gazpacho two ways: traditional red (from jose andres) and green (from bon appetite)

For months my husband and I planned to tear up half of the cement driveway that sits to the left of our house. We had 10 feet of concrete slab that was a total waste of space and didn't make sense to maintain since we have one car (and hope to keep it that way) and a scooter. We thought the space should be turned into our family garden.

After dragging our feet for most of the spring and early summer, Matt finally rented a jack-hammer. It took only (!) seven hours of drilling in the sun, in temperature that exceeded 100 degrees, to get the job done. We removed the concrete and assembled the elevated garden beds. Then we tilled the hard clay, added bags and bags of soil, and got to planting. We're growing basil, jalapeños, Corsican mint, Kentucky Colonel mint (hello mint juleps! and mojitos!), heirloom tomatoes, kale, marigolds, milk weed, jupiter's beard and a host of other bee-welcoming and butterfly-attracting plants. 

In just under 5 weeks we have started to reap the benefits of our hard work. Otis is in charge of watering the plants every morning and every evening. Theodore, being slightly less helpful than his older brother, usually takes the garden spade and swings it in the direction of the tomatoes until something falls off the vine (hopefully he outgrows this soon). There is an enormous satisfaction in knowing that we are greening the land, and our garden serves as our proudest DIY-it to date. We've come a long way since I tried to grow a strawberry plant on our fire escape in Brooklyn. I lovingly watered that silly plant and placed it in the sun, but the result of all my effort was a pitiful yield - a single and sad looking berry that didn't even taste good. 

But times have changed and this garden is a total thrill. It's thriving and it's growing. I can't tell you how amazing it felt to pick some of the gazpacho ingredients  from our little plot of Earth....

Patricia's Gazpacho 
(Courtsey of Jose Andres via Food + Wine. With thanks to the Truffle Table  in Denver for suggesting this recipe.)

Ingredients

2 pounds ripe plum tomatoes (about 10), cut into chunks

8 ounces cucumber (1 cucumber), peeled and cut into chunks

3 ounces green pepper, in large pieces

1 garlic clove

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

Spanish extra-virgin olive oil

Salt

Garnish

1 tablespoon Spanish extra-virgin olive oil

1 slice rustic white bread

6 plum tomatoes, with the seeds, prepared as "fillets"

8 cherry tomatoes, halved

1 cucumber, peeled and cut into cubes

4 pearl onions, pulled apart into segments

2 tablespoons Spanish extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

Sea salt

4 chives, cut into 1-inch pieces

Preparation

• In a blender, combine the tomatoes, cucumber, green pepper, garlic and sherry vinegar and blend until the mixture becomes a thick liquid. Taste for acidity; this will vary with the sweetness of the tomatoes. If it's not balanced enough, add a little more vinegar. Add the olive oil, season with salt, and blend again. Strain the gazpacho into a pitcher and refrigerate for at least half an hour.
• In a small pan, heat the olive oil over moderately high heat and fry the bread until golden, about 2 minutes. Break into small pieces to form croutons and set aside.
• To serve pour gazpacho into each of 4 bowls. Place 4 croutons, 2 "fillets" of tomatoes with seeds, 4 cherry tomato halves, 3 cucumber cubes and 3 onion segments into each bowl. Add a few drops of olive oil to each onion segment and drizzle a little more around each bowl. Add a few drops of vinegar to each cucumber cube and drizzle a little more around each bowl. Sprinkle sea salt on the tomatoes and sprinkle the chives over the soup. Serve when the gazpacho is refreshingly chilled.

NOTES: 
José's tips: If you want to be original, buy yellow or even green tomatoes. Also, if you want to save time, you can simplify the garnishes: Just use a few cubes of cucumber, tomato and green pepper.

* * *

I've been on such a gazpacho kick recently that I just had to try this green gazpacho recipe from July’s Bon Appetit magazine. It’s completely different from the traditional red gazapacho, but equally delicious. If you don’t want the soup hot (taste-wise, not temperature-wise) you can reduce the amount of jalapeño or increase the amount of yogurt. But personally, I love a soup with kick!

Green Gazpacho (Courtesy of Bon Appetit Magazine)

Ingredients

¼ cup white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1½ cups whole-milk plain Greek yogurt, divided

½ cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling
4 oz. ciabatta or country-style bread, crust removed, bread torn into 1” pieces (about 2½ cups) 
1 medium English hothouse cucumber, halved lengthwise, seeds removed, cut into large pieces

1 green bell pepper, coarsely chopped

4 large tomatillos (about 12 oz.), husked, quartered

4 scallions, cut into 1” pieces

2 jalapeños, seeds removed, chopped

2 garlic cloves, finely grated

¾ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more

Piment d’Espelette or Hungarian hot paprika (for serving)

Preparation

• Whisk vinegar, lime juice, 1 cup yogurt, and ½ cup oil in a large bowl until smooth. Add bread, cucumber, bell pepper, tomatillos, scallions, jalapeños, garlic, and ¾ tsp. salt and toss to coat (make sure bread is well coated so it can soak up as much flavor as possible). Cover and chill at least 4 hours.
• Working in batches, purée bread and vegetable mixture in a blender until very smooth; transfer to a large bowl and season gazpacho with salt.
• Whisk remaining ½ cup yogurt in a small bowl, thinning with water a tablespoonful at a time, until the consistency of heavy cream; season with salt.
• Serve soup in chilled bowls. Drizzle with thinned yogurt and more oil and sprinkle with piment d’Espelette.

DO AHEAD: Gazpacho can be made 1 day ahead; cover and chill. Mix well before serving.

inspiration: the populist's cauliflower + pear soup with help from Food52

Ladies night boils down to this: great food, wonderful conversation, a few drinks and good friends. It's absolutely essential to my mental well-being and I'm quite certain that it makes me a better mother. I return home feeling refreshed and renewed and I should probably do it more often...

Back in November my friend Jo Ellen and I went to The Populist, one of Denver's best restaurants according to pretty much everyone. Now The Populist isn't cheap and ladies night isn't always this high-brow. Most of the time I opt for hole-in-the-wall type places that serve hummus platters, tacos, pho or Ethiopian food. But this get-together was special since my friend gave birth to her third child and this was our first time out together since mid-summer. We also really wanted to try the restaurant and the post-baby celebration gave us good cover. So on a chilly November night we went out on the town, got to the restaurant and sat down at our table shortly after we finished our first round at the bar (and yes, the cocktails were excellent). 

Now here's the thing about the meal: I'm still thinking about it. It was stellar. Exceptional! We ordered a bowl of cauliflower + pear soup, the butternut squash salad, curried chick peas and for my entree I chose the huitlacoche ("the Mexican truffle") agnolotti. Now I'm more of what you'd call a home cook and I thought the agnolotti was above my chef grade. But I'm really comfortable in the soup realm and so I though I'd take a stab at the cauliflower + pear. 

I scoured the internet for a recipe and found this one from the Food52 Community. It got great reviews and sounded like it would work really well. It was simple, straightforward and could be made using a cutting board and one pot (a.k.a. not much to clean). I loved the flavor of the pear and the sherry made it pop. Was it similar to The Populist's version? Not really. It was missing the dehydrated pear, which really adds a lot of texture, and it wasn't quite as smooth. But it was very good and the boys ate it by the bowlful. And in my book that's a success story. Next time I might serve it alongside some grilled cheese sandwiches. 

In case you were wondering how we finished off our ladies night...we concluded the meal with an excellent slice of lemon ice box cake that was lip-smacking good. I can't wait to go back to The Populist again and sit in their outdoor patio (that's covered with vines) once winter passes...

In the meantime, keep warm and enjoy the soup.

Cauliflower and Pear Soup (Adapted only slightly from Food52)

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

2 tablespoons of olive oil

2 tablespoons of butter (you can make this vegan by omitting the butter and adding another tablespoon of olive oil)

1 large leek, white and light green parts, chopped

1 small shallot, chopped

1 head cauliflower, green leaves and trunk removed, florets chopped

2 small yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped

2 medium sized pears, peeled, cored, and chopped

5 leaves fresh sage (or about 2 teaspoons chopped)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves

5 cups homemade vegetable stock or good quality store-bought

kosher salt + freshly ground black pepper

2 to 3 teaspoons sherry vinegar, or to taste (champagne vinegar also works)

2 tablespoons finely chopped chives, for serving (optional)

Preparation
Heat the oil and butter in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the leek and the shallot, and cook until they are soft, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes.

Add the cauliflower, potato, pear, sage, and thyme, stirring to thoroughly coat them with the oil and butter. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until lightly browned, stirring frequently, another 8 to 10 minutes. You're aiming for a little caramelization around the edges for depth of flavor.

Add 5 cups of vegetable stock. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer, lower the heat to just maintain the simmer, and cook until all of the ingredients are very tender, about 30 minutes.

With an immersion blender or regular blender, puree the soup until it’s smooth. If you're using a blender, you may need to do this step in batches, then return the soup to the pot. You're looking for a smooth, velvety texture, so take your time to blend thoroughly. Thin with more chicken stock, if needed, until you reach desired consistency.

Season to taste with vinegar and salt and pepper (this is key!). Serve the soup in heated bowls, garnished with chives...or with large pieces of french baguette (I picked up mine from Babette's at The Source). 

broncosnation, pumpkin cheese soup + ask a beer guy (or, sunday in denver)

I grew up with Yankee baseball. I can’t remember exactly how old I was when I went to my first game, but I was definitely pretty young, like maybe 4 or 5 years old. My mother grew up on the Grand Concourse, a stone’s throw away from Yankee Stadium, and my father is from the Bronx too- so Yankee baseball is in my blood. But that’s really where sports started and ended in our family. If it wasn’t Yankee baseball it was nothing. Up until last week I had never been to any other professional sporting events- no football, no hockey and no basketball. But things changed when my husband’s cousin Melissa, who was in Denver visiting us (again!), scored three tickets for the Broncos-Redskins game.

Excitement over the ticket-score quickly turned to worry, for the night before the game I came down with flu-like symptoms, including high fever and a sore throat. So I drank a few cups of hot tea with lemon and honey, popped a bunch of Halls cough drops into my mouth, managed to swallow a few ibuprofen and then went to bed…hoping that I'd feel better in the morning. 

Except that I couldn’t sleep. The pain was awful and swallowing, at this point, was nearly impossible. Knowing that something was wrong, I went to an Urgent Care Center (which thankfully accepted my insurance) and there I was given the diagnosis: acute tonsillitis caused by an extreme streptocchocal infection. Not exactly the news I wanted to receive. 

Now here in Denver football is like a religion and almost everyone is a parishioner, including Megan, the nurse practitioner who was treating me. She understood the severity of the situation - and we both knew that unless I was going to be medevaced or put in the I.C.U., I simply had to be in those section 509 seats! We both agreed that time was of the essence, so she took out the "big guns" (so to speak) and pretty much guaranteed that they would do the trick. 
I got a steroid injection in a place…well, let's just say it was in a location other than my arm…which made me feel like a true professional athlete. I began a course of antibiotics immediately, and as promised, by kickoff time I was feeling much better. I was almost as good as new.

As we made our way to the stadium I briefly feared that I would be outted as an imposter, as someone who had only recently learned the rules of the game (two weeks ago). But I was wearing bright orange threads and seamlessly made the transition from I-don’t-know-the-first-thing-about-football to hells-yeah-you-better-believe-I’m-a-Broncos-fan. It was awesome. 

The crowd was electric…all 76,000 people in attendance were cheering on the hometown team. I followed along: 1st down, 2nd down, another 10 yards so 1st down again, incomplete, touchdown and so on. You get the picture. It was amazing. There were fans, and players, and horses, and fireworks, and a half-time show that included a re-enactment of Thriller (it was Halloween weekend), cheerleaders, more fireworks, more horses, acrobats and lots of pretzel eating by yours truly. The people watching was great too. There were dedicated fans with painted faces, grandmothers with Broncos medallions hanging from their earrings, fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, older folks and younger folks. And lots of people in orange. At times the cheering was deafening, which is just the way I like professional sporting events...

So now I get it. This whole football thing.  It grasps the city of Denver every year. And every one of the season's 16 games are exciting, especially if the Broncos win…which they did on that beautiful autumn afternoon.  

* * *

Since I've been bitten by the Broncos bug, I’m pretty sure that we will be hosting a game or two this season. I was thinking of starting things off with home made pretzels and various dipping sauces…to be followed by this Pumpkin, Cheese and Beer Soup which I spotted on Spoon Fork Bacon.  As the recipe title indicates, there's lots of cheese in this soup and the orange color from the pumpkin and cheddar makes it a perfect dish for the season- as well as for the novice Broncos fan who just can’t get enough of Eric Decker. Go Broncos! 
Pumpkin Beer Cheese Soup (Adapted slightly from Spoon Fork Bacon)

Serves 3 to 4

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil


1/2 yellow onion, diced


1 large leek, thinly sliced


2 garlic cloves, minced


2 carrots, peeled and diced


1 rib celery, diced


2 1/2 tablespoons fresh thyme


1 (12 ounce) bottle pumpkin ale


2 cups vegetable broth


1/4 cup unsalted butter


1/3 cup all purpose flour


2 cups whole milk (low-fat is fine)


2/3 cup pumpkin puree
 (I added another tablespoon)

3 ½- 4 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese 
(I used almost all of a .75 lbs. block)

1 tablespoon lemon juice


1 teaspoon dry mustard


1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika


1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg


salt and pepper to taste 
(this is key before serving)

simple butter croutons:


1 cup diced sourdough bread


3 1/2 tablespoon melted salted butter


1/2 teaspoon garlic powder


1/2 teaspoon salt


1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preparation:

For croutons: Place all the ingredients into a bowl and toss them together until they are evenly coated. Pour the croutons into a large skillet and place them over medium heat. Toast the croutons for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove them from the heat and allow them to cool and crisp. Set the croutons aside until you're ready to use them.


For soup: 

• Pour the oil into a medium pot and place over medium-high heat. Add the onion and leek and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes or until onions and leeks have become translucent. Add the garlic, carrots and celery and season with salt and pepper. Sauté the vegetables for 4 to 5 minutes and stir in 2 tablespoons thyme. Add the beer and broth and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes or until the vegetable mixture is fork tender. Remove it from the heat and set aside.

• In another medium pot melt the butter. Whisk in the flour to create a roux and continue to whisk for 2 to 3 minutes. Slowly whisk in the milk (about ¼ cup at a time) until there are no lumps remaining and the mixture thickens. Stir in the pumpkin puree and mix until smooth. Toss the cheese together with the lemon juice before stirring it into the milk mixture. Stir until the cheese sauce is smooth.  Stir in the remaining spices.

• Pour the cheese mixture and broth mixture into a blender and blend until smooth (or use an immersion blender which is what I did- it makes clean up much easier). Pour the mixture back into a pot and simmer for 3 to 4 minutes or until soup thickens slightly. Stir in the remaining thyme and adjust the seasonings (salt and pepper are key here).

• Ladle the soup into bowls and top with buttered croutons. Then serve! 

* * * 

Now what's football without beer? I wanted to find a seasonal beer that would pair well with the aforementioned Pumpkin Cheese Soup, so I Asked A Beer Guy. 

Chris Cohen, a friend of mine who's beer savvy, a Certified Cicerone and founder of the San Francisco Homebrewer's Guild (plus all-around awesome guy) had a few ideas:

"The pumpkin cheese beer soup is super rich and dense, with some seriously intense flavor. Many people think wine is the way to go when pairing with cheese, but beer lovers know that’s just ridiculous! You’ll want an intensely flavored beer that can stand up to the soup’s rich cheesy flavor and dense mouthfeel. If you want to keep things seasonal, go with a wet hop IPA like Sierra Nevada’s Northern Harvest Wet Hop Ale, or if you’re lucky enough to be able to find a bottle, grab one of Almanac Beer Co.’s Fresh Hop IPAs. Fresh hop IPAs are beers made with hops that have been picked within the previous day or so, and they often impart a grassy herbal hop character, though it depends on the hop varietal used. Fresh hop IPAs have the high abv, malt backbone, and big fresh hop character to stand up to a flavorful cheese soup, plus their herbal and grassy fresh hop character should pair perfectly with thyme or other herbs in the dish."

Thanks, Chris! You can find out more about Chris's work and beer consultation on his website, as well as beer related things on the SFHG  Facebook page. Now I'm ready to watch football, ladle some soup and drink beer! (Don't worry friends, I still won't wear fleece, jerseys or crocks.)

Stay tuned, Ask A Beer Guy will be back with beer pairing suggestions for middle-eastern pumpkin fatayer appetizers and pumpkin ravioli too!

hiking paint mines interpretive park + aran's roasted parsnip & apple soup with mustard croutons

There’s just something about hiking and being outdoors that invigorates the soul. Getting out there is just plain good for you. I'm always looking for new places to explore, so when Jen (of Hazel & Dewey) sent me an email about one of her favorite childhood places to hike, the Paint Mines Interpretive Park not too far from Colorado Springs, I put it on my short list of places to go. 

Recently I’ve been struggling with time management issues. I spent over 3 years out of the workforce raising my sons, but now I'm back in it and full force. Like most women who transition from stay-at-home-mother to hello-working-lady (!), I know that it will take a little bit time to get the balance just right. That said, being outdoors helps me feel centered and it helps me clear my head. It also gives me a bit of perspective.
I had a ton of work to do over the weekend, but I decided to carve out one full day- Saturday- to spend with my husband and kids.  I needed a day to explore some place new - free from work, without my computer, sans laundry piles and dirty dishes. All I wanted to do was spend time in the bright warm sun and hike a bit…everything else could wait for Sunday.

So we walked around. The weather was perfect and the sky was the deepest shade of blue. I'm not sure I've ever seen a bluer sky. The grasses were the color of wheat and straw and the rock formations at the park were beautiful, striped with red. Added to all this good-nature-stuff, was the fact that my boys were perfectly behaved and we spent an afternoon free of temper-tantrums. I'm talking about excellent behavior! (Can I get a witness?!)

While we hiked around for about 2 hours, you can easily go on for longer. There are miles  of hiking trails in the area, but we stayed in the immediate vicinity of the rock formations, which I just learned are called hoodoos. If you're thinking about doing this hike in the summer, just note that there is no shade. We picked a perfect 65-degrees day, and the sun was still really strong because the hike is at about 6400 ft. in elevation.  Now get out there are hike...you can do all your other chores and errands tomorrow!  

PS: Do you have a favorite hiking spot? Tell me about it in the comments section. 

Getting There: About 1 hour and 45 minutes drive from Denver, 35-40 miles west of Colorado Springs.

Difficulty: Relatively easy and not very strenuous- perfect for our kids who hike regularly.

What to Bring: A hat, sunscreen, water and wipes (our kids played in lots of mud and sand).

Facilities: Long toilets, but they were relatively clean.

...and then there was soup.

The past few weeks have been beautiful here in Colorado- with the exception of about 2 days which happened to coincide with a visit from my in-laws (drat!). But even when we get picture-perfect fall weather the bright sunny days turn into chilly nights once the sun goes down. This makes the month of October perfect for daytime hikes and soup-slupring nights. And right now I'm all about this soup!

I found the recipe in Aran Goyoaga's Small Plates, Sweet Treats. It's simple, clean, seasonal and delicious. I topped it off with some brown seed-bread croutons, a drizzle of olive oil and some Gruyere. 

Enjoy and happy trails.

xo, Batya
{Other Small Plates and Sweet Treats recipes on this blog: Grilled Corn + Herbed Chowder}

* * *

Roasted Parsnip & Apple Soup with Mustard Croutons

Adapted ever-so-slightly from Small Plates and Sweet Treats: My Family’s Journey to Gluten-free Cooking by Aran Goyoaga, author of the blog Canelle et Vanille.

Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients:

• 1 pound (450g) parsnips, peeled and diced into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (90 ml) olive oil, plus more for garnish
 
• 3/4 teaspoon salt 

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
• 
1 medium yellow onion, diced 

• 2 cloves garlic, minced 

• 1 celery stalk, diced 

• 2 medium Pink Lady or Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and diced 

• 2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and diced 

• 4 cups of vegetable stock + 1 cup of water (original recipe calls for 5 cups chicken stock) 

• 1 teaspoon ground coriander 

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 

• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves 

• 3 slices bread (recipe calls for Gluten-free, I used brown seed bread), cut into 1/2-inch cubes 
• 
Grated Gruyère cheese, for garnish

Preparation: 


1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Toss the diced parsnips, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon of the slat, and 1/4 teaspoon of the black pepper on a baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, turning the parsnips halfway through the cooking process. 


2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and celery. Cook the vegetables for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until tender but not browned. 


3. Add the roasted parsnips, apples, potatoes, stock + 1 cup water, coriander, remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and simmer for 15 minutes or until the vegetables are tender. 


4. Meanwhile, reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). In a small bowl, whisk together the Dijon mustard, remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, and thyme leaves. Add the diced bread cubes and toss them in the dressing. Lay the croutons on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, until golden and crispy. 


5. Puree the soup in a blender. Then add salt and pepper to taste. Serve the soup with the croutons, olive oil and Gruyère. The soup will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or it can be frozen for up to 1 month.

an anniversary + grilled corn and herbed chowder

     

Three years ago I started this blog as a little project. It was something personal to work on while I was out of the workforce and raising our first son, Otis. At that time my mornings were spent walking around Prospect Park and chatting with other mothers who were similarly situated (staying home to raise their young children). Some of these mothers became close friends, but more often than not, I would find myself in way-too-long conversations about strollers and cloth diapers. I loved being a mother, but that was only part of me. Okay, a big part, but I needed to talk about other things like art, or nature, or design, or food, or politics, or films, or books - anything other than children's accessories. Simply put, I needed something new to think about other than kids during those rare moments that mine was sleeping. 

I had always wanted to learn about food: how it's grown, how it's prepared and how to make it taste good. At the time there was an explosion of food bloggers online, and thinking I might be able to teach myself something new, I decided to join the pack. And I picked up my camera...

It took me a while to find "my voice," but I've settled into a way of storytelling and writing that it honest and true to me. Sometimes when I re-read old posts I cringe a bit because the writing is so awkward and doesn't sound like me at all. But I don't delete those posts because they were a starting point, and as my best friend (who is a professor) pointed out, "It's the only way to see how much you've grown..." so I keep those old posts (and bad pictures) just where they are. 

Like I said, I started this blog three years ago because I needed it. And as I look back on the past three years I can't believe how much our lives have changed and how much this blog has evolved. It is our family journal; it chronicles the places we hike, the things we do and the recipes we make together. Sometimes I feel like I'm the only Jewish mother who doesn't have a stack of oil-splattered index cards with family recipes, and whenever I asked my mother if there were any special dishes she remembers her mother (my grandmother) making, she says, "No, not really." How could there be nothing? I mean everything about our culture revolves around festive meals and eating (unless of course we are fasting). This made me determined to create our own food history and have something that my kids can pass down to their kids...

We live in Colorado where there are bountiful farms with great seasonal produce. We bake zucchini bread and make tomato sauce from scratch. We sautee spinach for pie and grill corn and watermelon too.  We are doing these things together as a family and inviting our friends and neighbors over for meals, where we eat outdoors almost every day of the year (because Colorado is blessed with 300 days of sunshine).

This blog has also become a place where I unload some of the struggles I've faced with my role as a mother. And there are anecdotes about being in my late 30s and reflections on youth (or my early 20s), as well as growing up/and our "old" life in New York City. I'm glad I've put it all into words...
The benefits of penning Sparrows & Spatulas have been many. This blog has helped me build a wonderful network of friends. I'm privileged to know an incredible group of makers and bakers, food truck vendors and small business owners, many of whom live and work in my adopted-state of Colorado...it makes my life here richer and more enjoyable. Thank you! To those of you who have taken time out of your busy lives to read a few posts in my little corner of the internet, thank you for reading and thank you for all your kind words (and occasional grammar corrections)! 

I will continue writing this blog as I juggle motherhood and my relatively new career. I also hope to add some new things too, namely: 

• Hiking Sundays: like Hiking Mondays, but on Sunday, since Otis is now in school part-time, 5 days a week.
• Co./Co.: a monthly series that focuses on Colorado Companies that I find inspiring; and 
• Market Mondays: in an effort to cook healthier, I will turn to our local farmers market for inspiration. 

I look forward to sharing another year with you all. Thanks for being part of my journey.

xo,

Batya

Grilled Corn and Herbed Chowder, Courtesy of Small Plates, Sweet Treats by Aran Goyoaga

{The soup, which started off our harvest dinner last week, is absolutely delicious. The local corn has been sweet and wonderful this year, and when you pop it on the grill all sorts of goodness emerges. This is the first recipe I've tried from Small Plates, SweetTreats and I now I see what all the fuss has been about. The soup is perfect and it will be in my summer repertoire for years to come. Happy cooking!}

Serves 4

Ingredients

4 ears of corn (I went with fairly large ears)

2 cups unsweetened coconut milk

1 1/2 cups vegetable broth

3 sprigs thyme

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium yellow onion, diced

2 celery stalks, diced

1 teaspoon salt 

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

1 tablespoon chopped fresh chervil (optional)

Preparation

1. Preheat the grill. Peel and rinse corn (removing all of the corn silk, I think that's what those strands are called). Grill the corn over medium-high heat, charring the outside. It should take 8 to 10 minutes. Let the corn cool slightly and then cut off the kernels. 

2. In a medium saucepan, combine the coconut milk, vegetable broth, thyme, and corn kernels. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Turn the heat off and let it steep for 15 minutes.

3. In a large pot, heat the olive oil. Add the garlic, onion, celery, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt, 1/2 teaspoon of the black pepper, ground cumin, and ground coriander. Cook the vegetables over medium heat for 5 minutes or until soft but not brown. Add the coconut-corn mixture. Bring the soup to a low simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Season with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper.

4. Add the cilantro (and chervil, if using) and stir. Then serve the soup warm. 

Credits: Image of me, courtesy of Kathryn Bacalis Photography