Grilled Saltwort, Asparagus and Fiddlehead Pizza

Sauteed fiddleheads, grilled asparagus and grilled saltwort, with a little spinach-basil pesto.  Spring has sprung!

Salt what?

Saltwort!  It's a coastal plains/saltmarsh-loving plant (so, tolerant of salty soils and climes) known for its versatility in the kitchen (raw, grilled, sauteed, steamed...), as well as its medicinal benefit as a mineral-rich diuretic.

Wiggin Farm is selling this delicious plant (likely the komarovii species...now known, thanks to fellow blogger 'Diary of a Tomato', as the soda species from the genus Salsola, family amaranthaceae); remember King Phillip Came Over Fearing Green Snakes?).

We tried it raw--yummy, crunchy, watery like a succulent--and grilled this first go-round.  Grilling it is fun and exciting, particularly if you're a fire bug.  I'm a fire bug.

Lather up the stems in olive oil.  I drizzled the oil over a plate of the saltwort and asparagus stems, then used the stems of the wort to pick up the last bit of oil--paintbrush style--before laying them down on the grill.  Flames will shoot out and spark up, so just be careful.  You can even use these as natural basting brushes for oiling up the grill plate before grilling!

A couple flips and maybe 2-1/2 to 3 minutes later and off they came (asparagus, too).  Scissors made quick work of removing the root end, with nary a leaf left behind.

Fiddleheads were sauteeing in the meantime, just in olive oil, fresh garlic, finished with lemon zest.  All three veg were arranged on the dough that got its headstart and finish on the grill. Grated gruyere and scamorza played along in their magnificant glue role, and a little spinach-basil pesto made for the final curtain.  Er, topping.

Three clumps of Shagbark spinach on their last legs met up with a big ol' clump of basil, several final cloves of winter garlic, toasted pine nuts, olive oil and salt for this ridiculously simple but ridiculously tasty pesto.  Nope, no cheese.

A good drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of sea salt and freshly ground pepper was all it took for this 30-minute meal to go down in less time.

So much for relishing the deliciousness that this spring meal had to offer....

Green food!  It's what's for dinner!

Braised Short Ribs

While my posts may contradict my words, we really don't eat a lot of meat.  But, whereas I don't have a picture of any of my recent vegetarian goodies, and only have a picture of braised short ribs that I cooked up a couple of weeks ago, a post on meat it is!

Refreshing Cold Summer Soup

Cold is key!

Cucumber, local asparagus, parsley and dill joined forces with a handful of raw cashews, a pint of Brookford Farm's yogurt and a pint of homemade chicken stock (or veg stock) for this deliciously refreshing and satisfying cold soup.

Fiddleheads!

Friends and fiddleheads, local asparagus and lotsa laughs, peas and the perfect pizza - that's what I call a great thing to blog about!  A spring green special fit for a queen!  Okay, enough with the wordplay.  (Ever tried haiku?  None of this was, but I'm about to explore it as a form of meditative writing.)

First things first: grill your asparagus (toss the spears in olive oil, s&p, and cook carefully--maintain crunch), sauté your fiddleheads (olive oil over a hot pan with a hint of butter and fresh minced garlic--again, maintain crunch), and blanch your peas if  using fresh (I only had frozen on hand, and simply let them thaw at room temp).  Season each veggie independently with kosher salt and ground pepper.

BTW, if you've never had fresh cut asparagus, you must seek some out. Fresh cut asparagus has an entirely different flavor than that rubbery monocrop-style stuff from Peru or California. It's more intense in its compounds (and yes, in your pee!)--earthy, buttery and meaty, rich in numerous vitamins, and really snappy at the base of the stalk.

Grate your cheeses.  I used O.V.'s mozzarella, some freshly rasped parmesan, and a bit of locally produced cheddar.  Next,

BIG wines in Amador, CA

Twelve of us--six New Englanders and six Arizonans--spent four days visiting small, family-owned vineyards in Amador County, CA, last week. Many of the wineries employ sustainable operations, including solar power, wind power and biodynamic farming. As important, they produce fantastic wines for very reasonable prices! Lots of new, big, chewy reds and luscious whites were tried ('quaffed' is more like it), and I've listed a few below. All I can say is, LOOK FOR 'EM!

This yummy, salty and savory plate contains many goodies that I turned our friends onto while out there: fresh asparagus and fennel that I tossed in local olive oil and s&p and grilled for serving; three varieties of olives that were super buttery and perfectly brined; organic salami; various crackers and breadsticks from local CA bakers; and, last but not least, chunks of delectable, creamy and firm goat cheese called 'Roussette' made by a local cheesemaker who dined with us (along with her winemaker husband!).

Olives included Green Cerignola Olives (in front, the largest of the three shown), Nicoise Coquillos (in back, the small deep purple ones) , and to-die-for Castelvetranos--a meaty, buttery, bright green olive (nope, no food coloring - just a perfect brining solution) that is sure to convince any olive-hater otherwise! All from Italy, I must confess.

Where did I find all these ingredients while driving from San Francisco up over to our final destination in Amador County? Why, at the famed, independently-owned Sacramento Natural Foods Co-Op of course! :) While perusing Google's map of the area (for determining a good route for us New Englanders), I came across their website. Talk about a perfect location off the highway--it took us all of 5 minutes out of our way, and was well worth the effort. We loaded up on the groceries for the "big feast" (14 people), which, if you recall, was detailed in my previous blog titled 'My Favorite Coffee Mug'! And guess what? The were only a couple of deviations from my original menu, one of which was the squid.  It ended up fried calamari the night before the feast. I obtained glisteningly fresh, sustainably-fished Pacific squid at the co-op, cleaned them, and lightly coated them in a mix of flour, corn meal, garlic powder, chili powder and s&p before frying in a bit of olive oil (alas, these were the available pantry items for me to choose from). We squeezed fresh lemon over them and loved every bite!

As for the wines, they were delish. Lots of Barberas and Zinfandels and Petite Syrahs well worth looking for. Here are a few names and harvests to seek out: