TURMERIC CHICKEN WINGS

Just in time for summer, my friend Dana gave me a copy of Sunset's: The Great Outdoors Cookbook and I have to tell you, I now have a serious jonzing to go camping, sleep under the stars, cook by the campfire... The book is packed with tasty recipes for campfire grilling, wood fire ovens, beach cookouts, and even a Caja China. So much inspiration! I'm buying a bunch of copies of this book to give to my grill-lovin' friends.

A camping trip isn't on our near horizon, but when I saw the recipe for Tamal Chicken Wings, I couldn't wait try it. The lemongrass, turmeric, garlic, cilantro rub called to me, and luckily the chicken was super easy to cook on our backyard grill (and I think this chicken would be great to feed a crowd). My whole family scarfed down the flavorful, juicy wings with smiles on their faces.

Have you cooked with turmeric before? It wasn't until we lived in Bali that I introduced this aromatic root into my kitchen. Turmeric, with its electric yellow hue, is a powerful anti-inflammatory as well as a delicious seasoning. Beware that turmeric stains like crazy: be careful of your cutting boards, food processor, anything that can quickly soak up the natural dye. Clean up turmeric immediately or you'll find a strong yellow tint is left in its wake.

INGREDIENTS lightly adapted from Sunset's The Great Outdoors Cookbook
printable recipe

• 1 stalk fresh lemongrass (available at many Asian grocers); or 3 strips lemon zest chopped
• 3/4 cup cilantro sprigs ( I strongly suggest using the stems as well as the leaves)
• 8 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 8 chicken wings

Make your rub at least a hour before cooking, if not the night before, so that the chicken has time to really soak up the flavors.

Trim lemongrass and slice into 1/4 inch rounds. Place lemongrass in a food processor along with the cilantro, garlic, salt, turmeric, a few generous grinds of black pepper and olive oil. Blitz until the ingredients are integrated and chopped into a coarse blend. Rub mixture onto the chicken wings. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight. (Remember to immediately clean turmeric from your cutting boards and food processor to avoid stains.)

When you're ready to cook, prep a medium heat grill (350-450 degrees). Using paper towels, rub the grates with cooking oil. Grill the chicken covered for 14-16 minutes flipping occasionally until the meat is no longer pink at the bone.

Eat right away!

serves 2-4 as a main, 8 as an appetizer

LEMONGRASS + GINGER GRANITA

Happy Mother's Day to all my favorite mamas out there, and especially to my own mom!

There are no Hallmark Cards or tear-jerking commercials to remind the Balinese that this is a day to celebrate mothers - I can only imagine how completely strange they would find this entire holiday. In Bali there are daily rituals and countless elaborate ceremonies to honor ancestors, nature, and spirits, but no Mother's Day. I am not complaining. In so many ways, the past eight months of travel have felt like one long Mother's Day for me; all this family time has been a dream, and every day I am grateful to be Otis and Lilah's mom. Okay, now I'm getting all sappy on you!

Let's get to a recipe that is easy enough for kids to make for/or with their moms....

Granitas make me happy - I love recipes that leave room for improvisation while still being reliable in their deliciousness. P, the kids, and I are devotees of this always-refreshing and easy-to-make dessert.

Since we hit the road last August and haven't always had the best equipped kitchens, granitas have become our favorite after dinner treat: we made ruby red grapefruit in Northern Australia; pineapple in Fiji; elderflower in New Zealand; and now, lemongrass granita here in Bali. Always curious to see food at its source, P and I took a shady walk along the rice fields just north of Ubud to visit Mr. Nomad's organic veggie farm. There was plenty of lemongrass sprouting and P remarked that maybe we could try growing this fragrant herb at home in Berkeley this fall.

Continuing our granita making tradition, I wonder what flavor we will make next month in Corfu when celebrate Abby's birthday. What delights will a Greek Island farmer's market have in June? I cannot wait to find out.

Note: Be sure to make your granita at least a few hours before you want to serve it. The freezing process takes a while.

ICE POPS WITH LEMONGRASS

I hear that the weather has been unseasonably warm (even "balmy") at home in California so I thought it might be a good moment to share my new snack. 

Bali is not like home.  Here, I can't pop over to Berkeley Natural Grocery and pick up some healthy quick afterschool snacks for the kids. I have had to get creative.

In the past month, Lilah and Otis have snacked on kilos of roasted peanuts, plenty of taro chips, and even some delicious freshly baked bread from a bakery nearby.  I did roast my own chickpeas, though no surprise... the real hit with the kids has been these fresh fruit popsicles. I was looking for recipes on how to use lemongrass and I came upon this adorable idea for using lemongrass as popsicle sticks.  I was inspired!

Most kids (and I guess adults too) are suckers for a fun presentation of food. Yes, the kids dig slices of fresh juicy melon, but they beamed when they saw the ice pops.

Really, any fruit can be transformed into popsicles - pear, apple, berry, lemon, banana, whatever happens to be in season.