Winter Slaw

I know we're all ready for spring, but the truth is there's still no spring vegetables or anything out there. It might feel warmer today, but I'm still in winter eating mode. 

I saw this on a recent rerun of Barefoot Contessa and thought it looked delicious, although it’s possible I was confusing the salad with its creator, Tyler Florence. 
 

Either way, it was simple, not too heavy on the ingredients, and the perfect accompaniment to a light Monday night dinner after boozing and hitting restaurants all weekend. 

 

 

Winter Slaw, from Tyler Florence

Serves 6-8

 

6 oz Brussels sprouts, trimmed, halved, cored

6 large kale leaves, rib removed

½ small head radicchio, cored

¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ cup good olive oil

1 tsp kosher salt

½ tsp black pepper

1 cup dried cranberries

1 6-oz chunk of good Parmesan cheese*

 

Cut the Brussels sprouts, kale, and radicchio into very thin strips and combine in a bowl. 

 

Whisk together lemon juice, oil, salt, and pepper. Pour on the dressing and add cranberries.

 

Using a vegetable peeler, shave the chunk of Parmesan into thin shards.

 

Toss, and serve relatively soon. This can’t be made in advance as the lemon juice will change the color of the greens.   

 

 

*If it comes in a green can it is NOT good!!! Buy a real chunk of Locatelli, imported from Italy, and grind that shit yourself. Don’t get me started on Parmesan.

Buffalo Wings

Kind of randomly, buffalo wings were one of the first recipes I ever learned to make.  When I was a teenager, my parents finished the basement and in late high school and college breaks, I used to love having people over. My group of friends is heavy on the men, so buffalo wings were a staple.

My mom taught me using the recipe she's used for years, the "original" one, supposedly, that she clipped from an issue of Good Housekeeping from before I was born.

This is one of those recipes that's best kept simple; doctoring it up with too much junk doesn't do you any favors. 

Classic Buffalo Wings
Serves 6 as an appetizer

3 lbs wings
2 tbsp oil
Salt
Pepper
Garlic salt
Paprika
4 tbsp butter
1/2 cup Frank's Red Hot (must be Frank's)
1 1/2 tbsp white vinegar
Celery sticks
Carrot sticks
Ranch or blue cheese dressing

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cut the wings into 3 pieces- the flat, the drumstick, and the wing tip. I find it's easiest to bend the joints in the wrong direction to loosen them, and then to just chop through with a scissor. Or, you can ask your butcher to handle this for you. Discard wing tips or reserve for stock.

Arrange wing pieces on a foil lined baking sheet. Coat with oil, then sprinkle over with the salt, pepper, garlic salt, and paprika. I don't measure this, I just eyeball it- it's not rocket science.

Bake for one hour, turning over halfway through.

Just before wings are done, combine butter, hot sauce, and white vinegar in a saucepan.  Heat through to melt butter. Stir to combine, then add wings and toss to coat.

Arrange wings on platter with dressing of choice and carrot and celery sticks.

These will be gone before you can blink.

Fashion Friday: Crop Tops

I’m tiptoeing into the crop top trend for spring. I’m not really a fan of excessive skin, or belly shirts, but done right I think this trend looks great- very fresh.  The key is covering up your belly button to just show a slice of skin.

 

I like the pairing best three ways: with a maxi skirt, a pencil skirt, or layered over a button down. 

 

Here’s some inspiration on how to wear. My favorite is, of course, the pencil skirt idea, though I think the maxi or layered look translates better to my actual life.  

 

What’s your thoughts on crop tops?

 

Sources: 1  //  2  //  3

Sources: 1  //  2  //  3

Source: 1  //  2  //  3

Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus with Homemade Mayo

There are certain friends you can do anything with. That’s how it is with me and Jenn- she can always text me with some random suggestion and I’m always up for it, and vice versa. We’ve taken cake decorating classes together, done crafts, and both find it helpful to plot out stores to visit in malls before we actually go shopping. 

One afternoon where we were both off from work, she decided we needed to try making mayo from scratch. Not something I had ever considered before, and definitely not a phone call I’d get from everyone, but sure, why not? 

We used the food processor and after wasting 2 cups of oil, gave up. But Jenn got it right later on, and raved about how good it was. 

Months later, I decided to finally try it out on my own. It was so simple- 1 egg yolk, 1 cup of oil, salt, and a whisk-induced arm workout.  The mayo was delicious, with a lighter texture than the bottled stuff and a more delicate flavor from the olive oil.

I took the liberty of flavoring my mayo with lemon, parsley, and capers, and I used it as a topping for roasted potatoes and asparagus. It was sooo good. This is perfect dinner party fare, or would make a delicious side for a spring holiday meal. 

Roasted Potatoes and Asparagus with Homemade Caper Mayo

Serves 4-6 as a side dish

2 lbs fingerling potatoes (I used a mixed color variety bag)

1 bundle fresh asparagus

Olive oil

Flaky sea salt

Freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 425 and line an aluminum sheet pan with foil. 

Slice potatoes in half or in quarters if very large. Drizzle with olive oil, add salt and pepper to taste.  Place on sheet pan and roast for 35 minutes.

While potatoes cook, prepare asparagus. Snap them at the ends to remove the woody part of the stems, and then cut the spears into 2 inch lengths.

At 35 minutes, add asparagus to pan with potatoes and roast another 10 minutes. 

Place on serving platter and dollop with mayo, recipe follows. 

For the mayo, basic recipe from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters:

1 egg yolk

1/2 tsp water

1 cup mild olive oil

1 tbsp lemon juice 
Pinch of salt

Caper Parsley Flavoring:
1 tbsp capers

¼ cup flat leaf parsley leaves

½ tsp grated garlic (you can use more, I just don’t love an intense garlic flavor)

Additional lemon juice to taste

Flaky sea salt and pepper to taste

Whisk together egg yolk and water in a small bowl. Add the oil in tiny drips, whisking constantly. You have to add it very, very slowly in order to create the emulsion. It is annoying, but go drop by drop at first.  After a minute or two, you will see everything start to thicken up and an emulsion form. Once that happens, you can add the oil a little faster, in a slow stream.  Keep whisking constantly; the process will take about 5 minutes. (Not actually that long, but it feels long!)

Once your mayo’s done, you can add the flavors. Chop together your parsley and capers. Add to mayo along with garlic. Taste, and add salt, pepper, and additional lemon juice as desired. Can be made ahead. Flavors will intensify as it sits; mayo will last about a week in fridge.

Experiment with this- try adding different herbs, spices, etc. You can create chipotle mayos, smoky mayos, arugula mayos- have fun!

Ash Wednesday

Source

This year for Lent, I’m giving up the what-ifs. 

 

I used to give up chocolate, year after year. I’d miss it at first, forget about it, eat it on Easter, and move on.  It was not exactly the most spiritual experience.

 

Then one year, Jenn’s priest uncle gave me a copy of a Lenten reflection book: short stories taken from the news or pop culture, paired with a Bible quote and a few questions for reflection. For Lent that year, I went through each daily reflection and actually wrote down my answers. 

 

It was the first time I really got something out of Lent.  I became more aware of where I needed to improve, and aware of how God factored into the little things of everyday life I usually kept separate from Him. By Easter it felt like there was something to celebrate, something in how God’s presence and lessons make us better.

 

Since then I try to avoid aimless giving up of things and work on something more productive. Some years are better than others. 

 

This year, I’m tackling my worry and how it relates to a lack of trust in God.  I’m giving up my what-ifs:

 

What if I get a stomach virus? What if I go blind? What if I pass out at the gym? What if I screw up at work? What if I offended my friend? What if that person doesn’t really like me? What if something happens to my husband/mother/family/friend/etc? What if my car doesn’t start? What if this restaurant gives me food poisoning? What if I have kids and something bad happens to them? What if I never have kids? What if I get cancer? What if I’m stuck working in New York the rest of my life? What if I’m not and I have to start over again at another job? What if I slip and fall in the snow? What if the car crashes, or the plane crashes or…you get it. 

 

What if….I just stopped living this way?

 

What if I remembered that events go according to God’s plans, whether or not I like it, whether or not I understand it? 

 

What if I realized that worrying and trying to look for proof or answers to things was just a false security system, and not real peace? 

 

Real peace would be trusting God more, right? And they say God’s hands are the safest place to be, so why is this so hard for me? 

 

Worrying can sometimes be okay- worrying before a meeting forces me to work hard to get my facts straight before presenting. Worrying about buying a house forces us to budget and save. It’s got a place, for sure, but personally I’m bogged down in a lot of regular unproductive worry. 

 

So that’s what I’m giving up, the what-ifs, the looking for answers, trying to predict the future. I’m giving up trying to worry about every little thing. When I feel a what-if pop into my head, I will remind myself that it is God’s decision, and force myself to let it go.

 

I’m hoping by the end of Lent my God-reminder thought replacement will work, that at the very least the default setting of my brain will be a little more trusting, and not always so ready  to jump to the worst conclusion. 

 

We will see! Anyone else giving things up? Anyone doing something normal like cheese or shopping?

Workout Wear: Melon and Teal

My latest shopping addiction is workout gear. I'm making a list of some new things to get, and loving this crazy color combo of melon and teal with gray: 

Capris, Gap, $55  //  Tank, Old Navy, $15 //  Half-zip, Athleta, $74  //  Headphones, X-1 Audio  //  Sneakers, Nike, $55  //  Waterbottle, Nathan, $20

Shrimp and Israeli Couscous Salad with Basil Oil

I am one of those people who look at a picture or title in a cookbook, and then decide what the recipe is without actually reading it. I am the polar opposite of my mother, who will line up every last teaspoon of ingredients in little bowls before proceeding. The only time I ever really follow a recipe is with baking. 

I really shouldn’t do this, since I could be missing out on great recipes, but a lot of times I invent something pretty damn good. 

This is one of those recipes. I was flipping through a Mario Batali cookbook when I came upon a recipe for shrimp with white beans and mint oil.  I wanted to make it for dinner, but inspection of my pantry revealed I was missing some key ingredients, namely, the white beans and mint, as well as some rosemary called for in the recipe.  

So I subbed couscous, and oregano, and basil, and came up with this, a quick and easy weeknight dinner. (Seriously. I know it has three parts and that basil oil sounds like a project, but this whole thing comes together in about 20 minutes). 

Shrimp and Israeli Couscous Salad with Basil Oil
12 jumbo shrimp
1 ½ cups Israeli couscous
1 ¾ cups chicken stock
4 cups arugula
Zest of one lemon
¼ cup kalamata olives, chopped

For the vinaigrette:
Juice of one lemon
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp Dijon mustard
¼ tsp dried oregano
Splash red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your broiler to high.  

Whisk together all vinaigrette ingredients and set aside. Adjust according to your taste, I like mine a bit on the tangy side, but if you don’t, just use more oil and less lemon. 

Combine couscous and chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, and simmer 8-10 minutes until done. 

While couscous cooks, combine arugula, lemon zest, and olives in a serving bowl and line a baking sheet with foil. Arrange shrimp on it, drizzle with olive oil and salt. Broil for a minute or two on each side, until pink. 

When couscous is done, pile in the center of serving bowl. Drizzle couscous and arugula mix with lemon vinaigrette, then top with the broiled shrimp. Drizzle shrimp with basil oil, recipe follows.

Serve immediately.

To serve as a cold salad, refrigerate and cool everything separately so that arugula doesn’t wilt, and combine before serving.  

Basil Oil, from Epicurious:
½ cup basil leaves
¾ cup olive oil
Flaky sea salt

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. While it boils, fill a bowl with ice water. 

When boiling, drop your basil leaves in for 30 seconds or so, just until they turn bright green. Lift them out and drop immediately into ice water to stop the cooking, then drain and arrange on paper towels to dry. 

In a blender or food processor, combine basil and oil and puree. Remove to a small bowl, add sea salt to taste, and set aside. Will last 3 days in fridge. 

You can adapt this method for most leafy herbs- parsley, mint, tarragon, etc.