And Who's Having the Best Day Ever?!

Me!  Well, yesterday, that is.  

I guess you could say I've been in a bit of a slump lately - not sure if I'm becoming a jaded New Yorker, or if it's just the extreme humidity affecting my perception of fun.  

Either way, all that flew out the window yesterday as I had THE BEST DAY EVER.  Nothing particularly fun happened - I went about my ways as any other day, including a full eight hours of work and another performance of the production I'm in, but for whatever reason, the stars aligned and I smiled.

It started off with a great workout - a great way to start a great day.  Follow that with a fresh berry smoothie and a productive day of work.  When I got home, I received an email asking me to audition for a new musical called "Nudists in Love" (my audition is this Saturday.)  Took a midday break to get frozen yogurt with Brian (two for the price of one AND free sprinkles) and discussed with him our plans for apartment living, post-August.  Came home and was informed by fellow UCB-er, Sydney, that new classes had been posted online for the next course in our series of improv education.  Minutes later, while on the phone with my Mom, she got a call on the other line and found out that her recent biopsy showed the irregularity in her breast was benign (BEST PART OF MY DAY!)  About an hour later, I was called by the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, letting me know that I was chosen as a new intern starting next week and they would refund me the $325 I just spent on an upcoming Sketch Writing class.  Had a late lunch/early dinner of the infamous dish in my family: "Fish in Foil," then headed to the Hell's Kitchen area for another performance of my show.  Had a GREAT performance, with a wonderfully receptive audience (including some friends: Maureen, Angie, and Ilya - thanks for coming!), then finished up my day with a lovely margarita-esque beverage with Ilya after the show.  Walking back to the subway, I received a phone call asking me to audition for ANOTHER musical, "Central Park," sometime this weekend.  After getting back home, I spoke with my Mom, who let me know she purchased a mandoline and food processor for me.  Umm.... hello?!  Am I in an alternate universe folks?  Freaking BEST DAY EVER.

More exotic eating...

I have continued exploring with some of the exotic vegetables I have been receiving in my CSA share, and have enjoyed some really delicious recipes recently.  Every week, I get at least one item that I have never before prepared.  Luckily, the CSA has a volunteer recipe organizer that distributes recipes pertinent to the items we receive each week.  Unfortunately, I have been quite preoccupied with the show I'm in, so I haven't been able to cook as frequently as I like.  But I thought I would share a couple more interesting dishes I've had over the last week or so...

The first was a very unique dish, a Cardoon and Mango Chutney.  Unfortunately, I lost the actual recipe, but I can share what I remember.  First, you sauté red onion about 10 minutes,

 until caramelized, then you add turmeric, chili powder, curry, pepper, salt, ground mustard, bay leaf, cardamom, jamaican allspice, and ground ginger.  Cook all that until fragrant, about 2 minutes.  Then you add the cardoon (peeled and chopped) and cook until softened.  Add a can of coconut milk and then add chopped mango (I used Indian mango - yum!)  Simmer until everything is cooked and the vegetables are softened.  Serve all that on some brown rice, and you've got a great meal.  The only complaint I had was that there was a little too much chili powder in mine - so go easy on that spice.

My other new dish was stuffed grape leaves - so easy and so delicious!  I actually do have the recipe for that:

Dolmas

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs. ground lamb
1 1/4 c. rice (raw)
3 tsp. salt
1 tsp. allspice (level)
1 tbsp. dried spearmint
1/4 lb. melted butter (1 stick)

Instructions

Mix all above ingredients together.  GRAPE LEAVES: Pick 75 to 100 medium leaves early in season when they are tender (avoid tiny ones). Cut stem off and brush clean in bowl of water. 

If unable to pick leaves, jarred leaves can be purchased in a Greek import store.  STUFFING THE LEAVES: Line bottom of pot with large leaves. Stuff leaves on wrong side. Place a little stuffing on stem side.  Fold leaf over stuffing - bring one side over, then the other side and then roll. Place in pot with seam side down.  When all stuffed leaves are placed in pot, cover with large leaves. Pour seasoned water (with salt and allspice) over the stuffed leaves. Place hand over leaves and press down to avoid leaves opening. Bring to boil, foam may come to the top. Skim it off.  Lower to simmer for 1 hour. Take 1 stuffed leaf, cut and check to see if rice is cooked.

My only note on this recipe was that I used short-grained brown rice, which wasn't thoroughly cooked after simmering for one hour.  I would recommend using a faster cooking white rice.

Now, for any of my readers who have access to more grape leaves than I (ahem, ahem, who could that be?), here's another recipe you should try:

Stuffed Grape Leaves (Vegetarian)

Ingredients

16 Lg young fresh grape leaves
1 lb crumbly goat chese
1/2 c plus 1 tbs extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

Soak fresh grape leaves in ice water at least 30 minutes. Pat dry before using. Rinse leaves packed in brine, if using, and pat dry. Mash together cheese and 1 tablespoon oil. Set aside. Remove stems from grape leaves. Pour remaining 1/2 cup oil onto shallow plate. Dip dull underside of 1 leaf into oil. Place leaf, oiled side up, on work surface. Place 1 tablespoon cheese mixture in center of leaf and season with generous grinding of pepper. Fold sides and top and bottom ends of leaf over cheese to make square. Place seam-side down on clean plate. Repeat with remaining leaves. Recipe may be made to this point and refrigerated, covered, overnight. Grill over medium-hot coals, seam-side down, until leaves are no longer bright green and are nicely scored, about 2 minutes. Turn and grill other side about 2 minutes. Or broil close to heat source. Yields 16 leaves.

I'm hoping to try that one soon!

Picture of the Week

Of the blender after preparing the aforementioned meal:

Adventures in Extreme Eating

On Saturday, I picked up my second week of vegetables from the Upper Meadow Farm CSA distribution. I was so looking forward to trying more new and nutritious organic veggies. This week, my share included: stinging nettle, lambsquarter, cardoon, baby garlic, sorrel, and dandelion greens. Not bad!

When living in Santa Barbara last year, I was blessed with the convenience of a garden in my very own backyard. One of the things I frequently found was a hearty supply of stinging nettle - though the only purpose of nettle I knew of was its supreme ability to give me hives. It seems funny that I now live across the country and am paying for this stuff. Well, stinging nettle actually has some amazing medicinal and nutritional value. Yes, you have to handle it with care before cooking (i.e. gloves and tongs), but once cooked, the poisonous venom transforms into a nutritious substance. Here's where my "extreme eating" comes into play. It's like the vegetarian version of fugu, minus the risk of death.

So today, I tried out a recipe which incorporated three of my fresh ingredients. It turned out magnificently! Please give it a try if you have this stuff growing around your backyard or at the local farmer's market:

Pasta with Nettles, Sorrel and Lemon
Serves 2 to 4

Ingredients
1/4 lb. fresh stinging nettles
8 oz. pasta
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 lb. fresh ricotta cheese
1 lemon for zest and juice
1 tbsp. fresh mint, chopped
1 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
1 tbsp. fresh chives, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 small handful of fresh sorrel leaves, washed and torn into bite-sized pieces
1/2 cup toasted walnuts

Directions
Bring two large pots of salted water to a boil. One will be fore the pasta and the other for the nettles. When the water comes to a boil in one of the pots, "carefully" add the nettles and give them a stir. Cook for 5 minutes and transfer them to a colander with a slotted spoon. You want to leave any dirt or grit in the cooking water. Let the nettle drain. Add the pasta to the other pot of clean water and cook until al dente. While the pasta is cooking, press most of the water out of the nettles, transfer them to a food processor and puree. Drizzle in the olive oil and process until completely smooth. Add the ricotta, lemon zest and juice, and herbs. Pulse the processor to blend all the ingredients. Season with salt and pepper. Remove a cup of the water the pasta is cooking in and reserve. Drain the pasta and then return it to the pot. Toss in the nettle ricotta cheese mixture and stir to combine. Add the fresh sorrel and a little of the reserved pasta water to create the desired consistency of the sauce. Stir in the walnuts and serve.

It turned out great! I enjoyed this for lunch and shared some with Brian, who also loved it. Very fresh-tasting and refreshing. It also feels good to know you are eating something so fresh and healthy. Bon appetit!

Straight from the Weather Channel:

NEW YORK (MANHATTAN)- BRONX-RICHMOND (STATEN ISLAND)- KINGS (BROOKLYN)-QUEENS- 1129 AM EDT TUE JUN 10 2008

...EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING...

AN EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING.

HOT AND HUMID CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE TODAY. TEMPERATURES WILL ONCE AGAIN CLIMB INTO THE UPPER 90S...WITH DEW POINT TEMPERATURES LIKELY AROUND THE 70 DEGREE MARK. THIS WILL RESULT IN HEAT INDEX VALUES BETWEEN 103 AND 106 DEGREES THIS AFTERNOON.

NEW YORK CITY RESIDENTS SHOULD CALL 3- 1-1 TO IDENTIFY COOLING CENTER LOCATIONS AND TO OBTAIN "BEAT THE HEAT" SAFETY TIPS.

AN EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING IS ISSUED WHEN HIGH HUMIDITIES ARE EXPECTED TO COMBINE WITH HOT TEMPERATURES TO MAKE IT FEEL LIKE IT IS 105 DEGREES OR GREATER. DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS...STAY IN AN AIR-CONDITIONED ROOM...STAY OUT OF THE SUN...AND CHECK UP ON RELATIVES AND NEIGHBORS.

Drink lots of water

In a recent attempt to prepare for bathing suit season (though I don't anticipate as much beach-going as last year), I joined up at New York Sports Club and decided to get into shape. I was previously a member at Synergy Fitness, located only down my street. Ahh Synergy. The gymnasium equivalent of a dive bar, minus the charm. My new place actually runs high powered central air (what a concept!), offers group classes, and has a pool! [Insert bathing suit season here.] I actually enjoy going to the gym again, because it's a wonderful facility. In fact, I just came from the best workout I've had in months... 50 minutes of INTENSE indoor cycling, a.k.a. "spinning." That is a (Oma/Opa, please excuse my upcoming expletive) fucking outrageous workout. My legs sort of feel like jello right now. Oh, did I mention that New York City is melting right now? I literally got stuck in the tar on my street walking home. Thank God I have an air conditioner in my room...

Pleasures of Peace Opens this week!

To those of you in New York, please come and see my play, "Pleasures of Peace."  Here are the details:

MEDICINE SHOW THEATRE ENSEMBLE, one of NYC's longest-running experimental theatres, concludes its 38th season with the World Premiere of  "PLEASURES OF PEACE," a new theatrical revue that celebrates peace while showcasing writings from a diverse group of authors, composers and playwrights ranging from LOUISA MAY ALCOTT to OSCAR WILDE. The production, directed by Obie-Award winner BARBARA VANN, runs from June 12th through June 28th with an opening scheduled for Friday, June 20th at MEDICINE SHOW THEATRE, 549 West 52nd St., 3rd Floor (between 10th and 11th Ave.). The performance schedule is Thursdays through Sundays at 8:00 PM,  (with an additional performance on Wednesday, June 25th at 8). Tickets are $18 and are available from Smarttix at (212) 868-4444 or via the web at www.Smarttix.com. For more information, please log onto the company's website at www.MedicineShowTheatre.org.

Medicine Show concludes their "War & Peace" themed season with "PLEASURES OF PEACE," a breezy and funny theatrical revue of plays, music, jokes, and improv comedy all centered around the general theme of Peace. Among the gems in this eclectic evening: Howard Pflanzer's stage adaptation of Louisa May Alcott's "Perilous Play," about a group of young socialites who enjoy bonbons laced with hashish; Oscar Wilde's "The Model Millionaire," about an impoverished man who sees his fortunes change through a selfless act of kindness; and John Gruen's new one-act "Guards In Love," about a Buckingham Palace guard and a Vatican guard who compare notes on their respective lives after a night of passionate love-making.  Intertwined with the plays are several new short works (by David Nugent and Susan Yankowitz), as well as poems from lyricist E.Y. "Yip" Harburg's "Rhymes for the Irreverent," set to new music by Lenny Hat.
 
Featured in the cast: Molly C. Blau, Paul Cloeter, Mark J. Dempsey, Felix Gardon, Jason Alan Griffin, Beth Griffith, Ashley Anne Harrell, Nina Karacosta, Ward Nixon, Andrei Robakov, Peter Tedeschi, Alex Martinez Wallace and Ann Marie Yoo.

Director BARBARA VANN is a founder of the Open Theatre as well as the Medicine Show. She won an Obie Award for her work on the musical "Bound To Rise" and appears in the Platinum Edition of "Who's Who."

Set and costumes are by UTA BEKAIA, music is by YAEL ACHER, DAVID FINKLESTEIN and LENNY HAT, and the stage manager is RICHARD KEYSER.