SPRING FAVA SALAD WITH TOASTED WALNUTS & PARSLEY SAUCE VERTE

This season has been so strange.  The weather is erratic as ever which is making it feel neither like Spring nor Summer. Despite the consistent gloom, the Spring produce is finally rampant and my fridge is filled with green.  I'm loving lighter salads with fresh green vegetables and tons of herbs & flavorful greens.  This sauce, from Taste & Technique, is something I've been riffing on for months now, and putting on pretty much everything.  It tastes like Spring to me (tarragon!) and I throw some radishes in, just for fun, since I always seem to have them in excess.  Dreaming of more sunshine and temperate weather before the Summer heat hits..

Spring Green Salad with Favas, Toasted Walnuts & Parsley Sauce Verte (Serves 2-4) Gluten-free

*If you've never shelled fava beans, don't be scared.  They actually aren't as exhausting as they look, and I find the process super meditative.  Much like chopping vegetables or herbs (like this parsley sauce verte), I find those manual exercises super calming.  You'll probably have leftover dressing, so I suggest you put it on everything - I love it on avocado toast, soft boiled eggs, salads, roasted vegetables, etc.  The options are endless and it will keep in the fridge, flavors melding over time, for about 5ish days. 

• 1lb. fava beans, shelled
• 4 large handfuls of greens (I used a mix of baby kale, wild baby arugula and micro herbs)
• 1/2 cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped
• 4 oz. tangy feta, crumbled

Parsley Sauce Verte (adapted from Taste & Technique)

• 1/2 cup finely chopped flat leaf parsley
• 2 tablespoons minced chives
• 2 teaspoon minced tarragon
• 2 radishes, finely diced
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped shallot
• 1-2 tablespoons red or white wine vinegar
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Sea salt to taste (about a scant teaspoon)
• Freshly ground pepper to taste

Bring a large (salted) pot of water to a boil.  Prep a mixing bowl with ice water & set aside.  Once water has come to a boil, blanch fava beans for exactly 1 minute, strain & add to ice bath and set aside.  Once both have cooled to the touch, strain and set aside.

Peel fava beans: Use your nail to puncture the pod, then remove the opaque outer skin to reveal bright green fava bean.  Continue until all fava beans are shelled.

For parsley sauce verte: make sure to chop all herbs/ingredients by hand (not a food processor!) - it makes a huge difference in the freshness & overall flavor of this sauce.  Add all ingredients to a bowl and whisk together until well-combined.  Season to taste and set aside.

Add greens to a large bowl, assemble with fava beans, walnuts, and feta cheese.  Add a few spoonfuls of parsley sauce then toss well with your hands, to make sure every leaf is coated. Salt to taste & season with freshly ground pepper.  Serve immediately.

Beautiful blue plates are courtesy of GET PROPPED. Check out their gorgeous site!

BLACK RICE SORREL BOWL

It’s not very often where I dine somewhere and feel so emotionally connected to the food.  At Sqirl, the food doesn’t just remind me of my home (California) with it’s slight hippie sensibility, but feels like food you’ve been dreaming of and didn’t know you were missing.  

I can’t remember the last time I was this excited for a cookbook - not just for inspiration, visually or otherwise - but for once, to actually cook from it.   Crispy rice, sorrel pesto rice bowl, buckwheat financiers - I cannot get enough of Jessica’s food.  It was shocking to realize the simplicity of some of these recipes.  Specifically the famous sorrel pesto, which includes almost exclusively - lemon, olive oil and sorrel.   Most of the recipes are remarkably uncomplicated in a way that can only be described as everything I want to eat…and cook, too.   

SQIRL SORREL PESTO BLACK RICE BOWL (Gluten-free)  Serves 2

• 1 cup black rice
• 2 watermelon radishes, thinly sliced (on mandolin)
• 1 lemon, divided 
• Extra Virgin Olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped dill, parsley, chives
• 1/2 preserved lemon, peel finely diced
• 1 teaspoon preserved lemon juice
• 1-2 oz feta cheese, crumbled (opt)
• 2 large eggs
• Hot sauce, to serve

Sorrel Pesto:

• 1 cup chopped sorrel, lightly packed
• 1/2 cup chopped kale leaves, lightly packed 
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
• Sea salt, to taste

In a large saucepan, add rice, two cups of water and a generous pinch of salt.  Bring to a boil, then simmer for 25-30 minutes until rice is tender and water is absorbed.  Fluff with a fork and set aside.

In a small bowl, add sliced radish, about 1/2 lemon juice, a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt.  Leave aside to marinate while you prepare the pesto.

To make pesto: in a blender or food processor, add sorrel, kale, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 1/2 tablespoons of lemon juice and salt to taste.  Blend until smooth.

In a large bowl, toss the rice with herbs, preserved lemon, about a teaspoon of preserved lemon juice and prepared pesto.  Season with salt.  

To poach eggs:

Fill a large saucepan with water and a good splash of white vinegar.  Over med-high heat, let the temperature come up until you begin to see tiny bubbles around the rim.

Crack your eggs into tiny ramekins.  Then gently whirlpool the water and slide in your eggs (one at a time, if you’re nervous)  into the center of the whirlpool.  Let the eggs sit for about 30 seconds, then slowly stir in a circle making sure the egg white wraps around the yolk.  *If you are poaching two at a time, now add your second egg, repeating the process (and steering clear of your other egg)/  If your egg gets stuck on the bottom of the pan, don’t fret, use a silicon spatula to carefully remove it.   If your water gets close to boiling or simmering, reduce heat.  You want a still, steady heat to poach them in.  Let cook, gently stirring in a circular motion, until egg whites just begin to firm (or set, gently touch the egg white to judge doneness), and aren’t translucent.    Remove with a slotted spoon, draining the water, then top an egg on each serving. 

Assemble your bowls:   Divide rice among bowls with hot sauce, crumbled feta, marinated radish and top with a poached egg (see above). Garnish with more herbs, flaky sea salt and freshly ground pepper.  Serve immediately!

PRESERVED LEMON GRAIN BOWL

Whenever I’m seeking comfort at dinnertime, I usually end up with a hodgepodge of quinoa, vegetables and some tahini sauce with enough accoutrements to make up for the initial simplicity.  It's a meal I have on repeat, changing up the grain or type of lentil depending on what I have on hand.  They’re uncomplicated, nourishing meals that do the trick when you need warmth (literally and figuratively) in a bowl.

When I’m really in the mode to make “weeknight” dinner into something a little more spectacular than a Topanga Canyon macro bowl, enter preserved lemons.  These salty-sweet lemons are the older/wiser cousin of fresh lemons with an almost indescribable aroma.   Although usually found at specialty food stores, it’s just as easy to make them at home (with a little or a lot of patience). You can make them authentically, quick-preserved or even “pickled” like Ottolenghi. I use them most in my self-described "hippie bowls" to add something lively (when you need some extra inspiration in your life). It's a weeknight win-win.

Grain Bowl with Preserved Lemons (gluten-free, dairy-free opt.) Serves 4

• 1 cup dried chickpeas
• 1 cup tri-color quinoa
• 1/3 cup sunflower seeds, toasted
• 3 preserved lemons, rinds only & diced small (save pulp for another use)
• 4-5 kale leaves, de-stemmed and chopped 
• 1 small bunch of parsley, roughly chopped (about 1/2 cup chopped)
• 5-6 sprigs of fresh mint, chopped
• 8 dried apricots, diced
• 3 oz. feta, crumbled
• Black sesame gomasio, to top (optional)
• Sea salt to taste
• freshly ground pepper

Tahini Miso Dressing:

• 2/3 cup tahini
• 1 tablespoon white miso paste
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 teaspoon tamari
• 1/3-1/2 cup water, depending on desired consistency

In a saucepan, add chickpeas and enough water to cover by about 4 inches.  Bring to a boil, then cover and let sit for one hour.  This method is a quick way to eliminate soaking overnight. Once the hour is up, bring to a boil then simmer until tender, about 45 minutes.  Drain, rinse in cold water and set aside to cool.

In another saucepan, add quinoa, 2 cups of water and a pinch of salt.  Bring to a boil, then simmer for 14-16 minutes or until fluffy.  Set aside to cool.

In a small bowl, whisk all dressing ingredients together until smooth & desired consistency.

In a large serving bowl, add chickpeas, cooled quinoa, sunflower seeds, diced preserved lemons, kale, herbs, and dried apricot.  Season to taste with sea salt and pepper and mix well to combine.  Top the grain bowl with crumbled feta and gomasio (optional).  Finish each serving with a generous drizzle of tahini miso dressing.  Serve immediately!