Summer Love

Dear Summer, never end. Yours for life, Sarah.

My love for the season runs deep. For instance, I'm sweating my ass off as I write this, having just returned from the farmers' market, but you won't hear me complain because I'm too busy crushing on the bounty that awaits me in the kitchen. I plan to treat it well, making the most simple of meals that highlight these veggies, fruits, and herbs in their glorious, ripe state. The less cooking the better.

One of our favorite meals this season combines a beautifully basic Greek salad—which I learned to make on the island Amorgos—and roasted lamb loin chops with mint-pistachio pesto, finished off with cool blueberries topped with a dollop of Barbados cream. This menu is equally perfect for company and the weekly rotation.

Over the next few days, I'll post recipes for each dish. I'm starting with the Greek salad, which made Husband rethink his stance on salads altogether.



Greek Salad
makes 4 side dishes

Cut two riper-than-ripe tomatoes into wedges and slice a large green pepper into thin rings. Slice a cucumber thinly. If you'd like, dice up about 1/4 cup of red onion. Mix the veggies together with Kalamata olives and drizzle with a generous helping of olive oil, then some red wine vinegar. Season with salt and your choice of dried oregano (about 1 tsp) or fresh dill (about 2 tbsp).* Then, the best part: top with a big tangy, salty slab of Feta and eat!

*Or, if you're Virginia and like neither herb, try mint.

Fresh Food After Weeks of Fast Food

We spent weeks eating fast food while we were moving across the country and getting settled into our new house. Finally we were able to start cooking real food. Every Friday afternoon Door to Door Organics delivers a produce box and we discover the surprises inside.

This meal was Leek and Potato Soup, salad with fresh fruit and blueberry honey balsamic dressing, and a glass of Pimm's with fresh chopped fruit. After weeks of eating fake food this tasted truly divine! Even with the 25 minutes of simmering the soup was really quick to make. The only thing that could have made it better would have been regular potatoes, but the produce box had purple potatoes so the Leek and Potato Soup turned an unappetizing shade of gray. Fortunately, it tasted better than it looked!

Blueberry Honey Balsamic Dressing
(all amounts are approximate)
3 parts extra virgin olive oil
2 parts balsamic vinegar
1 part blueberry honey
1 part lemon juice
Leek and Potato Soup
From Jack Bishop's Vegetables Every Day - the best veggie cookbook for engineers - I love the way it's organized
4 medium leeks
2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 lb. red potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
salt
black pepper
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

1. Trim and discard the dark green tops and tough outer leaves from the leeks. Remove the roots along with a thin slice of the nearby white part. Halve the leeks lengthwise and then cut them crosswise into this strips. Wash the sliced leeks in a large bowl with several changes of clan water or until no grit falls to the bottom of the bowl.

2. Heat the oil in a large casserole or Dutch oven. Add the leeks and saute over medium heat until tender and golden, about 10 minutes (do not let the leeks brown).

3. Add potatoes, stock bay leaf, and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 25 minutes.

4. Use the back of a wooden spoon to crush some of the potatoes against the side of the pot to thicken the texture of the soup [I skipped this because I think smooshed potatoes are one of the worst textures and I really didn't need it to turn even more gray]. Leave some of the potato chunks intact. Remove the bay leaf ans stir in the parsley. Adjust the seasonings and serve immediately.

Can Salad Be Decadent?

Yes, yes it can.

In my version, the green beans and radishes are optional; avocado is (always) mandatory. I served this salad last night with an Alsatian tart from Trader Joe's, along with TJ's brilliant $3.99 Vinho Verde. Very Spring Is in the Air.

Some of you may find it noteworthy that this recipe urged at least one woman to jump into the lap of the chef and declare her love.



Balthazar salad with lemon truffle vinaigrette, via Orangette.