apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

i'm totally bummed, this weekend i made bluefish for dinner, and then on sunday, i read megnut's blog and i realise, its like, one of the worst fish out there to eat! it's got tons of pcbs and mercury and pesticides and stuff
i always thought they were good to eat b/c they're sustainable and not over fished
unlike most people i ADORE the taste of bluefish
anyone have any suggestions for a suitable replacement??

Our csa share starts this week and I'm guessing we are going to get a ton of greens. Anyone have a favorite or unusual recipe?
Or is there a website that has recipes for seasonal (and local) produce? Anyone have any ideas?

kelly,
garlic and greens sauteed is my simplest favorite.

also, my best friend invented the following easy recipe for greens and pasta. You'll need pancetta, garlic, onions, sage, spinach/chard, parsley, pasta, a few eggs, a lemon, parmesan.

chop up:
1 C pancetta
a few heads garlic
3/4 C onions/shallots
tblsp or so minced fresh sage

render pancetta, remove. Cook the aromatics in the pancetta fat, to which you can also add butter or oil if it gets too dry.

Meanwhile, boil up some farfalle (or comparable shape.) Chop up a head or so of dark greens (spinach is great) and a handful of minced parsley, and add to saute pan with aromatics. In a small bowl, beat eggs along with the zest and juice of a lemon (you can add milk/cream to stretch this and add more flavor.) Add some pasta water to the greens to loosen. Drain pasta and add to greens, stir. Add egg mixture and reserved pancetta to pasta and greens. Mix (the egg will cook in the heat of the pasta.)

Serve with parmesan; salt and pepper to taste.

enjoy!

p.s. I am wondering: who grows your CSA produce down there in DC? (could be a farmer I know...)

Thanks kwj, sounds good. Our CSA is from a farm out in The Plains, VA. www.bullrunfarm.com

I picked up a big bag of Purslane at the Farmer's Market for $2 and I'm wondering if anyone has a recommended recipe? I love it in salads but I feel like there is more I can do with it. Thanks!

Since I got such good answers to my last gardening query, thought I'd try again. Everything is flourishing, and my squash plant in particular is monstrous. But so far, it's been pretty cool, and I'm getting nervous about how hot it could get on my terrace. I can't figure out what the material is, but it's silver, and can get quite hot when the sun is on it. It's basically the roof of the extension built onto the first floor of the house. Should I build a little deck for my plants to sit on?
If you click on my name, you can see some photos of my container garden.

ooh, GM! nice pots!

my rooftop container garden is up right now over on the AT site, titled "katherine's commando garden," with pics similar to yours. Looks like our landlords used the same reflective silver paint for the roof.

Build that deck, and ASAP. If I could, I'd totally do the same for my container garden, because that silver paint is a bee-yotch, come July. The surface is blinding, it gets really hot, and it reflects that heat right back at the plants. The result is much drooping and wilting. Also substantial heat damage to vegetables, alas.

what do you have growing?

I live in central Florida, where keeping herbs and my other container plants going in the summer is a daily job. Someone gave me a leftover bag of cypress mulch recently, and on a whim I mulched all my herb pots. It's helped a ton! I can go a day or two without watering them, when before they dried out so fast I'd sometiimes have to water twice a day.

Ann, try smaller fish with a similar oily taste (which I love too). Things like fresh sardines or anchovies, or smaller mackerels. In general, the smaller, lower down on the food chain fish will have less accumulation of bad stuff. Or, try other sorts of fish, here on the west coast, my favorites are sable fish and sand dabs, don't know if you have similar sorts there.

I like adding whatever excess greens I have to leek and potato pottages (you can eat it cold) or making quiches with them, or just sauteing them with garlic and splashing with my favorite red wine vinegar.

Composted pit washed dairy manure (not as gross as it sounds) makes a wonderful mulch that will help your pots conserve moisture and fertilize them at the same time.

regards,
trillium

kwj, thanks for the heads-up. Great, now I have to think about this. I've sunk more money than I anticipated into this garden, but it really gives me so much joy.

I have 3 kinds of basil (sweet, Thai, Greek), 3 kinds of tomatoes (yellow gold, orange strawberry, and brandywine), mint, parsley, rosemary, yellow squash, japanese eggplant, strawberries, and a slowly dying confetti flower. I was only going to grow herbs, but then I got overexcited at the farmers' market. Next year, I want a fig tree!

Hi all -

I'm looking for a fun cooking class in NYC - either a one-time thing or a few classes together - that's relatively inexpensive and good for relatively inexperienced participants. (Something that's fun for a couple to do, and actually take something out of it that's useful.) Any suggestions? Any favorite cooking classes in NYC? Any help is much appreciated!

Thanks so much in advance.

Last week someone asked for ways to use up lots of strawberries. I found this amazing sounding recipe for Strawberry Daiquiris (uses up 8 cups strawberries-makes 14 drinks):
http://www.foodtv.ca/recipes/recipedetails.aspx?dishid=4092&nwsltrfood20060606ref=E4D

i took classes at the new school a year ago and really learned a lot. not to mention that i made a few friends! the classes are very thorough with no attendant snobbery or highhandedness.