6/16/12

One Way to use Chive Blossom Vinegar

Do you remember how my greenhouse garden looked just before I left for Ireland?

Tomatoes then:


Tomatoes now:


Lettuce then:


Lettuce now:


Dill then:


Dill now:


This is my greenhouse garden.  Don't even ask me about my outdoor garden.  I'm not able to speak about it yet without bursting into tears and falling on the ground in a quivering heap of sadness.

So I have an abundance of fresh dill, and since I love fresh dill, an abundance is salve for my wounded outdoor garden self.

Last night, I made a cucumber salad using the fresh dill and paired it up with some little crab cakes with a roasted red pepper aioli.  So yummy.  The cucumber salad recipe called for white distilled vinegar, which seemed like a perfect opportunity to use my chive blossom vinegar.  It was so good.  It added a nice flavor to the cucumbers that the plain white vinegar did not.  



Since so many of you have made the chive blossom vinegar too (or are planning to), I thought I'd share the recipe for the cucumbers.  Anna Pump's original recipe was published in the July, 2004, issue of Bon Appetit and can be found here:


The recipe for the crab cakes was first published in the January, 2002, issue of Sunset magazine.


If you try the crab cake bites, just know that I found it easier to form the little crab cakes in my hand, then sprinkle them with the panko using my dry hand, rather than dip them in the panko.  Use a tablespoon to scoop out the crab cake filling, flatten them out a little using the fingers of the hand you're using to hold them, then just generously sprinkle the panko over, flipping them to the otherside once you've covered the first side.  They'll hold together once you set them down.  Don't worry too much about keeping them perfectly round.  They'll bake up just fine.

So with that I'm on the run.  We're driving down to Eugene about two hours south of here to see a taping of A Prairie Home Companion.  Sounds like a fun day, huh?  And the weather is perfect for a day trip.

8 comments:

Kate said...

I'll bet the chive vinegar will be great with tomatoes when you get some.

Sand and Sunshine said...

Oh I love cuke salad, I bet you're right that the chive really sets it off too.

Sorry about your outdoor garden, though clearly everything missed you, some more happily than others.

make.share.give said...

I LOVE Prairie Home Companion. It's on Saturday evenings when we're driving home from visiting my parents. Have fun!

WoolenSails said...

I love fresh herbs and garden produce, glad you have some fresh ones and sad if you lost your outdoor garden.

Debbie

Mrs.Pickles said...

everything looks great. Thanks for sharing the yummy recipes. Sorry to hear about your outdoor garden. I am beginning to think it is going to be a sad gardening year

quiltzyx said...

Wow! The greenhouse plants look great! Sorry about the outside garden. :(

I need to tell my sisters about the chive blossom vinegar. I'm glad it tasted as good as it looked!

Snoodles said...

Yum! Anything with crab in it just has to be good, right? LOL Hope you had a fun trip!

kc said...

Oh, yummmyyy...and what time did you want me there? Sorry the outdoor garden's a bit soggy...but,apparently indoors is making up for that! Crab & cukes - two of my FAVorite flavors! We just bought cukes fresh from the field - 3 for $1!! and they are super sweet and long, but not too fat! Paired up with my own fresh tomatoes & sprinkled with the Olive Garden dressing you can now buy straight from Sam's Club, and whoohoo, what a yummy side dish to our BLT's last night!

Tonight, we go to a Father's Day potluck, so who knows what's on the menu?? I know there will be pasta salad, dump cake & baked ziti. And maybe some fresh watermelon if the man on the corner is still there today!

Hoping you had a happy trip!!