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| Outside each window, everything's gone green. And pink. And red. And purple. And lilac. And yellow. And orange. |
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| The Cutting Gardens at Cafe Drake HRV are delivering the goods. |
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| A current favorite infusion is gin with cucumbers and lemon thyme. You could easily replace the gin with vodka: mix 1 small chopped and seeded cucumber with 4-6 sprigs of fresh thyme in a glass jar and cover with 3 cups clear alcohol (gin, vodka or white rum). Seal and place in a shaded spot. Shake twice a day for 4-5 days and then strain the alcohol through a fine mesh sieve. |
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| Late afternoon sunlight draws us like a magnet to the living room. |
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| A breezy, summery Black Eyed Pea Curry with brown rice, pappadums, yogurt and chopped salad. |
BLACK EYED PEA CURRY WITH DILL
Heat about 3 T. vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat; canola, grape seed or sunflower oils all work well for this recipe. When the oil is hot toss in 1/2 t. each black mustard seeds and cumin seeds. Immediately cover the skillet and once the mustard seeds have "popped" - you'll now by the sound, just like popcorn - add 1 or 2 whole dried red chilies. Stir and add about 10 curry leaves if you have them, straight from the fridge or freezer, covering the pan for a few seconds to avoid oil splatter. Stir only once and add 1 finely chopped onion and 3 cloves finely chopped garlic. Cook until the onion just begins to brown, stirring and adjusting heat as needed to avoid burning the garlic. Add 2 plum tomatoes (again, chopped fine) and cook for 1 minute before tossing in 1 can rinsed and drained black eyed peas and at least 4 T. chopped dill.
Now add 2 cups or so of water, cover the skillet and cook on a very low heat for about 15 minutes. The beans should begin to release starches, forming a sort of thin gravy, but be careful to not allow them to dry out or burn. If small amounts of additional water are needed, add it. Now remove the cover and allow the skillet contents to simmer for 5 minutes or until the mixture is thickened. Stir in 1/2 - 1 t. salt and season with black pepper. Serve hot or very warm.
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