Pasta alla gricia with Seared Red Cabbage Wedges

Last Monday I used the frozen pork jowl that I got at the farmers market to make Pasta alla gricia from How to Cook Everything.  I had made it once before, using some guanciale I got from the Milwaukee indoor farmers market, and thought it was the best thing ever, and have been on the watch for pork jowl ever since.  Usually the farmers market doesn't have any.  (But the last time I was at the grocery store, I found some.  Go figure.)

I still had about three-quarters of the five-pound head of red cabbage left leftover from the Tangy Red Cabbage and Beets with Beef, so I served it with a side of Seared Red Cabbage Wedges, from Recipes for Health.  I really liked the seared part, but the wedges were just a bit too thick, so the insides of the wedges were steamed, not fried.  (So I'll cut them thinner next time.)

weekend update

Saturday we visited Afters (which is yet another one of those businesses that have a facebook page, but no web site.  I find this bizarre, which is probably just a sign that I'm getting old) and the new Fresh & Green's (which is quite similar to the old Superfresh, except they don't take the loyalty card).  I went to lab while Morgan went to the Magic tournament with Tom, and then we had a late supper at 30 East at the Stalking Horse (where I got to use my Living Social coupon.  (Now, a Groupon is just a Groupon, not a Groupon coupon, so is a Living Social just a Living Social?))

Sunday I woke up early, so I went to the farmers market and got jam, sugar plums, apricots, raspberries, blueberries, nectarines (white and yellow), corn on the cob, watermelon, green beans, potatoes, eggplant, tomatoes (red and yellow), and pork jowl.  (I made three trips between the car and the market.)

Parking had become free since the last time I went, and it was noticeable.  I got there before eight, but the parking lot was pretty full.  (The market itself was no more full than usual at that time of morning.)  I left before nine, and the parking lot was insane.  It used to be that if I couldn't get to the market before nine, I didn't bother going, but now I'm going to have to revise that to even earlier (since, as you see above, it's going to be pretty tough if I can't get parking near the market).

I made Seared Bean Sprouts with Beef and Sesame Orange Sauce from The Food Matters Cookbook and served it over quinoa for lunch.

In the afternoon we took a walk around the harbor and finally partook of the dragon paddleboats.  Having a boating license, I got to steer.  The boats are not terribly hydrodynamic and a little difficult to maneuver, but we managed not to hit anything or anyone.  Morgan was a little surprised how much work it was to paddle (we'll have to have paddle boot camp up north), but we had fun.

Sunday evening I went back to lab, and, since I had the car, I also stopped at Whole Foods on the way home and picked up cherries, quinoa, sesame seeds, and almond milk.  At home, I finally made some progress on Atlas Shrugged.  (Trying real hard to withhold judgment until I've finished it, but it's tough.)

I've been mostly living off my farmers market produce since then.  I love summer.  (And who needs protein anyway?)

farmers market

Cleaned up at the farmers market today: bread, eggplant, cherry tomatoes, green beans, peaches, strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries.  (I do find it suspicious that the strawberries are still available, but even so I am not one to turn my nose up at fresh strawberries.)  The vendor at the produce stand (yes, our farmers market has exactly one produce stand, which is exactly in keeping with our institution's attitude toward healthy competition) seemed a little perplexed that I was buying so much.  I told him that the only grocery store within walking distance of my house just closed.

Turns out I was only half right.

The real reason is that fresh produce (especially fruit) is only available just a few weeks of the year, so yes, I'm willing to drop $33 on decent food once a week, even if it means the bicycle I'm saving up for is that much further away.  And besides, the raspberries and blueberries were perfect.

leek tomato shrimp couscous concoction

I didn't make it to the farmers market yesterday until ~12:30, so I missed the raspberries.  I did get some blueberries and tomatoes from the one (1) produce stand.

I was inspired by the Kojo Nnamdi Show the previous day, when the guest talked about how healthy, sustainable, affordable, and convenient sardines are.  He specifically mentioned about how great it is that anyone can walk into a 7-Eleven and pick up a tin that, with a few slices of tomato and some mayonnaise, makes a healthy meal in ten minutes, but on my walk back from the library and the hardware store, not one (1) of the three (3) convenience stores I stopped in had sardines.  (They did all have Libby's Vienna Sausage: go figure.)

So instead I relied on the shrimp I had in the freezer for my protein.


Leek Tomato Shrimp Couscous Concoction

4 tbsp butter
2 leeks (leftover from Tuesday), trimmed and sliced
4 large tomatoes, chopped
~1/2 cup white wine (leftover from Tuesday)
12 shrimp, thawed (about five minutes in a sandwich bag in a large bowl of warm water does the trick)
1 cup couscous

Melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the leeks; cook until soft.  Add the tomatoes and the wine, heat through.  Add the shrimp and cook until pink and opaque.  Add the couscous: stir, cover, turn off the heat for five minutes.

I'm particularly proud of this recipe because it was comprised almost entirely of leftovers and what I had in my cupboards (the only exception being tomatoes, which the rest of the dish was built around), and I concocted it without a recipe.  It was also pretty fast, and delicious.  (The amount of time that it sits is just about the right amount of time to wash up the rest of the dishes, so cleanup after dinner is fast, too.)