use real butter

A yellow dusting of pine pollen appeared on *everything* just two days ago. Pine tree sex has begun in earnest. Before long, nothing that remains outside will be safe from a plastering of yellow pollen - NOTHING! I don’t mind the pollen powder getting all over the place as long as I don’t think of it as a major orgy going on in my yard… But it does wreak havoc on my allergies. It didn’t seem to bother Kaweah much while she sprawled out on the deck this afternoon.

what, is there something on my face?

We were all chilling out on the deck this afternoon because our second visitor P.C. (post chemo) arrived at noon. My dear friend was in the state for a wedding and dropped by our mountain abode for lunch and a short stroll before flying home. Neither of us considers ourself to be an emotional creature, but we could not help a few tears when we greeted and embraced.

a lovely friend on a lovely day

I prepared a simple, yet incredibly satisfying and happy-making menu for this, the second day of summer. It was almost as delightful as the company!


orange and toasted almond salad with citrus dressing
grilled asparagus
yukon gold potato galette
grilled marinated flank steak
lychee panna cotta

salad

yukon gold potato galette with gruyère, parmesan, and shallots

slicing the flank steak

After lunch we went for a quick walk on a local trail to drink in the burst of blooming wildflowers and the lush forest and understory. The bloom is in full swing at our house elevation and we loved it! We also happened upon the mystery flower from the last post (I know it’s been driving poor Diane crazy). I think I’ve identified it now.

anemone multifida: ranunculaceae (buttercup family)

drummond’s rockcress

gorgeous green gentian

the tiniest orchid, a spotted coral root

i love aspen stands throughout the year

not a fan of the color orange, but i love orange wildflowers

Clouds had moved in and made for very pleasant walking conditions, adding a light and cool breeze. That is my kind of weather, and E was happy to have a break from the heat since she lives in So Cal. I missed an opportunity to shoot a red-winged blackbird (with my camera) because Kaweah was acting up…

finishing off the dandelion

e and the blinker

Once back at the house, we had enough time left to indulge in little shots of lychee panna cotta (recipe to come later). I won’t go on and on about what a phenomenal, brilliant, adventurous, creative, kind, deep, and utterly hilarious woman E is, because it will just make you sad that she’s not a part of your life ;) We had such a wonderful 4-hour visit with her. She is one special chica.

The recipe for the marinated flank steak is super duper easy and mucho mas mejor rico (delicious)! Another keeper I got from my ILs… along with my guy. If you have 24 hours to let it marinate in the refrigerator, you have the makings of a Great Meal.

i recommend fresh lemon juice and parsley

flank steak is a great cut for grilling

I like to drop the flank steak and all of the marinade ingredients in a gallon ziploc bag. It is a more efficient way to marinate and it takes up less space in my refrigerator where real estate is at a premium in the summer!

piling everything into the ziploc

After 24 hours of sitting happily with the likes of soy sauce, mustard, lemon juice, parsley, and other friends - the flank steak is ready for the grill. While it grills, I like to pour the marinade into a pot and bring it to a boil. I stir up some cornstarch and water to add and thicken it into a lovely sauce. If I weren’t so lazy, I’d make a small amount of roux for thickening… but I get lazy at times.

let the flank steak rest a few minutes before slicing

slice and serve to the adoring applause of your guests

Grilled Marinated Flank Steak

1-2 lb. flank steak
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tbsp yellow mustard
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup vinegar (I use red wine vinegar)
1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced
1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp garlic powder

Combine all ingredients in a ziploc bag and marinate for 8-24 hours in refrigerator. Grill the steak on high heat to desired doneness (we find 3-4 minutes a side gives us a nice medium rare to rare color). Pour the marinade into a pot and bring to boil. Thicken the marinade by adding 1 tsp of cornstarch mixed with a tbsp of water. Once sauce is bubbling, remove from heat. Let the flank steak rest for 5 minutes before slicing against the grain. Serve the flank steak with the sauce.

I’ve been busy this weekend with visitors. My aunt (one of my dearest friends) and her family are staying with us. They’re in the Denver area for some business and I am delighted to have our first guests in many many months. It is the first time I have seen her since my diagnosis and we had a tearful, heartfelt reunion on the sidewalk outside of Sushi Tora in Boulder. Yes, we had sushi. She is as much a sushi whore as I am (we are related, mind you).

So I wasn’t able to get online until late last night when to my delight, I learned that beloved Chuck of Sunday Nite Dinner has revved up Food Gawker, a budding replacement for Tastespotting. Good on ya, Chuck, and thank you thank you thank you for stepping up to the plate. A lesser cook could not have done this so quickly, so elegantly. You are superfly, babe.

Now, I have to be quick with this recipe because I need to make brekkie shortly and I am still managing random and annoying side effects (yes, they linger long after chemo - stupid chemo…).

I chose my partner well, this is obvious. Jeremy is never a cause for strife or stress in my life - he always makes everything better. But you can’t be guaranteed the same for your partner’s family. Luckily, my in-laws are incredibly sweet and loving people who treat me as if I were their own daughter. And they love to cook! Every time I see them, MIL and I always wind up exchanging recipes and sharing new dishes. We’ve been doing this for over 15 years and some of my favorite recipes come from the early days.

pasta, chicken, sun-dried toms, pesto, parm, roasted peppers, garlic, pine nuts

A lovely pasta dish that my ILs served us years ago had such fresh and delightful flavors that I had to have the recipe. It is incredibly simple to throw together, incredibly satisfying to eat. They didn’t have a name for it, really - so I dubbed it Darling Pasta. Did I mention everything about Jeremy’s family is just Darling? It’s true - and it’s their surname!

sauté chicken with garlic and oil

While this isn’t a cold pasta to cool off with (sorry, my East Coast friends who are sitting in the heat), it is perfect for any season and I make it year-round. I’ve used rotini of various flavors/colors and cheese tortellini for this dish, but it is flexible - very flexible. Often, we will make the pasta without the chicken for lighter, vegetarian option.

add sun-dried tomatoes and roasted peppers

Many of the ingredients are easy to come by at the supermarket today (this wasn’t always so a decade ago in Ithaca, New York). Of course, the purists can roast their own peppers, dry their own tomatoes, make their own pasta, and make their own pesto. It’s whatever you want to make of it. Considering this is on my list of quick meals, you can hazard a guess as to how I prepare it.

smell the love - add the pesto

Darling Pasta is terrific with a salad and bread, or served as a side pasta at a potluck, or as a one-bowl meal as we hunker down to watch a streaming episode of BSG (Battlestar Galactica, for those unfortunate souls not in the know).

colorful, flavorful, beautiful

Darling Pasta
1/2 lb. chicken breast, diced
1 lb. rotini or cheese tortellini, cooked
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup sundried tomatoes, rehydrated and cut into strips
1 cup roasted red peppers, diced
1 cup pesto
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 tbsp vegetable oil
parmesan, grated

Heat oil over high heat in a large sauté pan. Add garlic when oil is hot and stir until fragrant. Add the chicken and sauté until just cooked. Stir in the tomatoes and peppers. Mix in the pesto and pine nuts. Toss the drained pasta into the pan and stir together. Remove from heat and serve with grated parmesan.

Damn straight. Look at what the lovely Katie sent to me in the mail yesterday!

so sweet!

I like to think of Katie as my twin in Salt Lake City because we both tele and have dogs. Except she’s not Chinese. And she runs faster (and muuuuuch farther) than me. And I’m pretty sure she’s taller than me. And she writes more eloquently than I do. And she can lead climb. And she’s more in tune with her inner peace while I’m in tune with my inner anger. But other than that… we’re like the closest thing to twins you can imagine! What a gorgeous little headlamp. What a stellar gal pal. Thanks, Katie!

This morning we set out to do a short hike only to find that the road leading to the trailhead was still closed. It usually opens by Memorial Day weekend, but they postponed the opening. We decided to walk the road and saw along the way that there were still sizable snow drifts and windfall (downed trees) strewn across both lanes. The campgrounds were also under a few feet of snow still. Late thaw. But we enjoyed our walk since I’m still physically weak. There was a lot to see like different stages of pussy willow blooms, bunnies, ptarmigans, fish in the lakes, tiny wildflowers, snow, and a gorgeous Wilson’s Warbler that sang for us. It was a gorgeous way to start the day. Check out the photo blog for all of the pics, but I’ll include some of my favorites here.

kaweah loves the snow

approaching brainard lake

mount audubon looms over brainard lake

puppy gets her morning swim in the icy water

scooby snack

wilson’s warbler

serenade

I told one of my tele betties that when my chemo was over I was going to eat sushi, salads, and berries for a month. Try forgoing some of your favorite foods for several months. You start to get a little punchy.

onion, ginger, carrots

The first salad I had when my blood counts had bounced back was with a favorite Japanese dressing. I have only had it on occasion in random sushi bars. They bring out a token salad sometimes, just iceberg lettuce with a tomato wedge and a few carrot shreds. I have to hold back my gag reflex when they serve it with Thousand Island dressing. If I’m lucky, I’ll score the gingery/vinegary dressing.

purée everything

A little guesswork and tinkering a few years ago and I’ve settled on a recipe of my own that comes pretty close to the dressing I like. It’s not smooth in texture or in flavor. It packs a punch, but if you love ginger, this is a good one to try with adjustments to your liking. I find it incredibly refreshing in the summertime.

toss dressing with salad and serve

Japanese Ginger-Carrot Dressing

1 cup carrot, chopped into chunks
1/4 sweet onion
1/2 cup ginger, peeled and cut into chunks
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 cup miso paste

Place all ingredients into food processor and blend until puréed. Toss dressing with salad and serve.