Scrabble Night

I had an evening at home with J for the first time all week, and what I really wanted was a straightforward, healthful meal that, despite the simplicity of the flavors and presentation, required a boatload of chopping.


I went for a variation on my favorite template, the barley salad, and a new favorite way to do fish, one of those so-simple-I-can't-believe-there's-an-actual-recipe recipes. The easy part is that the vegetable and the starch are streamlined into one side dish. The other part is the chopping of all the different veggies (I went with asparagus, mushrooms, chard, and caramelized onions), which might be frustrating on a night when I didn't have a couple hours to spare listening to the soothing tones of NPR with the back doors open, zenning out and chopping away.


I lost the Scrabble game by the way. I don't want to talk about it.

Transition Food

Fantasizing on the first cool morning about days spent baking pies or learning how to make donuts is the culinary equivalent of reaching for my boots and jackets on the Tuesday after Labor Day.

A good way to ease into cozy fall cooking while still taking advantage of the produce still available, I figure, is to explore that one aisle of the beloved food co-op that always daunts: the wall of bulk food dispensers. Take grains: I read great things about farro; I love a nice wheat berry salad from Whole Foods. Grain salads seem like a great transition dish: hearty and comforting, and easy to modify. Also, my days lately are spent either temping (where you don't know if they'll have a microwave or what) or running around to auditions and rehearsals. One-dishers like this salad are great to carry since they can be good hot or cold.

Take a look at the cost breakdown:
.69 lb organic pearl barley $0.75
.39 lb block feta $2.60
Juice of 3 lemons $0.93
1 bunch organic lacinato kale $1.67
1/4 large bulb fennel $0.37
1.3 bunch scallions $0.19
1 red onion (leftover, negligible)
Total: $6.51

Note: these are prices at the Park Slope Food Co-op. I love the co-op. I know there are haters, but it seriously pains me now to buy groceries anywhere else. It hurts the brain to think about how much we pay for packaging.

This would be a pretty good number for a single lunch. However, I have been eating this salad literally ALL week. I figure I got about six servings out of this batch, so:

Cost-per-meal: $1.09

It's so yummy, and has been, to continue the clothing analogy, the beige sweater-dress of my week's meals. Accessorized with leftover chicken and roasted veggies, beans, a poached egg or diced avocado, I have not grown tired of eating it yet.

I basically stole kitchn's version with minor tweaks, so check out their recipe for cook times.

Next week: Quinoa!