Off to College and a Salad

I apologize for the recent absence from posting.
It's been a crazy and emotional week (or so) as we took our first born to college for the first time.
Lucky girl - at a beautiful school surrounded by mountains and a huge blue sky in Colorado.

Move-in day, while exhausting for all, could be viewed with humor.
As fresh-faced 18 year olds, glowing with anticipation, hauled boxes and bags, their parents straggled behind, schlepping even more stuff.

Dads, who in their "regular lives" are successful captains of industry, vice presidents of this or that, entrepreneurs, are suddenly superfluous and embarrassing. At least until the tuition bill comes.

 Mothers, stylish and competent at home or in the office, are feeling frumpy and melancholy for their younger selves. How can we possibly be old enough to have a child in college?

Girls, accustomed to private bedrooms and good water pressure, have to get used to shared space and shared bathrooms.

Boys check out the girls, who check out each other. The brave and confident introduce themselves at every opportunity. Life long friends?
Maybe. Maybe not.

The whole scene could be a case study for Anthropology 101.

And the kids who have food bloggers for parents?
Despondent at the thought of cafeteria food.

We treated our girl to a last supper at Osteria Marco.
Delicious chewy-crusted pizza with sausage and house-made ricotta.
Caprese with perfect ripe tomatoes.
And a beet salad, that inspired this recipe.

Like several of my other recipes, this one has easily interchangeable ingredients.
Switch hazelnuts or almonds for the pistachios. Sunflower seeds would be good too.
Use any kinds of greens you like.
Don't care for goat cheese? Try feta or gorgonzola.
And if you shudder at the thought of mixing fruit into your savory salad - just don't do it.
I'm also not going to give you exact measurements, because it's easy to add as much as you need for however many people you're serving.

Roasted Beet, Pistachio and Goat Cheese Salad


Arugula, or other leafy greens, such as a mesclun mix or spinach

Fresh beets, roasted and cut into chunks
To roast, trim off beet green stem. Wrap each beet in foil. Place on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes, or until a knife can be easily inserted into the center of the beet. Times may vary according to size of beets.
When the beets are cool, unwrap and peel off skin. Note: Use clean rubber gloves, or put your hands inside plastic sandwich bags to avoid staining your fingers bright pink.

Pistachios, or other nuts.
 If using almonds or hazelnuts, I would lightly toast them first.

Pink grapefruit sections
Do you know how to supreme a grapefruit? Watch this.

A couple of scallions, thinly sliced

A handful of chopped parsley

Goat cheese, whatever type you like

Start with the greens on the bottom of the salad plate or bowl. Add cheese, then beets, grapefruit and nuts. Sprinkle with chopped scallions and parsley.
Just before serving dress with a light vinaigrette, and toss.

You can make individual salads to serve at a dinner party, or layer everything in a large shallow bowl and serve family-style.
Even if your family has suddenly gotten smaller.

Don't Wait - Bake!

Friends, it was almost two days without power and I've come to a new and scary realization. I am addicted to the internet. To my email, Facebook, food blog surfing, shopping on line, Tastespotting, and to blogging. There's a lesson in all this. I've been wanting to share a couple of things with you, but I WAITED TOO LONG and the lights went out. Metaphorical? You decide. But don't wait too long.
Anyway, the power's back, I'm back. Earlier this week, before the storm, I cooked up some really decadent brownies. If you don't like fruit with your chocolate, like some people I know (Bob), these won't be for you. If you are willing to go beyond the basic brownie and think of this as a holiday sort of brownie, I think you'll be very glad you made them. Rich and fudgy, festive with the cranberries and pistachios, they're easy and quick to make. Find the recipe from Bon Appetit here.

Orange-Scented Brownies with Cranberries, Pistachios and Ginger

Our neighborhood cookie exchange is coming up this week. I'm not sure what I'll be making yet. It could be an old favorite like Cranberry-Coconut Macaroons. Or I might try something different, say a biscotti or a chocolate-dipped shortbread. Whatever I decide, I'll be sure to let you know. There are some things you shouldn't put off.