of local CSAs here.

I plugged in the zip code 12208 to search, but if you live somewhere else, you could plug in a different zip and get your own list.

I'd appreciate any help you could give me.

...

In my continuing quest to sample, well, pretty much every condiment in the world, here are some recent things I grabbed off the shelf at the Asian Market on Colvin Ave. in Albany.

This first thing I tossed in the basket was a little bottle of something called almond dew. The name was irresistible. I mean if you're not a sucker for dew in a jar then really what kind of sucker are you? I would probably buy something called turnip dew if it were one of my weaker moments.

So there I was humming old Grateful Dead songs and paying for my almond dew, when I realized that I didn't have the foggiest idea of what one would do with almond dew, or really anything almond flavored come to think of it. No matter, romance calls for a certain suspension of logic, or at least well-laid plans.

I brought the bottle home, popped the top off, and stuck it under my nose. I'm not sure what I had been hoping for, but somehow it never occurred to me that it might smell like a Danish. But that is what is in the bottle -- essence of Danish. Or Danish dew, I suppose.

As far as these things go, it is a nice almond Danishy taste, very smooth and full without any of the harsh undertones of some extracts. But since I don't bake, and since my husband, who loves baked goods, is anti-almond flavor in this department, I'm not sure if I will find a use for it. The best I can come up with is that it might be nice in a rich frothy latte-like coffee concoction, if one were into such things.

I'm going to keep it for the moment because I think it is romantic to have a jar of dew in one's cupboard, and who knows I might think of something.

On to the sweet and sour plum sauce.

I got this because I was making summer rolls for a party, and I thought I would try a few dipping sauces. This one was so-so. More sweet than sour. A little like a lighter version of the duck sauce you get in a Chinese restaurant.

We used some of it at the party and if we have spring rolls anytime soon, I will pull it out. But I won't buy it again.

This next sauce we also tried on the summer rolls, but I didn't like it enough to serve it at the party. It was heavy on the fish sauce without much in terms of balancing flavors, and mostly it just tasted like it had been in a jar too long.

This one I will probably toss.

In other notes:

For those looking for gumbo file, I saw a nice-looking package of it at EATS this week.

...

Hey folks, check out this cool post by All Over Albany. They put together a basket of goods and compared prices at local supermarkets. I wonder what the outcome would look like if you put together a foodie basket, more veggies, organic products, nice cheese, wine, etc? Anyone want to venture a guess?

...
In terms of unfinished business...I still don't know where to go for a suckling pig. Any suggestions?

Zucchini is on sale this week at Price Chopper for 99 cents a pound. I know, I know it isn't in season, but it is one of my kids' favorite veggies, and it can be prepared with no thought and very little time.

Artichokes were also down to $1 a piece.

But back to the zucchini.

This one of the most requested veggie dishes in my house. You just slice the zucchini...

Heat some olive oil in a saute pan (non-stick or well seasoned) and throw the zucchini in. The only trick is remembering to check your email or chat on the phone or anything else except stir the little buggers. They have to sit for a while on each side so they can get nice and brown. And don't pile them in or they will steam.

For more precise details you can check out Steve Barnes' story and the video on saute tricks here.

But the real secret weapon in my house is this.

I'm pretty sure my kids would eat leather shoes if they had enough Sylvia's on top.

***
I've got a request for help this week. A reader wants recommendations for a good butcher, some place besides Cardona's. I checked out a couple of places this week for research, but I wouldn't recommend any of them.

If you are looking for fresh sausage and the like there is the Troy Pork Store.

And note to the person who was asking about chorizo ... The Troy Pork Store makes it.

Truth be told, I buy a freezer lamb and a quarter cow every year so I don't use butchers much. Can someone recommend a good butcher in the Albany area? Especially one with a nice skirt steak.

As for ingredients....in my weekly rounds I stumbled across this addictive thing.

You can buy pomegranate juice at Price Chopper for $7 a bottle. Yeah, that's not going to happen anytime soon (on this food budget anyway.). But I found this at Kim's for $3.99 a bottle. There is no sugar or anything else added. It is a wonderful blend of sweet and tart. It is very strong, so I can put about an inch in the bottom of my glass and fill the rest with water and still have a nicely flavored drink.

......

I found a few interesting ingredients this week. I picked up a bottle of coconut vingegar at Kim's.

I'd never tasted it before, but it looked beautiful in the bottle with all those peppers and garlic pieces floating around.

So far, though, I am at a bit of a loss. The vinegar is much harsher than I was expecting. I made one Thai-influenced marinade out of it. It was so so. I don't know much about Filipino cooking, so maybe that is my problem. But the bottle is so pretty and warm looking, I like just looking at it in all this cold weather.

Speaking of warmer climates, I also ran across traditional Ethiopian Bread at Sabah market. It is $6 for a large package.

I am not having any luck with the sticky toffee pudding, but I did see this at Cardona's. (I know, not the same at all, but still ...)

*****

Well it took more than a few weeks, but, hey, I've been traveling a lot. I found the fig spread you've been looking for. Well, a fig spread any way. Here's a picture.

You can get it at EATS Gourmet Marketplace

Details:
EATS Gourmet Marketplace
Stuyvesant Plaza
Albany, NY 12203

Phone: 518-453-3287 (EATS)
Fax: 518-458-2771
E-mail: info@eatsalbany.com

And speaking of answers....Loook what I found! (From 11-02-07)

You can buy bulk gumbo file at The Warehouse during the weekend farmers market. There is a new spice vendor and he carries it.

OK, it took a month to track this down, but I found it. Come on, what else you got? Throw it at me, hibiscus, fufu flour, let's go...

Grouper with chives

2009-05-13T18:33:07Z

The more complicated life gets, the simpler I want my cooking. Today is a day for simple meals.

My dog is lying on the floor pulling in one raspy breath after another. The air gurgles in his throat as his chest rocks up and down. There are three kids and a tangle of schedules and soccer games to consider. There are phone calls to the vet and conversations about who is going to dig the hole in the clearing on my in-law’s farm. There is a plane ticket waiting with a big question mark on it.

I am trying to plan, to make the phone calls that need to be made. But when I hear the voices on the other end of the line, I cannot speak. The silence hangs with my heavy breath like I am some kind of creepy prank caller.

Hello, I hear the voices ask. I try to answer, but I can’t make the sounds come out. I need to make plans. I need to figure things out. But I cannot will my words to steady.

Maybe I should make lunch. So I float upstairs and discover that I bought one piece of grouper at the fish market this morning. I cook for five, so this is a little weird, but there we go. Grouper it is.

Spring is the best time of year for simple cooking. My garden is yielding its first bounty, and after five months of scrounging around in the bottom of my vegetable drawer for some mostly tasteless greens, I can once again wander out to the yard and pick lunch. And yet, there are not a lot of choices. This time of year, you can have whatever you want as long as it's chives.

]]> The Cousins Fish Market has wonderful grouper, and the only trick to cooking fish this good is to not screw it up. (A risk when you cook as I do with fistfuls of flair and little restraint.) I glance at the flour, the corn meal, the bread crumbs, the wine, the capers, the cumin and the tomatoes. My empty rattle of a brain is overwhelmed even looking at my pantry. Go to the garden. Chives. Yes, chives seem like the thing.

Simple. Olive oil, salt, pepper, chives. Keep it simple.

My mother shows up to say good-bye to my dog and give me a hug. I push half my fish onto her plate. I can’t talk, but I can cook. That is about all I’ve got right now.

]]> Grouper with chives Ingredients:
One piece of grouper (or however many you want)
Sea salt
Cracked black pepper
Good olive oil
A large handful of fresh chives, cut small
A wedge of lemon

Instructions

Season the fish with salt and pepper.

Pour enough olive oil into a non-stick pan to cover the bottom. Heat the oil on medium high till the fragrance releases. Add most of the chives. Cook in the oil for a minute or two, so the flavor releases into the oil a bit.

Put the fish in the pan. Let it cook without lifting or disturbing it for about four to five minutes. When the edges are white and the bottom is a bit brown, flip. Cook another few minutes until the bottom side is starting to brown and the fish is just starting to flake.

Put the fish on a plate. Squeeze a wedge of lemon juice onto it and sprinkle with the rest of the chives.

Serve with rice and a small pile of chopped green olives.

A Perfect Mother's Day: The first salad from the garden

2009-05-12T01:31:21Z

I’m not given to cheer around the holidays, but yesterday I overcame my natural instincts for swampy emotional soups and layers of conflicting feelings and managed to be plain-old, simple happy. Not the deep, bittersweet, existential, dark-chocolate-with-67-percent-pure-cacao kind of happy. Just happy. Peaceful, uncomplicated. Hersey’s Kiss happy.

It was a beautiful Mother’s Day. My husband made me raspberry-oatmeal pancakes for breakfast. Then he took me to the garden center and let me go crazy picking out all my favorite flowers for the garden. After lunch, I treated myself to the most blissful kind of nap: outstretched on the couch, a blanket over my legs, the sun coming through the window, the New York Times Magazine open across my chest.

Then we hit the garden. The girls helped me plant, while my husband and my son readied the beds. Two hours of dirt under the nails and digging in a cool breeze. As we worked, I could feel my shoulders unclench, my chest open, the curve of my eyes crinkle upward. Happiness.

For dinner, I picked the year’s first greens from our garden.

]]>

Spinach, arugula and lettuce. And then a couple big handfuls of chives. I overcooked the steak, which I suppose is how I will know, looking back on this day, that it was real. But I didn’t worry about it, and neither did anyone else. To make up for it, I dug out a small slice of super creamy blue cheese that I’d tucked away in the cheese drawer last week and then forgotten about. In my family really good blue cheese will get you forgiven for most sins.

Sometimes, I find unadulterated happiness so shocking that I get all confused and flustered, like someone has handed me an unexpected and perhaps undeserved gift, and, while I’m grateful, I don’t quite know what to do with it. But yesterday, was different. The peace just kind of settled around our house. No questions. No but-but-but what ifs.

It was a beautiful day.

Mini cupcakes from Crumbs, New York City, NY

2009-05-07T16:02:52Z

I’ve been a bit delinquent on posting this week, so I thought I would distract you with some mini cupcakes from Crumbs Bake Shop in New York City. How can you not smile? I went to NYC recently for a party at my friend M’s house. She invited a bunch of women journalists over for a night of conversation, wine, and assorted yums. I helped set up, which meant I got first dips on the cupcakes. Yes, there was a coconut, and, yes, that was red velvet. And, no, I did not hog them all, but I did think about it.

Recipe: Roasted Yuca with Spanish smoked paprika

2009-05-01T16:14:56Z

I had some great yuca at Salsa Latina last week. So good that I couldn't stop thinking about it for days. I decided to give it a try. Mine wasn't as good as theirs, but it wasn't a bad first try.

This is one of those dishes that tastes best eaten standing in front of the stove and picking the pieces off the baking sheet just after tray has come out of the oven. Yeah, you burn your fingers a little, but it is worth it.

Also, the yuca needed mojo, or something else as a dip. Ah well, next time.

Here is a recipe for mojo if you want to try that.

]]> Here is the recipe. (It is a work in progress.)

]]> Roasted Yuca with Spanish smoked paprika Ingredients:

Five three-inch pieces of yuca, peeled
1 - 1 ½ teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika
2 teaspoons adobo
Olive oil

Instructions:

Boil water in a large pot. Add yuca and boil gently until just tender, not mushy

Drain the yuca and cut the pieces into 1-inch chunks

Preheat oven to 400.

In a large bowl, toss the yuca with enough olive oil to coat it thoroughly. Sprinkle on the paprika and the adobo. Toss until the pieces are well coated. Taste a little piece off the edge of one of the chunks. Adjust seasoning if needed. Add more adobo first. You want to be able to taste the salt. Don’t go crazy with the paprika, a little goes a looooong way.

Spread yucca out on a baking sheet, non-stick or rubbed with a little oil. Make sure it is all in one layer and not crammed in.

Put in the oven and roast for about 15 minutes. Check the pieces, and turn when the bottom side is browned. Roast again until the edges of the pieces are nicely browned and crispy.

Serve immediately.

Review: The Orchard Tavern and Restaurant, Albany, NY

2009-04-29T12:50:50Z

Here is a link to my review of The Orchard in the Albany Times Union.

And here is a link to the, um, discussion of the review on Table Hopping.