We are cruising NY harbor tonight in honor for a friend's birthday. Dinner and dancing included! Looking forward to it!

Have a great time!

We thought we might not be able to attend, but it looks as if the work that came into Mr. Pup's office will only take a few hours and not all day and night. We are looking forward to it. This has been a terrible week.

Made in a muffin pan.

Perfect for a hot day! Actually, more like a hot week, since it's just me, and there's a whole pot full of the stuff...

We just made a repositioning sail and emptied the very stinky tanks on the way.

This has left me a wee bit nauseous, so my dinner planning will have to wait a bit.

How about you?

we will have chicken tostadas with cheesy beans on the side.

I have everything I need (well, an avocado would be nice, but...) including two just ripened tomatoes from my little plant.

Should be good!

As you can imagine, it requires a bit more care than other people's tomato plants.

For example, it just took a trip in the shower and had the clothes washer fall on it, lol.

Maybe couscous.

Very tasty and very refreshing. Don't let the instructions intimidate you - it's quite an easy recipe to make.


Shiitake Banh Mi Salad

by IsaChandra (along with narration - photo by me)

Serves 4

Time: 1 hour 15 minutes || Active time: 15 minutes

I came to the Banh Mi late in life (as I imagine most Brooklyn Jews did), but when I fell for it, I fell hard. The general idea, at least in the vegan versions I’ve tasted, is charred meat (seitan and tofu most often), super spicy creamy spread, pickled veggies to help cool you down, and the fresh cilantro and mint just make the whole thing. Since Banh Mi by definition calls for bread, this is a very deconstructed version, but you could easily reconstruct this baby and serve it on a good, chewy baguette, just leave out the lettuce. For me, right now it’s 100 degrees outside and I want salad!

I decided to use shiitakes as my meat, first of all because I’ve never seen anyone else do it but also because I wanted something relatively light but still entirely meaty. I love the hot/cold contrast in salads and this one doesn’t disappoint. The crisp, flavorful salad, coated in a simple spicy almond butter dressing, with the sweetness and acid from the pickled veggies, up against the charred, juicy, salty shiitakes stir up emotions in me that a salad probably shouldn’t.

If you’ve never pickled anything before, you’ll feel a great sense of accomplishment pickling your first veggies in this recipe! And don’t worry, it’s the simplest thing in the world, you just throw some vinegar and sugar in a bowl, stir, and toss in the veggies for an hour or so. Despite all of the components, the recipe is really, really easy.

For the pickled veggies:
1/2 cup rice vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar sugar
Pinch salt
1 scant cup thinly sliced radishes
1 scant cup thinly sliced cucumbers

For the dressing:
4 tablesoons almond butter
3 tablespoons pickling liquid
1 tablespoon sriracha (or more to taste)
1 to 2 tablespoons water
Pinch salt

For the shiitakes:
1 tablespoon peanut oil
1/2 lb whole shiitakes, stems trimmed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce
For the salad:
12 oz crisp salad greens (like romaine)
1/2 cup mint leaves
1/2 cup cilantro

Prepare the veggies:

Stir together the rice vinegar, sugar and a pinch of salt. Toss in the radishes and cucumbers to coat. Let them rest for about an hour, giving them a stir with your hands every so often.

When the pickled veggies are done, prepare the dressing:

Mix together almond butter, 3 tablespoons of liquid from the pickles you just made, Siracha, 1 tablespoon water and a pinch of salt. Since almond butter varies from brand to brand, you may need a little more water to thin it out enough to coat the salad. You may also want to use more Sriracha, I actually used an extra teaspoon for a bit more spiciness, but it depends on your taste.

Prepare the shiitakes:

Preheat a large cast iron pan (or any heavy bottomed pan) over medium-high heat. Drizzle in the oil, then add the shiitakes. Cover and let the shiitakes cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. They should be softening up a bit and releasing moisture. Now uncover, and cook for 3 more minutes or so, until they are slightly browned in spots. Add the garlic and saute a minute more. Lastly, add the splash of soy sauce, and stir until it’s well incorporated.
Assemble:

Toss the greens with the dressing to coat. Plate the greens and top with the pickled veggies. Throw some herbs on top, and finish with the shiitakes. Serve immediately.

Note: although not in the recipe I added some rice vermicelli noodles

Thank you for the recipe,I will try it for sure!

What a wonderful evening, yellerpup. Do tell a few details next time you post. I know you'll have a wonderful time. Also, I didn't know you were NY area!

cbayer, it is just dawning on me why you're often in a fix for ingredients! Duh! You're on a boat! I guess I missed the post where you described your circumstances.

Callalilly, I'm saving that recipe. It is just my type of salad. It looks a little complex but I'm up for it!

Now what we're having this Sunday evening: beef ribs in barbecue sauce the creative spouse made. I know he used ginger and cider vinegar in the sauce.

He also made crispy potatoes. We have cucumbers in creme mexicana and also a tossed salad with homemade French dressing.


Cher

edited to add: Nice photo, Callalilly. Are you a professional in this field?

from my new Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven cookbook to be cooked in my new Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven I got for my birthday. (Did I mention I got a new Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven?)

Also going to fry up some okra (from the garden) and put out a relish try with veggies from the garden.

It wah gooh but my mouf ish on fiyah!

london broil, roasted potatoes, broccoli, tossed green salad, fresh peaches and raspberries with ice cream.

This was my first attempt at London broil and I was pleased with the results!

I made this, only I didn't grill it. I briefly browned it in a frying pan, and then I put it on top of brown rice in a foil packet at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. Pretty tasty!

http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=59689

I love tabouli and falafel but can't take much of either because of the carbs. So I added a feta omelet to the menu. Perfect, with good tsatziki, and a dish of kalamata olives.

The tabouli was perfect, with lots of stuff from the farmers market today -- parsley and cucumber and scallions etc. Very, very lemony too. Fresh mint and fresh greek oregano from my little garden.

I always ask about pie cherries at the market. Today is the day a vendor had some, but they were sold out early. Maybe some next week. Maybe, she said.

I also bought apricots and two boxes of marionberries.

And a bunch of beautiful fresh baby dill. Mmm. There will be salmon this week.

The weather was just right here today - not too hot. It was the perfect afternoon for fresh air dining.