Grilled Peach + Burrata Salad

Guys, I started graduate school. Things have been busy. It still feels a bit surreal, that in less than 5 years I'm on track to be Dr. Buckley. I still don't feel like I'll ever be smart enough to live up to the title, and try to hold off thinking about it because there is a lot of work to be done between now and then. Nevertheless it's all super exciting. I get to read like 300 pages a night, most of which is actually super interesting, and all of which I'll actually integrate and use in the profession. 

Though it's barely a recipe, this is the first that I've made in the new apartment. Finding my way around the new kitchen has been a bit awkward. The day after we moved in I had my first bout with my new electric range. You see, I've been anxious about having to switch to electric since we signed the lease. Everyone told me how finicky it is, how it takes forever to heat up and provides limited control for temperature. Cast iron also takes forever to heat up, so when I turned on the stove for the very first time to make crispy fried eggs in my cast iron I took everyone's advice and turned it all the way up to high. The pan smoked, as it usually does, the fire alarm went off. No biggie. Setting the fire alarm off while cooking is something most apartment dwelling cooks are used to. But then it kept going off. Until I heard fire trucks, and sirens which eventually lead to a knock on my door by three fire men and the doorman completely dressed in fireman garb, gas masks, oxygen tanks and all. It was one of the most mortifying moments of my life. Needless to say, I steered clear of the stove for a solid week after the incident and our smoke detector is now fitted with a perfectly sized piece of aluminum foil we put up every time we cook. 

We've made this salad now a handful of times. It's simple and perfect for savoring those last juicy peaches of the season. One of my favorite things about Chicago is the Farmer's Markets. There's one within biking distance of our apartment almost 7 days a week. I'm in heaven pretending winter is never going to come! 

Grilled Peach + Burrata Salad
Serves 2-4 as an appetizer

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
3 peaches
3 big handfuls arugula
~1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 heaping tablespoon pine nuts
4 oz burrata* 
freshly ground salt + pepper to taste

Heat the balsamic over medium heat until just barely simmering. Stir occasionally until the mixture thickens to the consistency of syrup and reduces by two thirds. It will take around 20 minutes. 

Meanwhile, heat a grill or grill pan over medium heat. Quarter the peaches then cook over the grill just until grill marks appear. Flip the peaches, cooking both sides. 

Toss arugula with olive oil and a generous amount of freshly ground salt and pepper. Top with pine nuts, peaches, and burrata then drizzle with balsamic and serve. Option to serve with a toasted baguette or a slice of toasted sourdough.

*If you can find an authentic italian deli, that would be your best bet for finding great burrata. Otherwise I usually get mine from Trader Joes. If you can't find burrata, high quality mozzarella stored in liquid could work. 

Shaved Asparagus & Roasted Blueberry Quesadillas with Herbed Yogurt

We are officially Chicagoans. I must say packing then unpacking my kitchen was probably one of the most difficult things I've ever experienced. I think between Nate and I we uttered the words "If I have to unpack another (insert expletive here) mason jar I'm going to kill someone" at least a dozen times. But hey, at least all my kitchen stuff is being put to good use? 

Parts of living in the city feel seamless; I live five minutes from whole foods and trader joes. Pumpkin is loving the dog friendliness of it all and is getting tons of walks. Everything is so accessible. I could go to a farmer's market 7 days a week if I wanted to. The energy of the city is right outside my door. It's good.

But parts feel more difficult, readjusting to a new space, without jobs, without community, without connection. I attach so much of my identity to that of a yoga teacher, so I wonder who I am if I'm not teaching. I wonder if and when life here will feel normal. I panic when I hear the voice in the back of my head questioning whether or not we've made the best decision. Whether this will ever feel like home.

Then I find a yoga class and even though the teacher is a stranger and the studio is new and I'm in a different city in a different region of the country, I feel my breath and almost instantly I'm brought back home again. What a gift this practice is. That no matter where I am or what I'm doing I can bring myself back. I find more often than not my intention for class is "to come back home to myself". Rumi says "When you feel a peaceful that's when you are near truth". And I think that's beautiful. 

One of the last things I made before the we packed up the kitchen were these quesadillas. They are filled with more vegetables than the ones you ate as a kid. And don't worry, asparagus and blueberries may sound like a completely odd pairing but it totally works. I wish I could take all the credit but it's totally a recreation of a quesadilla I had in a restaurant recently. These quesadillas are good, in a funky, super interesting, fresh summery kind of way. 

Shaved Asparagus & Roasted Blueberry Quesadillas with Herbed Yogurt
Makes two quesadillas

for the yogurt: 
2/3 cup greek yogurt (I use Fage 2%) 
1/4 cup finely chopped chives
1 heaping tablespoon finely chopped cilantro
2 small garlic cloves, minced
pinch of salt

2/3 cup fresh blueberries
1 pound asparagus
4 spring onions
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
zest of 1 lemon
large pinch of salt
fresh ground pepper
2/3 cup grated extra sharp cheddar
1/2 cup crumbed goat cheese
4 tortillas

Preheat the oven (or toaster oven) to 425 degrees. Line a small baking sheet with parchment. Combine all the yogurt ingredients in a small prep bowl, stir, cover and refrigerate while you prepare the other ingredients. 

Cook blueberries on baking sheet for about 5 minutes until some are just beginning to burst. Set aside to cool. Using a vegetable peeler, Y-shaped ones work best, shave the asparagus. Don't worry about making the shavings perfect, they can be different shapes and thicknesses. Toss the shaved aparagus in a bowl with olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper. Dice the green onions, set aside about 1/4 cup for topping, then toss the rest in with the asparagus and combine. Heat a fry pan over high heat. Cook the asparagus for about five minutes until slightly browned. Set aside.

Warm two tortillas at a time in a fry pan. Top one tortilla with half the cheddar and goat cheese. Top the cheese with half the asparagus. To the asparagus with half the blueberries. Then top with the second tortilla. Cook on medium until slightly crispy. To flip, don't risk disaster by transfering quesadilla to a plate. Top with another plate and invert. Finish cooking both sides until crispy and slightly browned. Repeat. To serve, top quesadillas with yogurt, and green onions. 

 

Food Guide to LA

After we made the decision to move to Chicago, we came up with a California bucket list. Not surprisingly, it was almost entirely comprised of our favorite restaurants. So today I'm sharing our all-time favorites. I use the location, Los Angeles loosely as this list encompasses places from Ventura down to Hollywood. We've been to these places over and over, I've given them all 5-stars Yelp reviews, and completely whole-heartedly think you should check them out if you're in the area! 

Pizzeria Mozza, Hollywood. We went Mario Batali's famous restaurant for my birthday last year. I fell in love and have been back nearly a dozen times since. Order the mozza caprese with garlic bread. With fresh creamy burrata, perfect pesto, and organic bursting cherry tomatoes still on the vine. The garlic bread is roasted in the oven and soaked in spicy garlic and the highest quality olive oil. It reminds me that simplicity done right can be perfection. The pizza is also excellent. If you can swing it, their late night special is an absolute steal with pizza, wine, and dessert for $20. Considering most of their pizzas are almost $20 alone it feels like highway robbery. Don't bother getting a table, sitting at the pizza bar and watching them make the pizzas makes for dinner and entertainment. We frequently watch while debating who has the best job along the pizza assembly line. Clearly it's the dough boy! 

Salt & Straw, Larchmont Village - a Portland transplant. Highest quality ice cream with interesting, complex flavors, and seasonal updates. We love everything about Salt and Straw. I even got Nate the t-shirt for Christmas. I love almond praline and salted ganache. 

Fritto Misto, Santa Monica - What a gem. This place is casual, quaint, and all about the food. They have hands down the most creative, interesting pasta dishes I've ever seen with options to create your own and dozens of vegetarian, veggie-based, and gluten-free dishes. Many of their pastas are Mexican influenced with sauces like chipotle chili cream and cilantro pesto. Trust me, it sounds weird but tastes absolutely incredible. 

Bay City Italian Deli, Santa Monica - The burrata sandwich is what dreams are made of. We split one with a smear of avocado spread and it was absolute perfection. They use fresh high quality ingredients including freshly baked rolls which make these sandwiches really something special.

Malibu Farm, Malibu - I adore everything about this farm to table cafe, which as of a few weeks ago has now bought out all the restaurant space on the pier. They have tons of fresh options and you get to eat overlooking the ocean. I love their portobello mushroom burger and the vegan coconut entree. Don't leave without getting the grilled chocolate cake! 

Follow Your Heart Natural Cafe, Canoga Park - This place transports you to what feels like a 1970s vegetarian commune, in the absolute best way possible. They are the creators of the very famous, Vegenaise, and have been cooking up vegetarian food since 1970. I don't know that it's possible for this place to have more character. It's a vegetarian tree-hugger's heaven. The restaurant feels like a diner meets a yoga ashram with delicious vegetarian/vegan options even a meat eater would love. And it's attached to a pretty huge fantastic health food store. The Baja "Wish" Tacos are my favorite. 

The Old Place, Agoura Hills  - We've been coming to here for years, we take visitors whenever they're in town, and it's one of our favorite restaurants of all time. I say all of this as a vegetarian. Yes, it's a steakhouse. Yes, their steak is phenomenal (we've been going here since my pre-veg days). But this place has more than just good steak. I'm pretty sure you couldn't find a more charming or rustic restaurant with more character is all of Los Angeles. They even have a banjo-style band play at the tables and a fabulous wine tasting room featuring local wines next door. The restaurant is tiny in a cozy way and if you want a table you need to make a reservation weeks in advance. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are all phenomenal. Nowadays I order the grilled vegetable salad which is monstrous and delicious. The desserts are my favorite. Their all served in pipping hot cast iron skillets and topped with a monstrous amount of homemade whipped cream.  

Lal Mirch, Agoura Hills. I am a creature of habit. I know what's good and I stick with it. I love Lal Mirch. It's the best Indian Restaurant in the valley and we come here every week, and every week we order the Vegetarian Special for Two. We alternate between 4-6 vegetarian entrees and they are all amazing. They know us, we know them and saying goodbye was sad. We love this place so much we spent our last night in California here. 

McGrath Family Farms, Camarillo - This is my happy place. It's a family-owned, completely organic small farm. They give tours, allow you pick your own strawberries, heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, and carrots. They also offer a CSA, host events like Ventura County Farm Day, and sell organic produce, flowers, honey and eggs at their farm-stand shop. Their u-pick strawberries and tomatoes are life-changing. I guarantee the best you will ever have. 

Beach House Tacos, Ventura - Nate and I came here hours before getting engaged, so it's kind of special to us. It's a no-fuss, cheap, authentic taco stand right on the Ventura pier. You must order chips and guacamole. Their Mexican street corn and fried banana occasionally show up on the special and they are both incredible.