Tofu Quinoa Fresh Rolls With Easy Peanut Sauce

I love the end of spring and beginning of summer. The beginning of summer is always filled with the anticipation of all the good things to come... Sunshine. Farmers market bounty. Picnics. Beach trips. The best action movies of the year. And all of the amazing summer food.

As the weather starts warming up, I naturally start craving lighter foods and wanting to spend less time in the kitchen and more time outside. Can you relate?

And that's where these fresh rolls come in. Fresh rolls are a popular Vietnamese dish and I love them in summertime when fresh basil and cucumber are are season. These fresh rolls involve thin strips of crispy tofu combined with quinoa for a hearty, protein-rich snack or side dish. I love enjoying these with a simple green salad while lounging in the sun. Hooray for (almost) summer.

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Daikon Carrot Salad with Almonds

Do you know how hard it is to get a cat to make a cute paw print on a card?  No, of course you don't... because why would you?  Why on earth would you do something weird and wacky like that?  Things like this are best left up to me; then I can come back and tell you how crazy they are.

I got this idea to make a card "from our cats" for my partner for Valentine's Day.  Naturally my first concern was what medium to use that would be safe on their paws. Anything possibly toxic like ink and paint were most definitely out so I opted for fresh beet juice.

You should know that beet juice stains. Bad. Especially when there are tiny paws covered in beet juice that are running very quickly away from you. In the end, I didn't even get a cute paw print on the card. All I got was a couple of red, ill-shaped blobs. I think the card ended up looking more like a threat than a gesture of one's love and admiration.  

So, the lesson here is simple: don't be like me when it comes to cats... or probably life in general. But, if you like good food, you are more than welcome to be like me when it comes to this salad.
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Late Spring Farmers Market

I am so excited for summer this year and it feels like the sun can't come fast enough.  But, it's still spring here in the Pacific Northwest.  Luckily there is already an amazing mix of local produce available at the farmers market.  

For most of the year, we have an abundance of carrots and root vegetables.  I love the fresh, baby carrots of spring that taste so tender and sweet.  These are wonderful eaten raw with a dip like hummus or simply roasted to bring out a bit more flavor.

Fiddleheads, fiddleheads, fiddleheads.  I love that word.  Fiddleheads are uncoiled ferns, a true springtime treat.  If you've never heard of them, you can read more about them here along with a simple recipe.


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Roasted Radishes and Greens

I'm not going to lie to you.  Sometimes it's okay to eat your feelings.  Really, it is. And everybody does it on occasion... (right?!)

Sometimes it's okay to eat your feelings when you're feeling under the weather because it's grey in Seattle. Again.  In June.  And it's pouring buckets of rain everywhere.  And you just wish you lived anywhere else but here.  But that's too bad.  Because you live here. Then it's okay to eat your feelings a little, I promise.  (Especially if you eat your feelings with one of these.)

Then there are those moments when you want to recover from eating your feelings.  Sure, it was a little fun while it lasted, but now it's time to get something healthy and fresh in there pronto.  Sounds like you need some roasted radishes my friend.


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Raw Radish and Cucumber Salad

If there is one thing that I have grown to appreciate this spring it has to be radishes.  Radishes tend to get a bad rap, but there is a huge difference between fresh radishes and the big, tough radishes that have been siting at the grocery store for a week. 

I was writing an article about radishes for work and became inspired to grow some of my own after learning how easy they are to grow.  They usually sprout in as little as 4 days and they are ready to pick within 3 - 4 weeks.  I started by growing red radishes and a few purple, but now I'm hooked and am filling up my garden with other varieties as well.  Radishes are a great source of Vitamin C, fiber, and minerals such as iron, potassium, magnesium, copper, and folate.  They are best picked when they are young and tender because they tend to become too strong in flavor as they age. 

 
If even fresh radishes are too much for your taste buds, then you can always cook them, but I recommend eating them shredded and raw.  This salad is sweet and tangy and the sweetness of the agave complements the radish flavor perfectly.  You could easily add in some summer vegetables, like zucchini or fresh corn, or substitute basil for the cilantro. 

Also, don't throw out your radish greens!  Toss a few in salads, green smoothies, or cook them in a stir fry with other vegetables. 

Raw Radish and Cucumber Salad

Serves 2

1 cucumber, seeded and sliced into matchsticks

1 medium carrots, shredded

6 medium radishes, shredded

1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1 teaspoon agave

3 Tablespoons cilantro, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Add the cucumber, carrot, and radishes to a medium bowl.  Mix with the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, agave, and cilantro. Top with salt and pepper to taste and serve.