A Summer Lunch For Two

When I was a little girl, I loved day trips. Sometimes it was the beach, other times the countryside. I loved packing lunches and even then, I expected to have multiple courses and snacks to munch on throughout the day. In retrospect, I think food was actually the thing I looked forward to the most, more so than the destination itself.



A few days ago, as I was completely submerged in writing, I looked up at my computer screen. "It is 4 o'clock and I have not left the house all day!" I thought. Seems to happen often these days.

Kids arrived home shortly after. They craved my attention, but my mind was elsewhere. It is hard to come out of your head when you have been in it for so many hours, isn't it? I asked the babysitter to stay a bit longer and I decided to go for a run to clear my head.

I thought of those day trips and the outdoor lunches in the summer heat. Sometimes even on the side of the road, close to a stream, or under an oak tree. I remembered my dad cutting melon slices for all of us while my mom finished her lunch. An array of small plates and nibbles always followed by a tart or shortbread we took from our family's pastry shop.



The following day, I woke up knowing I still had lots of work to do, but thought it would be fun to prepare a quick meal Miren and I could eat outside. Partly for her, but mostly for me. Just to get a break and some fresh air.

We had ripe heirloom tomatoes that I blended into a gazpacho with cucumber, scallions, fresh herbs, and a drizzle of avocado oil. Toasted gluten-free bread, rubbed juicy tomato all over it, and topped it with shaved Idiazabal. Miren's favorite.

We also enjoyed a simple salad with greens, berries, and pan seared salmon. And for dessert, plum and currant crumble.

"One for you, one for me."





Chilled Heirloom Tomato Soup

Serves 2

3 medium heirloom tomatoes, stem removed and diced
1/2 cucumber, diced
3 scallions, diced
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
small bunch of oregano
2 sprigs thyme
salt pepper
avocado oil, to garnish
2 slices toasted bread
Idiazabal or Manchego cheese, shaved

Puree all ingredients in the blender and chill for 1 hour.

Serve with toasted bread rubbed with tomato and shaved Manchego cheese.

Salmon and Berry Salad

Serves 2

8 ounces wild-caught salmon (mine was Coho)
2 cup mixed greens (frisee, baby romaine, watercress, arugula, parsley...)
1/4 cup yellow raspberries
1/4 cup blackberries
1/4 cup red currants
1 scallion, sliced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for salmon
salt and pepper

In a small saute pan, cook the salmon for 2 minutes (depending on the thickness) with 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat. Flip over and finish cooking for another 2 minutes. Set aside.

In a bowl, toss together the greens and all the berries.

In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, vinegar and olive oil. Drizzle the vinaigrette over salad. Season with salt. Toss to combine and top with seared salmon pieces.

Red Plum, Currant, and Almond Crumble

Serves 4

1/2 cup (70 grams) superfine brown rice flour
3/4 cup (70 grams) almond meal
1/3 cup (70 grams) natural cane sugar
5 Tbs (70 grams) cold unsalted butter, diced
6 red plums, pit removed and sliced
1/4 cup red currants
1/4 cup white currants
1 Tbs natural cane sugar
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 Tbs cornstarch

Preheat oven to 400F (220C).

In the food processor, combine the first four ingredients and pulse until it forms a crumbly sand. Transfer to a bowl and chill until ready to use.

Toss the rest of ingredients in a bowl. Divide amongst 4 (8-ounce) bowls. Top with crumble.

Bake for 30 minutes until filling bubbling and crumble is golden.

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A Summer Lunch For Two

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How To Stay Cool

Summer approaches and the heat is already getting to me.

This is the time when all I can think about is fresh fruit, chilled soups, salads, and lots and lots of sorbet pops.



I bought the first saturn peaches of the season a few days ago. They are nature's candy, if you ask me. (I seem to say that about all fruit, don't I?). Soft, full of water, and sweet. We have been enjoying them sliced for breakfast every morning.

"Let's make an orange and peach smoothie" Jon asked. It hit the spot after we came back from a swim.




It has been so hot that I barely turn on the oven at home. We grilled outside and I made a few salads with ingredients from the farm.

The kids and I went to pick tomatoes at the farm early in the morning. I guided them on which ones to pick and they quickly got the hang of it. Even as early as nine in the morning, it was unbearable to stand out in the sun, and we left quickly, just after saying hello to the baby goats and chickens.



Back at home, we turned the tomatoes into a mid morning snack. Drizzle of olive oil, squeeze of lemon juice, and a touch of pink salt.

For lunch, a refreshing red lentil, salmon, radish, and fennel salad inspired by a recipe I had seen at Elle à Table.

"No dessert?" C. asked. "It's too hot to bake" I replied.

All I got was a look.



So I pulled out some mulberries from the freezer and made a quick batch of mulberry, millet and poppy seed cakes. And to take advantage that the oven was on, I ended up baking a galette with leftover tart dough from a recipe for the book, saturn peaches,and raspberries.



And summer is almost here.

Mulberry, Millet and Poppy Seed Cakes

Makes 18 cakes

1/2 cup superfine brown rice flour
1/2 cup millet flour
1/3 cup almond flour
1/4 cup potato starch
2 Tbs tapioca starch
1 Tbs poppy seeds
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup natural cane sugar
1/3 cup applesauce
1/3 cup coconut milk
1 Tbs lemon juice
1/3 cup melted ghee
1/2 cup mulberries (mine were frozen)

Pre-heat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, whisk together the first nine ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the rest of wet ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until incorporated. Fold in the mulberries.

Pour the batter into muffin molds lined with baking papers. bake for 18 to 20 minutes until a skewer inserted in the center comes out dry.

Cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack. Store them in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Red Lentil, Salmon and Fennel Salad

Serves 4

1 cup red lentils, rinsed several times
8 ounces sockeye salmon
5 Tbs olive oil
1 medium fennel bulb, thinly sliced
6 radishes, thinly sliced
Arugula
Watercress
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 tsp dijon mustard
Salt and pepper

Place the lentils in a medium saucepan and cover them with cold water plus 1 inch. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, cover the pot, and cook the lentils for 8 minutes until they are al dente. Drain them and rinse them in cold water. Reserve.

In a medium saute pan, heat 1 Tbs of live oil over medium heat. Season the salmon with salt and pepper. Place the salmon skin side down. Cook for 3 minutes. Turn it over and cook it for 1 to 2 minutes longer depending on the thickness. Turn onto a clean plate and let it cool. When cool enough to handle, flake it with a fork and reserve.

In a large bowl, toss together the red lentils, salmon, fennel, radishes and greens. Make a quick vinaigrette with the dijon, lemon juice and 1/4 cup olive oil. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the salad. Season with salt and pepper. Toss well and serve in glass jars.

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How To Stay Cool

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Seeking Comfort with an Avocado, Apple and Poached Salmon Soup

If you have been following this blog for some time, it will be no surprise to you that I have a tremendous sense of melancholy and nostalgia when it comes to food and all memories associated with it.

I very much romanticize about the act of cooking and eating.



Through the process of writing this book, I have dug deep into my childhood and growing up in a family of cooks. It seems as though every important event in my life has an aroma and taste associated with it. Whether it may be the smell of wet dirt still attached to the roots of leeks in the winter or the crackling sound of olive oil poached potatoes, food is the background of many of the stories of my life.

The soundtrack of my life. Yo La Tengo and food.



I spent large part of last week writing food-related stories, both past and current. I felt the connection to my past and I recognized an enhanced romanticism when I wrote about it.

"Was it all this wonderful?" I thought to myself. So hard to distinguish sometimes. I thought about it a lot over the weekend. I'm sure you relate to this feeling as well.



I can be in my head quite a bit sometimes and by Saturday, I started to feel a bit homesick. Too much thinking and too much writing drove me to the edge of exhaustion.

I called my best friend Jill who even from Italy, manages to sense how I am doing. "I cannot read your blog sometimes" she said. "I know you too well for that".

I got it. I knew what she meant.



I had finished and submitted another book chapter to my editor by Saturday, so I took the weekend off from thinking, writing, editing, and all things work-related.

I quickly blended a soup of avocados, cucumber, and apple. Served it with olive oil-poached salmon, radishes, and watercress.

For dessert, last year's apricot tart. The simplest tart you can make.



I needed to experience cooking and food in a practical way, not always needing to associate it to an emotion or a feeling.

But is that even possible?

Not sure I am good at that, especially when I end up photographing what I have cooked. Then, food takes another dimension once again as photographing means recreating the moment, the mood in which this dish was created. Photographing means creating an emotion.

I just cannot escape it.



Avocado and Apple Soup with Poached Salmon

Serves 4

8 oz salmon
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

2 ripe avocados, peeled, pit removed and diced
1 medium green apple, peeled, cored and diced
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
1/4 cup diced yellow onion
Juice of half a lemon
2 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup thinly sliced radishes
1/4 cup sliced green onions
Watercress

Season the salmon with salt and pepper. In a small saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat until warm. Submerge the salmon and let it cook slowly for 5 to 7 minutes until the outside is no longer opaque but center is still slightly pink.

Meanwhile, puree the avocados, apple, cucumber, onion, vegetable stock, salt and pepper in a blender. Adjust seasoning. It will be thick. Add more stock if desired.

Serve the soup at room temperature with the flaked salmon, radishes, green onions and some watercress leaves.

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Seeking Comfort with an Avocado, Apple and Poached Salmon Soup

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Peppergrass, Sorrel and More Weekend Cooking

"Can you make pancakes for breakfast before going to the farmers' market?" asked J. as soon as I walked downstairs Saturday morning. He was up early. He knew it was the weekend and that a trip to the farmers' market was the first thing in order. Just like every other Saturday morning."Can I help?"

Our bellies full with chestnut and sauteed apple pancakes, my mom and I headed down to the farmers' market. It is always so nice to have alone time with her.



"Let's go see what Jody has this week" I told mom. "The padron peppers might be ready".

On the way there, we picked up eggs and my new wild strawberry plant, which I hope starts giving fruit soon (keeping fingers crossed).

We looked through Jody's stand. So many varieties of greens that is always hard to choose. The padron peppers weren't ready, but we spotted greens I have never seen before.

"Taste this". Peppery and lemony cress. "It's peppergrass" Jody told us. It was fresh and bright, similar to watercress, but different. We put that in our baskets as well as some sorrel, chervil, tender Bibb lettuce, and some heirloom carrots. "it will be great in a salad".



As we were walking back to our car, I reminded my mom of how my paternal grandmother, amama Dolores, never ate lettuce. Despite growing lots of greens in her own garden, she always said that lettuce was for the chickens. We laughed. We were definitely going to eat our greens.

At home we roasted potatoes and baby beets. Also made pesto with some of the peppergrass and sorrel, and slowly poached salmon with herbs in olive oil. It was a delicious salad indeed.

We ate it with a creamy tomato soup scented with sorrel, similar to this one.



For dessert we had dark chocolate and quinoa shortbread cookies. Soft and intense. I dipped them in some hemp milk in the middle of the afternoon. It hit the spot.



Salmon, Roasted Potato and Beet Salad with Peppergrass and Sorrel Pesto

Peppergrass and Sorrel Pesto

1 clove garlic
2 Tbs pine nuts
1 cup peppergrass
1/4 cup sorrel
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/3 cup olive oil

In the food processor, finely chop the garlic and pine nuts. Add the peppergrass, sorrel, and salt. Pulse until it turns into a fine paste. Add the grated parmesan and pulse twice to incorporate. Add the olive oil while machine running until pesto turns into a smooth paste. Reserve.

6 baby beets
6 baby golden potatoes, peeled and cut in half
2 Tbs olive oil
1/2 tsp salt

Toss all ingredients in a baking pan and roast at 425F for about 20-25 minutes.

2 (6 ounce) pieces of salmon
1/4 tsp salt
Fresh herbs (thyme, sorrel, parsley, etc)
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1 cup olive oil

Season salmon with salt on both sides. Tide the herbs around the salmon with butcher's twine. Over low heat, heat the olive oil in a shallow pan that will hold both pieces of salmon. Add the garlic. When it starts to form small bubbles around the garlic. Add the salmon and gently cook it for 6-8 minutes depending on the thickness. I half way cover the pot with a lid.

To assemble the salad, toss the roasted beets and potatoes with some of the pesto. Arrange peppergrass and sorrel leaves on a platter, season with 1/4 tsp salt and 1 Tbs lemon juice. Top with flaked pieces of salmon, beets and potatoes.

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Peppergrass, Sorrel and More Weekend Cooking

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Purple Corn Muffins and Poached Salmon Salad

Living far away from home means that I don't always get to enjoy the subtleties of my family's and friends' everyday lives. I miss the everyday hellos on the street and the "vamos a tomar un cafe?" exchanges. Proximity, even with silence, is enough sometimes.

I have noticed recently that those phone conversations with friends always end up with talks about food. Not food in general, no. Detailed descriptions of what we have been eating, what new foods we have discovered, what "el gordo" cooked on yesterday's show... I mean it goes on and on.



Recently, I have been very conscious and mindful about what I eat. Rather than focusing on things I cannot have, I have been focusing on things I should be incorporating into my diet. Always learning about new foods and their benefits (learning tons from Sarah Wilson I must say).

And it was in one of the hundreds of late night Twitter chats I always have with Y, where she told me about the purple corn she bought. I had seen blue corn before, but had never had the purple kind. Come to find out, it is widely used in Peru where my good friend P. is from.



The next morning when I saw P., I bombarded her with questions and she told me about the different purple corn dishes her grandmother used to make for her as a child.

I immediately ordered some organic purple corn online and couldn't wait to cook with it. I made some breakfast purple corn porridge, mazamorra morada and these purple corn and banana muffins. The muffins are sweet and good for you. Can you believe that?



I actually served the muffins with a large salad of greens, fingerlings, snap peas and salmon to make one satisfying lunch.

I warmed up some olive oil and infused a bunch of mint and thyme into it. Then slowly poached the salmon in the oil for a few minutes, just like my grandmother used to do with bacalao. Served with with watercress, baby romaine, arugula, blanched snap peas and super buttery fingerlings. Salt, olive oil and lemon.

So simple and abundant.



Gluten Free Purple Corn and Banana Muffins

makes about a dozen and a half muffins

3 eggs
50 grams (1/4 cup) organic cane sugar
280 grams (1 cup) ripe bananas, pureed
125 grams (3/4 cup) vegetable oil
25 grams (2 Tbs) coconut milk (can use whole milk if you like)
75 grams (1/2 cup) superfine brown rice flour
20 grams (2 Tbs) potato starch
20 grams (2 Tbs) tapioca starch
100 grams (3/4 cup) purple cornmeal
25 grams (1 Tbs + 2 tsp) baking powder
3 grams (1/2 tsp) salt
1 gram (1/2 tsp) xanthan gum

Whisk together the eggs, sugar, bananas and milk. In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Add the liquids to the dry and mix until combined.

Divide the batter into your baking cups and bake at 350F for about 15-18 minutes depending on the size.


Poached Salmon, Snap Pea and Fingerling Potato Salad

makes 2 servings

2 cups of mixed greens (watercress, baby romaine, arugula, herbs)
1 cup of fingerling potatoes
1 cup of snap peas
8 oz (225g) salmon
Olive oil for poaching
Thyme
Mint
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1 Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
Large pinch salt

Place the potatoes in a pan and cover them with water. Bring them to a boil and cook until fork tender. Drain and peel them. I like to serve them when they are lukewarm in the salad as they absorb more of the dressing this way.

Blanch the snap peas in salted boiling water for about 1 minute. Drain them and shock them in ice water. Reserve.

Place olive oil (enough to cover the salmon almost all the way up) in a small pan. Add some thyme and mint leaves to the oil and let it steep in medium low heat for a few minutes. Season the salmon with salt and pepper. Add the pieces of salmon and reduce the heat to low. There might be a little sizzle but must be gentle. Let the salmon cook for about 5-7 minutes, depending on the thickness, until it turns pale pink.

Remove the salmon from the oil. Let it cool on a plate. When cool enough to handle, remove the skin and flake it with a fork.

Place the greens, snap peas, cut fingerlings and salmon on a plate. Drizzle with olive oil, lemon juice and salt. Toss and taste to adjust seasoning.

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Purple Corn Muffins and Poached Salmon Salad

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