So much good food

Yesterday was a celebration of vegetables, as I was knee-deep in fresh ones and needed to start clearing a path in the fridge. I made a Hakurei turnip, celery root, leek mash with ricotta and parmesan as well as a pan of roasted Romanesco broccoli in a mint-lime olive oil drizzle. Nothing to write home about but solid, comforting and healthy nonetheless. I admit that T made a turkey sandwich to go alongside. Whatever!

Isn't that a striking vegetable? Each floret makes me think of the golden mean in brassica form. Spectacular.

The veggie hash reminded me of best-case mashed potatoes.

Tonight we enjoyed the short rib ragu that I made in NM (and have often cooked) and love. I never serve mine on polenta, but rather a wide noodle like pappardelle or, tonight, mafaldine, another ribbon-type pasta.

Delicious.

Shrimp and celery remoulade; peach pie

I had an enormous hankering for remoulade anything yesterday and so at the market picked up a celery root and bunch of celery, just in case. Today was fun but too busy to do anything but keep going, but late in the afternoon, as Tom drove the boys to his parents' house for a sleepover (yay!), I asked him to pick up a pound of shrimp on his way home. Remoulade was happening. I peeled and julienned the hairy, alien-like orb that is a celery root. I sliced some celery on the diagonal, and a handful of their leaves too. For good measure and to prevent browning, I doused all that with a hefty bath of lemon juice. I peeled and quick-boiled the shrimp in amply-salted water, slivered some green onions and whipped up a mustardy, horseradishy remoulade sauce. And then I mixed it all together happily, ogling its golden hue and inhaling its tangy fragrance deeply. It was so good. So fresh and bright and salty and lemony and seafoody and satisfying.

And all the while, a peach pie cooked in the oven, becoming golden and fragrant itself. And in our quiet home, we smelled good smells and watched Catching Fire and the newest episode of The Knick, and I thought about a powerful conversation I had earlier today and I felt good.