Linger Longer

It was a pretty crappy week overall, but now that the sun is finally shining and it's such a gorgeous day, I think it's about time to enjoy a refreshing summer beverage. It's 5:00 somewhere right? Or maybe that doesn't count when you can just go out for brunch...

Anyway, Aperol, an Italian bitter orange aperitif, has for years been the darling of bartenders and food bloggers alike and I've finally gotten on board. When I was in Denver this past spring, my sister and I paid a visit to a restaurant called Linger for a leisurely lunch. (Makes sense right? And Erin had the day off.) The menu was delish, filled with lots of international small bites (for lack of a better description). I was on vacation and it was after noon, so I ordered a drink called La Rosa, a mix of St. Germain, Aperol, lemon juice and Prosecco. Since we were sitting on the roof deck of the restaurant (formerly a mortuary called Olinger), much to my chagrin they served it in a plastic cup. Ugh. I hate that. But it was a really fantastic bevie in spite of the vessel in which it arrived. I've done a pretty good job recreating it here over ice (if I do say so myself) but my memory of it is somehow better. Maybe it was the vacation mentality. Or mortuary.

Erin, quizzing the waitress about why my drink is so much better than hers and can she please have what I am having. What? No, don't worry. We are not going to drive. First we are going to walk to REI, then over the highway, then to Patagucci, then up the pedestrian mall and then we will be so tired that we will take the free shuttle back almost all the way to the car so, by that time, we will have completely sweat out any alcohol that we might have imbibed. Or maybe she was just asking about the sesame bbq kobe short rib tacos.



Lovely To Olinger

2 ounces Aperol
1 ounce St. Germain
1 ounce fresh lemon juice
Prosecco
Ice
Lemon peel

1. Add the Aperol, St. Germain and fresh lemon juice to a cocktail shaker along with plenty of ice. Shake vigorously. 
2. Fill a rocks glass with fresh ice and strain the Aperol drink over it. Top with Prosecco and a lemon peel. Makes one drink.

Food for Thought

Indeed.

Pasta, Beaches and Vampires. Oh My.

I hope that everyone had a very happy Fourth of July! I decided not to create a recipe for the occasion because, taking place on a Wednesday and having to wake up for work the next morning, it didn't really inspire me to do much. Oh well.

Luckily I did make it to the beach last week and thoroughly enjoyed a fantastic lobster roll at Banzai Burger. Get thee to that restaurant stat. Everything that I had was super delish, including a wild striped bass fish taco. Obviously I had to have an appetizer before my lobster roll. Duh.

Since my beach excursion I haven't gotten around to doing any shopping so the contents of my fridge and cupboards are at a minumum. This pasta recipe has minimal ingredients and since I happen to always have walnuts and garlic on hand  (random I know), it was perfect for me. And the extra added garlic will keep vampires at bay.



Speaking of which, is anyone else as not into True Blood this season as me? I am starting to get a little bit bored (even with the addition of Chris Meloni) and when I thought I had missed an episode with this weird work week, I didn't really care. And that made me sad. C'mon True Blood. Get it together!



Pasta with Ricotta, Garlic and Walnuts
Adapted from Martha Stewart

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 large garlic cloves
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pound dried pasta
1 cup packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, divided
2 heaping tablespoons finely grated lemon zest (from 3 large lemons)
4 ounces walnuts, toasted well and roughly chopped (1 1/4 cups)
1 cup fresh ricotta cheese

1. Heat the oil in a medium pan over medium heat until shimmering. Meanwhile, very thinly slice the garlic. Add to the oil, and cook, stirring constantly, until garlic is pale golden brown and crisp, about 3 minutes. Drain the garlic chips in a sieve set over a large bowl. Reserve the oil. Spread the garlic chips on paper towels; season with salt.

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta until just barely al dente. Drain. Add the pasta to the oil, and toss. Partially cover, and let cool at least 20 minutes and up to 1 1/2 hours.

3. Roughly chop 3/4 cup parsley leaves, and add them with the lemon zest and walnuts to the pasta. Toss to combine. Dot with the cheese, and season with salt and pepper. Toss gently to combine, being careful not to fully incorporate cheese. Garnish with remaining parsley leaves, and serve with garlic chips. Serves 6.

Just Beachy

Wishing you were at the beach, enjoying some super tasty, fresh lobster? Me too. Why not fake a lobster roll with shrimp instead? It might not be the same, especially the relaxing at the beach part, but if you close your eyes tightly and try really hard, you can convince yourself otherwise. And it's actually quite delish, in spite of having to use mayo to dress it up. I'm so not a fan, but in this instance, it's an absolute recipe requirement. Incidentally I did actually see some nice looking lobster tails at Whole Foods last week, but my experience with their "fresh" fish has been iffy at best. Sorry. I love you Whole Foods, but your seafood offerings are seriously lacking in the quality department. I might have passed on the lobster this time, but not the beach. I will be there next weekend!

• 
  
• Shrimp Salad
• 
  
• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and cooked
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon minced red onion
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh chives
• 2 stalks celery, finely diced
• 1/3 cup good quality mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Lettuce or toasted hot dog or brioche buns

1. Divide the shrimp into two piles. Chop one pile into fine pieces and chop the other roughly, leaving large pieces. Place in a large mixing bowl.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, onion, chives, celery, mayonnaise, salt and pepper. Add to the bowl of shrimp and stir to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve over greens or on toasted, buttered hot dog buns. Serves 4.

Summer Snow

I have never been more glad to have named my blog so appropriately. Not only have I not been cooking, I haven't been roasting, baking, grilling or even stirring (not even a coffee!) for at least two weeks, maybe longer. Don't worry. I have been eating. A lot. Just other people's food. Like at the new restaurant, NoMad.

I was lucky enough to have enjoyed a fabulous dinner there a few weeks ago, coincidentally just after I spotted the chef-partner's snow pea salad recipe published in New York magazine. I decided to make it in anticipation of my visit, to see how well I followed directions and how closely my version resembled the professional version. I didn't do too badly...aside from my lack of precise knife skills (or the desire to create the perfect julienne), my use of bacon (in excess!), and ignoring the lemon oil request, it was pretty, pretty good.

Snow-Pea Salad
Adapted from New York

For the lemon vinaigrette:
3/4 cup lemon oil (or extra-virgin olive oil)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

For the salad:
1 pound snow peas
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup white onion, finely diced
1/3 cup pancetta (or slab bacon), finely diced
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup packed mint leaves, washed
Pecorino, to garnish

1. For the lemon vinaigrette: In a bowl, whisk together the lemon oil and lemon juice and season with salt. Reserve.

2. For the snow-pea salad: Trim the ends of the snow peas, and remove the strings. Slice lengthwise into a fine julienne. Soak in ice water to crisp for about 3 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until very soft (about 10 minutes), then add the pancetta (or bacon) and cook until the fat starts to render.

4. Drain the snow peas, and dry completely on paper towels. Place the snow peas in a large bowl along with the onion and pancetta, and dress with enough vinaigrette to just coat the snow peas. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and finish with the mint leaves and shaved Pecorino. Serves 4.

Lentils. Again.

And...here is yet another post on lentils. I can't help myself. According to my list o' labels I have posted about lentils eight times before, if I am to be trusted with accuracy. I'm not...so it's probably even more. 

Some people eat cereal for dinner. I eat lentils. A lot. I've never tried making a lentil dip like this before, but recently came across versions in at least 3 different magazines so I took it as a sign to increase my lentil intake. And even though I used almond butter instead of cashew butter, it was still super tasty. If you like hummus. And lentils.

Lentil Hummus

1 cup brown or green lentils
1/4 cup cashew (or almond) butter
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 garlic clove, finely grated
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, as desired
Coarse salt
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Pita chips or veggies for serving

1. Bring 8 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the lentils, reduce the heat and gently simmer until tender, about 30 minutes. 

2. Drain the lentils, and let cool completely, about 30 minutes. (Lentils can be made 1 day ahead and refrigerated.)

3. Place the cashew butter, lemon juice, garlic, hot sauce, and 1 teaspoon of salt in a food processor, and process until combined. Add the lentils and process until smooth, about 2 minutes. With the motor running, add 2 teaspoons of oil, and process until incorporated. Transfer to a bowl, and chill if desired. Drizzle with remaining oil and serve with pita chips. Makes about 2 cups.

Super Salad

Every other day there's a new super food that we're supposed to be eating so that we can become more powerful than a locomotive and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Those aren't quite my life goals, but I figured that I'd give forbidden rice (black rice) a try anyway. This ancient grain was supposedly once eaten exclusively by the Emperors of China. I think I qualify! Forbidden rice is chock full o' good stuff like anthocyanins (an antioxidant also found in blueberries) iron, 18 amino acids and a bunch of other nutrients. It also tastes great and looks pretty cool too. Check out my before and after pictures below.


Forbidden Rice - Dry


Forbidden Rice - Cooked

Since summer is officially approaching with Memorial Day weekend bearing down on us, I thought a cold rice salad might be a good way to sample this super rice (and is an excellent grill-and-chill side dish). Sticking with my Emperors of China theme, I made a toasted sesame oil and tamari (soy sauce) dressing, added in some extra color with snow peas and mango and finished with cashews for crunch. Delish. I may not exactly feel like donning a cape, but I will be making this again.



Emperors of China Forbidden Rice Salad

1 cup Forbidden Rice®
1 3/4 cups water
Salt
8 ounces snow peas
1 mango, diced (see photos below)
1 1/2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon tamari
2 scallions, chopped
3/4 cup chopped roasted and salted cashews

1. Cook the rice: Bring the rice, water and a pinch of salt to a boil in a medium saucepan. Cover and reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes, until the rice is tender and the water is absorbed. Remove to a large bowl to cool to room temperature.

2. Prepare the snow peas: In a medium saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to a boil with a pinch of salt. Add the snow peas and cook (blanch) for one minute. Drain into a colander and rinse under cold water until the snow peas are cool. Remove to a cutting board and roughly chop.

3. Prepare the mango: Stand the mango on a cutting board stem end down. Cut through the mango just off center down one side of the pit. Repeat on the other side. Take one half and use a knife to make a cross hatch pattern, without cutting through the skin.



Turn the mango piece inside out and, using a pairing knife, run it along to skin to remove the pieces.



4. Make the salad: In a small bowl whisk together the sesame oil and tamari. Add to the rice followed by the snow peas, mango and scallions. Add the cashews only if serving immediately. Toss thoroughly. (For make ahead salads, do not add the cashews until just before serving to avoid softening.) Serves 4 as a side dish or appetizer. (Recipe can easily be doubled to serve more.)