PORTLAND, OREGON! I’m heading your way. I love summers in the Pacific Northwest and I’m so excited to be there. I’ll be demoing 2 vibrant summer recipes from my book: Green Rice Salad with Nectarines and Corn (pictured, above), and Sweet Corn Fritters with Avocado Crema (below.) All that, plus a taste of the Rhubarb Ginger Fizz, for the price of the book! It’s a total steal, and it’s gonna be tons of fun, and it’s my only event in Portland, so please do come out! Tickets for the event can be found here.
And! Speaking of good and great times, here are a few photos from the collaborative dinner that Erin and I hosted last week at 18 Reasons. Such a fun night!
(Check out our unintentionally coordinated footwear! Worishofers ftw.)
First off: LOS ANGELES! I’ll be in Pasadena tomorrow evening (Wednesday) at Vroman’s Bookstore, 7 PM. Please come and say hi and ask me weird, unexpected questions about vegetables and color and blogging and photography and other things! It’ll make me so happy to see you.
Also. I had a launch party for Vibrant Food. It was all friends and family, and it kinda blew my mind to have all of these folks coming together from so many different arenas of my life. My family flew up from San Diego. My dad became BFFs with everyone. It was a splendid shitshow pulling it all together. But nobody noticed that, which is amazing. With the tremendous help of my friends Emily and Jason, we served some dishes from my book: Summer Squash Pasta with Green Goddess Dressing, Red Beet Risotto, and Summer Berry Peach Crisp. I am so deeply indebted to my friends and family for all of their support. More on that when I have a moment to breathe. Meanwhile. Eat some crisp, enjoy summer. Happy 4th!
(Originally, I put lemon verbena in this crisp, which is what the green flecks are in the image above. If you’re feeling adventurous, try it! It’s lovely either way.)
Check out Megan’s version of this crisp. And Shanna’s!
And check out Adrianna’s version of the Summer Squash Pasta with Green Goddess Dressing!
This is all perfect 4th of July eating.
XOXO
(Pictured throughout are outtakes of the Summer Berry Peach Crisp for Vibrant Food.)
With a summer of road trips ahead on my book tour, I’m gathering ideas for recipes and snacks that are ideal for travel. The Eating Well on the Road series is one of my favorites – perhaps because the anticipation and joy of travel is built into planning snacks and meals for the road. Thinking about food on the road means thinking about all the places I’ll be visiting.
Some quick news:
Speaking of that book tour, I’ve added a bunch of dates! A dinner at 18 Reasons, some solid Portland events, and more bay area events. Go check that out.
I’m having a small book launch party on Friday, June 20th in San Francisco! There are a few tickets still available! Use the code VIBRANT to gain access to the RSVP page.
The price of Vibrant Food will go up when it’s released – 6 days from now! – so now’s the time to jump on that pre-order if you’d like to secure the lowest price.
Things are crazy around here, and I’ve got my nose solidly to the grind for the next two weeks. I hope to have a big blowout post next week celebrating the book process and sharing some outtakes. The countdown is on, and despite being really tired, I’m more excited than I’ve ever been in my life. It’s totally unreal.
CHERRY GINGER CACAO GRANOLA BITES
Yield: 18-20 bites
inspired by Bike Camp Cook
A couple months ago, I received an email about a cookbook that piqued my interest. It was a self-published book about a couple’s round-the-world journey by bike and the food that author Tara Alan prepared while they traveled. It’s filled with great ideas for using what you find locally, and making the most of what you have, and which ingredients to keep on hand when space and weight are precious. Being on the other side of a book now, I have a ton of respect for the amount of work that went into this project. The book is great for all kinds of travel eating and cooking inspiration. And this recipe is a great starting point for improvising – use your favorite dried fruit, nuts, and other crunchy tidbits, keeping the ratio roughly the same, and you’ll be a happy camper this summer. These are perfect for any kind of summer travel: a plane ride, long trips in the car, an epic backpack, or a stroll in the woods.
1 1/4 cup oats
1/4 cup chopped dried cherries
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup toasted coconut flakes
2 generous tablespoons cacao nibs
2 generous tablespoons chopped crystallized ginger
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons almond butter
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
In a mixing bowl, combine the oats, cherries, almonds, coconut, caao nibs, and crystallized ginger and set aside. In a medium pot, combine the honey, almond butter, coconut oil, sea salt and cinnamon. Warm over a medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is hot. Pour in the dry ingredients, turn off the heat, and stir to thoroughly combine everything. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
Use a tablespoon to make round balls. Press them together very firmly to help them hold their shape. Store in the fridge. They may become a little soft if taken along on a very hot day. But they’ll still taste good!
Summer’s on the horizon. A couple weeks ago we had a pretty terrific heat wave, and I made this, and it was perfect. Rhubarb’s wonderful, tart flavor is front and center here. I love how chia seeds add a little texture and substance to the winning combo of strawberries and rhubarb. This is a variation on a rhubarb compote from my cookbook, in fact. (!!!)
It’s not quite enough to stand on its own as breakfast, but add some nuts, or banana, or oats, or muesli, or even a small handful of granola, and you’re set. It’s the stuff of dreams when it’s already 80 degrees in the morning and you live in a city where AC is a foreign concept.
I’m also pretty stoked on all the possibilities for taking chia seeds on the road in the coming months. More to come!
Rhubarb Strawberry Chia Pudding
serves 4 to 6
3/4 pound rinsed and diced rhubarb
1/2 pound rinsed and quartered strawberries
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup water
1/2 vanilla bean
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup chia seeds
handful of nuts for garnish, optional
In a medium pot, combine the rhubarb, strawberries, honey, and water. Slice the vanilla bean in half, scrape the seeds into the pot, and add the bean. Bring to a boil, covered, then reduce heat to low, stirring occasionally. Simmer until the rhubarb has broken down, about 12 to 15 minutes. Set aside to cool. You can expedite the process by chilling in the fridge.
When the compote is cooled to room temperature, add the chia seeds. Return to the fridge and allow to sit for at least two hours before eating.
Years ago, someone anonymously posted a funny, slightly inappropriate comment on my blog, jokingly asking what one might do with wilted lettuce, among other things. I deleted the comment (which I kinda regret), and while wilted lettuce and grilled lettuce aren’t really the same thing, I’ve always associated them, perhaps because grilling lettuce wilts it? Anyhow, anonymous commenter, here’s what you can do with wilted lettuce. You can put it on a grill and make it into the most amazing Caesar Salad ever. Seriously.
Summer’s almost upon us. As in years past, I’m making a to-do list of very important summer activities: lots of stargazing, campfires, hikes, tents, rivers, swimming holes, watermelon, popsicles, road trips, warm evenings, cold drinks, etc. On top of those important activities, I’ll also be meandering up and down the west coast doing this book tour thing. (!!!) I’m feeling pretty darn enthused about all of this: about summer, about having a real, tangible cookbook out in the world, about celebrating all of this with friends in a bunch of my favorite cities, about long road trips and lots of good music and podcasts, about the bigness of it all. When life feels big and wacky and crazy like this, I tend to listen to a lot of really cheesy music. Katy Perry’s on heavy repeat right now. Don’t judge. She’s perfect in her larger-than-life musical proportions, uninhibited earnestness and righteous lady power.
I’m not often one for giveaways, but I grew up with Sunset magazine. It used to be my mother’s magazine, and now it’s my magazine. How did that happen? They’ve just released The Great Outdoors Cookbook, and it captures everything I love about summer eating. I have one copy of that book for one of you fine folks! Since this is a giveaway, here’s what I’d love to hear from you: those of you anywhere along the great west coast corridor that is I-5, share your favorite swimming hole, hike, local farm, or any awesome outdoor place to get your summer on. OR, share your biggest, cheesiest, most wonderful summer anthem with me. Perhaps it’ll make its way onto a summer road trip playlist as I meander up and down I-5 this summer. I can’t wait!
GRILLED CAESAR SALAD
adapted from The Great Outdoors Cookbook
Serves 4
6 anchovy fillets, rinsed and drained
5 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 large clove garlic, minced or pressed
Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
2 hearts of romaine
Manchego cheese, shaved
Heat a grill to medium-high.
Using the flat side of a knife, mash the anchovies into a paste. In a small bowl, combine the anchovies with the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper, and whisk thoroughly.
Slice the hearts of romain in half lengthwise, keeping the core intact. Brush each cut half generously with the dressing, reserving a little dressing for serving.
Grill the hearts of romaine, cut sides down, until soft and golden brown, about 6 to 8 minutes.
Remove from heat and plate immediately. Drizzle remaining dressing, and finish with the manchego. Best served immediately.
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by Kimberley
I wish I could go to this. Have fun!
Wow! Congrats on the book! We’ll be in PDX Saturday for the farmer’s market… unfortunately (or fortunately) I am cooking dinner at home…
FdeM
I SO wish I could go! Have fun!
I absolutely love your blog and can’t wait to get my hands on your book! I’m just beginning my cookbook, and your work has been so inspiring!
beautifully captured post, wish i could have gone. love the book!
OMG Where did she get that Mallorca apron? It’s so kitch and I love it ;-) Congrats for the book btw!