...Let me count the ways. As a distraction from my paleoethnobotany (try saying that 5 times fast eh?) reading I decided to plan what I was going to make for dinner. I bought a bunch of asparagus yesterday at a farm stand and, above the Eric Clapton song playing in my apartment, I hear it calling to me. Ok, so maybe all my pbot reading has me going a bit delusional but, none-the-less you have to admit food speaks. It tells you if it's ripe through its color, its fragrance, its feel. It tells you if its ready to be eaten through much of the same elements along with its pop, snap, or sizzle as it roasts elegantly in the oven or simmers, bubbling ever so lightly, on the stove.
MMmmm, just thinking about the luxurious smells and sounds makes me hungry. And reminds me of my audacious asparagus that was yearning to be eaten. But that's where the dilemma came in. What to do with it? So many options... so many choices... what is my indecisive self supposed to do? My desire to make the perfect dish has gotten the best of me. Normally I love grilling asparagus with olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and lemon but I feel like I do that too often. So then I started looking around through various blogs and cookbooks trying to find something that sparked my interest. Orangette has a asparagus flan that though I'm curious about doesn't fit my evening, Super Natural Cooking by Heidi Swanson has an asparagus puree that did catch my eye but I don't want pasta, Jamie Oliver and Jamie's Kitchen had poached eggs with asparagus on toast which I have been wanting to try but again, it just doesn't seem right tonight. And then roast asparagus and a balsamic vinegar reduction sneaks it's way in and always does its magic... BUT NO! I want something else... so I kept looking, searching, yearning for the perfect asparagus recipe... and finally it came like a shining star in a dark night. I know, I had you worried there for a second didn't I?
There it was on 101 cookbooks... simple, elegant, perfect. " Spring Panzanella". I know right, why didn't I think of this earlier? It was exactly what I wanted for a warm spring night- lots of veggies and crunchy, toasted bread. Besides the fact that anything based on Italian food is excellent, it was a Swanson recipe (aka my current culinary muse).
The recipe is so simple but yielded an aromatic, colorful masterpiece. My first bite was like an explosion of tasty Italian flavors in my mouth. And the contrast of textures between the toasted, garlicky bread and the crunchy, oily asparagus was a perfect pairing. I made a few minor tweaks such as substituting the thyme for rosemary on the croutons, using a sweet onion instead of a shallot since that's what I had in my pantry, and frozen spinach because I always have that on hand. Never the less, I'm happy to say my taste buds are satisfied and my tummy full!
Ando so it went,
Caroline
There it was on 101 cookbooks... simple, elegant, perfect. " Spring Panzanella". I know right, why didn't I think of this earlier? It was exactly what I wanted for a warm spring night- lots of veggies and crunchy, toasted bread. Besides the fact that anything based on Italian food is excellent, it was a Swanson recipe (aka my current culinary muse).
The recipe is so simple but yielded an aromatic, colorful masterpiece. My first bite was like an explosion of tasty Italian flavors in my mouth. And the contrast of textures between the toasted, garlicky bread and the crunchy, oily asparagus was a perfect pairing. I made a few minor tweaks such as substituting the thyme for rosemary on the croutons, using a sweet onion instead of a shallot since that's what I had in my pantry, and frozen spinach because I always have that on hand. Never the less, I'm happy to say my taste buds are satisfied and my tummy full!
Ando so it went,
Caroline
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