dill -

by Ali Macaluso

Garden Fuck-Up: What's the Dill?

Sorry, couldn”t help myself with that title. But seriously—what the hell is going on with my dill? Last year, I totally killed it. And I don”t mean “killed it” like hipsters mean it, as in, holy crap I just kicked ass and I”m amazing. I mean I literally. Totally. Killed it. After just two weeks.

This year I decided to plant it again, because of course I would do better. With one more year of gardening under my belt, my thumb one brighter shade of green, I planted my dill with full confidence that I would grow that sucker tall and strong. I”d have so much of the stuff I”d be mixing casino pa natet it in with carrots, pickling my cucumbers with it, and making “dill onion bread.” In just a few short weeks I might literally turn Greek from all the batches of yogurt I”d mix it with. By hipster definition, I”d kill it. But shortly after:

I killed it. Every other herb in my herb garden is flourishing, but this guy sent up brown, stiff, ugly little middle fingers sprouting from the dirt. What”s up with my dill? What am I doing wrong? Because I”m kind of salivating over that onion dill bread that I”ve yet to make, and the stubborn little garden gnome that lives inside my head won”t allow me to purchase dill from the grocery store. Any ideas?

in Personal 8 comments

by Twin Tastes

Spanakopita Spawns a Salad

Spanakopita—spinach and cheese pie encased in phyllo dough—is our absolute favorite Greek dish. So for summer, we decided to create a potato salad inspired by spanakopita. To celebrate our yiayia’s famous pastry, we mixed the savory, cheesy filling with warm, garlicy roasted potatoes. The addition of kalamata olives, sundried tomatoes and fresh dill adds color while keeping the Greek theme and further amplifying the tasty side.

While spanakopita is notoriously a labor-intensive dish, this potato salad is an easy, foolproof side for any summer BBQ.

Spanakopita Potato Salad

Earth Day Picnic: The Deviled is in the Details

While we have already spent some time on Easter and Passover here on ES, I thought I would spread some love to Earth Day and in particular Picnic for the Planet. This year on April 22nd, in addition to all sorts of Earth Day activities and media stories about kids planting trees on your local news, people across the world are being encouraged to go outside and eat. Picnic for the Planet has organized community picnics in cities throughout the world to get people outside. Heavyweights such as as Mario Batali and Alice Waters have already voiced their support by publishing picnic-appropriate recipes and PSA’s. I assume my invitation to share recipes was lost in the mail so I decided to just share them here on ES.

I have a complicated relationship with deviled eggs. When they are good, they are divine and when they’re bad, I have to eat a few to confirm my initial opinion. They always take some time to prepare but are simple enough that they pop up at every picnic and spring gathering before disappearing quickly. Bite sized, tasty, and with limitless variations, here are a few ideas to spring you into action.

It Ain’t Just Southern

Editor’s Note: Westcoast and I (gansie!) have been making the rounds to all of the hott spots in DC this season. Of course I’m talking about the farmers’ markets. We’ve visited three locations (Silver Spring, H Street–with sightings of Belmontmedina and Mr. and Mrs. Joe Hoya–and Bloomingdale) and we have many left to scope out. Here’s Westcoast‘s most current inspiration from a market find. And please let us know where we should get our next seasonal fix.

You finally get something out of me…probably two years after gansie and I first discussed…so you know it must be tasty.

I chose okra (and wasn’t the first to do so here on ES). I almost couldn’t help it. Gansie and I were at the Bloomingdale Farmers Market, there was a lone section of okra staring at me. I hadn’t really done much work with it, and it seemed like a challenge. When I picked it up I think gansie lost the ability to speak for a few seconds.

Okra is perhaps one of the most misunderstood vegetables (well, it’s a fruit, technically) around. It is noted for its extremely slimy, gummy or mushy texture in food that is poorly prepared (read: if you are from the North, you probably think it is just one of those silly Southern things like deep fried pickles; if you are from the South, you ate fried okra at some point in your life with varying extreme reactions.) It is native to Africa and if you check out its cross-section, it’s in the shape of a pentagon.

There’s only one dish I have ever had with okra that really made me see its potential: bhindi (okra) masala. I scoured the internet for recipes, took a field trip to an Indian grocery (and nearly lost the liquid from my empty stomach as I saw a whole lamb, legs and all, being hacked up at the butcher) and ended up with something that was pretty phenomenal.

Intense recipe post jump –