On this rainiest day of August, I'm happy to report we had at least one sunny day last weekend: perfect weather, friends, and lots of excellent food, including fresh crab caught that morning by our amazing hosts.


First, we walked the short distance to town, in search of shaved ice -- think snowcones, but instead of Blue or Pink, you get to choose from flavors like Tiramisu, Wedding Cake, and Wango Tango (pina colada + margarita).


Between pre-happy hour welcome snacks and Full Happy Hour, I watched the Birch Bay Bocce Ball Championships in the back yard. To celebrate his momentous win, Brian fell off a hammock.


Aside from the lawn sports, the day was basically non-stop food. The highlight: a quickly-devoured dish of crab dip, of course featuring crab caught that morning.

Unfortunately, I was far too consumed with eating to take photos of the vast Happy Hour and dinner spreads. But trust me, everything was fabulous.


Margaritas, sunny beachy walks, too much good food, and, finally, a campfire. It was short, but it was a perfect one-day vacation from suddenly-grey Seattle.

Zucchini and Ricotta Galette (a borrowed recipe)

Melissa sent a blueberry muffin recipe from Smitten Kitchen, and browsing along I knew I had to make this Zucchini and Ricotta Galette. It seemed perfectly simple but not at all boring, comfort food (buttery pastry + 3 kinds of cheese!) but still summery.

I was a little worried this would be too zucchini-y, so I used one medium zucchini for a fairly thin layer. I baked it 35 minutes, which left the zucchini perfect done -- still fresh tasting.


My crust was not as glorious as the original seemed to be, but I also didn't chill it quite long enough and my butter bits were perhaps too big. Note: take care with pastry, the little details make a difference!

You can visit the beautiful Smitten Kitchen for the recipe and additional thoughts. Now me and the men (er, man and dog) are off to Blaine for a festival of crab! Plus appropriate cocktails, horseshoes, and lounging around in the sun. :)

While I'm waiting for the tomatoes to ripen, I've been using another item I found in the garden: Rosemary. It's my favorite herb for roast chicken.

Some fun tidbits about rosemary:

• Hungary Water, an infusion of rosemary into wine or alcohol, was created for the Queen of Hungary, in a attempt to revitalize limbs. We're not talking rosemary-scented riesling, however -- this water was more of a rosemary perfume, used topically rather than accompanying dinner.
• Rosemary has a reputation for improving memory, but even more interesting is it's use in inspiring love: tap your beloved's shoulder with a blooming rosemary spring, and s/he will fall in love with you. Effective? I'm not sure, but it certainly seems less risky than shooting them with cupid's arrow.
• One more note from Wikipedia: "Somehow, the use of rosemary in the garden to repel witches turned into signification that the woman ruled the household in homes where rosemary grew abundantly." Oh really? Rosemary in abundance means I rule the house? Excuse me while I go nurture a few more bushes ...

The Best Cookies (p.s. they're vegan)

This post needs no narration -- just photos, recipe, and a strong recommendation that you bake these cookies pronto. And a thanks to the co-worker who shared the cookies, then sent the recipe!

These really are the best cookies I've made in a long time, not just the best vegan cookies. If you're not drawn to vegan stuff, just ignore that part and grab a mixing bowl.


Happy Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
Use vegan versions of these ingredients if you like. If you're not vegan, just use normal stuff. I'm not really sure what vegan flour, vanilla, or sugar are, anyway.

• 2 C unbleached flour
  
• 2 tsp baking powder
  
• 1/2 tsp salt
  
• 1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1 1/5 to 2 C Chocolate chips
• 1 C sugar (my co-worker used 1/2 sugar, 1/2 agave)
  
• 1/2 C canola or vegetable oil
  
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 C water (I needed more -- try 1/4 C first, then another T or 2 as needed)

Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature. Pre-heat your oven to 350. This recipe requires just a whisk and spoon for mixing, two bowls, and the baking sheet -- no heavy mixer necessary.

In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients except sugar (I accidentally included the sugar in this step, and everything turned out fine). Add chips. Make a well in the center and set aside. In another bowl, mix sugar and oil well, then add vanilla and water. Mix well. Add to dry ingredients. Mix well, but be careful not to overwork it (this is why I would not use your fancy Kitchenaid mixer for this recipe).

Drop by bablespoons onto cookie sheets. I use Exopat baking sheets, as seen in the photos below -- nothing sticks, ever! They're worth the investment.


Bake for 4 minutes, rotate sheets and bake another 4-6 minutes. As with most chocolate chip cookies, you'll want to remove them when they seem just barely underdone, since they'll harden a bit as they cool. Allow them to cool for a couple moments before transferring to a wire rack; this is another reason silicone baking sheets are helpful -- you can remove the full Exopat sheet from the metal baking pan, letting the first batch of cookies cool faster and starting your next batch on a second Exopat.

Free Pizza!

If you're a fan of paper-thin Neapolitan pizza (and why would you not be), don't forget to stop by Tutta Bella this week to get your free pizza! That's right. You have til' this Sunday to stop by for a free pie. If you're willing to brave the wait, and the screaming children (at the Wallingford location only) I highly recommend you take them up on this generous offer.

Pretend Like it's the Weekend

Happy Saturday, dear readers. Remember me? If you don't, well, I can't say I blame you. Way back when, there were two contributors to this blog -- 2 teaspoons, if you will. I've been slacking. If fact, I haven't been slacking -- I straight up quit for a few months. OK, maybe 5 or 6 months. Raven has brilliantly been carrying the weight of our weekly updates and has posted some pretty fantastic recipes. If you haven't read her post on this beautiful Thai Beef Salad or Quinoa and Chickpea Salad, please do. Both are delicious ideas for a quick summer dinner.

OK, but back to Jack Johnson and banana pancakes. After my 4th trip to Hawaii last June, I'm officially hooked on these tasty buggers. I blame Boots and Kimo's -- pretty much the best breakfast joint in Hawaii. I've been working on perfecting my own mainland version for over a year now. I'm close, but I wouldn't say this recipe is perfection yet. Still, they're more than your average Saturday pancakes.

Banana & Coconut Pancakes
1 cup + a few extra Tablespoons flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch of salt
1 egg
1 cup of milk (whole milk is best)
few drops of vanilla extract
dash of cinnamon
2 Tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil
1/8 cup coconut flakes
1-2 ripe bananas (you want them a little mushy)

Sift dry ingredients together. Add the egg followed by the rest of the wet ingredients and thorough whisk thoroughly until batter is nice and thick, though maybe slightly drippy. Mix in the bananas and coconut flakes. Heat your pan to medium high and start flippin'.

Serve these with some freshly sliced bananas, a dusting of powdered sugar, and coconut syrup. If you've only got maple syrup on hand, that'll do as well. "Can't you see, can't you see; We've got to wake up slow." And then make some scrumptious pancakes -- island style.

When life gives you blueberries ...

Blueberries! I discovered the first surprise blueberry bush in early summer, then found another smothered by our overgrowing mint (the mint is now gone, the blueberries are happier).

But even two small bushes do not produce more than a couple handfuls of berries at a time. What to do with this delightful, but minimal, discovery?

The easiest thing was to eat them plain. And a few went on salad. Most were wonderfully sweet, but some -- so tart! So the rest went into homemade lemonade. :)

Blueberry Lemonade, shown above with our garden's hydrangeas.

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup lemon juice

4 cups cold water

A handful of blueberrries

Stir first three ingredients till sugar melts. Add blueberries. Drink.

* I think if Martha Stewart made this, she'd add a generous splash of vodka.

Tea time! Who wants a cup?

The design is a bit much for an entire set of dishes (for me. you go ahead.), but I definitely look forward to sipping earl grey from these happy tea and coffee cups from Anthropologie. Plus two little bowls, for snacks at the imaginary tea party I'm envisioning. You're all invited.

Friday Night Date with Caramel Cake

I couldn't decide what to make for dinner on Friday, and no restaurants called our name. So I forgot my usual preoccupations with nutrition and "real food," and went for this Best-Ever Caramel Cake from Food & Wine magazine.

The multi-step process (plus time for photos) was a lengthy ordeal that left me thoroughly sick of caramel, so the cake sat untouched in the fridge until Saturday night. Probably for the best: according to the magazine, this caramel cake is better the second day.

Since neither Brian or I have ever had a caramel cake, we can't confirm whether this is actually the best-ever. But the super-sweet caramel icing spread thin enough to not overwhelm the vanilla cake, which was rich and dense (not at all "fluffy" as described in the recipe). If I was throwing a birthday party for a caramel-lover, this would be my cake of choice.

Fresh new look for 2teaspoons!

If you're reading somewhere other than 2tsps.blogspot.com, come check out our summery new design! It's picked fresh from the garden, just for 2teaspoons guests.

PS. This template has mixed results in Internet Explorer. If it doesn't work for you, test another browser, like Firefox or Chrome.

Lemon Quinoa and Chickpea Salad

A couple people mentioned the lack of 2 Teaspooning in recent weeks. I promise, no one's missed any kitchen excitement, as I haven't really cooked anything since the sun came out in late June. I do not enjoy a warm oven or stove when the weather is warm.

But I do love quinoa and chickpeas, and both are great additions to salads. They're cheap. They're lovely at any temperature. They're light and don't overwhelm salads, like some other additions (cheese, meat). And along with the healthy fiber and protein in chickpeas, quinoa is a complete protein. I remember from a college Nutrition class that complete proteins are necessary for humans, but since they're primarily found in animal products, it's sort of lucky to find them in vegetarian/vegan foods. So there you have it. Eat more quinoa.

Both chickpeas and quinoa also have an impressive history: chickpeas have been eaten for at least 7,500 years, originally in the Middle East and Mediterranean. Quinoa is a South American food, eaten for 6,000+ years, and considered the sacred "Mother of All Grains" by the Incas.

If you don't know quinoa, it's similar to couscous: fluffy, light in flavor, quick-cooking. It's officially a "pseudocereal," not a real grain (couscous is officially a pasta). It can be red or yellowish -- red is prettier, but less common in stores. Quinoa is low-maintenance: add boiling water and cover for 15 minutes.

For this salad, I made my quinoa rissotto-style, adding a little water at a time and stirring, then adding a splash of lemon juice, salt and pepper, and sliced scallion at the end. I added canned chickpeas (rinsed and drained) in the last minute of cooking, to heat them. Then I tossed over mixed lettuce and herbs from the garden. Very little hot-stove time, and definitely better than a diet of popsicles.

2 Teaspoons, Meet Joe Black (and my peanut butter cookies)

So I watched Meet Joe Black for the first time ever tonight (how did I miss this film??), and among other exciting moments, we see Brad Pitt discovering peanut butter. Which of course makes one want a spoonful of peanut butter right this instant.

Fortunately, I had the last three of these no-bake chocolate and peanut butter oatmeal bars in the freezer. I recommend "blending" the peanut butter layer ingredients in the food processor -- it may take away some of the oatmeal texture, but it made the process super speedy. Storing in the freezer has two benefits: 1, it ensures non-melty chocolate and 2) it keeps the bars semi-hidden, and therefore they last longer.

Super easy to make. Ideal for peanut butter lovers. You hear that, Brad?

Garden Party

I thought nothing would grow -- as new homeowners, I feared we'd turn the front yard into a wasteland of wimpy carrot tops and inch-high broccoli.

Apparently I was wrong. The garden's far from perfect (I wish I had more variety, and more of everything), but it's definitely growing. The last two weekends I've filled the Yard Waste bin with heaps of who-knows-what, enormous weeds that sprouted up uninvited and threatened to take over the "real" vegetation.

The actual foodstuffs: We have enough chard, lettuce, and arugula to actually eat regularly.

The fennel (top right, in collage below) is growing successfully -- which is great, considering I stuffed it carelessly into a broken pot in the corner of the garden and then forgot about it. The broccoli is mostly huge leaves, but seems promising.

We ate all the radishes before I thought to plant more, and I accidentally "weeded" the beets (oops). But the carrots might be fabulous -- they're teeny, but I needed to thin them and the few I pulled out were barely bite-sized.

Last year's enthusiastic gardener left us blueberry and strawberry plants, each with more teeny fruits than I expected. The one red, ripe strawberry mysteriously disappeared -- I suspect squirrels or the newspaper delivery person.

Tomatoes are what I really want. My six plants should be more than enough, but they're slow to grow. I realize it's only June, but I'm impatient. I want last year's surplus.

Brightly-colored Thai beef salad

I meant to blog about this dish when I first made it, but now that I've tried it twice I can assure you it was no fluke the first time. I could make this once a week and be happy with it. And, I think it would be great for an outdoorsy potluck. Come on over. I'll make it for you.

Also exciting: we have enough lettuce in the garden to make an entire salad! Plus lots of arugula, and radishes, cilantro, fennel, chives, scallions (or something oniony I've been using as scallions -- whatever the old owner left us).

Pardon the bloody beef pics, you vegans and vegetarians. Marinated tofu would be great instead, though I can't imagine a comparable vegan substitute for the fish sauce in the dressing.

And for future reference: fish sauce is a questionable predecessor to whipped cream. Tonight we had this before strawberry shortcake. Although Brian said both were delicious, I think I'll opt for a mango sorbet or something more Thai-appropriate next time. (As if I really plan my dinner along with coordinating desserts.)

Thai beef salad

From Everyday Food, May 2010

For beef:

• 2 T soy sauce
• 2 tsp fish sauce
• 2 tsp sugar
• 12 oz flank steak (8oz is plenty if you're making this for two people)

Combine and marinate overnight in the refrigerator or for ~15 minutes on the counter. Heat a heavy pan over high, place steak in and turn to medium. Cook 3-5 minutes on each side, for medium-rare steak. Let rest while you prepare the salad.

For salad, toss:

• Enough lettuce to make the size salad you want, of whatever variety you want. The magazine says 2 heads of bibb lettuce. I used a large bowl full of assorted Very Fancy Raven's Garden lettuce.
• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 1 C cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 carrots, shaved with a vegetable peeler
• 1/4 C fresh mint + 1/4 C fresh basil (or whatever herbs you want. Cilantro? Fennel? Sure.)
• Oh, I also used about 1 C shredded red cabbage the first time I made this.

For dressing, stir together:

2 tsp fish sauce

2 tsp toasted sesame oil (which I bought only for this, but is amazing)

2 tsp sugar

1 T minced fresh ginger

1 small minced jalepeno (I used less than half and it was plenty)

2 T lime juice.

Toss dressing with salad. Slice rested steak thinly, then add to salad. Eat.

Saturday toast and jam

Proof that the grass is always greener on the other side: Friday, I wished I could work from home. Saturday, I'm electing to spend 1/3 of the holiday weekend in my office finishing a paper.

But I have a little french press and a cute teacup, plus toast with homemade jam, so maybe the grass is pretty green over here.

Now ... where did I put my motivation to write a long paper?

Take Your Baking To Work Days: Part II

As a Morning Person, I usually hop out of bed to greet the sunshine, then prance around the house singing happy morning songs. I am not a fan of sleeping in. This does not mean I'm excited to go to work.

So, after my prancing and singing last Monday, I stalled going into the office by baking banana bread. I used the recipe from Better Homes & Gardens, below -- I think the first thing I ever baked, and probably the thing I've baked most.

Take Your Baking To Work Days: Part I

In an effort to make more food at home and spend less money, I've baked a lot of biscotti this month. It saves me frequent visits to our building's coffee shop for snacks -- the only thing I really miss is the little walk to ReBoot and Sofia's enthusiastic social commentary. ;)

I have yet to find a great recipe, so please send me one if you have a favorite! I've tried it with and without butter (I guess no butter is more traditional?), and with almonds, chocolate, walnuts, whole wheat ... In each attempt, either the texture is off or the flavor lacks the right balance of sweetness. Fortunately, even least perfect attempts were still edible. I'll post again if when (if?) I find the right recipe.

Two Teaspoons, Meet Four Spoons

When Brian mentioned this cafe a while back, he said it was called, "Something spoons ... two spoons maybe?" And I said, "I think you're referring to that wildly popular blog: Two Teaspoons."

But there is, in fact, a cafe called Four Spoons in the neighborhood. It's teeny and tidy, charming, busy but without a wait when we showed up at 1pm last Sunday. The smallish menu has a variety of brunchy dishes, plus real lunch.

I don't remember what my dish was called -- or why I ordered something so huge when I wasn't that hungry -- but it offered eggs, potatoes plus pulled pork and tortillas. If there's a proper way to combine all these things, I missed that day in etiquette class. Nonetheless, my taco breakfast array was delicious in every way.

Brian forgot we were out for breakfast and ordered a french dip. His french fries were excellent. I captured a photo of him in a very serene state, eyes closed (bliss? napping?), but I'll refrain from including it here.

Eating (very) local

The garden grows slowly. Tiny lettuces, broccoli leaves, and carrot tops are nowhere near harvest, but a few things are actually ready for the table: I pulled my first radish today (and ate it in the kitchen: spicy and crisp), and the cilantro has just enough leaves to sprinkle a few over tomato salad.

We also have large, rumpled bushes of chives that were already here when we moved in. They have lots of purple flowers, but plenty of usable stems if you pick through them. I've used them on salad, eggs, and over chicken. The easiest way I've found to mince herbs is with kitchen scissors.

Whipped

Oh, Starbucks. Your perky baristas. Your pleasant lighting. Cupcakes, occasionally. It all seems so innocent. But now you threaten my don't-spend-money, eat-whole-foods goals with this Frappuccino Happy Hour on Friday through May 16. Is a half-price caffeine+sugar drink worth usurping my goals? Maybe not ... but this plus an excuse to wander out if the office just may be.

Carmel frappuccino, I'll see you later. No whip.