summer afternoon

Summer afternoon - Summer afternoon... the two most beautiful words in the English language.

- Henry James

handmade tortillas

I made my first flour tortilla at the Tecate Community Museum opening event in Baja a couple of weeks ago. Thank goodness a friend captured this shot, because my pictures of the cast iron stove and the kind woman who taught me how to stretch the dough, are locked up in our camera and may never be recovered. (I was taking pictures of the family of black phoebes doing test flights in our garden, got all excited when a peregrine falcon showed up in the viewfinder, hurried to show Mr. Smith, then there was a bobble and a crash and now the lens refuses to retract. Might be time for a new camera.)

Fortified by my experience in Mexico, and with Terry Hope Romero as my guide, I made a dozen corn tortillas on the outdoor grill tonight. I flattened each one with a rolling pin and some waxed paper. A tortilla press is definitely in my future! I made a chipotle-asada marinade for the tempeh and grilled some onions from the garden. These tacos are contenders for the best of all time!

I'll be able to thank Terry in person at Vida Vegan Con. It makes me so happy to say those words... can't wait for the conference!

ozark foothills

We started our week in Arkansas by sitting with the Dalai Lama in Fayetteville, and ended with an amazing weekend of creativity and music-making at Wattle Hollow in West Fork, where this stunning poppy opened on our last day of retreat. Along with my talented husband, Donna from Still on the Hill is my new music muse, so creative and connected to the Earth and all her beings! She reminded me how to make a few notes on the violin and I came home inspired.


I think I'm going to need a new bow. When I opened up the case (for the first time in over a year) the hairs were shredded. Maybe a carpet beetle got in?


In the meantime, I'm practicing D C and G chords on the Russian mandolin, eating fresh peaches from our garden, and we found a folk song circle right here in San Diego. Many thanks to Jack, Kelly, Joy, Chef Tuesday and everyone from that fantastic Ozark music circle. Love y'all.

vegan bloggers confab

I discovered an awesome vegan foodie conference in my beloved Portland, at my alma mater PSU, in August (the best month to be in Portland) just as it sold out! This is wonderful news for the Northwest and for the vegan food world, not such great news for me. Terry Hope Romero and Isa Chandra Moskowitz will be there!

There seem to be two creative ways to slide into this weekend of cool classes. One is to submit a recipe to Coconut Bliss, the other is to write a song about Vida Vegan Con.


Larry and Luna are every bit as beautiful as when I first met them in Eugene in 2003, and I haven't met a Coconut Bliss flavor I haven't loved. You might want to watch this video to get a taste of their lovely energy.

We're having a heat wave in San Diego right now, and since one of my favorite hot weather treats is a good old-fashioned root beer float, here is a reprise of my recipe:

SMITH'S ROOTBEER FLOATS

9 cups filtered water
1/2 ounce Zatarains Rootbeer extract
1/2 cup organic brown sugar
1/2 cup organic white sugar
1/2 teaspoon champagne yeast
Coconut Bliss - Vanilla Island

Mix yeast into a little cup of warm water (I add some sugar too) to dissolve and get it started. In a large glass container (preferably one you can pour from) mix the extract and remaining sugars with lukewarm water. Sterilize six brown glass bottles with boiling water. I also put the bottle caps in a small dish of the boiled water to soften the seals.

Mix all ingredients together including 9 cups of water in all. Using a good funnel, pour into bottles, cap them, and lay them in the sun for two hours. Bring the bottles in and let stand at room temperature for 24 hours. Serve with generous scoops of "Vanilla Island" Coconut Bliss, and I'm transported back to the A&W drive-in in Anderson with David, on our way home from high school, only better because there's no dairy.

My husband is making music in the next room and we're headed to the Ozarks for a songwriting workshop soon. Maybe we can write a song too. Wish me luck!

"fish" and chips

At our house, when my husband slathers red miso on the tofu and begins the process of making tofu cheese, it's the beginning of a string of favorite meals! The tofu cheese itself is a fermented wonder, tasting a lot like feta, and it's great crumbled over salad or as a veggie sandwich spread.


Here's where I come in. I slice the tofu cheese into sticks, dress them up with a spicy breading and bake with french-fry-sliced potatoes, for fish-n-chips. The tartar sauce brings it all together. I go for ketchup on my potatoes, but the Mister goes for straight tartar sauce all the way around. Recipes follow.

A couple of days later, it's fish taco time! Find yourself some simple corn tortillas made with just cornmeal, lime and water. Toast over an open flame. Add a fish stick or two, tartar sauce, green tomatillo salsa, shredded cabbage and a squeeze of lime. Tonight we had cilantro on hand, and if avocado is in season, these tacos are even more perfect with guacamole.

In November, Torrey and I stopped in at Native Foods for "Baja Surf Tacos" when we were studying Permaculture together up in Laguna. They're made with battered tempeh, and I love them too! Even better when your friend brings limes to share!

TOFU-CHEESE FISH STICKS (adapted from Shmooed Food)

1/3 cup fine organic cornmeal
1/3 cup ground raw almonds
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon dulse flakes
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon dill weed
1/8 teaspoon black pepper (more or less to taste)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment.

Cut tofu cheese into sticks/fingers. Dip them into a shallow dish of plain almond milk, and coat with thoroughly mixed dry ingredients.

Place sticks on baking sheet. Bake for total of 30 minutes, turning them over after 15 minutes. You can sprinkle with olive oil to make them more crispy.

TARTAR SAUCE

1/2 cup Vegenaise
1 tablespoon dill pickles, finely chopped
1 tablespoon stuffed green olives, chopped
1 tablespoon onion, grated
1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons capers, chopped
1 teaspoon lime juice
1 teaspoon garlic, minced

Mix it all up and refrigerate for a bit before serving.

blueberry muffins

Like every recipe I've tried from the Babycakes NYC cookbook, I am completely pleased with these muffins!


Along with pumpkin spice muffins and spelt biscuits, this is one of my new go-to recipes. I made a couple of minor substitutions, like homemade almond milk in place of rice milk, and the zest and a teaspoon of juice from a Meyer lemon in place of lemon extract, and I used less salt. Here's my version:

BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

2 1/4 cups whole spelt flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of sea salt
1/2 cup coconut oil
2/3 cup agave nectar
2/3 cup almond milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon of juice, plus the zest from one Meyer lemon
2/3 cup fresh organic blueberries

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

Whisk together dry ingredients. Mix in all wet ingredients, except blueberries. When well-combined, gently fold in blueberries.

Pour about 1/3 cup batter into each cup. Bake for 22 minutes, turning 180 degrees at 15 minutes for more even baking.

perfect spot

a hummingbird nests,
tucked safely under the eave --
spring is near