January’s cool-gray mist has descended. The holiday rush is
done. The Christmas trees (hopefully) have been hauled away and the
last clinging leaves are falling from the street trees.
January’s cool-gray mist has descended. The holiday rush is done. The Christmas trees (hopefully) have been hauled away and the last clinging leaves are falling from the street trees. I looked out one of my windows today and saw a neighbor’s backyard that has been hidden for months behind glorious green, then brown, leaves. Now through the stark, bare trees, I can see further.
Maybe that’s the blessing of winter. That the crisp air feels good to breathe, that the streets are periodically cleaned by a good, hard rain. That we can start a new walking path or a new exercise program or a new goal unhampered by what we may or may not have done last year.
Certainly, the distractions of spring and summer don’t figure into a winter’s day. The beach welcomes a walk, but not a lazy day of sunbathing. The earlier dark hushes us indoors for cozy dinners and blankets on the couch.
It’s that conflicted January feeling… that we should do something. That we should nest and do nothing.
Maybe we should snuggle under the covers and read a mystery book. Maybe we should put on gloves and a sweatshirt early Saturday morning and get outside, moving quickly and swinging our arms to ward off any chill. Or find a new venture and try it, get into it, expand our minds out into the new year before it starts to blossom with spring’s business.
Maybe we should go outside at 10 just before bed and look at the crispy sky and spot the stars and just breathe in the cold night air. Breathe it in while it’s still chilly and fresh and tingly. And then again, maybe we should already be in bed at 10, deep in the covers, dreaming.
And maybe, just maybe, January means we should do both.
• Salad days: There’s a definite nutritional difference between an iceberg lettuce salad and a salad containing vibrant colors and tastes (and more vitamins). This one is delicious and simple. A nice twist is to add a small can of drained mandarin oranges. You can also use sliced almonds instead of walnuts.
Spinach-Feta Salad
3 T. olive oil
1 T. balsamic vinegar
1/2 bag baby spinach leaves
1 small can sliced beets
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup feta cheese
Salt & pepper to taste
Mix olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Toss with spinach leaves and beets. Sprinkle walnuts and feta cheese on top. Salt and pepper to taste. Toss lightly and serve.
• Fresh salmon recipe: Mark Logan e-mailed me this recipe from Sunset magazine. He says it’s always on the menu in January, when he wants to eat healthier, and in June, when he realizes summer is just around the corner.
You can grill or broil this salmon, he says. Either way is delicious.
Salmon with Basil Vinaigrette
Basil Vinaigrette
1/3 cup each balsamic and wine vinegars
1/2 cup firmly packed chopped fresh basil
1 T. each minced garlic and fresh tarragon
2 to 4 tsp. Asian red chili paste with garlic
1/2 cup olive oil
Corn Relish
3 cups corn kernels
1/3 cup each diced green and red bell peppers
1/4 cup diced ripe olives
1/2 cup diced red onions
Salt and pepper
4 baby salmon fillets, 6 to 7 oz. each
8 to 10 cups mesclun or other mixed greens, rinsed
To prepare Basil Vinaigrette, combine all vinaigrette ingredients except oil in a blender. Blend. With motor running, add oil slowly. You can make this ahead, and store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
To prepare Corn Relish, combine all ingredients in a bowl. Stir in 1/3 cup of the Basil Vinaigrette. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until the next day.
Rinse salmon fillets and pat dry. Pour 3/4 cup of the Basil Vinaigrette marinade into a large plastic food bag or glass bowl. Add fish to bag and seal. Rotate bag to distribute marinade and place in a shallow pan. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until the next day, turning fish occasionally.
Remove fish from bag and drain, discarding marinade in bag. Arrange fish on grill pan. Preheat broiler. When ready, cook salmon for 3 to 4 minutes, then turn. Cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, or until fish is opaque and flakes easily.
Remove from grill and keep warm.
Mix mesclun with 1/4 cup of Basil Vinaigrette and mound on individual plates. Lay fish over greens. Serve with tomato slices and Corn Relish.
• Birthday party bananas: These banana splits are hot, literally. For your next birthday party, try these on for size. Recipe creator Carol Munson says they’re a nice change from cake, and you can adjust the servings depending on how many guests show up. This serves 4 banana lovers or 8 with smaller portions of bananas. If you’re serving children, of course, leave out the crème de cacao.
Birthday Banana Splits
4 bananas, peeled, halved lengthwise
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 T. plus 1 tsp. walnut pieces
2 tsp. crème de cacao
2 tsp. butter, cut into small pieces
2 cups vanilla ice cream or yogurt
Whipped cream, optional
Cut split bananas into 1-inch slices. Spread out in a flat, glass baking dish and top with brown sugar, walnut pieces and crème de cacao. Mix thoroughly. Cover dish with foil.
Bake at 400 degrees for 6 to 10 minutes, or until the sugar has melted and bananas are hot.
To serve, scoop ice cream into a bowl. Top with bananas and sugar mixture. Garnish with whipped cream.
Tip of the Week:
To keep fresh basil perky for up to five days, place stems in a cup of cold water. Loosely cover the leaves with plastic wrap or a plastic bag. Secure bottom of plastic with a rubber band.
Notes from Jenny’s Kitchen
• What is chili powder? It’s a blend of six dried and ground seasonings: chili peppers, oregano, cumin, garlic, coriander and cloves.
• Bleu cheese is a general term for any French blue and green-veined cheeses. The American and English versions are spelled “blue” cheese.
• If you’re looking for alternatives to white rice, try wild pecan rice, now available at most large supermarkets. Originally from Louisiana, this rice doesn’t have any pecans in it, but it has a great aroma and a nutty flavor, similar to wild rice.
• End notes: “The only real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes, in seeing the universe with the eyes of another, of hundreds of others, in seeing the hundreds of universes that each of them sees.”
~ Marcel Proust
