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The Flavor Project

 

Meyer lemons from the Lemon Ladies

Meyer lemons, which are great for making preserved lemons.

Over the years, I’ve encountered ingredients that have intrigued, delighted, and/or piqued my interest and palate, but for some reason, I only just considered them or enjoyed them for a short time, usually at the time I’ve tasted them. I’ve decided that I’d like to spend a little more time with some of those ingredients, getting to know them, learning about each for month or so, and of course, cooking with them. Here’s the list:

  • Berbere
  • Pomegranate Molasses
  • Fresh Turmeric
  • Bergamot
  • Tamarind
  • Yuzu
  • Preserved Lemon
  • Kaffir Lime Leaf
  • Cilantro
  • Bitter Melon
  • Black Vinegar
  • Kimchi

Interestingly enough, many of these sit on the tart/tang side of the flavor spectrum, but this does not surprise me. Normally I don’t care for bitter things, but I’d love to learn to at least appreciate bitter melon, and see this more as a challenge with the hope that I’ll even learn to like it.

The first item on the list is berbere, which is, of course, a significant element in Ethiopian food, one of my favorite global cuisines. When I lived in Berkeley, I ate a lot of Ethiopian/Eritrean food; here in NYC, it’s not as prevalent, or so it seems. For years I’ve told myself I’d learn to make berbere, so why not start with that? I’ve also got a bag of teff that is calling to me to make injera, too. More on this in future posts.

Here’s to starting a new food project!

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Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

naked tomatillos
Naked tomatillos

One of my favorite summer vegetables – apart from tomatoes – is the tomatillo. Tomatillos are those seemingly green tomatoes that grow with a papery husk around them… but they are not unripe green tomatoes at all! They are actually really different from tomatoes.

tomatillos from El Poblano Farm
With their husks on

They are in the nightshade family – just as tomatoes, potatoes, and eggplants are – but resemble ground cherries more than tomatoes. They are more solid than tomatoes, sometimes a little sticky under their husk, full of tiny seeds and have a tangy taste. They are also very high in pectin, and that helps to thicken salsa verde. Some people like to eat them raw but I don’t care for them that way.

Continue reading “Roasted Tomatillo Salsa”

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CSA Bounty – Week Two

We had another week without radishes, but with plenty of lettuce. Last year we got a head each week for almost the entire season; I wonder if this year will be the same.  I will eat a large salad tonight.  This week we got:

week 2 menu

The strawberries were better this week than last week, I think, which is kind of like saying we got 12 oz of gold this week over last week’s 11.5 oz.  Both weeks have brought us amazing strawberries. We ate them for breakfast this morning with some cantaloupe I cut up last night.

strawberries week 2

This week’s lettuce head was a leaf lettuce in a very unusual color – kind of the color of manzanita wood.

red lettuce

We got cilantro this week!  Also dried black beans.  I’m thinking of making a black bean salad tonight with them both.

cilantro

bagging black beans

I have a share of beans and grains from Cayuga Organics, which grow the best beans I’ve ever had.  Their grains are also amazing.

We also got asparagus – I think we are at the end of the season.

asparagus

Last night I had some of it and it was so good.  Simply pan roasted with some salt.  I ate it with a quesadilla I fried in coconut oil, made with raw pepperjack cheese (also from the CSA), some cilantro and Tortilleria Nixtamal tortillas.  We had stopped in over the weekend and picked some up on our way home from touring the Louis Armstrong House in Corona (fabulous).  They really are the best tortillas around.

In addition to the veg, berries, black beans and grains (farro!), my meat and dairy order came in – my freezer is now full of grass fed/finished beef, organic chicken breasts and turkey sausage, and I’ve got a nice goaty chevre to look forward to tonight, too.

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Garden Update

My garden now exists fully in two spaces – upstairs on the deck outside the dining room, and downstairs in the yard, in a corner plot.  Being able to plant in the ground is a huge deal here in NYC, so I am really grateful to have this space.  For now, though, I’ll focus on what is growing up on the deck.

My arugula is growing like crazy!

arugula

It seems to like the soil it’s in and its placement on the deck.  It’s constantly sprouting new growth, so I expect to have baby arugula all summer.  I like to eat it with a simple vinaigrette made with olive oil, fresh squeezed orange juice, salt and pepper.  For vinaigrettes containing citrus, I find it imperative to use freshly pressed/squeezed juice – it tastes fantastic, for one, and you bypass the whole pasteurization thing present in ready-made juice at the supermarket.

As an aside, have you heard about pasteurized eggs?  So strange.  I can’t imagine wanting to eat them.

There are two herbs growing in my planter that I did not plant myself.  One is cilantro – I found it growing one day and have cared for it ever since.  I love love love cilantro, so I’m especially happy about this.

cilantro

The other is lavender, which I originally thought was tarragon.

lavendar

It smells amazing – not sure what I’ll do with it, apart from simply enjoying it with my eyes and nose.  Perhaps honey lavender ice cream is in store for us this summer, or some sort of cocktail.  I’ll have to look into it.

I started a couple of things from seed this past week, and they are in the initial sprouting stage.  First, I planted thyme in a small pot – I did this so that I can transport it into the house when it gets cold in the fall.  Thyme is my favorite herb to pair with winter squash, so it will be nice to have some fresh thyme when the time (ha ha!) comes to start roasting squash again.

thyme sprouts

I also planted tatsoi next to the cilantro.  Tatsoi is a very tasty asian green, similar to bok choi, and is very high in calcium.   I love growing greens because they sprout so quickly!  I’m looking forward to eating the tatsoi, perhaps even mixed with baby arugula for a nice fresh salad.

new tatsoi sprouts

And finally, the fruit trees are full of abundant green leaves!  The apricot tree isn’t going to fruit this year, but I have spied a few plums.  Here’s one of the trees from today:

trees

I just love all this greenery these days!  Soon, I’ll write about what’s growing in the ground.