Wild Garlic and Grilled Shrimp

With all the beautiful weather around here the last couple of days, it's been hard to focus on anything but getting outside and enjoying ourselves. Fortunately, we've been able to shrug off some of our responsibilities and head out for lots of long walks to enjoy the mild temperatures and budding growth.

One of the best things about March in the Midwest is watching the world around you change from barren and brown to alive and green, sometimes overnight. I mean, two weeks ago I was donning 3 layers to get through my morning run without freezing to death, and now the happy faces of blooming daffodils greet me on my way back home! What a change!

Spring, of course, is also the time for inspiration and planning. While some friends are busy cultivating large gardens and awe-inspiring goals, I'm just happy with what I can find just off the sides of the trails. Have you heard of Wild Garlic?

Around here this little find is a certifiable weed. It plagues those who keep dairy cows, imparting a garlicky taste to the milk (something I would certainly not like!). The plant is also a nuisance to those who keep perfect lawns, as it's clumpy bunches grow faster than typical grass and spread like wildfire. But sometimes, weeds can be delicious!

As one of the first plants to show it's green growth in the Spring, wild garlic is fairly easy to find. I can remember munching on the leaves as a kid, mesmerized (even then!) with it's heady garlic/onion smell and sharp taste. Today, I find the plant valuable for the mild garlic taste it imparts to dishes with minimal work. Finding some great bunches of it while out on a walk, I plucked some leaves knowing I would want to make something with it.

Quickly investigating the freezer, I discovered a lost bag of shrimp calling out to me. Ten minutes later the shrimp were lounging in a marinade of wild garlic and lemon, patiently waiting their time with the grill. The smell was overpoweringly delicious!

Now I don't know how you grill (but you should tell me!), but when we do it, we typically put our food on aluminum foil to save mess. However, after thinking about it this recipe would make a great skewered shrimp kabob. The fresh taste of the wild garlic and lemon couple incredibly well with the light and smoky taste of grilled shrimp. If you live in a place where wild garlic grows free (the eastern and central States), you have to give this little weed a chance.

Gosh, I'm so sad we don't have any leftovers!

Grilled Shrimp with Wild Garlic
Serves 2

What You'll Need:
A grill
Aluminum foil
1 medium sized bowl
1 medium pot, for pasta

Ingredients:
20 raw medium shrimp (we buy frozen)
2 generous handfuls broccoli, chopped
2 generous handfuls cauliflower, chopped
1 Jalapeno, chopped
1/4 pound whole-wheat spaghetti (angel hair would be great)
1 generous handful fresh wild garlic leaves, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
Juice of one lemon
Zest of one lemon
1 tsp red pepper flakes
10-15 leaves fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Sea Salt / Pepper to taste

What You'll Do:

1. Thaw your shrimp in a colander by running cool water over them. Toss regularly to ensure even thawing.

2. In a medium sized bowl, combine wild garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest and red pepper flakes. Add shrimp to mix and toss to coat with marinade. Cover and let sit for 20 minutes.

3. Cover your grill in aluminum foil to create a surface for your shrimp and vegetables. Alternatively, you could use a skewer to create kabobs. Warm your grill so that it gives off a medium heat.

4. When shrimp is done marinading, remove from marinade and place on grill. Add your broccoli, cauliflower and jalapenos to the grill and toss with shrimp. Drizzle both vegetables and shrimp with leftover marinade.

5. On the stove top, cook your spaghetti according to package instructions. Make sure to heavily salt your water, which gives a better flavor to pasta. Drain and set aside.

6. Cook over a medium heat until shrimp is pink and cooked through and vegetables are barely tender (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat.

7. Toss your cooked vegetables and shrimp with pasta and serve. Garnish with parsley and salt/pepper to taste.

Cleaning the Fridge, or "Rustic" Lentil Soup

It's a late Saturday evening, and our fridge is full. I sleepily open the door to discover a partially eaten roasted chicken and several shelves full of week-old vegetables. I look behind, pull out a wedge of cheese as a snack and settle in to plan a soup to use up the leftover chicken and vegetables.

I have traditionally thought of soup as a way to use up food before it goes bad. This approach has served us well. As twenty-somethings who would rather spend a day wandering around a good grocery store or market than going somewhere to have watered down drinks and dance the night away, you can imagine the state of our refrigerator. We'll do spontaneous things, like buy three different bunches of greens just because they were on sale and I want to compare their tastes. It makes for a collection of disparate vegetables which we can't eat fast enough. Soup is one of the easiest ways to get a large quantity of vegetables cooked down and preserved for a little bit longer.

But, soup is much more than a method to save my vegetables from the trash bin. To me, it's the ultimate comfort food. If done right, soup can be the only meal you need. And trust me, my soup? It's done just right. Chocked full of vegetables for lots of flavor and color, lentils and barley to give additional volume and protein, plus chicken for extra oomph (and, of course, more protein). I top each bowl with a generous topping of Pecorino, and the two of us settle in with a great movie and wonderful company. It's a soup that is suitable for serving to guests, as well as for a quick heat up for lunch.

To me, the process of making this soup is almost therapeutic. I like to take the time to simmer a stock from a chicken carcass, and I feel that the flavor is better with a homemade stock. Yet, I know that many people don't have or don't want to take the time to make a stock. And that's fine. There are plenty of good homemade stocks on the market. Choose one that is very low in sodium and very high in flavor. You can't go wrong. Soup is all about trial and error, and taking chances. So grab your stock pots and get experimenting! Don't forget to let me know how your soups turn out.

Delicious Slow Cooked Italian Lentil Soup serves 10-12

Note: You may start with pre-made chicken or vegetable stock or use your favorite store-bought stock to start off this soup. In this case, simply skip the instructions detailing the process for making the stock.

What You'll Need: A large stock pot. (Seriously people, huge)

Ingredients:
For stock-
One fairly picked over chicken carcass
1 large carrot, scrubbed not peeled, chopped roughly
2 stalks of celery and and leaves, chopped roughly
1 small yellow onion, chopped roughly
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1/4 tsp salt
1 handful chopped parsley (optional)

For soup-
1 pot of stock (recipe to follow)
1.5 cup French lentils (sort through to remove sticks and stones)
2/3 cup Barley
1-2 handfuls of parsley, chopped
1 medium-large yellow onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper, to taste
3-4 large carrots, peeled and chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 28 oz can roasted tomatoes (or use your own and roast them on the grill!), diced or crushed
1/2 head of broccoli, chopped roughly
3-4 large florets of cauliflower, chopped roughly
Shredded chicken meat
Grated Romano cheese, to serve (optional)

What You'll Do:
For the Stock:
1. Strip chicken carcass of all use-able meat, and set aside meat for later use.

2. Break down the bones into manageable chunks, which are able to easily fit in your stock pot. Toss the chicken hunks and any leftover skin and fat into the pot, and fill pot with water until bones are covered with at least 2 inches of water.

3. Add in all other ingredients, and insure everything is covered with at least an inch of water. Add more if necessary. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.

4. Using a slotted spoon, occasionally skim surface clean of any foam. Continue with this skimming and simmering for about 3-4 hours.

5. When time is up and stock is both colorful and flavorful, strain to separate bones and vegetables. Repeat, if necessary, to insure that you remove all the bone fragments. For a clearer stock, strain through a cheesecloth.

6. Stock will save frozen for at least 2 months, and save in the refrigerator for a few days. For the

Soup:
1. Rinse both lentils and barley, and sort through to remove any stones or sticks which may have been mixed in during harvesting.

2. In your large stock pot, add pre-made stock (about 5-7 cups) and another 3 cups of additional water. Bring to a boil.

3. Stir in your lentils and barley once you have reached a good simmer. Add parsley, onion and garlic. Season with salt and pepper (I like to add a handful of red pepper flakes, but if you don't like a little bite don't worry about them).

4. Cook for about 20 minutes. As the lentils and barley cook, you may need to add additional water. Add in additional ingredients (carrots through cauliflower) and cook for another 20 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.

5. Add in shredded chicken meat and cook for another 5 minutes, or until chicken is thoroughly warmed. Check your seasoning, and adjust as necessary.

6. Serve, garnishing with a little grated Romano cheese.

7. Any leftovers may be refrigerated for up to a week. Reheat on stove to a light simmer, or microwave, to serve leftovers.

*Note: What makes this soup recipe so amazing is its flexibility. The lentils and barley add a lot of fiber and protein, making the chicken meat and stock go farther nutritionally. In addition, the lentils and barely continue to flavor the stock. This means that as you eat through the pot, you can add water and vegetables and "stretch" your soup out for a couple more days. Any sort of bean can be substituted for the lentils, and you can exchange the barley for pasta. However, I find that barley is much cheaper and offers more protein than most other grains. To add even more nutrition substitute vegetables as they come in season, or add 2 heaping handfuls of chopped greens (kale, spinach, collards). Anything goes!