The Summer, in Food

After weeks of hot, hot, hot, and dry, dry, dry, the summer is giving way to chilly breezes and cloudy rainy days.  A few of the leaves have put on their fall coats, and we'll be soon to follow.  My dresses feel already out of season, though I was wearing them just a few weeks ago.  And that day at the beach feels so far away.  It has become time for apples, pumpkins, squash, turkey, and so many soups.

But first...a salute to the foods of summer.  What wonderful days of eating!  Of farmer's markets and fresh fruits!

 

Strawberry Rhubarb pie-- from the first fresh fruits of the year!

So much caprese salad!

Fourth of July fruit tray

Homemade rolls left outside in the summer heat to proof...
they actually started to bake!!

Watermelon pad thai, artisan salami with watermelon relish, watermelon julep,

and watermelon sorbet for dessert.

(We had a lot of watermelon to use up.)

The ubiquitous basil:
Today on top of hummus.

Until next year, dear basil and tomatoes!  Until next year, blueberries and watermelon!  Until next year, hot, hot sun!

Now, how shall I welcome fall?  With Kürbissuppe (pumpkin soup)? Apple cider?
What are your favorite fall foods?

Sugar and Milk Substitute in One

In my attempt to live sugar-free these last couple weeks, I had to be creative with my morning cereal.  I usually start the day with a bowl of oats, with honey, fruit, and occasionally, pieces of chocolate.

After a few days of “sugar-free,” this non-sweet oatmeal was getting less and less appetizing.  So one day I tried making “banana milk”.  Basically, banana and water put into a blender and turned into a thick liquid that is at once the sugar and milk for my breakfast.

In a blender, mix:

1 banana

2 T to ¼ cup water

(Best  when chilled.  Make ahead of time and refrigerate or use frozen bananas to achieve “cold milk.”)

“Chocolate Milk” Variation: Add a little unsweetened cocoa powder.

On turning 25

For my 25^th

I wanted to do something to mark the time.  25 years on Earth, a quarter century, surely I have learned something in that time?  So I wrote down 25 “lessons” as they came to my mind.

1.    Crying is a signal that can bring people to your aid.
2.    When at first you can’t walk forward, try, try again.
3.    A new addition to the family is a cause for excitement.  Even if you later learn it means you have to start sharing your room.
4.    Grandma make things special.  And pudding is the best thing.
5.    If you have to pee, go to the bathroom.
6.    Doing what you’re told means you get desserts.
7.    Books are awesome.  So are the Boxcar Children.
8.    If you can convince your younger brother that your stuffed animals are following you around and are hungry, you can eat pieces of his cookie for them.
9.    Family reunions have the best spread of food.  And, (I have cousins who can back me up here), the girls’ fort was always the best.
10.    Temper tantrums do not get you want you want.
11.    If you ask for one more year of childhood, you might get it.
12.    Nutri-grain bars are not a replacement for chocolate chip cookies.
13.    The tuba is the best instrument.
14.    The first kiss is just as exciting as you thought it would be.
15.    Sometimes “best friends forever” friendships don’t last.
16.    It’s easier to be yourself in the dark.
17.    When it’s time to move on, you’ll know.
18.    Care packages mean a lot.  So do parents who will drive 3 hours just to pick you up for a visit home.
19.    When it feels like you’re floating through life and nothing in the world could ever go wrong again, you might be in love.
20.    Sometimes things you think will be hard are at once harder and easier than you thought they could be.
21.    Being able to drink alcohol doesn’t make you an adult.  (But what does?)
22.    If you haven’t given up, that means that you still believe that the answer you seek exists.
23.    Sometimes you don’t get to decide what you want.  Sometimes you just know: this will make me happy, and you have to go for it.
24.    Life changes in unexpected ways.  Life changes you in unexpected ways.
25.    The more you learn, the more you realize you don’t know.

Vegan Crepes or Pancakes with Berry Compote

What happens when there are no eggs in the fridge and you crave crepes?  This was my question this morning.  So I did some experimentation on my crepes recipe, with great success!  Granted, they ended up more like pancakes than crepes, but I skipped a step...

Vegan Crepes (or Pancakes) with Berry Compote

Makes: 4 servings, about 6 pancakes

Ingredients:
3/4 cup all-purpose or wheat flour
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1 cup milk (regular, soy, rice, your choice)
1/4 t  salt
2 T  butter or oil

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, mix together all ingredients.
2. Beat until smooth.  Batter should be reasonably thick, not watery.
3. Heat a lightly oiled skillet to medium high.*
4. Pour 1/4 cup batter onto pan.
5. Tilt the pan in a circular motion to help the batter spread out (if you want crepes.  I skipped this step, which I think is why my crepes turned out like thin pancakes.)

6. Cook until bottom is light brown, 1-2 minutes, and flip.
7. Cook the other side.
8. Serve hot with your choice of toppings: berry compote, goat cheese, almond butter, maple syrup, etc.

*If you are making berry compote, put it on the stove while you are waiting for the pan to heat.

For Berry Compote:

 Ingredients:
1 cup frozen berries of your choosing
1 1/2 T water
2 T sugar or honey
1 t lemon juice

 Directions:
1. Put half of berries, the water, sugar, and lemon juice in a pan.
2. Cook over low to medium heat for 10 minutes.
3. Add the rest of the berries and cook 8 minutes more, stirring frequently.

(recipe adapted from: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/blueberry-compote-recipe/index.html)

Food Photography 101

Saturday morning at work, my coworker Rose brought in this gorgeous cake, and I first learned that some people make a career in food photography.

I love taking photos of food, and this just inspired me to practice!  My boyfriend also just happened to be planning to cook a special four course dinner for us that night, in honor of his first day of vacation (a week's staycation).  He thought it would be fun to make it a surprise and try a couple new recipes, so I stayed out of the kitchen and waited in anticipation.  When we sat down to dinner, he brought out each course in turn.  We are big foodies, so with each course he brought out he told me what was in it and where the ingredients were from.

Course 1: Caprese Salad with Homemade Bread

Fresh mozzarella, made in Wisconsin, Farmer's Market tomatoes and basil, with olive oil and a balsamic reduction.

Whole wheat bread made from locally farmed wheat, half hour away


Course 2: Lemon sorbet

Simple syrup and farmer's market lemons (a thing I didn't think was possible in Wisconsin), with local fresh mint on top.


Main Course: Salmon en Croute

Fresh, never frozen wild-caught salmon from Alaska (He tried to get trout, which would have been more local, but they didn't have any),

 

Homemade sauces, front to back:

Shrimp mousse, made with farmer's market shrimp from his grandmother's recipe

Goat cheese and fresh basil

Arugula, tatsoi, and sprinach with yogurt

Course 4: Dessert

 Played a guessing game with this one.  Clues I was given:

-Calorie heavy, you won't need much of it (hence it is small)

-Lots of preparation went into it

-Something I wanted and would really like

-Sweetest thing I could think to make for you

-Local and organic

I also listened to it, and tried to smell it, when prompted, but couldn't guess...

...that this was inside!

Of course I said yes!!!

And was glad I like taking pictures of food! :-)

Skirmish

It looked like the scene of an abandoned picnic.
The thieves had come in the night
Only to be discovered in the morning.

Thus began the battle--
And the enemy's reinforcements kept
coming and coming.

But in the end, I emerged victorious.
Plate of cookie crumbs in one hand--
And a living room that was, for now
Free of ants.

{Whenever I think of this poem, "The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny" song starts playing in my head.)

Never Enough Thyme

It’s 3am and I find myself unable to sleep.  I realized that summer is, once more, slipping through my fingers.  It’s happening out there, right now, and I am not taking advantage of it!  Sure, I have a few more days before the official "First Day of Summer,” but what counts is the weather, and the weather right now is warm and sunny.  More importantly, not TOO warm and sunny.  (The forecasted 90+ temps may change my mind on that).

This happens every year, sometimes as early as April or May, other times not until July.  But what does that even mean, taking advantage of summer?  I haven’t really spent good chunks of time outside since I was seven.  So I write down a list, my “summer goals.”

Plant a Garden: I have wanted to do this, in theory, for years.  But each year I make excuses: “I live in an apartment!”  “I didn’t get started soon enough!”  “I don’t know what I am doing!”

It’s the last one that always gets me.  It’s lovely to think of fresh produce I grew myself, and to fondly remember helping my dad in the garden, planting and weeding and picking tomatoes right as the salad is being made to toss them into.  But how do I get started?  There is too much to know, too many mistakes to make.   But if I could raise just one little basil plant, I would call it a garden and I would be proud.

Camping: Years of experience have taught me that if I can get myself to go camping just once a summer, that is a success.  It is such a gamble: the weather, the bugs, the inevitable “Oh no, I forgot the can opener!” moments . . . it seems like it is too much work to be worth it.  Then every time, I lament rolling up the tent and driving away.  I vow that I will go camping again soon!  Soon.  Well, you can see how well that works for me.

Farmer’s Markets: In the summer of 2010, farmer’s markets were the highlight of my week.  Seeing friends, enjoying live music, wine tasting—it was all my entertainment for the week in one evening, plus my grocery shopping!  Since then, my jobs have kept me from indulging my farmer’s market habit, but I still look forward to it every year, hopefully.

Outdoor Concerts: Childhood impressions, they just stick.  For me, that was the Sunday evening band concerts in the park.  In those days, I spent most of them playing in the nearby bushes, making houses or forts.  But it is the music and community that I remember and miss, and every summer I was home I made sure to go at least once.  When I move to a new city and learn that they have outdoor concerts, I am glad to hear it, but I never go.  Is the joy in the place, the concert, or the memory?

Other things I feel a summer is lacking without: picnics, ice cream, a hike in the woods, lots of walks, a cookout, stopping to smell the flowers, swimming, s’mores

What is essential to your summer?