Frankly, I've been a bit manic lately. First came the greens, dark, light, curly and smooth. Rhubarb followed, finally, and I could handle it. Then, asparagus. Next were peas - shell, sugar snap and snow. And 2 weeks ago it happened. Strawberries. After months of longing for the fresh tastes of spring, we settle into the overwhelming excitement of "the season." Too busy with end-of-school year commitments? Too bad. Strawberries are here and they'll be done and gone by the time things have calmed down. Eager to put up tons of everything? Better do it because the corn wave will be here by the time you return from the beach.
I've been channeling this energy burst in the kitchen and have had a blast reacquainting myself with old favorite recipes and playing around with new techniques and flavor combinations. While a rotating mix of all these foods have brought us instant gratification, appearing on our table at most meals, I've focused a lot of energy on saving some for later. With success and some outright disasters, here's a snapshot of what the Essen Studio Kitchen has smelled like over the the past month:
- Rhubarb Dried Cherry Chutney
- Lentil Soup with Rhubarb
- Gingered Rhubarb Sorbet (to-die-for)
- Rhubarb Honey Rosemary Preserves
- Rhubarb Mustard (still working on it)
- Asp Kickers (pickled asparagus tips ... counting the days to local bloody Mary mix is ready)
- Strawberry Preserves
- Stawberry Leather
- Strawberry Tarragon Preserves
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