Spring, grilled cheese, and the birthday ball starts rolling

I have meant to write each of the past two nights, but y'all, my yard. I can't even get out of it because spring has sprung and the sun, it has been a'shining.

Tulips turn their heads to the bright sky every morning and open their arms wide to receive the light and warmth. The phlox perks up and stands at attention, the poor hydrangeas dare to bud for the third time since spring started hinting at its coming, and the hostas start their cheerfully aggressive takeover of valued garden space. 

The chosen ones aren't the only things bursting from torpor to life. The weeds and I have been engaged in a full scale battle for a week now- hairy bittercress, clover, the one I never can identify but which sprouts with wild and initially pleasing abandon. I am quite certain that my neighbors must think me obsessive at best, for there I am again, crouched in a yogic squat and tossing uprooted weeds into Oliver's orange plastic sand pail with glee. 

As always, I commune with the worms and roly polys, welcome the birds into the spray from my hose, attempt to save neighborhood bunnies from Nutmeg's innate predatory instincts, and lose all sense of time and other responsibilities. 

Yesterday was National Grilled Cheese Day, and I took a break from gardening to speak to MacKenzie Smith, sandwich expert for About.com and founder of the blog, Grilled Cheese Social. Sara Lee had asked her to concoct some special sandwiches for the day, and I wanted to ask about her favorite cheese combos that Tom and I may not have yet tried as well as to seek advice about convincing my boys that a good grilled cheese sandwich is hard to beat. So far, they are not fans, and to be honest, I cannot understand. 

Anyway, during our brief chat, MacKenzie shared her favorite grilled cheese trio -young goat cheese, muenster, and taleggio (all of which I bought today)- and we waxed rhapsodic about the importance of using full-fat salty butter liberally on a good grilled cheese. She swears by any salty European butter while I go even more specific and vote for Kerrygold. #ofthegods

MacKenzie's three Bs for a winning sandwich include, of course, butter, but also base (a good, thick bread that can withstand heat and melting cheese; she likes Sara Lee Artesano, and I like brioche) and blend (the best grilled cheeses benefit from a blend of cheeses with varying melt points, salt contents, and flavor profiles). 

I know what I'll be having for lunch tomorrow, thank you!

For lunch today, my dear friend, C, took me to the Iron Gate to get my birthday ball rolling. 41 happens Sunday, y'all. 

It was a beautiful day, and we sat in the courtyard, shaded in a perfectly mottled way by a large canopy of established wisteria. Despite a ludicrous drive downtown which culminated in me climbing a ladder OUT of a parking garage WHILE in heeled sandals and then skirting a delivery truck in the drive pad to exit, it was a perfect, lovely, relaxed date.

Heading into the Iron Gate which is mysterious and charming and I want to go back because the interior spaces are even more inviting than the front.

The menu is gorgeous and intensely seasonal. Though I had a hard time choosing, we ultimately shared two dishes -the spring pea bruschetta (OMG) and the beet, black walnut, dill, and yogurt salad- before branching into the gemelli with chiles and swiss chard pesto (C) and the farro, dried cherries, feta, pine nut, and red wine vinaigrette salad for moi. For dessert, lemon curd with meringue two ways, candied almonds, and cardamom ice cream. Perfection!

Happy weekend, friends!

Asadur's market

As I am forever gabbing away with so many folks I encounter, I often meet neat people and receive fabulous tidbits of treasured info.

I mean, I am still so excited not only to have made friends with Hiwot but also to have learned so much from her about making injera, lentil and cabbage wats, and more about Ethiopian holidays and the foods used to celebrate them. 

I have recently started seeing a new dentist, and her dental hygienist, Helen, is an absolute doll. Despite the extensive cleaning going on, we managed to chat fairly constantly and discovered that we had much in common, including experiences in and connection to Florence, Italy, and the fact that Helen attended one of my canning classes at Strosniders sometime in the past two years. As it also happens, Helen is Greek, and our conversation quickly turned to Greek food.

Last Thursday, I was in for another cleaning, and as Easter is on the horizon, Helen is manically cooking in preparation. Long story short, I was foaming at the mouth over the recipes she makes, including her gigandes (those enormous Greek white beans often stewed with tomatoes), and she mentioned that her favorite place to shop is Asadur's, a market in Rockville, MD. 

You will not be surprised to know that today, a mere 48 hours after hearing about bags of beans and awesome spices and imported feta, I hauled it to Asadur's. I am exceedingly glad I did, although my wallet is not. #obsessivefoodielady

Asadur's, 5536 Randolph Road, is housed in a nondescript unit of a nondescript strip mall. Sandwiched between Salon Gabor and Kung Fu Karate, two neon signs announce BEER and OPEN while a smaller anti-theft sign lets you know that you're being watched.

Undeterred, I headed inside, grabbed a cart, and started on the far right aisle where I grabbed Turkish delight (for Jack), a box of Nutella-stuffed croissants (for Ol; not a Greek treat, but he loves Nutella and croissants and learned to ride his bike today so they're deserved) and a large bag of ladokoulouro (for me) before running into the olive area where two Greek women were telling a third, non-Greek woman, what they do with their olives and how. I was in heaven.

Before we go on, let me tell you about ladokoulouro, in case you are unfamiliar. These -ring-shaped at Asadur's though I imagine they come in many styles- reminded me somewhat of taralli which are (also ring-shaped) Italian crackers. Both have a not-unpleasantly-dry crumb and are crunchy. (Taralli can be sweet or savory; I don't know if the same is true for ladokoulouro.) 

The ladokoulouro I chose today are made of wheat flour, sugar, Cretan olive oil, orange zest, cloves, and cinnamon, and are rolled in sesame. In the below photo, you can see them at the top of the serving platter. They.are.sublime. I didn't realize that they were better suited to a dessert tray than our dinner spread, but so be it. YUM!

dinner: baba ganoush, hummus, Greek olives, green beans with lemon, cucs, stuffed grape leaves, tomatoes, two types of feta, ladokoulouro, village bread, all drizzled with kalamata oil

I love dessert items made with olive oil because I find the depth and flavor and lack of sweetness imparted by the oil so interesting. These do not disappoint.

Among the shocking number of items I purchased were:

dried gigandes

whole camomile flowers for tea- I just drank a cup of the tea, and it is SO good

kalamata olive oil

giant golden raisins

one of the two white wines I bought; Greek whites tend to be like southern Italian whites- crisp, clean, easy to drink.

you should smell this za'atar- it is SO fragrant

I also bought olives, INCREDIBLE baba ganoush and two delectable types of feta (see first photo), a bag of frozen artichoke hearts, some course bulgur for tabouli, candied orange peel, two cans of stuffed grape leaves, and on and on. Everything we've tasted so far has been scrumptious. 

Asadur's is closed on Sundays but is otherwise open starting at 9 or 10 each day. During the week, you can purchase salads and sandwiches at lunchtime. Phone is 301-770-5558. I definitely recommend a trip if Greek food gets you even half as excited as it makes me. 

Mighty Salads! and a bit of re-entry burrs-in-butt

We got home around 10pm last night, after leaving Lake Charles just before 2. The children were, shall we say, rambunctious, and I have not, in a long while, been so glad to insert my ear plugs and call it a day as I was last night when everyone was tucked in.

Our trip home was wonderful, and I admit to crying on and off all day yesterday. I'm sure I was primed for tears not only because of a happy week in the sun with my parents but also because just before leaving for the airport, we all went to visit the graveyard in which Nanny is buried.

I miss her always, but rarely do I get to sit atop her grave, rearranging the pebbles into an obvious heart and talking with her. 

This morning I began the pleasurable task of sorting through a week's worth of mail. In it I found my new Maxine Waters "Shade" shirt, which delights me to no end, as well as two new books: Down and Out in Paris and London (Orwell) and 100 Tricks Every Boy Can Do: A Memoir (Kim Stafford). 

Additionally, the new Food52 cookbook, Mighty Salads was just released, and I am very excited to have a recipe featured in it: my Farro and Golden Beet Salad with Chive-Sage Oil. 

The book has so many delicious dishes in it- salad for dinner without going hungry is the mantra. Woot!

Although some cooler temps remain in our forecast, today was beautiful, sunny and hovering around 60 degrees. I got a burr in my butt to not only plant everything Mom sent home with me (amaryllis and calla lily bulbs, indigo, lemon grass, and something that now escapes me) but also to remove two Nandina bushes that irritate me and whose absence would make room for something wonderful. I got it all done. So therapeutic and fun.

In the meantime, the boys, tired as all get out from the trip home yesterday, played and bickered, bickered and rested. This evening, after getting them to bed, I found this note from Ol to Jack. I'm going to be honest- it cracked me up. Just what I needed.

A) Jack kind of was an ass today. But so was Ol.

B) I love the "Dear" leading into the "you suck."

C) Who is Carrot?