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Well, I don’t have a DC Beer Week report because we couldn’t make it to any of the events. Boo hoo. I, however, hit our favorite neighborhood bar, Galaxy Hut, solo to at least partake in beer drinking during its namesake week. We love this no-frills spot for its constantly rotating taps, snappy hot dogs, and piles of tater tots. I got a couple inconspicuous pics of the taps and bartender thanks to my new-ish iPhone. (I should take this opportunity to mention that the first photo looks the way it does thanks to the Hipstamatic app. Awesome, right? You’ll notice it in previous posts too.)

The peppers from the balcony garden are in full effect now. Coming in strong. And boy are they hot. Like habanero hot on the Scoville Scale. But boy are they fantastic.

I’m kinda off-kilter recently so that’s all I got going on right now. Here’s a few cool sites to check out. Next time I’ll have something more substantive to share.

FoodCorps
The Canal House
The Lexicon of Sustainability
Handwritten Recipes
Art of the Menu

P.S.

Forgot to mention that I checked out the National Archives' "What's Cooking, Uncle Sam?" exhibit on the government's effect on the American diet. Small but packed with lots of interesting and eye-opening things.

Gazpacho, Hummus, Scones, And More

I cooked a lot this week, especially yesterday. It was such a stormy day out, it just made me feel like staying in and hunkering down in the kitchen.

First I made Cook's Illustrated's creamy gazpacho recipe. The key is salting the veggies and letting them sit for an hour before pureeing them. This draws flavors out of the cell walls - and produces one heck of a soup. I could've eaten the whole vat of it in one sitting.

Then I whipped up Zahav's Israeli hummus recipe. Zahav is one of our favorite restaurants in Philly. Chef Michael Solomonov makes THE BEST hummus.

Finally came strawberry and basil scones from Better Homes and Gardens. They get a double dose of strawberries - both fresh and dried. The basil really complements the berries well.

Earlier this week I cooked asparagus with parmigiano. I'd never thought of combining the two before, but now it's like my second favorite preparation after curried. And I baked portabellas stuffed with chopped squash and tomatoes. 400 degrees for 35 minutes - what could be easier? So fresh and summery.

Next up: DC Beer Week. Expect a full report!

Rockin' Saturday In The Kitchen

Listening to MMJ, trying to prolong last night's kick-ass show, while cooking up a storm in the kitchen: gazpacho, scones, and more.

Busy Weekend

Here's where we hit this weekend:

Smith Commons
Biergarten Haus
Birch and Barley
Blackbyrd Warehouse
Earl's, Arlington
Peregrine Espresso
Eastern Market
Bar Dupont
Sushi Taro
Whitlow's on Wilson, Arlington
American Ice Co.
The Big Hunt

All in DC unless otherwise stated.

Sushi Taro does it right

Check out that prawn in the background

Bounty

Yay for the balcony garden. It's like the little engine that could, chuggin' along even though the pots are fairly small and they don't get as much sun as they should. I've gotten more tomatoes and arugula since I've last reported, more herbs than I know what to do with (not really :), and soon I'll have peppers to pick. The lemon cucumber hasn't gotten one cuke on it yet, just a lot of flowers. Come on already!

Volunteering at the farm is going swimmingly. I love it. I feel a real sense of accomplishment every time I come home and see the dirt spiral down the shower drain. This week I left with a bag of yellow and zephyr squash and Roma tomatoes. I'd picked more than 30 pounds of the stuff so Farmer Mo gave me some of the bounty to enjoy.

And now a few updates:

• I received Mad Men-style Old-Fashioned glasses from my bro and his fiancee. They're going to see their fair share of use, let me tell you.
• Anybody watch the "No Reservations" special last night on El Bulli's recent closing? It's very well done. Ferran Adria is inspiring. Wish I could have made it to Roses.
• Our latest outings were to Blackbyrd Junction and Lost Society on U Street. Seems like it's the place to be these days. Probably going back this weekend.