The Sustainable Life Project @ Tender Greens

While listening to the Good Food podcast over the weekend, I heard about Tender Greens, a fast casual restaurant that started in Culver City, California and now has 12 locations from San Diego to San Francisco.  The restaurant launched an incredible program called the Sustainable Life Project that is a three-month internship for children emerging from the foster care system, which considers you an adult at 18 (often meaning that the person is then without a home and potentially the skills to get hired or the resources to continue attending school).  During the three month program, the participants work in the restaurant 8 hours a week and learn about a range of topics from sourcing ingredients and animal husbandry to gardening and knife skills.

Not every participant makes it through the three-month program, but those that do are rewarded with a job at Tender Greens.  Listen to the story - the interview with Joshua, a current student in the Sustainable Life Project is inspirational and heartbreaking -- and he just graduated from the program!

Pistachio Shortbread

Recently, I've been in a cookie slump.  It started with an attempt to bake some gluten-free cookies that were a crumbly (and odd-tasting) mess.  Next was the homemade Thin Mints during Girl Scout cookie season.  They weren't bad, but they weren't great and they didn't hold a candle to the real thing.  

But yesterday, I perused the newest issue of Bon Appétit and the recipe for Pistachio Shortbread caught my eye.  I've been looking at pistachio ice cream recipes (does anyone have a favorite?) but they all want you to use pistachio paste and while I know I can make it myself, that extra step is really dissuading me from moving forward.  

If you, like me, need a pistachio fix, look no further than these cookies.  A few pulses in your food processor, an hour in the refrigerator to chill, and 15 minutes in the oven and you'll have a delicious cookie.  These have a strong pistachio flavor, aren't too sweet, and are quite pretty with the flecks of green pistachio throughout.

Pistachio Shortbread
Bon Appétit May 2013    

1 cup unsalted, shelled raw pistachios (about 4 1/2 ounces) (be sure the pistachios are unsalted - I buy mine in the bulk section of Whole Foods or Sprouts or online at nuts.com)

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
 

Preparation
1.  Pulse pistachios in a food processor until finely ground but not a paste, about 30 seconds. Add flour, sugar, butter, salt, and vanilla; pulse until mixture is the consistency of cornmeal. With machine running, drizzle in 2 tablespoons ice water (a crumbly dough should form; do not over-process).  My dough appeared to still be too dry so I added another 1/2 tablespoon and it was fine -- before you add more water, try to get the dough to clump together because it is probably moister than you think.

2.  Transfer dough to a sheet of parchment paper and pat into a rectangle. Top with another sheet of parchment and roll out to a 12x8-inch rectangle (the neater the edges of your rectangle, the less likely you are to end up with funky-shaped edge cookies like I did - see photo above). Transfer dough (in parchment paper) to a baking sheet and chill until firm, about 1 hour.

3.  Place rack in middle of the oven; preheat to 350°. Remove top sheet of parchment paper from dough and discard. Cut dough lengthwise into 8 equal strips, then each strip crosswise into quarters, forming 32 rectangles (I think I probably ended up with about 40 cookies because of my mishapen rectangle). Place rectangles on 2 parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 1-inch apart.  Note that the cookies almost double in size during baking.  I ended up baking the cookies in two batches, two trays at a time because I made smaller cookies and spread them out.

4.  Bake shortbread until golden brown, rotating sheets halfway through, 14-18 minutes (the original recipe said 18-20 minutes, but I checked my first batch at 15 minutes and they were done). Transfer to wire racks; let cool.

Shortbread can be made 5 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

The Boston Marathon

This space is usually reserved for documenting "pretty things" or adventures in the kitchen, but today I can't fathom writing about anything but what occurred at the Boston Marathon yesterday. I lived in Boston for seven years and have run the Boston Marathon five times. Patriot's Day is a sacred day in the city, a tribute to the Battles of Lexington and Concord that is observed on a Monday, and a day that the entire city embraces to the fullest. Thousands of people line the streets of Boston and nearby suburbs to cheer on the runners as they make their way back to Boylston Street, and the city turns out to support the marathon rain or shine. Bostonians do things like use old running shoes to plant flowers in their window box (see above - I look for this display every year on Beacon Street), handout goodies along the race course (this ranges from brownies in Wellesley to beer in Chestnut Hill), and spend their entire day screaming in support of people who have trained for months and actually paid money to run 26.2 miles (check out this slideshow for pre-race and race images from yesterday). Everyone looks for Team Hoyt and you can't see Dick pushing his son Rick without it bringing tears to your eyes and inspiring you to be a more selfless person. It's a day when 500,000 people set aside their differences and unite to watch an historic event.

For the runners, you can hear the roar of the crowd on Boylston Street from Commonwealth Avenue, and as you turn onto Hereford Street you know you've made it. And when you actually make a left onto Boylston Street, you find yourself in a tunnel of screaming spectators and regardless of your pace and how you've felt for the previous 26 miles, you feel like a hero.

It sickens me that someone would attack the human spirit in such a disgusting way. I can't stop thinking about the three victims, including an 8-year-old boy who was cheering for his father and whose sister and mom were also injured, and those who are still hospitalized and fighting for their lives. It's hard not to lose faith in humanity when acts such as these occur.

But then you hear stories about how people responded yesterday, and it gives you hope that there is more good in the world than evil. What I do know is that next April, the Boston Marathon will be run for the 118th time. People will still push themselves to qualify or raise a large sum of money to benefit a worthy charity. Undoubtedly, there will be more security and the spirit of the race will change and the events of the 2013 race will be at the forefront of everyone's mind, but this horrific act won't put a stop to the running. As Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to run the Boston Marathon wrote, “If you are losing faith in human nature, go out and watch a marathon." I know people will do just that.

My Mom and I after the 2012 Boston Marathon - we promised we'd be back to run again. Maybe 2014 will be our year?

Anna Joyce Goods

Perusing Pinterest today, I stumbled upon the cutest polka dot tote from Anna Joyce - Simple Splendid Goods out of Portland, Oregon.  You know I'm a sucker for anything with polka dots on it... and not only does Anna Joyce do polka dots, but also darling red stars and double wedding ring patterns.  You can read more about Anna Joyce and her creative process in this Etsy profile.  I'm thinking the star and polka dot tea towels pictured below would look great in my kitchen...

Marimekko & Converse

I'm loving these fun and funky Marimekko for Converse shoes.  Marimekko is a Finnish company that designs textiles, apparel and home goods.  I've always loved their designs, particularly their whimsical, bright fabrics.  Like these Keds, I'm not sure these are that practical, but they certainly are fun (especially the strawberry print).  There are high-tops available, too, and all of the shoes are priced at $75.  All images credit to Marimekko.