December Project: Vegetables

I know corn salad on Christmas Day doesn't necessarily scream festive or seasonal, but that's what the Teo clan dined on for our Christmas lunch. Ha! 

I first busted out this recipe in the Summer when my friends and I took our picnic basket to Griffith Park to watch Shakespeare in the Park (A midsummer Night's Dream). This corn salad really epitomizes the freshness of Summer (or Christmas, if you're a Teo?). The sweet corn kernels merry well with the tangy tomatoes and kick of red onions, while the balsamic vinegar adds a nice caramel acidity. 

Ingredients

8 ears of corn
2 quarts cherry tomatoes ( I used baby heirloom tomatoes the first time and then those yellow ones for Christmas)
3 tablespoons high-quality balsamic vinegar
1 medium red onion
1 quart sugar snap peas (Optional)
1 handful rough-chopped basil or flat-leaf parsley (Optional)
salt, preferably a large, coarse sea salt like Maldon.
pepper

Directions 

1. The recipe calls for you to strip raw corn from ears, but I par-boiled mine first for 3-4 minutes since I am not a huge fan of raw corn.

2. Slice all tomatoes in half or quarters depending on your preference. Chop the red onion into a large dice. If using the sugar-snap peas (they can be hard to find when the corn and tomatoes are available -- their seasons barely overlap, and even then you're likely getting corn and tomatoes from the south and sugar snaps from the North.) Anyway, if you're using them, cut in half or thirds to make more bite-sized. Blanch these briefly in salted boiling water. Rough chop the basil or parsley if you are using them.

3. Toss all vegetables in a bowl, along with the vinegar, salt and pepper. That's it!

Serves 4

Recipe from Food 52

Gingery Apple Crumb Pie

Hello Folks. It's mid-August here in LA, and despite the fact that Summer is technically suppose to be fading into fall, its scorching outside. Global warming anyone?! But that's a topic to be debated in another blog.

Instead, let's talk about warm weather picnics and the yums 

Watermelon Yums

that we fill our tums with

Filling of Tums in action

 while on them.

Last weekend, my brother's family made the drive up to LA to spend a day with Mama T and I. We picnic-ed in the park and then spent a day at the Getty. Two of my favorite activities.

As such, I decided it was the perfect opportunity to bust out my tried and true Gingery Apple Crumb Pie recipe. I say crumb pie as I lack the skills and patience to actually make a proper crust. But crust or should I say crumbs aside, this apple pie is always a hit!

Ingredients:
Basic flaky Pie Crust or again, if like me, you need a little help,
1 store-bought pie crust
9-inch pie plate
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter (1 stick), cut into small pieces
3/4 cup, plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 lbs apples (about 5)--I usually use Granny Smith Apples
1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:
1. Set and oven rack in the lowest position and heat over to 375 degrees. Set pie crust in pie pan.

2. In a food processor, add the butter, 3/4 cup flour and 1/4 cup sugar. Pulse until large clumps form. Transfer to a bowl and set in refrigerator until ready to use.

3. Peel apples with a pairing knife and thinly slice them. CHALLENGE: See if you can peel the entire apple in one straight peel. When I was 22, I wrote down "learn to peel apple skin in one entire peel" on my "To Do by 30" list. And guess what, I can do it! Check plus!

4. In a large bowl, toss the apples, ginger, cinnamon, salt, and the renaming 1/2 cup of sugar and tablespoon of flour.

5. Transfer apple mixture to the pie crust, sprinkle with crumb topping and place pie pan on a foiled lined baking sheet (this is to catch the apple gooey-ness that will surely seep out of the pie as it cooks down). Bake until pie top is golden brown and apples are tender, about 55 to 60 minutes.

Serves 8.

Summer Plates

Now that Memorial Day has come and gone, summer is right around the corner and I am positively swimming in images of gorgeous weather and outdoor activities. Coincidentally, I am also swimming in piles upon piles of dirty laundry. It sure is hard to keep up with household chores when it's 70 degrees and sunny outside!

To help get you inspired to welcome the warm weather home, here are some fun summer plates that would be perfect for any picnic basket (or summer meal for that matter)!

This set of summery gingham melamine plates by Thomas Paul are ideal for a lazy afternoon spent lounging and snacking under a shady tree. And hey! Here is a little trivia for you. Did you know that the name gingham originates from a Malay adjective, ging-gang, meaning striped. Shout out for my Malaysian Father! ;)

Here fishy fishy! This Coran Fish Salad plate is both microwave and dishwasher safe, making clean up and leftovers a breeze. The blue and white fish patterns remind me of the ever popular Chinese porcelains that I grew up with (minus the fishies of course).

Goat Cheese spread and crackers? Tomato and Cantaloupe Salad? Or maybe some raspberry rhubarb pie? These delicate blossom print plates would be great for appetizers or desserts!

Who says picnics have to happen in parks only. These melamine sea fan plates would be ideal for a seaside BBQ! With scalloped edges and graphic coral branches, the plates would provide the perfect backdrop for serving some BBQ shrimp.

With a bold pink background and graphic floral prints, these Dunclare pink salad plates by Liberty of London scream summer to me!

Details:
Portland Picnic Plates
The Curiosity Shoppe
$32.00 for 4

Fish Salad Plate
The Coran Shop
$9.00 each

Blossom Plates
Simply Pretty Prints
$60.00 for set of 4

Sea Fan Plates
Anthropologie
$32 for a set of 4

Dunclare Pink Salad Plate
Target
$19.98