So my kid tells me I don't post much any more. Which is true. But it also means he found my blog and read it, or at least part of it. He also says he doesn't like to read through people's life stories just to get to the recipe.
But for me, life stories and food have always been intertwined. So hey, kid, if you're still reading ... stick with me, OK? And I'm glad you found me here. I wondered if you would, someday.
(My kid is 18 now, and goes to college, and has an apartment for next year, which is both awesome and a little bittersweet for me. Despite what he thinks I think, I know he's adulting, and it's always hard to let go when you like your kids.)
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This summer I decided to commit to a CSA again. It's been a while since I've done so; it sometimes felt like more trouble than it was worth, it wasn't clear that my family enjoyed it, and honestly, even when it seemed like they were giving us choices, there was just SO. MUCH. FREAKIN. CABBAGE.
But two local brothers who knew nothing about farming started a farm near us a few years ago, and they've been successful enough to move to a larger plot of land in a neighboring town, and they work with other farmers to put a substantive share together that has a lot of variety, and they donate to the food pantry that I work at sometimes ... so I figured it wasn't just about the food, but about putting my money where my mouth (ha, see what I did there) is.
Besides, they deliver. So it's like having a present show up every Tuesday after I get home from work, which can be a very lovely thing when the world feels like a shitty place and people have forgotten how to care for, feed, and nurture each other (quite literally, since our politicians have just voted to make it harder to get SNAP benefits). I may not be able to change what's happening at the national level, but I have some modicum of control over my own little corner of the universe, where I can make a difference, where I can support a local farmer who in turn supports local business and local people, so that we can reconstruct community from the ground up.
Deconstructed Summer Roll Salad
I borrowed the idea for this recipe from the NY Times, and then riffed based on what I had in the CSA box and my garden and my refrigerator. It was a perfect solution for a hot first day of July when I didn't really feel like cooking. Deconstructing in order to reconstruct.
8 ounces rice noodles, cooked
1 handful of fresh cilantro and/or mint leaves, chopped
2/3 c. roasted and salted peanuts, chopped or crushed
2 medium carrots, shredded
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and shredded
1 handful baby lettuce leaves, torn if large
1 lb. cooked protein (tofu, shrimp, chicken, etc.)
For the Dressing
1 Thai chile, thinly sliced (optional for a milder dressing)
1/4 c. lime juice
6 T. smooth peanut butter
2 t. soy sauce
1 t. oyster sauce or hoisin sauce tablespoons
2 cloves garlic, minced/smashed
2 t. freshly grated ginger
1 t. sugar
1 1/2 t. canola or vegetable oil
1 t. fish sauce
Mix the dressing ingredients together, thinning with 2 T. water and more water or lime juice if necessary.
Let people assemble the salad individually: rice noodle mix first, then cooked protein, then dressing on top. Usually salads like this suggest that you mix the rice noodles and dressing together, but whenever we do that the noodles end up dry, and when we did it this way, the noodles stayed slippery. If you have any leftovers (I know, I know, what's that?!), store the noodles and protein and dressing separately, and run the noodle/veggie mix under some lukewarm water to separate them again if they become stuck together.
