Things I Am Loving This Week

Time for a few more "Things I Am Loving This Week"--those (mostly) food related things that I am enjoying and want to share. 

First up, hopefully you have an "Edible Publications" magazine, for your city or area. (You can check out a list of them here to see). They are a quarterly magazine that focuses on local, seasonal, sustainable foods and the farmers and producers involved in them. I love, love, love the Edible Hawaiian Islands version and usually pick them up on the free publications stand at Whole Foods whenever the new one is out. You can also subscribe to the magazine to have it sent directly to you. They are full of gorgeous photos, interesting articles and great recipes. 

In fact, one recipe in the Summer 2009 issue has become my go-to recipe for a quick, easy dinner; the Ahi Poke Sliders on Mini Buns (recipe here). {I have written about my love for poke, a Hawaiian dish made up of cubes of raw fish, (most commonly ahi), marinated in sesame oil, seaweed, onions, chili peppers, soy sauce, etc., many times, (look for it under ahi on my labels)}. I realize that these little raw fish burgers seared on the outside and left raw in the middle won't be everyones' cup of tea and they can be cooked all the way through if you think you must, but if you are daring, man are they good! For those who don't have access to poke, you can make your own, (I have a recipe here), but to be honest, I usually just pick up a small container of it at the store and after a few seconds in the food processor, I am forming patties and ready to sear them in my grill pan for just a couple of minutes or so per side and that is it, they are done. I like mine on mini whole-grain buns, made by using a biscuit cutter on a regular-sized bun, (Don't worry--no buns were wasted making them, the edges get ground up into crumbs in the food processor and put in the freezer to use for breading). 

The magazine had a bunch of recipes for sauces too, the Sesame Miso Sauce with Cilantro (recipe here), works perfectly on these little beauties. I have made them about five times so far and love them for a quick and yummy dinner. If you don't want to take my word on how good they are, check out my friend Kat's (Our Adventures in Japan) recent post on them here. 

Mostly I make my own iced tea but when I forget to brew it, run out, or need a handy bottle, I love to drink Ito En Tea's Tea. Although this Japanese company makes all kinds of tea products and bottled beverages, I like the Tea's Tea best because they contain nothing but tea, purified water, vitamin C and natural flavorings or herbs. I try to watch the sugar I drink and the fact they don't have any makes me happy. My absolute favorite is the Lemongrass Green, but I love the Rose Green, Mint Green, Green Jasmine, and Golden Oolong too. 

Refreshing, good and there is a haiku on every bottle. A little tea and haiku is always good for the soul!

  

(On the bottle of Rose Green I am currently drinking):

lily pads afloat

dull painted amphibians

practice evening music

--Jodi Perkins, USA

I constantly tell myself to stop buying cookbooks as I am way out of control with the number I own, but I had to buy a copy of Terry Walter's "Clean Food" (of course the fact that Barnes & Noble had a coupon to get it at 50% off made the decision pretty easy). Described as "A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source" it is mostly a cookbook, but one with a good section of information on healthy, clean, sustainable food and perfect for my ongoing quest to eat as healthy as I can (with the occasional indulgence of course). 

I am loving going through it and busily tabbing all the recipes I want to make. The recipes are divided by season and are healthy, delicious-sounding dishes such as; Green Goddess Dip, Bok Choy and Chickpeas with Cashews, Millet Black Bean Patties with Corn, Pad Thai Summer Rolls with Tamarind Dipping Sauce, Sprouted Quinoa Tabbouleh, Lentil Walnut Pate, Roasted Kaboacha Squash with Kale, Coconut Cranberry Pecan Balls, Tuscan Bean Soup, Ginger Pear Crisp; the list goes on and on. The Spiced Kukicha Iced Tea will be this week's "Simple Saturday Sipper" and stay tuned to see more recipes from this book as I cook them.

So that is what I am loving this week. How about you?