Thai Vegetable Salad with Peanut Coconut Sauce

The big adventures of our summer are over. We've visited our old neighborhood in Saint Paul, spent days at the lake, and just got back from a quick trip to New Jersey for a perfect summer wedding. Happily there are few events or obligations marked on our calendar for the rest of the summer. While our travels and activities are so worthwhile, I get a little anxious when we don't have unscheduled time.

We still have one full glorious month of summer left. Enough for lots more days at the beach, bike rides or hikes, ice cream cones, sweet salty air, and so much good local produce. I am trying to shut out thoughts that summer is dwindling and to remember all that we've already experienced and all the beautiful days that lie ahead. Now that we will be in one place for more than a few weeks I realize that I have barely begun to make use of the summer foods which, for most of the year, are only memories. I've munched pounds of snap peas and cucumbers and thrown together piles of vegetables that need little more than some cheese or olive oil to make a meal but now that we're settling back in I feel pulled to spend more time in the kitchen.

Beyond making yogurt almost weekly and figuring out something for dinner I have spent most of my hours in the kitchen sweeping or putting away dishes. I am taking a master food preserver class but I have not yet canned anything on my own stove. Summer is not always the ideal time to cook or bake but I miss feeling engaged with the hearth of our home.

One of my favorite salads this summer provides a break from my typical dinner dishes but it requires no hot slaving and it is served cold. It starts with a pile of sliced fresh vegetables which you tangle among the thinnest of rice noodles. The sauce, which I discovered when my brother made a similar salad, is lightly peanutty and savory with a hint of sweet. It keeps well in the fridge and seems like a good thing to have on hand. Together they make an unfussy and satisfying meal.

Thai Vegetable Salad
This recipe works best as a rough outline. Slice your vegetables so that you have about as many vegetables as noodles, or more. If you prefer more noodles, you can cook more or use fewer vegetables. A mandoline slicer (this one is the best) is ideal for quickly slicing the into the thinnest strips. 
The recipe for the sauce is adapted from this one, make sure you adjust everything to your taste.
I like to serve this salad with pan fried tofu for a more complete meal.

4 ounces of very thin rice noodles (I like these)
1 small cabbage
2 carrots
2 small or one large cucumber
1 red pepper
1 small bunch of cilantro
A handful of snap peas, mung bean sprouts, or scallions

Peanut Coconut Sauce
13.5 ounce can of coconut milk
1/3 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon red curry paste

Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the noodles. Turn off the heat and let them sit for two minutes. Drain the noodles and run them under cold water to stop them from cooking further and to chill them. Once the noodles are cold, set them aside. 

Slice all of the vegetables into thin, bite sized pieces or strips. Toss the vegetables with the cold noodles in a serving bowl. 

To make the sauce, pour the coconut milk, peanut butter, brown sugar, soy sauce and curry paste into a blender or food processor. Blend or process until smooth. Adjust ingredients to your taste.

Toss the salad with the sauce before serving or leave them separate and let each person sauce their own portion.

Serves 2-3 for a meal, 4-6 for a side.

You Can't Go Wrong

It is finally hitting me that most of August has gone by. When its time to turn the calendar to the next page, there will be hints of leaves changing color, speculation about frost, and the smell of cinnamon and spices from some corners. I don't have to tell you that the summer has flown by but I will say that when I look back at the past couple of months I can't quite say where they all went. I think I spent most of this summer sitting inside nursing Amos. But I did make it to several farmers' markets, walked across the stone arch bridge at least twice, went to Harriet Island, and ate more ice cream than I have during any other summer that I can remember. And, as I keep reminding myself, its not over.

Here in Minnesota we are at the peak of good local eating. Tomatoes and corn are abundant, I might be able to find some good melons and in the next several weeks the fall crops will gradually appear, but lets not talk about that yet.



One of the ways I most often use and enjoy summer produce is by throwing it into a salad. I skip the lettuce and fill a bowl with chopped vegetables often accompanied by a grain, a bean, some cheese or all three. I've been picking a handful of fresh herbs (basil, thyme, oregano, and mint) chopping them finely and tossing those in with salt, pepper, a couple glugs of olive oil and enough vinegar to make it interesting but not overpower the other flavors.

I can't get enough summer vegetables and a salad meal is a delicious way to enjoy them. A few of my favorites have been: quinoa and lentils with tomatoes, parmesan, sauteed zucchini and kale; black beans, corn, scallions, tomatoes and cilantro; chickpeas, quinoa, red peppers, cucumbers and scallions. It's all so good you can't go wrong.

Ginger Cabbage Carrot Slaw

I've been so busy lately that I sometimes find myself contemplating quick and easy meals or just not cooking dinner and eating scrambled eggs instead. Then I remember that cooking is a way for me to relax and let go of being busy. I usually enjoy the process of cooking so much that I rarely want to rush it. Lately I've found help from my mandoline to make the process of chopping and shredding much easier. It is great for quickly prepping the vegetables for a stir fry and perfect for making vegetable slaws. Although I do whatever I can to avoid coleslaw, I have come to appreciate vegetable slaws as an appealing alternative to salads in the fall and winter. They are usually sturdy, colorful and a provide the welcome crunch of fresh vegetables when green things are becoming scarce.

The idea for this slaw came from my Mom who told me about a salad she made the other day with beets, carrots, almonds and ginger. She had gotten the recipe from my sister Jess. I have no idea if this is anything like the original, but it sounded good. I didn't have beets but I used purple cabbage and orange and purple carrots. I love the way the cabbage, carrots and almonds each have their own crunchiness which combines into a hearty but light salad. I made a miso ginger dressing which adds salt and sweetness to the vegetables. The slaw is sturdy enough to hold up to a few days in the fridge so you can have it on hand when you need a quick meal.

Ginger Cabbage Carrot Slaw
I think this would be really good with the sweetness of beets, too, if you don't mind everything turning a beautiful purple. If you have dressing left over it is delicious tossed with roasted brussels sprouts

1 cup almonds
3 cups of purple cabbage, thinly sliced or shredded
3-4 carrots, grated
1 tablespoon grated or minced ginger
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon miso paste

Toast the almonds. When they are cool, chop them into small pieces. Combine the shredded cabbage, grated carrots and chopped almonds in a bowl. In a small bowl whisk together ginger, olive oil, vinegar and miso paste until smooth. Adjust flavors to your taste. Pour enough dressing on the salad to lightly coat everything (or add more as you prefer).  

Coming Together

 

Years ago, I lived in an old farmhouse with three other women. I spent a lot of time in the kitchen of that house, even once spent an afternoon scrubbing the floor that was layered with grime from previous inhabitants. When I wasn't in the kitchen or swimming in the lake or sitting on the porch where we often grilled on summer evenings, I worked in the market garden of the farm. Most mornings I would walk or ride my bike past the woods and fields and cows, enjoying the ever changing views of the mountains, far across the lake. 

I lived a simple life there working hard all day, dreaming of which vegetables I would cook for dinner and spending a lot of my evenings and weekends making food. I baked bread and made baba ganoush from the excess eggplants in the garden. Living on this farm I became acutely aware and deeply appreciative of knowing where each ingredient in a meal came from. When my housemates were around we would all contribute to cooking our meals. We also worked together on more involved cooking projects like making ravioli and canning jam. I often remember that when something turned our really well or was especially beautiful Jessica would suggest taking a picture of it. I'm sure I took a few pictures of our food and I have lots of pictures of the garden, but this was before food blogs were abundant and before I had an inkling of the beauty and challenge that I could discover in trying to capture what was on my plate. 

Since starting this blog I have often thought of Jessica's long ago suggestion to capture our edibles on film (I didn't have a digital camera at the time). Back then I brushed off the idea, but in the past few years I have taken many pictures in my kitchen. It has been a very slow process of learning little bits here and there but barely making a dent in my knowledge of photography. I often feel more rooted in the process than in being able to come up with a perfectly presented final product.

Like the disparate ingredients of a salad coming together in a transcendant bite, my past experiences marinate and mix to bring me to where I am today. Taking a moment to look back reminds me to I appreciate that where I have come from is just as important as where I will someday end up.

 

Raw Kale Salad with Parmesan Date Dressing

Adapted from Cook this Now by Melissa Clark

Citrus and dates transform the hearty kale into a lighter tasting winter salad. The orginal recipe uses anchovies but I used parmesan instead. The kale benefits from some marinating so you can make the salad a few hours ahead of eating. It keeps well  for a few days. I used a mix of lacinato (also called tuscan or dinosaur) and red russian kale.

6 large medjool dates, pitted

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (or 6 anchovie fillets, finely chopped)

3 garlic cloves, minced

Zest of 2 oranges

Zest of 2 lemons

1/2 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

2 bunches of lacinato kale, washed and dried

Sea salt, to taste

Chop the dates very fine and mash them into a paste. In a small bowl, mix the dates with the parmesan (or anchovies) garlic, orange and lemon zest. Stir in the olive oil and vinegar.

Remove the stems of the kale by ripping the leaf part off. Thinly slice the ripped leaves and place them in a salad bowl. Toss in the dressing and add salt to taste. 

 

Relaxed and Productive

I've decided that Monday is the new Sunday. Which explains why this post is appearing late in the day and not first thing Monday morning as I would have liked. I am generally a first thing Monday morning type of person. I like to be prompt and organized. I usually have a very long to do list at the start of the week and on Monday I feel a great deal of pressure to get it all done. I almost always work at my restaurant job on Saturdays, and often on Sundays too. On these weekend days I ignore my list, but I still go to work. When I am working at home, the first day of the week becomes a struggle between my need to be productive, my wish to accomplish everything, and the difficulty in starting the week off running.

I always have high hopes for Monday morning, but I think it's time to lower my expectations. I'm okay with easing into the week and taking more time today to get organized and start projects, but maybe I won't get very far. I'm not the greatest at finding this balance but as I think about the added holiday projects on my list I want to make sure to enjoy the process. What are you doing to find balance in this busy time of year?

Our Thanksgiving day was very relaxed, but we balanced that with cooking (which was also relaxed and productive as you can see above). On the way back from our morning walk, while pie crust chilled, I envisioned with the salad we would eat. It combines good fall ingredients into a warm salad that is hearty but not heavy, a nice contrast to many Thanksgiving dishes. Since squash, cranberries and walnuts are all still in season, I wanted to share this recipe which is good on a holiday or any day.

Winter Squash, Cranberry, Walnut and Arugula Salad
The sweetness of the squash (I used butternut) and the maple mustard vinaigrette balance the tartness of the cranberries nicely. I normally like my salads lightly dressed, but I like this one a bit more heavily coated. We had mac and cheese for our meal, so I didn't add cheese to this salad but some crumbled goat cheese or grated parmesan would work very nicely in it.

2 cups of peeled and cubed winter squash
1 cup whole cranberries
cumin and cinnamon
salt and pepper
1 cup walnuts
2-3 cups arugula

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon grainy mustard
1 tablespoon maple syrup

Place the squash in a pot, cover with water and simmer until the squash can be easily pierced with a fork. Drain the squash. Bring a cast iron skillet to medium heat. Add a small amount of olive oil or butter and add the squash. Cook, stirring occasionally until the squash cubes begin to brown. Add a small sprinkle of cumin and cinnamon as well as salt and pepper. Pour in the cranberries and continue cooking until the cranberries are hot and some of them have lost their round shape. Pour the cooked squash and cranberries into the bowl you want to serve them in. Roughly chop the walnuts and toast them in the pan same pan. When they are toasted, add them to the bowl. Toss in the arugula.

Mix the olive oil, vinegar, mustard and maple syrup, whisking to emulsify. Toss the amount of dressing you would like with the rest of the salad. Serves 2-4, depending on whether it is a main dish or a side.

Black Bean and Summer Vegetable Salad

Making dinner in the summer can be so easy. Even if it's too hot to cook or I barely have time, I don't have to do much work when I have summer vegetables in the fridge. With my CSA share, I don't even have to think about which vegetables to use, I just have to decide the best ways to use what I've got.

Though improvising and tossing ingredients together is the way I most often make dinner, I am trying to remember to flip through the pages of a cookbook once in a while. I turn to cookbooks for meal ideas more often in winter when I have the time and the desire to turn on the stove. So many recipes are best, though, with good produce which needs to be used now. I've been looking at Plenty, Supernatural Cooking, and Local Flavors to make sure I don't miss the chance to make something really good when all of the ingredients are in season.

The recipe I have here today is something that I throw together regularly. It's one of our favorite summer salads which didn't come from a cookbook and hardly requires a recipe. I wanted to share it because it takes minutes to put together and can be used in so many ways. It's basically a mess of black beans, tomatoes, cilantro, onion, corn and, to get a bit exotic, avocado and lime juice. Eat it as is, wrap it in a tortilla or a leaf of lettuce, or scoop it up with a chip.

What are your favorite summer meals?


Black Bean Salad
I guess this is a salad, but the first time I made it we ate it in taco shaped lettuce leaves with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese. When I made it earlier this week, I needed a more substantial meal, so we had it with whole wheat tortillas. I think it is hard to go wrong with these ingredients, so use as much or as little of each as you like and toss in anything else you want.

2-3 ears of sweet corn
2 cups cooked black beans
1-2 tomatoes or 1/2 pint of cherry tomatoes
1 medium onion, diced

1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1 avocado, diced
1 tablespoon lime juice
salt and pepper

Slice the kernels off the sweet corn cobs with a sharp knife (hold the cob upright with one hand and carefully slice the kernels off, moving the knife downwards. Doing this in a bowl keeps the kernels from going everywhere). Combine the corn, beans, tomatoes, onion, cilantro, avocado and lime juice in a bowl. Toss to distribute everything evenly. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Adjust flavors and vegetable amounts as desired. 


Makes a large bowlful. Serves 2-3 as a meal, 4-6 as a side.

Vegetable Still Life and Balsamic Vinaigrette

I've started bringing home my weekly share of produce from the farm. It is still early in the season and at this time of year the bag of newly harvested vegetables is a treasure chest of fresh tastes. New squash! peas! chard! garlic scapes! hardly need a recipe to make a meal. A quick saute or a few minutes on the grill and they can land on your plate ready to eat. I might toss them with whole wheat pasta or pile them onto polenta or quinoa. It's lovely in summer, when the days are long but so very full, that cooking can be so effortless. The vegetables speak for themselves and need little attention or adornment.

Some crops, like peas, last for only a few weeks and there is no chance for them to grow old. As the season goes on, though, other vegetables will lose their shiny new quality and I will start using them in more creative or complex recipes. Zucchini will be hardly worth admiring, let alone capturing in a still life, but the farm fresh variety will still have the advantage over any vegetable shipped to the grocery store. There are so many recipes that I ignore in the winter because they are far far better when the ingredients are in season locally. I will get to work on these soon, but for now I want to keep it very simple.

One of my favorite treatments for summer vegetables is a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. I learned how to make it from my friend Sarah when we were living in a little farmhouse as apprentices at Shelburne Farms. We had a gas grill on our porch and would grill veggies almost every night. It is my favorite marinade for mushrooms, eggplant, zucchini and nearly any vegetable that I would grill. It also happens to be my go to salad dressing. Salads are the other easiest way to enjoy vegetables (and fruit) and I could and will eat salad with every meal.

I usually just pour in the ingredients in rough amounts, shake, and taste, but I've included a more specific recipe below. You can, of course, adjust to your taste.

Before I leave you to a weekend of grilling, salad making, or however you choose to enjoy your summer days, I wanted to mention that I have a guest post up on Small Measure. I was honored that the wonderful blogger and author, Ashley English, let me write a post of ideas for homesteading (home making, home growing) when you don't have land or an actual homestead. Big thanks to Ashley for letting me share my ideas!

Happy Friday! 

Balsamic Vinaigrette

3/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons mustard
2 teaspoons minced garlic
pinch of salt

Place all ingredients in a jar and shake until well combined. Store in the refrigerator and shake well before each use. For marinating vegetables: pour generously over sliced vegetables and let marinate for 15-30 minutes. The vinaigrette recipe is easily doubled when you need larger quantities. For salads, pour the desired amount on the salad or on individual servings.

Shaved Asparagus Salad

We're having a heat wave here in Minnesota. Today, as I weeded between the summer squash plants in 90 degree heat, I tried not to think about my own sweaty toil and let my mind wander to all the people who work hard to bring me the food I eat. It starts with the farmer, whose name I rarely know, planting seeds. Or the people who work for the farmer, tending and harvesting. Truthfully, I don't know exactly where it comes from most of the time, or who put their time and energy and sweat into the ingredients that I use to make my dinner. Cooking, creating a dish, eating and sharing food are such personal and every day acts that we rarely think about what happened before the lettuce, milk or beans arrived in the kitchen.

I've always been grateful when I know just where my food comes from, when I can say I grew this basil I made that bread. Although it's not always possible, there are many opportunities to meet and get to know the people nearby who make and grow our food. From the local bakery, to the farmer's market, to becoming a member of a CSA, you can find out more about where your food comes from by getting it straight from the source.

I picked up ingredients to make this salad at the farmer's market, where I came face to face with the growers and producers, or at least people very close to them. Asparagus is still piled high at many market tables and I wanted to try it in a new way. I usually oven roast the stalks, but peeling them into thin slivers is another way of using them and makes a flavorful base for a different sort of green salad.

Shaved Asparagus Salad
With this salad, the asparagus works as a base -- an alternative to greens that can be combined with a wide variety of flavors. I wanted to keep it simple with just a few vegetables, a bit of cheese and some nuts. It's nice to use seasonal ingredients, but I think you could pair the shaved asparagus with almost anything you would like in a salad.


One bunch of asparagus
1/4 cup walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
4 radishes, thinly slices
1 1/2 ounces parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper


Using a sharp vegetable peeler, peel (or shave) each stalk of asparagus into thin ribbons. Grate, or shave off thin slices of the parmesan cheese. Place the asparagus in a bowl with the walnuts, radish slices, and cheese. Drizzle the lemon juice and olive oil on top and season with salt and pepper. Makes plenty for 2 people.