SPRING PEA SOUP

Yes, spring is my favorite season. How can I resist? Every living thing seems to be bursting with energy: our garden is explosively green; newborn finches are chirping outside of my studio window; friends are calling for last minute barbecue invitations. Hibernation is over, and I am loving it. 

Spring produce is in full effect at the market, and peas are happening. This soup is simple, flavorful, and honestly highlights the deliciousness of ingredient. I was amazed that the cooked peas stayed so green, even when I continued to enjoy the leftovers throughout the week. Feel free to serve the soup warm or cold - either way, it's damned good!

INGREDIENTS - adapted from Darina Allen's inspiring book Forgotten Skills of Cooking
(printable recipe)

• 2 strips of bacon, chopped
• 1 spring onions, or 2 scallions, sliced thin
• 4 cups shelled peas (about 3.5 pounds of peas still in their pods)
• sprig of mint (plus extra mint leaves for garnish)
• 5 cups good quality chicken or veggie stock
• plenty of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon agave nectar
• 2 tablespoon heavy cream

In a large soup pot or dutch oven, cook your bacon with the lid on for about 5 minutes over medium heat. Add spring onions and cook another 2 minutes so that the bacon and onion flavors mingle nicely. Add the peas, mint, and stock. Toss in a few generous pinches of sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Pour in a splash of agave. Bring everything to a simmer and cook for about 7-8 minutes until peas are just tender. Taste for seasoning - I found myself needing quite a bit more salt. And depending on the natural sugar content of the peas you use, you may want a little more agave if you are yearning for a little hint of sweetness.

Add cream, and puree soup. Serve with a few mint leaves for garnish.

Enjoy!

Serves 6

AMAZING MINT CHIP ICE CREAM

Don't we all dream of lounging around in our pjs eating ice cream on a weekday? Well, my boy Otis had Spring Break last week, and that is just what he did.

Otis can groove with some serious savory cooking and he is a master when it comes to chopping veg, but he also swoons for making sweets. Fresh Mint Chip Ice Cream seemed like a good way for us to celebrate the Easter Break, the green explosion of spring, and our bountiful backyard mint patch.

Otis says this is the best ice cream he has ever tasted (and we all know that 11-year-olds are ice cream experts!)  I personally think the whole recipe is quite dangerous. I found myself wanting to slurp the minty custard before I even froze the stuff - need I say more?

INGREDIENTS thanks to David Lebovitz

(printable recipe)

• 1 cup whole milk
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 3/4 cup sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2 packed cups fresh mint leaves
• 5 egg yokes
• 5 ounces dark chocolate, chopped and melted

Warm milk, 1 cup of cream, sugar, and salt in a medium sauce pan, over medium heat. Stir to melt sugar. When sugar has dissolved, add mint leaves to the pan. When everything is hot and steamy, remove the pan from the heat. Cover, and let the mint leaves steep in the warm milk for an hour.

After an hour of steeping, pour the minty milk mixture through a strainer into a medium mixing bowl. Using the back of a wooden spoon, press down on the mint in the strainer to release as much flavor as you can, then toss out the mint leaves and wash your strainer. Return infused milk to the medium sauce pan and rewarm over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally.

(Pour the remaining cup of cream into a large mixing bowl. Place strainer over the top of the bowl, and set aside.)

Whisk egg yokes in a separate, smallish bowl. Pour a ladle or two of the warm infused milk into the yokes and whisk to integrate. Then pour all of the yokes into the sauce pan with the warmed minty milk. Stir continuously with a spatula and cook custard, over medium heat, until it begins to thicken. (Lebovitz says the mixture is done when it reaches 170 degrees, or is thick enough to coat the spatula.)

Pour custard through the strainer into the large mixing bowl holding the cream. Stir. Place mixing bowl over an ice bath and continue stirring until the custard has cooled. Transfer to a covered container. Refrigerate for two hours, or even overnight, then freeze in your ice cream maker, following the manufacturers instructions.

While your ice cream maker is working its magic, put a storage container into the freezer to chill.

When your ice cream machine is done, pull the chilled storage container from the freezer and drizzle some melted chocolate across the bottom. Then add some ice cream to the container. Then drizzle more chocolate over the ice cream. Use a spoon to break up the mixture and you will have nice broken streaks of chocolate (homemade chocolate chips!) running throughout the ice cream. Continue adding layers of ice cream and drizzled chocolate. Place your now marbleized ice cream into the freezer to firm up again before serving.

Enjoy!

My talented friend and fellow blogger, Phyllis Grant of Dash and Bella, recently posted a recipe for Mint Stracciatella Ice Cream. If you don't already follow her blog already, you should - everything she does is delish and I imagine her ice cream is no exception!

SPICY QUINOA WITH TANGERINES, PISTACHIOS, AND HERB PUREE

Here in Bali, we've been buying these tangerines for months now and I still am awed every time I cut one open - the contrast of the ultra-dark green skin and the bright ripe orange interior is a thing of beauty. I wanted to celebrate these stunners with a recipe for you, and I came up with this new dish that I am crazy about.

I knew I wanted to make something with quinoa, tangerines, and pistachios. After adding a little of this and a little more of that, we have a recipe that is sweet, savory, spicy, salty, and wholesome all in one bowl.

In order to get the kids to eat this dish, I served all the elements separately. Lilah, favoring pistachios and tangerine slices, ate everything but the spicy dressing. Otis helped make the puree and loved everything but the feta. P and I doused our quinoa in the verdant puree and liberally sprinkled every goody over the top. We all went back for seconds - success!

This quinoa could easily be a vegetarian main course and I think it would make a delicious accompaniment for simple grilled chicken, or a whole roasted fish.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 cups quinoa (brown rice can also be used in this recipe)
• 1/3 cup fresh tangerine juice
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 4 teaspoons lime juice (approximately 3 limes)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• pinch of fresh ground black pepper
• 1 or 2 jalapenos, de-seeded and chopped
• 1 (loosely packed) cup fresh cilantro leaves + extra for garnish
• 1/2 (loosely packed) cup fresh mint leaves + extra for garnish
• 1/2 cup pistachios
• 2 large, or 4 small tangerines
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta

 

Rinse quinoa several times. Then combine quinoa with 3 cups of water in a large sauce pan. Bring water to a boil. Cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until grain is tender and cooked. Rinse with cold water. Let cool to room temp.

Place tangerine juice, olive oil, lime juice, 1 teaspoon salt, black pepper, chopped jalapeno, 1 cup cilantro leaves, and 1/2 cup mint leaves into a blender. Blend until you have a nice vibrant green puree.

Prepare tangerines: Peel 2 large (or 4 small) tangerines. I kept the peels on for the photographs because I just love the look (and my one and only knife here is duller than you can imagine!), but I wouldn't recommend eating that much peel in the salad. Check out this post, for a really easy way to slice citrus for salad.  Or, if you happen to have tangerines with tender membranes, you can just peel them and use the sections unsliced. Set aside tangerine slices/sections.

If you have picky little eaters, serve all ingredients separately. Otherwise, toss room temperature quinoa and dressing together. Scoop a mound of dressed quinoa onto each plate. Scatter tangerine, pistachios, feta, and the remaining fresh herbs over the top.

Enjoy!

makes 4- 6 servings as a side dish, or 2-3 large mains

FRESH LIME FIZZ

What is it about Bali that makes us happy?  The tropical weather, colorful temples, family time, verdant landscape, open smiles, slowness. As I wrote a couple weeks ago, I am thinking of ways to take some of the magic of this trip home with us to Berkeley. Obviously we cannot take home the Balinese climate, amazing people, or their unique culture. But maybe the small joys of this place could work their way into our Berkeley lives, and into your kitchens as well!

On every menu in Bali, there is a list of fresh fruit drinks to choose from: papaya, watermelon, lime, pineapple, banana, lemon, etc... For Lilah, my 7 year old, these enticing drink menus even inspired her to really learn to read. All four of us guzzle down some kind of juicy concoction whenever we go out to eat. I try to avoid Sodas, filled with high fructose corn syrups and unpronounceable chemicals, but indulging in something cool, fresh, and homemade is a habit I would like to cultivate. We may not have ample tropical fruit available in Northern California, but we do have citrus, and plenty of it.

Almost daily, I have been making these Fresh Lime Fizzes for P, the kids, and myself. Seeing just how easy it is to whip up a "soda" at home makes me realize there is no excuse not to have citrus fizzes as a regular treat no matter where you are.

Wanting to keep these fizzes on the healthy side,  I tried them with honey instead of simple syrup. Paul liked the taste, but for me the flavor was a bit medicinal. I much prefer the simple syrup.

When we get home to Berkeley, I am going to get Otis' old fashion spritzer working so we can even make the sparkling water ourselves.

MINT CHUTNEY

As most of you know, I am a sucker for fresh herbs and mint is one of my favorite ingredients. Here in Bali,  I am especially loving cooking with mint - just a taste of its flavor and I feel refreshed in the heat.

This Mint Chutney was part of a delicious spread cooked for us by Dr. Sujatha Kekada. She served the chutney as a dipping sauce for her Pakora. The cool minty goodness was a wonderful contrast to warm fried Veggie Fritters.

I think this sauce has potential to find other uses. I imagine it would be lovely served with grilled fish. Kekada also says the this recipe works well with cilantro replacing the mint. Yum.


INGREDIENTS

• 2 packed cups fresh mint leaves
• 1 cup shredded fresh coconut (or 1/3 cups dry coconut re-hydrated in water)
• 1/2 glass room temperature water
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• optional: 1/2 fresh hot chili

Simply place all ingredients in a blender and puree for 3 minutes.

Serve. It's that easy!

ZUCCHINI RIBBON PASTA

Okay,  this isn't really "pasta." Can you forgive me?

A couple of years ago the idea of making pasta out of shaved zucchini was buzzing around the food world (like the food section of the New York Times.) This was about the time doctors told me to get gluten out of our kitchen. So, any pasta that didn't involve wheat called my name. Since then, grated zucchini - usually sauteed, and topped with pesto - has gone into steady rotation at our house.

For you, I wanted to refine this simple idea a bit, give it a little flare, and here we are...

This recipe is delicious on its own, or works as side dish for grilled fish or chicken. If you want to turn the zucchini ribbons into a more substantial vegetarian meal, serve on a bed quinoa with a little additional lemon juice/olive oil vinaigrette.

WATERMELON PUNCH WITH FRESH LIME AND CRUSHED MINT

Every time I go for Mexican food, I hope to find watermelon aqua fresca. There is something so perfectly refreshing about this drink for me. Making watermelon aqua fresca at home inspired me to concoct my own summer punch. I could slurp this sweet, tangy, minty punch all day long. If you are are looking for something a little stronger, add a some rum and you have a damned good cocktail.

When I was working on this punch recipe, P and I found ourselves tasting rummy cocktails at ten am - it felt totally decadent and made me think..... this would be a tasty drink to sip at brunch.

Note: Try to make your simple syrup, puree the watermelon, and chill both a few hours before you want to serve the punch. If time doesn't allow for this chilling time, just add plenty of ice and you are good to go.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups watermelon puree ( approximately 1 medium watermelon)
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (approximately 4-5 juicy limes)
• mint leaves, 1/3 cup loosely packed
• 1/2 cup, plus 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• boozy option: light rum

Make a simple syrup. Combine 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water in a sauce pan. Heat until sugar has dissolved. Let cool.  The simple syrup you don't use for this recipe can be refrigerated and and  put to other uses in cocktails or to sweeten your iced coffee or tea.

Cut off watermelon rind.

Remove seeds if there are any.

Place approximately 2 cups of watermelon flesh into your blender. Using your fingers or a spoon, push down the watermelon chunks until they release a bunch of juice (this released liquid will help make the blending easier). Blend thoroughly. Do another batch until you have yielded 4 cups of pureed watermelon. You could strain the watermelon pulp at this point, but I really prefer the thicker texture of the pulp left in. Chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.

Juice limes.

Coarsely chop mint leaves. Crush mint with 2 teaspoons of sugar. Use a mortar and pestle if you have one, otherwise use a wooden spoon in a bowl to pulverize the mint and sugar. When you are done, you will have a well-integrated mint/sugar paste. Add paste to the lime juice.

Mix pureed watermelon and lime juice (with the sugary mint). Add 2-3 tablespoons simple syrup. How much simple syrup you use will depend on the natural sugar content of your watermelon and your own personal preference for sweetness.

Served chilled. Always give the punch a stir before serving to integrate the ingredients.

If you want to transform this punch into a cocktail, I suggest adding 2 tablespoons rum to every cup of punch.

Fresh Mint Tisane

Okay, is your belly hurting as much as mine? Every year after I gorge myself on Thanksgiving dinner, I vow never to eat again. Of course all the tasty leftovers will lure me back to the kitchen to indulge the very next day, despite the protests of my aching tum. But can't I dream of a world where my belly could just have a little post-Thanksgiving vacation?

Between helpings of leftover turkey, stuffing, and what ever else you still want to eat, try a pot of mint tisane. You don't need anything more than mint and hot water.

Put a sprig of two of mint in a glass, or a bunch of sprigs in a tea pot. Pour hot water over the top. Let steep for a few minutes. So simple and ahhhhhh so good.

Lemon Cucumber Tzatziki

As I packed our bags to visit my mom in Bolinas, my neighbor brought a basket of lemon cucumbers from his garden. My Greek ancestors whispered....tzatziki. What could be better with roasted goat?

Ingredients

16oz. Bellwether Farms sheep yogurt, plain
2 lemon cucumbers, pealed and seeded
2 cloves garlic, pressed
juice of one Meyer lemon
a dozen freshly chopped mint leaves
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and serve along side roasted goat or lamb. Tzatziki is also delicious on a sandwich with slices of the leftover roast.

Serves 8

Tomatoes with fresh mint

A continuing ode to the tomato...

At peak season, we devour tomatoes solo or with sprinkle of salt. Still, a little help from some fresh herbs and a splash of vinaigrette can make them even more delicious. Basil always comes to mind, but an underappreciated accompanist to tomatoes is freshly chopped mint. I like to keep a pot growing near my kitchen door. Mint is an herb that will always go to good use, if only for a quick pot of tea.


Ingredients

any sweet ripe tomatoes
balsamic port vinegar
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
one bunch mint leaves

Slice tomatoes. Whisk together port balsamic (or high-quality vinegar of your choice) and olive oil and lightly dress tomatoes. Top with sea salt, ground pepper, and freshly chopped mint leaves. Enjoy.

Quinoa Tabouli

What to do with quinoa? Here's a tasty recipe....

1 cup quinoa
3 large tomatoes, chopped or cherry tomatoes quartered would be nice
1 1/2 cup parsley, finely chopped
1 cup scallion, finely chopped
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup olive oil
2 Tablespoons mint, finely chopped
salt to taste

First rinse quinoa several times. Then mix quinoa with 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Simmer and cover. Cook for 10-15 minutes or until all the water is absorbed. Let cool to room temp.
Mix all ingredients with the quinoa, add salt to your liking, and you've got your tabouli.

This is a great dish to bring to a picnic.

Serves 6

Watermelon, feta, and mint salad

Ingredients:

5 Cups Watermelon, cubed
5 oz. Feta, crumbled
A dozen fresh Mint leaves, chopped
1-2 Jalapeno peppers, thinly sliced
Juice of one or two limes

Toss all ingredients and enjoy! Great for a picnic or potluck.