For those of us in the Northern half of the nation early spring is a time of temptation and frustration. Our thumbs are screaming for green, the skies seem to tease us with sunshine every three days or, here in Portland, three hours, and the temperature hints that we might soon be able to shed our woolen outer layers for perhaps a whole day.
But just as I can't yet break out the open toed shoes without risking podietal hypothermia, I can't yet shed all of the food staples of winter. My tastebuds, like my other senses, long for warmth and spring. Foods that taste fresh and green and new. A complete revival from sleepy root vegetables and slow simmered meats. But there are difficulties in making a whole meal out of new shoots and just sprouted leaves - they are, mostly, very small and very expensive. A head of watercress is just delicious, but at 1.99 a bunch, your going to need a lot of money to have a filling salad. Spring onions and asparagus are lovely, tender and sublime, but also small and more expensive by weight than light sweet crude.
The trick, then, with these lovely little gems is to create a meal entirely infused with delicate spring flavors while filling you up with less expensive staples. The staples depend on the flavor, of course, but the challenge is to leave the delicate green flavors relatively clear - supported, but not overwhelmed. In other words, the veggies here are Hillary Clinton and the grains meats are Bill. When Bill lets Hillary shine, as he seems to be doing now, she is in control, happy being the main flavor. When Bill butts in - remember that comment about Jesse Jackson winning some primaries? - he overwhelms and Hillary can seem weak and insipid.
As usual, let's start with the simplest recipe. You know how to make this, actually, before I even start. Wilt some vegetables over medium high heat in a pan, toss with pasta, herbs, and a little cheese. But because we are dealing with spring, let's finesse a few points:
Pasta with Spring onions, Fennel, Mint, Grapefruit and Fresh Mozzarella
1 lb short pasta, such as fusilli
2 large head fennel
2 bunches spring onions (btw, these aren't scallions, these are baby onions - ask your grocer)
1 bunch mint
1 large grapefruit
1/2 to 2/3 lb fresh mozz (2 ovaline, or a dozen brocconcini)
Salt, Pepper, Butter, Extra Virgin olive.
Cook the pasta in well salted water until al dente. Package instructions are good, but start checkin on the little suckers two minutes before the package says. reserve at least 1/2 a cup of pasta water when you drain.
While the water comes to a boil: Quarter, core and cut the fennel into thin-ish strips. Clean the onions, cut cross wise into two inch segments, and quarter lengthwise for 2 inch strips. Roughly chop the mint. Use a zester-grater to get as much zest off the grapefruit as possible, set aside. Peel the grapefruit with a sharp knife and cut into chunks, reserving as much of the juice as possible. Cut the mozz. into about the same size.
When the pasta goes into the water, melt a pat of butter and a little olive oil in a hot pan until the butter ceases to bubble. Toss in fennel and onion and stir fry, basically, with a liberal dose of salt and pepper, until cooked and perhaps a little browned. Turn off heat, toss in the grapefruit fruit and zest, and warm it up with the residual heat. Don't overmix, the grapefruit is delicate in this state.
When the pasta is just done, drain, and add the pasta to the vegetable goodness - but not all at once! Only add as much pasta as looks right for the amount of vegetable. (Don't let Bill get in the way). Toss in another generous pat or two of butter, heaping handfuls of mint, and the fresh mozz and toss together until the moss is just starting to melt. Add a little pasta water if things look too dry, but the grapefruit juices should have you covered.
Serve and be happy. I recommend not breaking out the parmesan with this one - it's a little strong.
Watercress Soup:
The key here is to use only things that reinforce the green watercress flavor. So use leeks, not yellow onions, and clean white potatoes, not yellow.
1 large russet potato
1 bunch leeks (2 big or 3 smaller)
2 stalks celery
2 bunches watercress
a little bit of cream, sour cream, or half and half
Butter, salt and pepper
Peel and dice the potato, keeping the diced potato reserved in cold water while you do anything else. Cut the celery and leek into little half moons and wash thoroughly. Cut the roots from the watercress.
Over medium/medium low heat, melt a pat of butter and saute the first three ingredients with a dash of salt and a little pepper until softened. Cover with water and simmer until fully cooked. Transfer to a food processor or blender (or use an immersion blender if you are lucky enough to have one) and blend until smooth - adding a little more water if it is too thick. Stuff both cleaned heads of watercress into the hot soup whole with a spoonful or three of cream and blend again. Taste for salt. Maybe a few drops of lemon juice? It should be incredibly watercress-y and delicious.
