Its True Colors.

Let's not be biased here.  I know you're thinking it's all fine and relevant to have color in frozen treats like rainbow Popsicles, but that when it comes to dinner, the staples of a dollop of white, slice of red,  earthen green and crust of brown need to remain intact.  Yet the safety of a strict color palate is tired and trite.  What I'm offering here is a chance to infuse some liveliness onto your plate via the proud, saucy, high kick of magenta.  

I know the above picture looks like a raspberry bled all over my pretty ceramic plate, or worse, that John sliced his thumb and bleeds hot pink, but it's merely our usual staple: beets.  I suspect it must be hard to imagine that girlish coloured sauce was infused with lemony tang from sidling next to fresh sorrel, or buttered to a dense perfection from swimming around with sauteed shiitake mushrooms.  Or even laden with the enticing undertones of sauteed garlic and onion.   Is it hard to imagine it would taste as unexpectedly non-magenta as it looks?  If this dish showed its true colors I believe it would un-blush itself into a creamy, earthy ecru.  

Remember that post, the one where we ate with so little shame I didn't get a chance to take a photo for you?  This is that sauce, except disguised in its hot pink alias.  Some of the fellow enhancers are different too, (we used sorrel instead of spinach, and added the beet's leaves), but any greens that become limp and faint when exposed to the heat of the saucepan will do.  I recommend the beet leaves (as you will be trusting me and using beets), and adding lemon juice if you have no sorrel.    Also, my former recipe calls for creme fraiche, which would be just the thing to knock this dish out of the ball park, but whole milk is a nice substitute and a winner too.

You deserve a better explanation of this dish than I can give so late in the evening, but humor me as I try my best:  This dish is slowly-sauteed onion and garlic (in olive oil), the addition of chopped beet leaves, sorrel, shiitake mushrooms and about 1/4 cup of milk.  After milk is added, the dish is brought to high heat for approximately 5-7 minutes and stirred well, then it rests on low for about 45 minutes.  The beets are steamed to tenderness beforehand, and then when ready to serve, rinsed, stripped out of their skins, diced and added to color the pot with their bright juices.  To tone the dish down with a dose of modesty, everything is then spooned on a homemade tortilla, wrapped up like a snug burrito and devoured.  The only thing you have to do is make sure you aren't wearing any white prior to or during the colorful feast.

Now that you've tolerated me through the explanation of a photograph that merits the reaction of Munch's The Scream, I will reward you with a more edible looking, less frightening photograph:

Well, I tried.  I never said the dish was a beauty, only that it was colorful.  And tasty.  And healthy.  Except for the homemade canola-fried tortillas that I ate too many of which made me queasy.  Lucky for me, the heat of a laptop on my belly is the perfect remedy for nausea.

Pink Beet Tortillas with Sorrel

3 large beets, steamed for 25 minutes, or until tender when pierced with a knife

1 large bunch sorrel or spinach (if using spinach add juice of 1 lemon)

3 tbsp. garlic, diced

4 tbsp. onion, diced

large handful of beet leaves (greens only, no stems)

1 cup whole milk

4 tbsp olive oil

salt, (to taste)

pepper, (to taste)

shitakee mushrooms (any amount you desire)

Heat olive oil in a large 9 inch saucepan on medium heat.  When warmed, add garlic and onion until golden brown and let simmer for 5 minutes.  Add milk, sorrel, beet leaves, salt and pepper, stir, cover and bring to a boil for 5 minutes.   Lower heat, cover to slowly simmer for 30 minutes.  Add beets (they should be steamed, diced and peeled), stir and mix for 2 more minutes.  Add salt and/or pepper to taste.  Spoon over a tortilla and serve immediately.  

*Hint:  this dish serves two.  Bear in mind that greens shrink a lot when cooked, so add more if you feel your supply is diminishing.

The delicious tortilla recipe is here, courtesy of my favorite gal, Molly Wizenberg.

Know Her Too.

I've been afraid to tell you about Molly Wizenberg because I worried you would leave me for her. Irrational, I hope. Then I thought, maybe if I give you a delicious recipe and then reveal her to you that you would trust me and stick around. I don't have much of a sweet tooth so a desert is not part of my manipulative plan, but I do love cheese. With high hopes, I present this creme spinach on sourdough bread to you with the prayer it will tantalize you into keeping me. (It is a lot tastier than it looks, I promise.)

Molly Wizenberg is a huge source of inspiration for me. She's a phenomenal writer, an imaginative cook and has a tear inducing life story. I feel like my life has paralleled hers in many ways. I look up to her like a little sister even though we have never met. As timid as I am about this introduction, I feel you need to get to know her too. Her blog, Orangette, is fascinating and endlessly popular. Her book, "A Homemade Life" is a perfect read, chock full of fun, sweet and exciting recipes.

But it is her story that made my heart stop. I'd like to share the synopsis of her book:

When Molly Wizenberg's father died of cancer, everyone told her to go easy on herself, to hold off on making any major decisions for a while. But when she tried going back to her apartment in Seattle and returning to graduate school, she knew it wasn't possible to resume life as though nothing had happened. So she went to Paris, a city that held vivid memories of a childhood trip with her father, of early morning walks on the cobbled streets of the Latin Quarter and the taste of her first pain au chocolat. She was supposed to be doing research for her dissertation, but more often, she found herself peering through the windows of chocolate shops, trekking across town to try a new pâtisserie, or tasting cheeses at outdoor markets, until one evening when she sat in the Luxembourg Gardens reading cookbooks until it was too dark to see, she realized that her heart was not in her studies but in the kitchen.

In A Homemade Life: Stories and Recipes from My Kitchen Table, Molly Wizenberg recounts a life with the kitchen at its center. From her mother's pound cake, a staple of summer picnics during her childhood in Oklahoma, to the eggs she cooked for her father during the weeks before his death, food and memories are intimately entwined. You won't be able to decide whether to curl up and sink into the story or to head straight to the market to fill your basket with ingredients for Cider-Glazed Salmon and Pistachio Cake with Honeyed Apricots.

My story isn't quite so glamorous as Molly's but there are some similarities. I took a break from school to care for my father who was also diagnosed with cancer. This was my first time cooking for a loved one, and it was hard. After he passed away, I couldn't bring myself to go back.

I wasn't in Paris, nor do I know much about chocolate (um...I like eating it) but the experience opened a window through which I fell in love and married my dear husband. Now I am learning to enjoy the pleasure of cooking my very best for a loved one again. Making meals that bring delight and writing about them in a sincere, heartfelt capacity has been so enjoyable for me. I am so glad to know there is someone out in the world that feels the same way. I am happy to share her with you. That's what this is all about (sharing). My only hope is, after you meet her, that you'll still come to see me from time to time.

Better-Than-It-Looks Creme Spinach

This recipe is a very fast and an easy way to knock out some spinach, Popeye-style, even though it's not canned spinach. The concept is nothing new but the flavor is surprising and original. Best served poured over a sliced sourdough baguette and toasted at 350 for 10-12 minutes, or until crisp.


1 lb. fresh spinach
4 oz. creme fraiche
2/3 cup milk (whole works best but 2% is ok)
1 tablespoon kosher salt
a few grinds of fresh pepper
3 tablespoons flour
olive oil (as needed) or butter
water (as needed)
1 sourdough baguette
1 clove garlic, crushed
parmesan or mozzarella (as you like it)

In a large pot, bring water to a boil (any amount of water is OK). When boiling, dunk in fresh spinach and let sit for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from boiling water and drain, then let rest.

In a large saucepan over medium low heat, heat a generous coating of olive oil (or melt butter). Add creme fraiche and stir until it melts. Pour in milk and whisk together until smooth. Then add flour, salt, pepper and garlic whisking as you go. Add spinach and let rest on low heat. Taste your sauce. If it is too potent, dilute with small amounts of water at a time. Add more salt or pepper (or garlic) to suit your tastes. *You should only be able to detect a hint of olive oil, or maybe none at all.

Slice baguette in half and half the halves. Pour spinach sauce over bread. If you're feeling frisky, grate parmesan or mozarella (or your favorite cheese) lightly over the spinach. Toast until crisp, about 10-12 minutes. Serve.

This recipe would serve 4 people generously (2 slices each) or 8 people modestly (1 slice each).

*Also, this recipe is your recipe too. You can tweak it according to your palate and improvise as you go.

Thanks for reading.