Meat + veggie balls

I love meat balls but they have a tendency to feel a bit leaden. I don't know if it's just the sheer meatiness of them or the fact that they get manhandled as they're mixed and shaped, but they make me think of winter and huddling over heavy meals.

This recipe, on the other hand, feels positively summery. The meat gets a nice lift from copious amounts of shredded carrot and zucchini and the flavor you get from the fresh herbs is unbeatable.

{grated carrots, zucchini}

The food processor is your friend here, but a little bit of elbow grease and a box grater will suffice. My carrots were straight out of my CSA box and came in a fancy variety of colors, but regular old orange ones work just as well. The veggies are sauteed and as they cool you chop herbs and plop the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl. Everything is gently mixed together and then you settle in for a little rolling session.

{ready to bake}

I like to make them on the small side, so that they can simply be picked up and popped in your mouth, no fork required. Of course, they're also amazing paired with marinara and pasta or piled on a fresh baguette.

{meat + veggie ball}

I've played a bit with the original recipe, increasing the veggies and decreasing the meat and upping (and changing) some of the spices. I like to use fresh rosemary, oregano and thyme from my garden, but you can easily just use one or two of these, substitute dried spices, or choose different spices altogether. We also had some fresh chives lying around, so I chopped them up and tossed them in as well. The recipe is nothing if not forgiving.

Meat + veggie balls (adapted from The California Cook by Diane Rossen Worthington - serves 6 - 8)

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 - 4 medium carrots,* finely grated)
2 medium (not massive!) zucchini,* finely grated
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1/3 cup fine dried breadcrumbs
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard (I use Sierra Nevada Porter mustard, always)
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 tsp dried)
2 teaspoons finely chopped oregano (or 1 tsp dried)
2 teaspoons finely chopped thyme (or 1 tsp dried)
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley (nice, but you're okay without it)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

:: Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add the onions and saute them for 7 - 10 minutes, stirring often, until they're soft and translucent. Add the garlic and saute for another minute. Add the carrots and zucchini and cook for another 10 - 15 minutes, until the mixture is tender (but not mushy) and sweet. Set aside to cool.

:: Add all the other ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Once the veggies are cooled, add them as well. Using a large wooden spoon (or your hands, if you aren't grossed out) mix everything together until evenly combined.

:: Preheat the oven to 375 F. Have a couple of baking sheets ready, lined with aluminum foil or with a Silpat. Start with slightly damp hands and roll the mixture into meatballs that are about the size of a ping pong ball, or a bit smaller if you want dainty appetizers. Bake for 35 minutes (5 - 10 minutes less if you're going for a smaller size). 

These can easily be baked ahead and then re-heated to serve. I like to just eat them cold out of the refrigerator sometimes. Classy.

*The recipe tells you to peel your veggies first, which is probably a good idea if they're the standard supermarket quality. If they're organic and young, I would recommend leaving them alone and using them peel and all.

The weekend, briefly

Felt like we were barely even in the house this weekend, between family and friends. Which isn't reflected here at all - most of my weekend photos are still life, because sometimes the camera feels disruptive in actual people moments. Still deciding whether I want to try to break out a bit or if I actually prefer it this way.

{sunday brunch}

{sunday coffee}

{fan}

{washed}

Not pictured - lunch at umami burger (finally! - and it is as good as everyone has been telling us), longest baby shower I've ever attended (5 hours at least, but it was more fun because it wasn't exclusively female and it felt more like a regular party) and a catch up brunch with old friends that lingered on into the afternoon and ended with a walk to yogurtland.

Friday flowers

This is what my oregano looks like sometimes.

{oregano flowers}

I think you're supposed to keep it trimmed so this doesn't happen, but I love those blossoms.

{lavender, oregano}

In other news - I did not kill my lavender! It's back in action, finally.

Cookies to go

I discovered* the magic of freezing cookies and cookie dough while working on my sister's wedding and now it's my standard method. It's perfect for people like us because we never keep anything sweet in the house and we're fine with that, but it makes impromptu entertaining a little tough. I feel oddly compelled to provide some sort of dessert when we have guests.

We had people over a couple weeks ago and we wanted chocolate chip cookies. I made a double batch of dough, scooped it out onto a couple of baking sheets and stuck them in the freezer for a few hours. Once the dough is frozen, you can transfer all the cookies to an airtight container and just store them in the freezer until the next time you want them. No need to defrost - they'll only need a minute or two of extra baking time.

{cookie dough balls}

The advantage to this method is that you can bake just as many cookies as you need - no trying to pawn the extras off on your dieting coworkers. The disadvantage is that frozen balls of cookie dough are insanely delicious, so it can be tough not to pop one every time you walk through the kitchen. I store them in the most inconvenient place possible, forcing us to dig through piles of frozen stuff to get to them. It helps, a little. Consider yourself warned.

{cookie dough ball}

This method works perfectly with most cut out cookie recipes as well. As far as longevity goes, I've stored dough up to 2 months in the freezer and it's been fine. We've never managed to make it last any longer than that.

*Discovered is the key word here - not invented. Freezing baked goods or dough is pretty common, but I had never thought of doing it until I was faced with the logistical difficulty of making hundreds and hundreds of cookies.

Jars, update

So I bought some of those jars I was talking about last week. Here are my thoughts ...

32 ounces is not nearly as large in person as it is in my head. These wouldn't work for flour or sugar unless you like to buy those ingredients in very small portions. I can't even use them for nuts, because we buy them in bulk and they are, well, bulky. They are perfect for storing lentils and grains, however.

{emma jars, lentils}

The lids are not super tight fitting, but they have a little gasket so I think they're still air tight. Under no circumstances should you attempt to hold the jar from the lid only. Disaster will ensue.

They are kind of stackable. If you have them against the back wall of the cupboard, they'll be fine. But they aren't exactly meant for stacking, which is sad.

{emma jars, in use}

I wrote on them with the sharpie, but this time added some pertinent information to the top of the jar. Cooking ratios, times and serving sizes, for quick reference.

{instructions}

I think I need some of the 20 ouncers for couscous and rice, which I purchase in smaller quantities.They look a little lost in the larger jars.

All in all, they're a pretty solid addition to the kitchen and they're relatively affordable. The 32 ounce jars were on 4 for 3 promotion, so I got 16 jars (4 packs of 4 and yes, I realize that I have a ton of dried goods - this only took care of my grain cupboard) for $54, with free shipping. The 20 ounce version isn't on promotion right now, so I'm holding off for the moment but I'm going to keep an eye on them.

Pearl couscous with shrimp

We eat couscous because I'm lazy. I've never mastered the art of making rice, and I don't eat nearly enough rice to justify the purchase of a rice maker. I actually gave in and started purchasing those frozen packets of already cooked rice from Trader Joe's. Yes, it is kind of ridiculous and a waste of money and packaging. But they take 3 minutes to cook and they make just enough rice for the two of us. It's my indulgence.

Back to couscous. I normally just get the whole wheat stuff that you mix with boiling water and fluff. Upgrading to the pearl couscous is a bit of a revelation. The texture is amazing and it holds its own in a cold salad. I'm pretty sure that the fresh herbs were key in this recipe because although the dressing is simple, it really sang. I think you could easily sub in whatever vinegar you have on hand and cut down on the olive oil just a smidge (I'm not a huge fan of too much oil in a cold salad). I also cut the amount of shrimp in half* and still felt like I was getting shrimp in every single bite.

Fair warning - we found this to be a massive quantity of food. Next time I'll be cutting the recipe in half, unless we need to feed an army.

{israeli couscous + shrimp}

Pearl couscous with shrimp (6 - 8 generous servings, original recipe here)

*The recipe calls for grilling the vegetables and shrimp - I'm sure this is amazing, but I took the easy route and just roasted stuff in the oven and used precooked shrimp. Gasp. If you want the original grilling instructions, click through to the original recipe.*

3 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
3 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup olive oil
2 1/4 cups pearl couscous (aka Israeli couscous; 3/4 pound)
1 3/4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth (14 fl ounces)
1 cup water
1/4 teaspoon crumbled saffron threads
2 lb large shrimp (21 to 25 per pound), peeled and deveined if necessary (1 lb was plenty for me)
2 medium red onions (1 pound total)
2 pounds large zucchini (about 4), cut diagonally into 1/2-inch-thick slices
6 ounces feta, crumbled (1 1/4 cups) - totally optional, but delicious

:: Whisk together vinegar, oregano, thyme, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a small bowl until salt is dissolved. Add 1/3 (I think 1/4 cup would be better) cup oil in a slow stream, whisking until vinaigrette is combined. 

:: Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wide 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat until hot but not smoking, then toast couscous, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and pale golden, 3 to 5 minutes. While couscous toasts, stir together broth, water, and saffron in a large glass measure. Add to couscous with 1/2 teaspoon salt and bring to a simmer, uncovered. Simmer, covered, until liquid is absorbed and couscous is al dente, 10 to 12 minutes.  When finished, the couscous will be tender but not mushy and the saffron gives it a beautiful golden color. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 10 minutes. Stir vinaigrette to combine, then stir 2 tablespoons into couscous and let stand, uncovered, at room temperature. 

:: Preheat oven to 425F. Cut onions into chunks and slice zucchini into wedges. Toss the veggies with a couple tablespoons of olive oil and 1/4 tsp salt in a large bowl. Spread out on a lightly oiled baking sheet and roast in the oven until tender, about 10 - 15 minutes. Don't crowd the sheet too much - I did this in two batches. 

:: If you are starting with raw shrimp, peel and devein them and you can either cook them in the oven or give them a quick saute in a pan. Shrimp cook in mere minutes, so this is easy. If you are even lazier, like me, you can just purchase cooked shrimp and proceed to the next step.

:: When the veggies are all cooked, toss them with the dressed couscous. Fold your cooked shrimp into the salad mixture. Serve right away or pop it in the refrigerator. It will be delicious straight out of the fridge the next day (or for the next four days, because this makes a ton of food and there are only two people in your house).

* Shrimp is one of my all time favorite foods but I save it for rare occasions because it's so hard to find ethically harvested options and shrimp farming is incredibly destructive. If I were an amazing person I would give it up altogether, but I settle for eating it a few times a year.

The weekend, briefly

We had a teeny tiny trip down to San Diego. To be more specific, the old town San Diego state historic park, possibly the most touristy area we can find. It has sentimental associations for us but I have to admit that I'd probably love it anyways. I have a wholly unaccountable fascination with places that look like wild west stage sets. I know. When I was a kid I owned a bonnet. And wore it.

{agave}

{old town sd}

We ate some serious white people mexican food (um, definitely wouldn't recommend actually eating here, but I always manage to forget that in the heat of the afternoon) and then headed over to Balboa Park for some walking and people watching.

{papel picado}

{mineral and gem society}

Sunday afternoon I got to meet the new baby girl in our crew. She's the first born to my tight knit group of high school friends, so we're all honorary aunts. We took turns holding her and marveling over how calm and collected she is. I'm not one to get all mushy about babies, but she's pretty perfect.

{sweet arm}