Spring Art Boutique Delights

For the past few years I have hosted a spring art boutique with my jewelry artist friend Tina St John. This year we invited a 3rd artist, Sam McKinney, who grows and makes lovely gourd pieces. During the school year when I'm teaching full time, I bounce between cooking in my small but efficient kitchen and working in my spacious new art studio. So alongside the dining room table laden with some of the recipes that follow, I'll have a few handmade journals, some prints for framing and hand printed cards. Tina hand makes beautiful jewelry and both she and Sam are part of the Art Co-op in Three Rivers, near the entrance to the Sequoia National Park.

Of course, I featured local spring fruits and vegetables. This included the previously posted Chilled Spring Pea soup with garlic cream and bacon crumbles. Everything tastes better with a little bacon, non? Our local Southeast Asian strawberry farmers have just opened up their roadside stands featuring the old fashion Chandler variety of sweet and red fleshed strawberries. These strawberries have a short shelf life and can't be shipped, so enjoy them now. When it gets hot, they 'll be gone until next spring. I served a Mediterranean Orange 'Salad" with Pomegranate Molasses topped with local pistachios, a platter of baby carrots and radishes to be savored with a yogurt green garlic dip, a cardamom Indian style carrot cake, a lemon butter cake layered with roasted apricots and an Asian Slaw.

Gajar Ki Cake- Carrot cake with pistachios

From Madhur Jaffrey's Spice Kitchen

Notes: Take the cardamom seeds out of the pods and grind the finely in a mortar. Cardamom is used like vanilla in Indian cooking.

Serves 6-8

INGREDIENTS:

4 Tbsp butter softened, plus about 2 tsp to coat the pan

1 cup unbleached all Purpose flour, plus 1 Tbsp for dusting the cake pan

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp table salt

2 large eggs

½ tsp ground cardamom seeds, see note above

1 cup sugar

1 ½ cup peeled and grated carrots

2 Tbsp chopped pistachios

2 Tbsp chopped walnuts

2 Tbsp golden raisins

DIRECTONS:

1. Rub a 9 " round cake pan that is 1 ½" in height with about 2 tsp butter, then dust very lightly with flour.
   
2. Preheat the oven to 350°
   
3. Sift the flour, with the baking soda and salt, set aside.
   
4. Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the cardamom, sugar and 4 Tbsp of softened butter. Keep beating until all ingredients are thoroughly mixed.
   
5. Add the sifted flour mixture to the large bowl and fold gently with a spatula. Add the carrots, nuts and raisins. Fold in gently.
   
6. Pour into the cake pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top is golden red.
   

Oranges with Pomegranate Molasses and Honey

From Bon Appétit | December 2008

This light, bright dessert of oranges, dates, and cinnamon. is a great way to end a heavy meal,

Yield: Makes 8 to 10 servings

INGREDIENTS

8 large navel oranges (preferably Cara Cara), all peel and white pith cut away, oranges sliced into thin rounds
1/4 cup floral honey (such as tupelo or orange blossom)
3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses*
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
8 large Medjool dates, pitted, chopped

DIRECTIONS

1. Arrange orange slices, overlapping slightly, on large rimmed platter.
   
2. Whisk honey, pomegranate molasses, ground cinnamon, and sea salt in small bowl to blend; drizzle evenly over oranges.
   
3. Sprinkle oranges evenly with chopped dates.
   
4. Variation: add chopped mint and pistachios as a garnish
   

DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

* A thick pomegranate syrup; available at in Visalia at Mediterranean Market and Deli.

Asian Slaw

from the 'Chef' at Joseph Phelps Vineyards

serves 6-8 side servings

For Dressing:

5 oz.	Canola oil
1 oz.	Dark sesame oil
1 Tbsp	Lemon juice
1 Tbsp	Orange juice
2 oz.	Rice wine vinegar
1 Tbsp	Minced garlic
1 Tbsp	Minced ginger
1 Tbsp	Soy sauce

For Slaw:

1/2 head	Green cabbage sliced very thin
1/2 head	Red cabbage sliced very thinly
2 lrg	Carrots shredded (grated)
3 Tbs.	Black sesame seeds

DIRECTIONS:

Blend all ingredients for dressing (also great marinade)

Mix vegetables

Dress vegetables the season with salt and pepper to taste. Best dressed the day you are serving it.

Spring Chilled Pea Soup

Although our local farmers don't all grow sugar snap peas or Chinese edible peas in their pods, maybe like me, you have some growing in your yard. I swear they grow over night, because there are so many new pods each day! I adapted this recipe from Food & Wine magazine, and substituted Chinese peas for the sugar snap peas. My friends the Sommers share this with me last night and they agreed that the little bit of rosemary and garlic infused cream and bacon bits on top made it extra special. Prefect for a warm spring afternoon or evening. Happy Easter and spring! It will serve 6-8 as a first course.

Ingredients

8 slices of bacon

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 celery ribs, thinly sliced

1 onion, thinly sliced

1 leek, white and tender green parts only, thinly sliced

5 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth

Two 4-inch fresh rosemary sprigs

Salt and freshly ground white pepper

1/2 pound sugar snap peas, thinly sliced

16-20 ounce boxes frozen baby peas

1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves

½ cup heavy cream

1 garlic clove, minced

Directions

1. In a medium soup pot, cook the bacon over moderate heat until browned and crisp, about 6 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a plate. Pour off the fat in the pot.
   
2. In the same pot, heat the olive oil.
   
3. Add the celery, onion and leek and cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 7 minutes.
   
4. Add the chicken stock, 4 slices of the cooked bacon, 1 rosemary sprig and a pinch each of salt and white pepper.
   
5. Simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 15 minutes. Discard the bacon and rosemary.
   
6. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to a blender or food processor.
   
7. Blanch the fresh peas for about 2-3 min. Remove and cool under running water. Add the frozen peas and parsley leaves to the pot of boil water. Heat for about 1 min, drain.
   
8. Add all the peas and parsley to the processor and puree. Adding a few Tablespoons of broth to loosen the soup.
   
9. Transfer the soup and reaming broth to a large bowl set in another bowl of ice water to cool.
   
10. In a small sauce pan bring the cream, garlic and rosemary sprig to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for about 5 mins.
    
11. Serve the chilled soup drizzled with the garlic cream and topped with the remaining 4 slices of bacon that have been chopped or crumbled.