cold weather cooking

Ahhhh, old man Winter. You are so harshing my mellow! However not to be completely outdone by cold and ice this past weekend, the gentleman and I decided to have a little fun in the kitchen. Making good on my promise to to be more adventurous on the fungi front, I bought a box of mushrooms at the market on sunday. And the gentleman turned it into wild mushroom risotto. Divine! We served it up with a salad of delicate Boston lettuce and fresh Texas grapefruit, dressed with a simple vinaigrette. Then paired it with a good Italian Pinot Grigio. Yummmmm.

Some other culinary inspiration:

* a rosé in winter (yes!)
* beets and blood orange
* and tomato jam from The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook (this is what I am going to do with next summer's tomato harvest)

And before I forget, Chris Storb's wonderful blog about Mount Pleasant has moved here!

From my igloo to yours ~ cheers!

spring cooking

Fresh greens! Such a wonderful spring indulgence. At monday night's garden fête I made a huge bowl of pasta salad to feed the worker bees ~ an old favorite (low fat and flavorful). Little did I know that it would be such a hit! It's a twist on a recipe I found several years ago in the omni-present Martha Stewart Living. My version below. Serve with a glass of Provençal rosé...and enjoy!

Pasta with Vegetables and Lemon

1 cup frozen shelled edamame
10 ounces asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
1 pound shaped pasta (I use farfalle)
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 shallot finely chopped
1/3 cup dry white wine
finely grated zest of lemon, plus 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (1 lemon total)
2 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 cups baby arugula (about 1 ounce)
6 ounces yellow grape tomatoes (or other baby tomatoes), halved (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons freshly grated pecorino romano
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
freshly ground pepper

1) Cook edamame and asparagus in boiling water until just tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain, and set aside.

2) Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add pasta; cook until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid; set aside.

3) Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add shallot; cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add wine; bring mixture to a boil. Cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add lemon juice, edamame, asparagus, pasta, and 1 cup reserved liquid; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt. Toss well. Add arugula and tomatoes; toss. Top with pecorino romano and chives. Drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons oil; sprinkle with lemon zest and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and season with pepper.

p.s. I tossed in a little lemon thyme from our garden. Delish!

gooseberries...anyone?

I have been organizing old photos and came across this one, which I have posted before. But, it reminds me that gooseberries are on the way. They are always really cheap at the market because no one ever seems to know what to do with them. Well, lately I have been a bit obsessed with chutney, and so when I stumbled across this recipe, I thought it sounded too good not to try:

Gooseberry Chutney

3 lbs of gooseberries
1 lb of sugar
½ lb of onions
1 pint of vinegar
½ pint of water
½ oz of salt
1 tablespoon of ground ginger
½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper

Top and tail the gooseberries, and chop roughly. Finely chop the onions; then cook with the berries in the water until they are softened well. Add the remaining ingredients, then simmer until the chutney becomes thick, stirring occasionally. Bottle while still hot, and cover immediately.