No-brainer Zucchini Soup

From the archives -- just in time to use up those zucchinis.

What else can I say? It seems almost silly to even call this a recipe. Simplicity aside, it's a fantastic way to get rid of the zucchini that's taking over your garden. (I actually have no experience with this -- having no garden in my small DC apartment -- but I hear the rumors.)

It's also the perfect antidote to a hot summer day: cook it at night -- it takes like 30 minutes, tops -- and store in the fridge for when you're too darn lazy to cook but want to taste summer.

Simple recipe, simple post. I'm officially free from the craze of work, but I'm also off to Alaska for vaca this coming Friday! Don't worry, though, I've stored a post or two to keep you entertained while I'm away, and if I have any luck, I'll post some good pictures and stories once I return.

No-Brainer Zucchini Soup

2 pounds zucchini, trimmed and cut crosswise into thirds 3/4 cup chopped onion 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1/4 cup olive oil 4 cups water, divided 1/3 cup packed basil leaves

Equipment: an adjustable-blade slicer fitted with 1/8-inch julienne attachment (I just used a knife and sliced carefully!)

Julienne skin (only) from half of zucchini with slicer; toss with 1/2 teaspoon salt and drain in a sieve until wilted, at least 20 minutes. Coarsely chop remaining zucchini.

Cook onion and garlic in oil in a 3- to 4-quarts heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add chopped zucchini and 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes. Add 3 cups water and simmer, partially covered, until tender, about 15 minutes. Purée soup with basil in 2 batches in a blender (use caution when blending hot liquids).

Bring remaining cup water to a boil in a small saucepan and blanch julienned zucchini 1 minute. Drain in a sieve set over a bowl (use liquid to thin soup if necessary).

Season soup with salt and pepper. Serve in shallow bowls with julienned zucchini mounded on top.

Easiest Broccoli Slaw (ever!)

Yes, yes, summer's almost over (eek! I won't say it again, I promise) -- but there's still plenty of time for you country folk to fire up your grill while we city folk peer jealously out our windows and inhale the aromas. Meanwhile, if you're an urbanite lucky enough to get invited over to said grill-equipped home, here's a great slaw to bring along with. I guarantee it'll win you some fans -- maybe even get you invited back. (You'll notice that I actually just brought it for lunch one day. I promise it tastes good both outdoors and in A/C.)

Easiest Broccoli Slaw

1 Package Broccoli Slaw or 2 heads broccoli, florets removed, ends discarded and stems grated 2 Apples (I like Fuji), quartered and thinly sliced 1/2 cup dried black currants or raisins 3/4 cup toasted sliced or slivered almonds 1 carrot, grated (optional) several chives, chopped

Dressing: 1/3 cup apple cider, rice, or other sweet, light vinegar dash soy sauce dash lime juice 1 Tbsp. blue agave, maple syrup, or other sweetener, or 1/2 Tbsp. brown sugar (not white sugar) salt and pepper olive oil (I like 1/4 cup, but most people prefer more)

You know the drill: mix ingredients in a bowl. Shake dressing ingredients in well-sealed container until well-emulsified. Combine and enjoy.

Onion Tart

I have less than no time to write this post: work is suuuper crazy right now and I've hardly had time to cook, let alone write. But how's this for a teaser: it's taking me longer to write this post than it did to make the onion tart I'm sharing with you. Really.

As long as you don't make your own puff pastry, this tart can be put together in no time with just a bit of advance prep work (read: caramelize onions). I had a bit of time one night last week so I caramelized down two whole white onions into a big sweet mush. They served as the main ingredient of this here tart, topped off with some goat cheese, quick-sauteed mushrooms, and a few snippings of chives. That's it. And with such little effort, the whole thing still got polished off at Friday night dinner.

If I had more time to write I would -- but promise me you'll make this tart, in the meantime? I'll regale ya'll with more stories after work is done and I'm on vacation. Plus, if you're patient, I can promise awesome pictures from my upcoming cruise to Alaska!

Onion Tart Makes 2 tarts

2 sheets puff pastry, thawed on parchment paper atop baking sheets 2 whole onions, chopped and caramelized with some oil or butter over low heat for 20-ish minutes 2 cups mushrooms olive oil 3/4 small log goat cheese (enough to dot two tarts generously) a couple chives

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Saute mushrooms over medium high heat with some olive oil and a bit of the caramelized onions (for flavor). Bake puff pastry for ten-fifteen minutes, until it begins to puff and turns ever so slightly golden. Out of the oven, pile ingredients onto tarts -- first onions, then mushrooms, then goat cheese, then chives. Bake five-ten more minutes, until golden throughout and the cheese is melted. Serve immediately.

Date Swirl Cookies

Every once in a while, dates make their way into my shopping cart during my snacks run at TJs. The large, dark brown Medjool dates are my favorite variety (and, arguably, the best variety out there). I first discovered them during my time in Israel, where if you're lucky, you can pluck some low-hanging fruit off a tree toward the end of a hike. Commonly considered the crown jewel of dates, Medjools are a deep, rich amber, and they're coated with a thin, glossy skin that is at once smooth and wrinkled. Far less stringy then other dates, their texture is soft, chewy, and ever so luscious. No other date even compares.

When my officemate offhandedly mentioned these date swirl cookies, I knew instantly that they'd be next in my queue. Her prescription was simple: "make a refrigerator cookie, mix a paste of dates, brown sugar, spices, and some citrus, roll out the cookie dough, spread the paste overtop, roll up, slice, bake." Sounded simple enough, but the instructions left me plenty of room to play.

Knowing that dates are quite sweet, I knew I'd need to add both the juice and the zest of whatever citrus I chose, to help cut the sugar. But I also worried that a standard sugar cookie dough would be too sweet when combined with the date paste. That in mind, I settled on a cream cheese cookie dough; the cream cheese would add another, different kind of tang, so that both elements of the cookie would smack with tart-sweetness. My date paste was fairly simple, consisting in smashed dates, a bit of cinnamon, lemon juice and lemon zest, and a bit of brown sugar. But making a cream cheese dough was, without a doubt, the single best decision I made that day. The cream cheese added both richness and tartness to the dough (think rugelach) that no other ingredient could mimic.

To be perfectly honest, these cookies were best out of the oven, as all cookies are; however, a week later, they were still exactly as moist as they were when I first made them. The dates keep them just moist enough that they don't dry out but still keep their flaky crumb. In all, I'd say they came pretty darn close to perfection.

Date Swirl Cookies

Butter Cookie Recipe from The New Best Recipe

2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour 3/4 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened but still cool, cut into 16 pieces 2 teaspoons vanilla 2 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature

Date Paste Recipe

1 1/2 cups (packed) dried dates, preferably Medjool 1/4 cup brown sugar a couple teaspoons of lemon juice zest from half a lemon dash cinnamon, optional

In the bowl of an electric mixer, mix together flour, sugar and salt at low speed. With the mixer on low, add butter one piece at a time. Add cream cheese and vanilla and beat until until mixture just forms a dough.

Knead the dough by hand in the bowl for 2 or 3 turns to form a large, cohesive mass. Turn the dough out onto the countertop; divide it in half, pat each half into a 4-inch disk, wrap each in plastic, and refrigerate until they begin to firm up, about 20-30 minutes.

Roll out 1 dough disk to a rectangle with an even 1/8-inch thickness between 2 large sheets of parchment or wax paper. Slide the rolled dough, still on parchment, onto a baking sheet and slip into the refrigerator for 10 minutes, until firm. Repeat with the second disk.

To make the date paste, mash (either by hand or with a fork) dates with the other ingredients until no large chunks remain. I like mine pretty smooth, but it's a matter of preference. Taste and adjust for sweetness, tartness, and spice -- every batch of Medjools is different.

Remove disk from refrigerator. with a long edge of your rectangle facing you, leaving about 1/2 an inch of space at the far long edge, spread half the date paste over the cookie dough. Coax the close edge of the dough up, using the parchment paper to guide you; slowly and carefully roll the dough to make a roll the length of the long edge. The half-inch of space you left will be useful for sealing the roll, so that no date paste leaks out. Repeat with second half of dough.

Stick the finished roll in the freezer for 45 minutes, or in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, until completely firm.

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position; heat the oven to 375 degrees. Remove dough from fridge/freezer. Using a very sharp knife, slice 1/4-inch slices off the roll. Place on a baking sheet 1 inch apart. Repeat with second half of dough.

Bake cookies until golden brown at the edges but still soft in the center, 10-12 minutes. Cool completely before storing. Cookies keep, sealed, for 1-2 weeks (if you can keep 'em around that long.)