#LetsLunch Asparagus and Artichoke BisqueThis one goes out to @GeoKaren. You’re a true friend and you’re always amazingly supportive. Hope you think this liquid lunch is as delicious as I do.
Anyway, I am (obviously) a little late for my #LetsLunch post today, but better late than never. Maybe you can eat this for a Saturday lunch.
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Makes perfect sense, right? Spring…potstickers? Sure, why not?!
Okay, maybe traditional Chinese dumplings and Springtime don’t exactly go hand-in-hand, but maybe they should. As the weather gets warm (after what felt like an eternity), the earth once again starts to provide a delicious bounty of greens, asparagus, spring onions, and peas. Of course, that’s just a warm up act for all of summer’s amazing produce. But that’s a different post for a different time.
For now…back to potstickers. Why do I think they are perfect for Spring? The rule of thumb when cooking produce, especially fresh produce picked at the height of the growing season, is not get in the product’s way. There’s no reason to drown freshly picked asparagus in butter, dress fresh greens in heavy dressing, etc. etc. On the other hand, a lot of your Spring vegetables aren’t fantastic raw. (Yes, I’ve seen people serve raw asparagus on Top Chef and I just shudder a litte…) So the idea is to minimally cook the vegetables in a way that preserves and accentuates their flavor.
And what are one of my top 2 favorite spring veggies? Peas!
In my experience, if you do it right, lightly boiling peas will preserve their flavor. Then, taking those peas, adding complementary flavors (in this case: mint and a thin shaving of ham), and wrapping them up as a potsticker is a great way to accentuate them and make a fine spring appetizer.
#LetsLunch Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheese with Confit ChickenOkay, this is some bonus #LetsLunch coverage. I liked my previous post, but I wasn’t sure it featured the creativity that #LetsLunch deserves. Plus, I had more time than I thought I would (yes, I am just as surprised as you are) and when you do a Twitter/blogging/food writing event like #LetsLunch, you’re in elite company and you better bring your A game. (And by you I mean me.)
So, I thought I’d throw together a little grilled cheese sandwich magic by one of my favorite foods in the world: buffalo wings. We’ll get the party started with buffalo wing cheese (see above), but this sandwich needs more than just wing sauce cheese, it needs some chicken. And since this is #LetsLunch, I figure we might as well guild the lily a bit and use confited chicken wings which take a little while to make, but they are so good.
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#LetsLunch Grilled Colby Jack, Black Forest Ham, and Pickles…and we’re back! It’s time for another #LetsLunch!
(Quick review: #LetsLunch is where a group of food writers get together and we write about … lunch. But not just any lunch. This month we’re talking about the ooey-ist, gooey-ist, cheesiest grilled cheese sandwiches around.)
There’s only one poblem… I am NOT the world’s biggest grilled cheese fan. I think it’s a texture thing. I want my sandwich to have a little heft when I bite in. So, if may be permitted, there might be a little meat snuck in my grilled cheese. And some pickles. I am a big pickle fan and I really enjoy them even more when they’re cold and stacked on hot grilled cheese. They are great for contrasts in texture and in temperature.
Ready to eat?
