Strawberry Rhubarb Galette

Strawberry rhubarb has been my favorite pie filling for a long while, so when considering the spring, the season of rhubarb, and the pastry concept, I thought why not try the galette version? I had never done it before, but why not? It couldn't possibly go wrong.

Well, I did have an accident in the making of it, but that is beside the point. It turned out just right.

My local farmers market has wonderful bunches of fresh cut rhubarb, so I loaded up, having missed the brief window last season - a very sad thing indeed.
And a favorite quality of the strawberry rhubarb combination is how well the two ingredients share their natural tartness. Consequently, the pie (or galette) should hardly be sweet. Savor the zing!

[Full recipe available upon request]:
Strawberries, rhubarb, some juice of orange, arrowroot, and a little (real) maple syrup fill a homemade crust of flour, water, sea salt, and safflower oil.
Bake!
As simple as pie.

For my peach and nectarine galette, follow this link from 2011: http://edibleartform.blogspot.com/2011/11/pecan-peach-nectarine-galette.html

Spinach & Gorgonzola Pastry with Gazpacho New Potatoes & Salad

I will entirely own that this entry is - unlike many others - a combination of two dishes I have tried from recipes. Here, or this time round, rather, I have amended them to suit my interests. While the entry is late, the meal was for my birthday this Sunday last.

My favorite cheese - I think - is Gorgonzola. From what I gather the Italian blue cheese is native to a town of the same name and has been produced since the later part of the ninth century AD. I quite like how the name puts me in mind of the Gorgons, although I am not sure if there is any connection to the place name and the mythological beings.

Now, the mild deep green spinach is a perfect 'foundation' for the hefty flavors of bitter gorgonzola, sharp cheddar, and earthy nutmeg, so keeping to simplicity, I made the pastry pie like so:

(Full recipes available upon request)
Spinach, gorgonzola, sharp cheddar, nutmeg, fresh ground pepper, heavy cream, eggs, onion, and finely chopped garlic are prepared as necessary before being layered on to a puff pastry-lined baking sheet.

Meanwhile, for the potatoes, my recipe called for the general ingredients of the Spanish Gazpacho soup to be chopped up as a chunky 'dressing' for boiled new potatoes. Roasted red pepper, tomatoes, red onion, flat-leaf parsley, minced garlic, olive oil, and plenty of sea salt and pepper to season.

Add a plentiful salad of young greens and scallions for balance...

The Spinach & Gorgonzola pastry fresh from the oven. Caya 2012

Pastry with Gazpacho New Potatoes & Arugula. Caya 2012

Large Salad of young (organic) red leaf, baby rrugula, scallions, radishes, bunch of chopped flat-leaf parsley, cherry tomatoes, and crumbled gorgonzola with a homemade grainy mustard vinaigrette. Caya 2012

Zesty Basmati Pancakes with Lemon Sauce & Almonds

I'm going off of a favorite of my mother's recipes here. She would make these often enough - and still does, no doubt - and I have found they go more quickly than one would like. But that is what a double batch is for!

So, I discovered that I had all I really needed this morning; I had a few lemons, I had back-up lemon juice, I even had some orange juice. Yes...flour, the last of the basmati rice, whole milk, the lot.
And while I typically love simple, real maple syrup with - or in place of - a fruit sauce, I was surprised with an imported tin of Lyle's Golden Syrup from England and an Italian honey this morning. (Today is my birthday).

(Full recipe available upon request):
I amended the basmati rice batter with fresh lemon zest, some cinnamon for warmth, and a little ground almond.

For the sauce I squeezed out the lemons I had, added some more juice, a little orange as well (high pulp), some vanilla rice milk, arrow root (to thicken), and a slight drizzle of the English syrup.

On the heat went both the sauce and the cakes...

 ...And they mound up quite nicely, with the smack of tart lemon sauce and the sticky sweet spread of syrup in amongst the zesty cakes. 

Fresh from the warmed oven. Caya 2012