Minty Ginger Limeade

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This spring has been extra long and beautiful. The trees have slowly turned green, the tulips have stayed with us forever and the lilacs have been showering us with their sweet perfume for weeks. And it’s all because of the cool air and the spring rain. If you could be in Minnesota right now, you will be mesmerized by the color of the grass – so bright and green, almost unreal. As for every tree, bush and flower, everything has taken their time to bloom, not wanting, quite yet, to be summer again. 

I have been taking my sweet time during this spring too, and in general it is expressed in my appreciation of the many flowers that have been blooming all over my neighborhood. If you live in the Lowery Hill area and if you have been suspiciously missing (especially in the morning) lilies of the valleys, lilacs, tiny green hydrangeas and some white bush flowers (whose name I don’t know) from your side walk, it might have been me. I like taking small fragrant bouquets from my late night walks to my home and place them by my bedside so I can be woken up by their aroma.

During those everlasting spring days I love taking long walks after work and at night, when everything is quiet and I can be guided only by the lovely fragrance coming from each yard. On the weekends I love the quiet mornings or meeting friends for coffee or lunch. And my weekend two weeks ago went just like that, and as Anna and I grabbed some ginger limeade on our way out from the coffee shop, my mind blown by the fresh explosion in my mouth. My eyes squinted from pleasure and I couldn’t stop sipping this spicy, extraordinary deliciousness. The flavor stayed with me all day, and I had decided that I will make some for myself (in grande amounts) to be enjoyed during my late night flower walks.

The ginger limeade from Moose and Sadie’s was extra gingery and limy, and I liked that, but my first batch turned out to be super sweet and with not much flavor. So I boosted the ginger and lime, lowered the sugar and after a few attempts and several trips to the store for limes, I made it perfect. To make it even fresher and richer in flavor, I added a bit of honey and a handful of mint. Now my friends, if you are fast enough, I still have some left in the refrigerator and I am more than happy to share it with you, so come by.

xoxo

Minty Ginger Limeade

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

• 2 (10 inch long / 25 cm) ginger roots
• 4 cups (800 ml) water 
• 1/2 cup (100 gr) granulated sugar (or more if you like it sweeter)
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 cup (200 ml) freshly squeezed lime juice (about 8 limes)
• 1/2 cup (or handful) fresh mint leaves

Directions:

1. Peel the ginger roots and slice them thinly. Place the ginger and 2 cups of water in a medium saucepan, bring to boil, lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the ginger pieces and stir in the sugar and the honey until fully dissolved. Let it cool completely.

2. Add the mint leaves into the gingery syrup and muddle to bruise the leaves and release the mint oils. Add the lime juice and the remaining water and chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour, or overnight. Remove the mint leaves and pour in a bottle or a pitcher, if enjoyed right away.

3. Pour the limeade into glasses filled with ice.

Note: the ice will dilute the limeade as it melts, but feel free to add a bit more water if the limeade is too strong for you

Artichokes with Lemon and Herbs

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Spring is here and I couldn’t wait for it for too long. I was running out of patience, I wanted to be outside – for hours, wearing sneakers and a jacket. To bike, to see the gentle, green buds coming from the ground and to feel the wind messing up my hair while carrying the sweet fragrance of the magnolia trees. To take a deep breath, to close my eyes and turn my face toward the sun and get all the warm kisses that I missed so much. 

Everyone is outside – squirrels, rabbits (yes, they too – I live in Minnesota, remember), birds, people, dogs – running, jumping, flying – soaking up life. This is the time when I start thinking of my next adventure, of all the places I want to see, of the new town I want to move to, of the new challenges to face. I am excited. I am ready.

My mom used to say that I like to make life challenging. And I always had mixed feelings about that – she made it sound as it was a vice while inside I felt it was a virtue. After all, most of my strength came from running toward all the things in life that looked like huge, rocky mountain that is impossible to climb. And don’t we all have those mountains?! Some are big, some are small, some we face daily and some we climb our entire lives.

This week my huge rocky mountain came in the shape of fresh spring artichokes. All 15 of them eaten by the end of this adventure. I never cooked fresh artichokes before. There were no artichokes in Bulgaria when I was growing up. So I should be worried after all, right – I am dealing with something unfamiliar. As with everything new to us in life, the best thing to do is to simply trust life and...Jump! (And take my advice, my friends the less harsh critiques in the beginning of tthe journey the better.) So here I was with a bag of beautiful spring buds and no clue how to make the best of them. If you are thinking that I failed the first time (and the second time, and the third time, and the fourth time), you are right – a total disaster. And as I stood up in my kitchen late on those nights eating plates of either tasteless, or overcooked, or over marinated (in tons of garlic, salt and white anchovies) artichokes, the most obvious solution came to me – I needed some balance. So I set down and I thought of all the things that actually worked after every disastrous attempts, and I realized that what worked was when the artichokes were gently cooked and flavorful, with a balance of salt, sweetness and brightness, when their texture was soft (but not mushy) and when they had some crunch. Learning that fresh artichokes are at their best when warm and that they soak whatever they are in, I decided to layer flavors in 3 stages to create a subtle complexity and gentle build-up. If you are sweating already by reading this, you shouldn’t. This recipe is no more complicated than making an omelette. It really is. And just as I did, after you cook one from scratch, you will feel really good about yourself. And if you mess up and it doesn’t taste good, try it a second time, and a third time and a fourth. Try a different recipe, until you get there – to the top of the huge, rocky mountain. You will feel great, I promise!

If you haven’t cooked fresh artichokes I have some freshness tips for you below. And if you can’t find artichokes where you live, what are some of your all-time favorite spring recipes?

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Tips: 
• Fresh artichokes can be found all year round but they are at their best between March and May.
• An artichoke is fresh when it is heavy for it size and the outer leaves are green/purple and firm. To test, squeeze the artichoke and listen for the squeaky sound. The stem should be firm and green when the tip is trimmed.
• Artichoke leaves have small spikes at each end. Be careful when handling. Trim any remaining spikes before cooking using kitchen scissors.
• Don’t attempt to eat the choke, it has its name for a reason!
• Artichokes oxidize really quickly, cut them when ready to use. Once cut, place artichokes immediately cut side down in a bowl of lemon water.
• Store fresh artichokes in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for about 3 days.

Artichokes with Lemon an Herbs

Serves 4 (side dish, appetizer, lunch)

 

Ingredients:

• 2 large lemons
• 4 medium size artichokes
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp raw walnuts, finely chopped
• Salt

Directions:

1. Juice the first lemon and zest 1/2 of it. Place the zest in a bowl, cover and set aside. Pour the juice in a large pot with 1/2 cup of water and the wine. Working with 1 artichoke at a time, trim the dark end of the stem and peel 3-4 layers of the outer tough leaves. Trim about 1 inch from the top and peel the fibrous green stem and leaf ends using a vegetable peeler. Halve the artichoke lengthwise and scoop the choke with a spoon. Place each cleaned half cut side down in the pot with the lemon/wine mixture.

2. Add 3 of the garlic cloves and 1/2 tsp of salt to the pot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to low and simmer for 30-40 minutes turning artichokes half-way through. The artichokes are done when a knife tip is inserted to the heart and the flesh is as soft as a cooked potato.

3. Meanwhile, make the remaining garlic clove into a paste and place in the bowl with the lemon zest. Add parsley, dill, the juice of the remaining lemon, 2 tbls olive oil and 1/4 tsp of salt. Mix well and set aside.

4. Place the artichokes on a large plate and spoon about 1 tsp of the marinade on each one, making sure that some of the marinade gets in between the leaves. Let them cool for 10 min.

5. Heat the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil in a heavy bottom or cast iron skillet. Add the artichoke halves cut side down and lower heat to a medium-high. Cook until golden brown, for about 1 minute, turn the artichokes and cook for additional 30 seconds. Transfer the artichokes to a large plate. Add the walnuts to the marinade, mix well and spoon about half of the mixture over the artichokes.

Serve while still warm with a side of the remaining marinade.

Pour glasses of some vibrant white wine and eat!

Eating Tip (if you are an artichoke novice!):
Start eating the artichoke from the center where the leaves are soft. When close to the outer leaves (don’t be afraid and use your hands) eat only the lower, soft part of the leaf by scraping it (with your front teeth). The heart and the stem are the best parts, cut them up and enjoy!

Pasta with Peas and Prosciutto

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I am not sure about you, but cooking has a meditative and soothing effect on me. Maybe because it gives me structure, a result to look forward to and the hands-on process makes me focused on what I am doing at that specific moment. Quite often I catch myself being concentrated only on the specific task I am doing, maybe it is chopping a tomato or thin slicing a cucumber, my mind stops to spin around and it stays where my hands are. I am not trying to plan my next task. I am only concentrated on the one I am doing right at that moment and I want give my whole attention and respect to it. Then, when I am done, I move onto the next ingredient and I follow the same process. The coolest thing about it is that it comes to me naturally, I don’t force myself to do it that way, I don’t think about it. It just happens. And it is only when someone shares how frustrating cooking is for them that I start thinking why I love cooking so much.

For some reason cooking, traveling and dogs (the big, soft, happy, wet nosed kind!!!), are at no fear to me. I want to grab them, hug them, smell them and follow them (and not only the dogs – and even if they might be covered with mud and smell like a dead mouse). Doing and being around these things makes me very happy. That is the reason why I try to cook new recipes. They teach me new things and expand my perception of life. And that is not to say that I jump from one thing to another. Quite often I fall in love with a recipe that I want to cook until I perfect it – even if it means that I will have to eat potatoes every day for lunch and dinner for 2 weeks.

The following recipe is of the latest kind. I have been cooking and eating this pasta until I got it to the point of pure lovely yumminess. It is simple, yet it has all elements of a beautiful dish. It starts with building flavors by crisping the prosciutto and sautéing the shallots, garlic and wine in the prosciutto drippings. Then adding the al dente pasta and allowing it to soak all the yummy flavors. And finishing by tossing the pasta with lots of fresh Parmesan which makes for a creamy complex-flavored sauce.

This recipe is a favorite of mine. I often make it for my friends on the nights when laughing is more important than the heavy, multi-hours, 5 course – ala Martha Stewart type of cooking. And that recipe never failed me.

See you soon my fiends! Cook something tonight and be happy!

Pasta with Peas and Prosciutto

 

Ingredients:
Serves 2

• 1/3 dry spaghetti package
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4-5 prosciutto slices, torn into 1-inch pieces
• 1 medium size shallot
• 1 garlic clove, smashed
• 2 tbsp white wine
• 1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed 
• 1 tsp fresh thyme (or 1/4 dry thyme)
• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving
• Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Pour yourself a glass of white wine, sip and enjoy the cooking:

2. Heat a large pot with 4 quarts of salted water until it reaches the boiling point. Add the spaghetti and stir gently to separate. Lower the heat to medium-high, watch so water doesn’t over boil and stir from time to time to prevent the pasta from sticking. Cook until the pasta is al dente (neither crunchy nor too soft).

3. Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a large non-stick pan. Arrange the prosciutto pieces so they cover the pan and are not touching each other. Adjust the heat to medium-low, cook the prosciutto for 1 minute, then turn the pieces on the other side and cook for an additional minute – until crispy but not burnt. Remove the prosciutto with a slotted spoon, place on a plate and set aside.

4. Using the same pan (do not clean the prosciutto drippings) add the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil, shallot and the garlic. Cook until soft and fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the wine and peas and cook for 30 seconds. Using tongs or a spaghetti spoon (long, cupped, pronged spoon) take the spaghetti out of the water and place them into the pan with the rest of the ingredients. Add 2 ladles of the spaghetti water, stir well and cook on low heat until most of the water is absorbed, about 2 minutes. The pasta should be wet and have some liquid, if dry add a 1/2 ladle of the pasta water. Turn the heat off. Add thyme, prosciutto, Parmesan and pepper (to taste) to the pan. Toss the pasta gently using 2 spoons until Parmesan cheese coats the noodles and turns into a creamy sauce.

5. Divide the pasta between 2 plates. Top with extra Parmesan cheese and serve right away.
   
   Enjoy!

TIP: If you forgot to thaw the peas in advance, place them in the pot with the boiling spaghetti. Remove them after 1-2 minutes using a slotted spoon