Dinner's Going Green

"Green" - it's no longer just a color, it's a catchphrase for easy environmental fixes. One thing is for sure, we've abused our planet for a long time, selfishly exploiting its resources, and now it's fighting back. We're entering a period of consequences, and unfortunately we are not yet rising to the challenge in a way that will ensure our future. Green has become the word of the moment, but only for baby steps. As much as every little bit counts, baby steps will not take us the miles we need to go before time runs out.

Hot, Flat and Crowded is a fantastic book about the challenges we are facing and the best ways to rise up and seize the American entrepreneurial spirit to reduce the effects of our dependence on fossil fuels. I highly recommend it to everyone, since this is an issue we will all have to face. I hope President Obama has read it as well. If America leads the world towards higher efficiency standards and cleaner fuels, the world will follow, and probably respect us a little more as well.

As for steps we all can take without the government's help, green baby steps are still better than a lack of forward motion. Energy star appliances, SMALL hybrid cars, reusable grocery bags and compact florescent bulbs are tremendously helpful in cutting CO2 admissions when everyone starts to use them. Reducing electricity use, by using power strips that cut power to appliances and chargers when not in use and driving less are a huge help. We have only used the air conditioner in our house a handful of days this summer. A little sweat has paid off with more money in our pockets.

CSAs are a great way for foodies to be a little more green. Community supported agriculture means food travels only a few miles from farm to table, drastically reducing its carbon footprint. Plus local small farms stay solvent, not caving to sell their valuable land to developers of McMansion complexes. And we get the freshest produce possible, so everyone wins. One Straw Farm gives me so much organic produce that I've only had to go grocery shopping once since school let out. Which has meant way less miles on my car and way more money in my pocket.

So here's a green meal with a green sauce that will rock your taste buds and get you going on a greener path to change.

Grilled Stuffed Patty Pan Squash and Fish with Salsa Verde


Grilled Salsa Verde
4-5 tomatillos, husked and washed then halved
2 tomatoes, washed and halved
1 small red onion, halved
1 jalapeno
2 Tbsp lime juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Preheat a grill to high heat. Brush the tomatillos, tomatoes, onion and jalapenos with vegetable oil. Grill them all over high heat until tomatillos and tomatoes are carmelized and onion and jalapeno are charred. Chop up the tomatillos, tomatoes and onion. Seed and stem the jalapeno and mince. Toss them all with lime juice and cilantro. Let sit for 15 minutes for flavors to meld. (Leave the grill on low for the squash.

Stuffed Squash
2 cups chicken stock
1 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup white rice
1 Tbsp chile powder
1 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp chopped cilantro
1/2 cup shredded mexican cheese

6 medium patty pan squash

Bring chicken stock, lime juice and butter to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add rice and spices and reduce to low. Cover and cook until rice has absorbed the water, and is al dente, about 20 minutes. Toss in about a third of the salsa verde and the rest of the cilantro along with the cheese.

While you're waiting for the rice to cook, slice the tops off of the patty pans and hollow out the insides with a spoon. Brush the squash with olive oil and put top side down on the covered grill to cook and char a bit. After the tops are charred, stuff with rice and put back on the grill, but right side up this time. Cook until tender and evenly charred.


Finishing it off...
2 (1/3 lb.) filets of firm white fish, such as halibut or cod

Brush the fish with vegetable oil and season well with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat until just cooked - about 2 minutes per side for thick filets. Serve over remaining rice with squash on the side and salsa on top.

Ducking Out

Duck was a common thread throughout my childhood. It was the go-to dish in my father's restaurant repertoire, whether it was orangey Siam duck at our favorite Asian restaurant (the miniscule thai, vietnamese, cambodian hybrid Gourmet House in Providence), the rich duck leg with port sauce at Chardonnays (my favorite restaurant of all time), in tiny drumstick form at that abhorrently expensive fancy-pants terrace in Nova Scotia or any other fine establishment where it popped up on the menu. I guess some kids must think of duck as something you feed at the park and chase around, but I knew better. That was one tasty bird! So while my friends did (and often still do) squirm and squeal at the thought, I relish my duck to myself. Unfortunately I've still managed to convert some along the way, which just means less duck for me.

My husband is a prime example of this. He'd never even considered trying duck until I convinced him to take a bite of the aforementioned Siam version. Now he orders it as often as my father did. I cooked my first duck at home for my first dinner party, and it became one of my first recipes on this site. It was nerve-racking and time-consuming and I've since learned to be smarter about cooking for a crowd, but it was delicious. It didn't deter me from trying again, and subsequent projects have led to successes that include the rich duck broth that graced my soup dumplings.

When honeymooning at Lone Mountain Ranch (which I HIGHLY recommend in every facet - but especially for the food), duck came up on the menu a couple of times. Our first night we lingered for 3 hours over the best meal of my life so far which of course included a seared duck breast and leg of duck confit with a cherry demi-glace. (Of course they outdid themselves with my new best meal ever on our last night with prosciutto wrapped quail over herbed spätzle - but that's a story for another time). Later meals also included duck confit crepes and a huckleberried version.

So as you can see, duck and I go way back. In all truth, our relationship is better when we just meet for dinner with little foreplay. But I've found a way around it. You get succulent, flavorful duck with crispy skin and tender flesh in relatively little time with almost no work. This is the way to do duck at home - on the grill with a sticky sweet glaze! Give it a try - or on second thought, maybe you shouldn't! More for me that way! :)

Grilled Duck with Gingered Sticky Glaze


Spice Rub
2 Tbsp ground ginger
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp 5 spice powder
1 tsp black pepper
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp brown sugar

Combine all ingredients and mix well.

Glaze
1/4 cup orange blossom honey
1/4 cup somewhat bitter marmalade
1/4 cup cream sherry
2 tablespoons grated ginger
1 Tbsp finely minced garlic
an orange - zest removed with a veggie peeler and juice squeezed and reserved
1 cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf

Combine honey, marmalade, orange juice and sherry in a small saucepan over medium heat until they start to melt and blend together. Add ginger, garlic, orange zest, cinnamon stick and bay leaf and bring to a simmer. Reduce until very thick (easily coats a spoon without running off.) Let cool.

And now...the duck itself!
1 4-5 lb. duck
1 orange, quartered
1 sweet onion, peeled and quartered

Preheat the grill (gas or charcoal) to a low indirect heat of about 300 to 325 F. If you are using charcoal, gather the coals to both sides and put a drip pan under the middle to cook the duck over. If you are using gas, use only the outer burners and place a drip pan directly under the grate.

Remove any visible fat or pin feathers from your duck, give it a good rinse and pat dry with a paper towel. Prick the skin all over with a sharp knife, taking care to just go through the skin and not into the meat. Rub the skin and the inside of the cavity with the spice rub. Stuff the cavity with alternating pieces of orange and onion.

Place the duck over the drip pan on the unheated side of the grill. Close the lid and cook for one hour, rotating halfway. Check to make sure the duck is cooking evenly and the drip pan is not overflowing. Cook for another half hour, rotating after 15 minutes or until sin is starting to get crispy. Brush with glaze, rotate and cook for 10 minutes at a time, repeating until the temperature of the thigh meat reaches 155 F. At that point, remove from the heat, cover with foil and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

An Autumnal Salad

I am a fan of summer salads. It's always nice to have something cool and crisp on a hot day, especially if it doesn't require the use of the stove. But when the weather turns cool and the days end sooner, the typical salad gets traded out for heartier fare. Fortunately, this dish encompasses the bright vinaigrette of a great salad with richer, more satisfying ingredients. Lentils provide great earthy texture, complemented by spicy keilbasa and creamy sweet squash. Delicata squash has become my newest infatuation, since it's skin is tender enough to leave on and it's flesh is richer and creamer, and altogether more, well, delicate in flavor than butternut or acorn. The mustardy bite brings it all together in a satisfying meal.


Black Lentil, Sausage and Squash Salad


1 medium delicata squash, seeded and cubed
ancho chile powder
Chinese 5 spice powder
garlic powder
salt and pepper
1 link of lite kielbasa, sliced down the middle
1 package Trader Joe's precooked black beluga lentils
1 1/2 tsp spicy white wine Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp Chianti wine vinegar (I actually used 1 Tbsp plus a Tbsp of orange muscat vinegar - but it's hard to find)
drizzle of maple syrup
1/2 tsp chile oil
1/2 tsp garlic oil
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Toss cubed squash with some olive oil to coat and a generous sprinkling of chile powder, 5 spice powder, garlic powder and salt and pepper. Turn out onto a large sheet pan. Roast until squash starts to caramelize and even blacken slightly at some of the edges.

Meanwhile, grill the keilbasa over high heat, until nicely charred. Remove and wrap in aluminum foil to keep it warm. Reheat the lentils according to package instructions. Combine the remainder of the ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk to make the dressing. When squash and lentils are done, toss them in, followed by chopped keilbasa. Let sit for at least 5 minutes to soak up some of the dressing. Serve while just slightly warm for a punch of flavor.


P.S. As you can tell from the posting date on this, I've had it in the archives for a while, I just couldn't seem to get it typed out. Forgive me, there are more recipes on the way!

Saying Goodbye

About a year ago, L found out his uncle had leukemia. He felt badly because this was a man he hadn't taken the time to get to know, one he hadn't seen since he was a child. So the very next weekend, the car was packed for a day at his uncle's house in New Jersey. And then I got sick. Uncle H was just about to start chemo, and the last thing he needed was a compromised immune system. So I stayed home. I've regretted it ever since.

In the past year, L got to know his uncle better than ever before, and we were all touched by how he stressed the importance of family, even to those who had blown him off for so long, saying it was too far, would take too much time to visit. His emails and phone calls were daily for some time, and we all felt that we were in this fight together.

In April, H took a turn for the worse, right before his scheduled Independence Day bone marrow transplant. The NJ hospital refused to treat him until he was fully recovered. Fearing that would never happen, H and his wife packed up and stumbled down to a hospital in Texas known for their success rates. This is about when that ominous feeling in the pit of my stomach started. L had told his uncle all about me and his uncle had said "I can't wait to meet her." Although we'd spoken on the phone, I'd begun to feel that might never happen.

In May, L's mother was declared a perfect match for a bone marrow transplant. This was more than we'd been hoping for, and everyone, Uncle H included, was walking on air. August came and the transplant was made. Problem was, it wasn't taking. In order to transfer bone marrow, they must first kill off all of the patient's own. The hope is that the transplanted marrow will start growing and take over blood cell production for the body. This was slow going. The autoimmunity designed to protect our bodies from invaders worked against him, rejecting the new cells. H was getting worse and the medication was putting him through so much pain. He kept asking for them to stop and let him go home. Because of this he had to be sedated.

Yesterday his suffering came to an end. L received an email at 11am from H. One line: slow going but still fighting. At 4pm his mind lost the battle against his body. And I sit here watching my blinking cursor without the words to describe what the world has lost. We're glad there's no more pain, but we wish we could have fought harder.

So H - here's to you. A bright and cheery recipe for the person who was always smiling and joking, even in the midst of the fight of your life. I'm sorry we never did meet, but you've touched my life more than you know.


Southwestern Chicken Pizza


1 recipe of your favorite pizza dough, prepared through the first rise
chile sauce, recipe follows
sliced chipotle chicken, recipe follows
2 cups shredded Colby Jack

salsa fresca, recipe follows
creamy lime sauce, recipe follows

Preheat oven to 500 degrees with a pizza stone on the middle rack. Roll or stretch dough out to a 16 inch oval (or the size of your pizza stone).

Remove the preheated pizza stone from the oven and place on the stove's surface. Transfer pizza dough to it. Let the bottom cook about 3 minutes or until slightly crisp, then use tongs to flip the crust over (this seals the dough so it doesn't get soggy).

Spread on chile sauce. Top with chicken, then cover with cheese. Bake 7-10 minutes, or just until cheese melts and crust is cooked through.

Top pizza with salsa fresca and drizzle with lime sauce. Cut and serve. If you're afraid of the messiness, eat with a fork. I'm daring, messes don't scare me!



Recipe components are listed in the order they should be prepared.


Chipotle Chicken
2 chicken breasts
2 chipotle in adobo, finely minced
1 Tbsp adobo sauce
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp worchestershire sauce

Put chicken breasts in a bag. Add all other ingredients and squish to mix and coat chicken. Marinate in the fridge 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat a grill on high. Grill chicken over high heat until cooked through and well charred. Let rest at least 10 minutes before slicing.


Salsa Fresca
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1 cup ripe tomato, diced
2/3 cup roasted corn
1/3 cup black beans
3 pickled serrano (green) chiles, finely minced
3 Tbsp finely minced cilantro
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Let sit so flavors can develop, at least one hour.


Creamy Lime Sauce
zest of one lime
juice of half a lime
2 Tbsp minced cilantro
1/2 cup ranch dressing

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Set aside.


Chile Sauce
2 chipotles in adobo, finely minced
2 tsp adobo sauce
1 Tbsp ketchup
1/4 cup barbeque sauce
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp liquid smoke

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Set aside.

"Hot Dogs" with a Thai Twist

I've been really awful. You see, Sweet Paul gave me my first blog awards about a month ago and I have yet to announce it or pass them on! It just keeps slipping my mind! Plus, I knew it needed a great recipe to do it justice! So, Paul, I do apologize and they do mean so much to me! I am passing each on to a blog that is well-deserving of the honor!

The I love your blog award goes to Gwendolyn of Patent and the Pantry! I love your beautiful food photos and retro style!


The Brilliante Weblog 2008 gets passed to Gattina of Kitchen Unplugged! This international woman of mystery is truely brilliant, and her vibrant colors and great compositions never fail to inspire!


I love both of these blogs, so do check them out! And now for the recipe...

Hot dogs are great off the grill, snug in a soft bun with a little coleslaw or sauerkraut. But they're just not that special. This takes your normal dog to another level. It starts with a fragrant Thai Sub Roll, topped with a layer of warm, spicy, sweet and nutty slaw and topped off with charred gourmet Thai chicken sausages. Serve alongside grilled zucchini and summer squash that's been marinated in Thai dressing and you've got all new inspiration for your Sunday cookout!

Thai Sausage Rolls Dressed with Warm Peanut Slaw


1/4 cup rice vinegar
2 Tbsp peanut butter
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 Tbsp lime juice
1 tsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp sriracha
3 Tbsp sugar
1/2 large head Napa cabbage, finely shredded
1/4 cup chopped peanuts

4 Thai chicken sausages
4 Thai Sub Rolls

Combine vinegar, peanut butter, sesame oil, lime juice, soy sauce, sriracha and sugar in a large nonstick skillet and bring to a simmer over medium heat until peanut butter has "melted" into sauce. Add cabbage and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally for 15-20 minutes, or until cabbage has softened. Toss with peanuts before serving.

Grill chicken sausages over high heat until well charred. Slice buns down the middle. Pile in the Kraut (slaw?) and top with a sausage. Serve immediately.

Thai Sub Rolls


3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
1 packet instant yeast (also labeled Rapid Rise)
1 cup thai stock (Wegmans makes a great one - alternatively blend 1 cup chicken stock with 1 tsp Tom Yum paste)
1 Tbsp grated lemongrass
2 tsp sriracha

1 egg, beaten
2 Tbsp black sesame seeds


In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, blend together dry ingredients. With the mixer on low, slowly add in stock, sriracha and lemongrass. Kneed the dough for 5 minutes on low speed. The dough should be soft and smooth. Form into a ball and transfer to an oiled bowl. Wrap loosely with oiled plastic wrap. Let rise one hour.

Separate into 4 to 6 pieces, depending on the size you like your rolls. I like to match their length to the length of the sausages I'm using. Sprinkle part of your counter (or parchment paper if you prefer) with cornmeal. Form the dough into an oblong roll and transfer to prepared surface. Let rise another hour. With 1/2 an hour to go, preheat oven to 450 F with a pizza stone in the middle.

Brush the rolls with egg wash, sprinkle with sesame seeds and place on the preheated pizza stone. Mist the oven walls with water. Bake for 5 minutes, reduce heat to 400, and mist again. Let bake until golden brown, 10-15 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.

For The Love of Lime...

Back to school tomorrow, although I won't be seeing any of those pesky teenagers ;) until next week. Another year with its own challenges, its own rewards and a whole new hundred and fifty smiling (or not so much) faces to keep track of. I love teaching, but I'm not really a fan of the beginning of the year. I never was good at introductions. Things go slowly at the beginning, before my students know what I want and how they need to do it, when they're testing me with their every move to see what they can and can't get away with. It's an uncertain time because they don't know what to expect from me and I'm not sure what I'll get from them. You develop such a relationship with kids over the course of the year, so you really know them, well enough to predict their next move. By the end of the year, I feel like my classes can almost teach themselves. Everything works together like one big machine (or at least most of the time).

Working with ingredients is much the same. New ingredients are intimidating, unpredictable. You brave it, trying a bit of the new stuff with tried and true flavors, feeling it out until you know its flavor, how it behaves, if it plays well with others. And over time, you develop your favorites, ones that you turn to time after time (OK - so I try not to do this with kids, but I'm definitely biased with flavors). My teacher's pet is lime (Ok - and vanilla and basil - why else would I have named my blog this way?). Lime lends a fresh finish to sweet and savory concoctions. It gets along best with mexican and thai flavors, tropical tastes like coconut, mango and macademia, pumps up berries' sweetness, and lends bright character to baked goods, such as these cardamom lime sweet rolls.


So on the eve of uncertainty, of course I turned to my favorite team player. Since I firmly believe in dessert first, and this is in fact the order in which I cooked, photographed and ate my lovely limey creations, I will start you off with a delicate lime cookie. If you stick around for dinner you'll get a yummy grilled garlic lime chicken, with coconut lime rice and corn on the cob. This food deserves the limelight!


This type of cookie has many aliases, russian tea cakes or mexican wedding cakes, meltaways or liar's cookies (because your shirt will give you away!). When I was growing up my mom made a gluten free version that always came out looking rather grey, so we called them moldy mice, a name that I've now realized is not all that appetizing to people outside our family. I think I like Dorie Greenspan's name the best, so these will be called powder puffs. These are traditionally made with pecans and can be made with or without citrus zest. L happens to love lime as much as I do, and it paired perfectly with buttery rich macademias, and earned the title of his favorite cookie!

Key Lime & Macademia Powder Puffs


1 cup macademia nuts, toasted until golden
1/4 cup sugar, divided
1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
pinch of ground green cardamom
1 stick (8 Tbsp) unsalted butter at room temperature
zest of 5 key limes (or one regular lime)
2 Tbsp key lime juice
1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup confectioners sugar

Grind nuts with 1 Tbsp of sugar with short pulses of a food processor, until they form a chunky paste. Add flour, salt and cardamom and pulse until well combined. Transfer to a small mixing bowl.

In the bowl of the food processor, combine butter and sugar. Pulse until creamy and pale. Add lime zest and juice. Pulse to combine. Add dry ingredients back in and use short pulses to mix until just combined (scraping the bowl as needed). Refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350. Line a large cookie sheet with Silpat or parchment paper. Ball up dough into small, bite sized spheres and place on cookie sheet (don't worry about spacing them too much, they don't spread a lot).

Bake 13-16 minutes or until slightly golden. Let cool on sheet 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. When just slightly warm, roll in confectioners sugar.




Garlic Lime Chicken with Grilled Red Onions


4 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp orange muscat vinegar (or other fruity vinegar)
3 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp crushed garlic
1 packet Baja Citrus marinade seasoning (McCormick makes this)
2 lbs. bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (you can use boneless but cook them for less time)

Combine marinade ingredients. Marinate at least 3 hours in the fridge.

Preheat grill on high. Start chicken on hottest part of the grill (if it flares up you may have to move it or turn down the heat). Cook over direct heat 5 minutes / side. Move to indirect heat, and continue to cook with grill lid down until the internal temperature reads 165 F on an instant-read thermometer (carryover will take it up almost another 10 degrees), about 30 minutes. Baste chicken periodically with marinade during cooking. Grill a halved lime alongside chicken (only about 1 minute on either side).


Grill onions in an oiled grill pan until charred, but still crunchy in parts. Transfer to a plate, top with chicken pieces and a squeeze of grilled lime.

Grilled Corn on the Cob


1 ear corn / person

Peel back husks and remove silks from corn. Replace husks back around the corn, removing the tougher ones on the outside.
Preheat grill to high and brush with oil. Place corn in husks on grill and cook, turning regularly, until husks begin to burn. take off grill and let cool.


Remove husks and knobby end part. Brush with some of the chicken marinade and return to grill over direct heat until lightly charred.



Coconut Lime Rice


1 13.5 oz can coconut milk (not light)
2 cups chicken broth
zest of one lime
2 kieffer lime leaves
2 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp chile powder
1 3/4 cups basmati or jasmine rice

Mix together all ingredients except rice in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium high heat. Add rice and return to a simmer. Turn heat down to low and pop a lid on it. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, about 20 minutes. Add chopped scallions or cilantro if desired (I didn't have any).



To serve:


Make a bed of rice on the bottom of a plate. Pile on grilled onions and chicken, place grilled corn alongside. Squeeze a grilled lime half down over the whole dish. Finish with a dash of salt.

Cream of the Crop

So I may have a penchant for heavy cream. Is that such a bad thing? OK so maybe it is- but it's so good. These are not dishes you should necessarily have every day. But they are lovely treats, and let's face it - summer produce just longs to be dressed in cream. This was an easy and delicious supper, and is equally delicious hot or cold.

Lemon Cream Bowties with Shrimp


1 tsp olive oil
1/2 large red onion, sliced
3 large cloves of garlic, crushed
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
zest and juice of 2 lemons
2/3 lb. small shrimp
1 cup frozen sweet peas
kernals of one cob of sweet corn
1 lb. cooked al dente mini farfalle (Barilla now makes Piccolini -tiny- pasta, perfect for pasta salads)
4 small plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
3 roasted red peppers, chopped
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
2 large scallions, sliced thin
2 Tbsp parsley, chopped fine
2 Tbsp basil chiffonade

Saute onion in olive oil over medium high heat until slightly softened. Add garlic and saute until it starts to brown. Add cream, then lemon zest and juice. Bring to a simmer. Simmer 15 minutes or until thickened. Add shrimp and peas, bring back to a simmer and add corn. Cook until shrimp starts to turn pink. Mix in other ingredients. Cook over medium low heat until pasta absorbs some of the sauce. Serve warm or chilled.





A tiramisu-like custard goes so well with sweet grilled peaches. The perfect summer dessert, this takes next to no time to make. You will only need about a cup and a half of the zabaglione at most - stay tuned to find out what to do with the rest!

Grilled Peach Tiramisu Parfaits



Mascarpone Zabaglione
8 oz mascarpone cheese
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 cup 1% milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp espresso powder
2/3 cup sugar, divided
5 egg yolks
2 Tbsp marsala wine
1 Tbsp dark rum
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp chocolate extract (optional - could sub chocolate liquor)

Combine cheese, cream, milk, salt, espresso powder and 1/3 cup sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk occasionally as mixture heats up. Meanwhile, whisk together remaining sugar and egg in a small bowl until it drops from the whisk in a ribbon. Once cream mixture starts to steam, ladle some into the egg mixture while whisking away furiously. This should temper the eggs. While whisking, add the egg mixture into the saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer (keep whisking!) until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and add remaining ingredients, mixing well. Bring to room temperature, then chill at least 2 hours.

3 white donut peaches, split down the middle along their length and pit removed (so that they are truely donut shaped)

1 Tbsp Godiva chocolate liquor
1 Tbsp amaretto
1 tsp espresso powder
1 tsp sugar
1/8 cup water
6 crisp Italian ladyfingers

Preheat a grill on high (make sure it was well cleaned with a wire brush!). Brush peaches with melted butter. Grill peaches briefly on each side.

Mix liquors, espresso powder, sugar and water together in a shallow dish. Break each ladyfinger in half. Briefly soak one full (2 halves) ladyfinger in liquor mixture, then place in the bottom of a parfait glass and cover with zabaglione. Add a peach half. Repeat with 2 more layers. (Makes 2)

The Art of Sun Worship

I have been known to wish that there were only two seasons in the year: fall and spring. I love mild to slightly cold weather and I have a equal aversion to muggy middays and frigid mornings. But were it not for summer, I would miss out on some of the best produce to be had. And when our Mid-Atlantic temperatures are regulated to high 70s during the day and 60s at night, I become a bit of a sun worshipper.


Tomatoes, corn, basil and zucchini all take on new layers of sweet flavor from the kiss of the warm summer sun, and jalapenos seem to suck the heat from the rays. These last days of summer call for lounging in a hammock in the shade with an icy glass of lemonade, long walks by the stream that rambles through the woods and making the most of the land's bounty by cooking it quickly and simply.


After a weekend of red meat and not-so-healthy (albeit tasty) food, I am craving vegetables. Today has been a vegatarian day for me, and my body already feels better. In a recent issue of Gourmet magazine, this recipe for jalapeno poppers caught my eye. While away this weekend, I had the privilege to raid the Skoda family garden, with permission to take as much as I could. I came home with sacks of vegetal booty, not least of all a bag of jalapenos. Finally a chance to try those poppers! These were the perfect midafternoon snack - but be forewarned - these are HOT. You will need a glass of milk and some soft bread so cut the burn. If you are not a chile-lover these are not for you. But if you're like me, they're a pleasant wake up call on a lazy day.


Jalapeno Poppers
adapted from Gourmet August 2008

9 freshly picked jalapenos
2/3 cup shredded 2% mexican cheese
1 Tbsp. Frank's Red Hot
1 tsp chile powder
1 tsp cumin
salt and pepper
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup seasoned Italian breadcrumbs
1 Tbsp oregano leaves, crumbled between your fingers
4 cups canola, vegetable or peanut oil


Cut each jalapeno open along one side, slitting from stem to point. Cut a small slit across the top under the stem, perpendicular to the first. Use a paring knife or your index finger to scrape out the seeds and ribs of the peppers, being careful not to split off any part of them. Rinse the insides of the peppers.

Mix together cheese, hot sauce and seasonings. Ready 2 shallow bowls, one with beaten eggs, one with breadcrumbs and oregano (well mixed). Stuff each pepper with cheese mixture, then dunk in egg and toss in breadcrumbs. Return to egg and again toss to coat with breadcrumbs. Set aside and repeat with other peppers.

Heat oil to 325 F in a deep narrow saucepan. Fry five peppers at a time until they are golden and rise to the top. Transfer to a cooling rack placed upside down atop paper towels. Repeat with remaining peppers. Serve immediately.




In addition to my spicy snack, Triple Creek Farm produce showed up in my dinner in the form of a fresh, light summer pizza. H's baseball bat zucchini is paired with a lovely pesto made from her thriving basil bushes. Maryland sweet white corn and plum tomatoes are worthy partners, and it all gets a little bite from brilliant red onion.



Summer Veggie Lovers Pizza


2 lbs of zucchini, seeded if necessary and cut into coins or half rings
1 cup Thai marinade (I used Wegman's but any brand will do)

3 cups fresh basil leaves
2/3 cup macadamia nuts
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp low-fat ricotta cheese
1 tsp freshly minced garlic
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder
3 Tbsp olive oil

one recipe pizza dough through both rises

8 oz fresh mozzarella, sliced thin
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 cup shredded Italian 4 cheese blend
1 cob sweet white corn, kernels removed
5 plum tomatoes, sliced thin
1/2 large red onion, sliced into thin half moons

Prepare zucchini and toss with marinade. Let marinate in fridge at least 2 hours or overnight. Preheat a grill on high. Use a grill pan to grill zucchini until moderately charred. Set aside.

Preheat oven with a pizza stone inside to 500 F for 30 minutes. Combine basil and macadamias in a food processor and pulse until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add cheeses, garlic and seasonings. Pulse until finely ground, then drizzle in olive oil while food processor is running. Set aside.

Roll or stretch pizza dough to stone size on a floured surface. Make sure all other ingredients are prepped. When pizza stone is preheated, remove from oven (carefully!) and place dough on hot stone. After a couple of minutes the dough should release from the stone. Flip crust before topping (this seals the dough's surface, preventing mushy crust).

Spread pesto sauce onto "toasted" surface. Top with grilled zucchini in one even layer. Distribute cheeses evenly, and follow with corn kernels. Lay down tomato slices in an even layer and top with onion.

Return pizza stone to oven and let cook 20-30 minutes, or until crust is crisp, tomatoes and onions caramelize and cheese is bubbly. Slice and serve.

Sushi - Deconstructed

I love sushi - but I'd rather leave the work to the experts. I'm not sure I could roll it tightly enough or balance the ingredients in the correct proportions. Tonight I had a sushi craving, but no desire to head off to the nearest (not-so-nearby) sushi bar. Luckily, I always have a couple frozen tuna steaks on hand, as well as a stash of pickled ginger and a very ripe avocado.

So we had pacific rolls without the roll: Chewy seasoned brown rice, tender strips of tuna steak - grilled to medium rare, slices of buttery avocado and pungent pink strips of ginger. If you enjoy sushi, this is a meal sent from heaven. Not to mention it's good for you - with the tuna and avocado providing heart healthy fats including omega-3s, the rice providing fiber and nutrients and the ginger's antibiotic properties.

Deconstructed Pacific Roll



2 cups vegetable stock
1 tsp sesame oil
2 Tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp ponzu sauce
1 Tbsp wasabi powder
1 Tbsp Japanese rice seasoning I like one with Nori strips, sesame seeds, bonito flakes and salt

1 cup brown, mahogany and wild rice medley

2 tuna steaks, brushed with olive oil and grilled until medium rare (no more than one minute on each side)

1 avocado, split, pitt removed and sliced thin then scooped from the skin

4 oz. pickled ginger

good quality teriyaki sauce such as Soy Vay
ponzu sauce
Japanese rice seasoning



Combine stock, oil, vinegar, ponzu and seasonings in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Stir in rice, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 50-60 minutes, or until rice is cooked through and liquid has been absorbed.

Let the tuna rest for at least 5 minutes after it comes off the grill. Then slice thin, against the grain and arrange each steak atop a bed of rice. Add 1/2 sliced avocado to each, along with a small pile of pickled ginger. Drizzle with teriyaki and/or ponzu and sprinkle with seasoning.