A couple of months ago, I ask for a recommendation for a dog trainer from my veterinarian. I was given a brochure for Canine Culture in Oakland, CA and was told to call Alison Smith. In high school (in Massachusetts) I had a good friend named Alison Smith who loved dogs, so I thought it was an ironic coincidence. When I looked up the website I saw it was the very same Alison Smith! Her current office is about a mile from my house. Freaky.
It had been over 15 years since I had seen her. In that time I had gone from being a baker to a structural engineer and from a lonely knitter to a happily married spinner/knitter. She completely missed my thirties; how strange it is to think that I was a twenty-something when I last saw her.
As it happens she got married yesterday. She was a beautiful bride and I like her husband, Rob, who I met at the wedding. I also got to see her mother, Julia. Julia's home was my home away from home for a few months before I left Massachusetts to return the the left coast. Here is a picture of the three of them.
I offered to make some of the food for the wedding. Here are a few of the recipes I made; all are vegan. I generally don't measure as I am cooking, so the amounts I list are approximate.
Arugula Pesto
3 Tablespoons pine nuts
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
4-5 cups arugula leaves
1/4 cup olive oil
2-3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste
Toast the pine nuts in a dry (no oil) frying pan, tossing occasionally, until lightly golden. Allow to cool slightly, place in food processor and grind until it resembles coarse cornmeal. Add the olive oil and as much of the arugula as will fit in the food processor. Pulse a few times, add the remaining arugula and other ingredients and process until the arugula is finely chopped. Adjust seasonings to taste.
This pesto is great on bread, over pasta or potatoes, on salad, or as a dip. If you aren't vegan, you can add grated Parmesan cheese and use a little less salt.
Grilled Vegetable Tapenade
1 medium onion
2 medium eggplants or 4 Japanese eggplants
3-4 medium zucchini
1-2 medium red bell peppers
1 small hot pepper (I used a red jalapeno)
1medium onion
8-10 cloves of garlic in their papery skins
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon or lime juice
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
2-3 Tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
salt & pepper to taste
Peel the onion and slice them into 3/8-1/2 inch thick slabs. Cook over very low heat in a covered heavy bottom frying pan with a bit of olive oil. When they get caramelized on the bottom, flip them and cook until they are sweet. Slice the eggplants and zucchini into 1/4 inch slices and grill on an outdoor grill or indoors with a grill pan. If you have a gas stove, place the peppers over an open flame, turning periodically until the skin is blackened. Place garlic (in their papery skins) in a baking dish in a 375 degree oven and bake until they are soft. When cooled, remove the skins and roughly chop them. If you have an electric stove you can put them on a high rack in a hot oven or you can put them on an outdoor grill. You want to cook them hot enough the char the skin without overcooking the pepper flesh. Place the peppers in a paper bag for at least 5 minutes; this helps to loosen the skin from the flesh. Using your hands, rub off the charred skins. I prefer to not use water as I feel it washes away flavor; a bit of char will add to the dish not detract. Cut off the top and remove the seeds. Chop all the vegetables into 1/4-3/8 inch dice (mince the hot pepper). Combine the vegetables with the remaining ingredients. Adjust seasonings to taste.
This spread does well with a couple of hours to let the flavors marry. It is great with a crusty baguette. The same ingredients with the veggies left whole, makes a tasty anti pasti.
Tofu-Tamari Spread
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
16 oz soft tofu
3-4 Tablespoons of olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon or lime juice
4-5 Tablespoons of tamari
black pepper
Toss everything in the food processor and process until it is smoothish. You may need to add salt if you use low-salt tamari like I do. Simple and delicious!
Korean-Style Cucumber Salad
2 cups thinly sliced cucumbers
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 small hot pepper, roasted, seeded, & minced (or substitute a chili sauce like Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce)
2-3 Tablespoons minced shallot
3 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 Tablespoons water
salt & pepper to taste
Place sliced cucumbers in a colander with the salt, toss to distribute the salt and let the cucumber sweat out some of its moisture (at least 15 minutes). Combine everything in a bowl, season to taste. It is best when it has a few hours for the flavors to marry. You can use any kind of cucumbers. If the cucmbers are bitter you can add a teaspoon of sugar. I had a lot of Armenian cucumbers (technically a melon not a cucumber) from my Riverdog Farm CSA veggie box.
Nice Blog! I love the recipes you post, the Korean cucumber salad reminds me of a Korean spicy cucumber soup, served ice cold, that my girlfriends mother made when I was in high school. Good eats :)
Posted by: DeeAnn | August 27, 2006 at 05:45 PM
wow!
*sings*
it's a small world after all!
i love it when stuff like that happens!!
here is to many happy years of you two playing catch up!
Posted by: pippi | August 28, 2006 at 11:56 AM