Wednesday, April 30, 2008

I dream of citrus

Thank you all so much for your suggestions and well wishes. Shedir and Calmer it was, started the same day and now finished. I will have pics soon.
Here a picture from my trip, which can be descriped as fun and frosty.
Trees&Snow
Yes, this picture was taken in APRIL!!! I'm glad I'd packed the long undies. I hadn't seen snow like this in a couple of years, so it was actually quite wonderful to wander through this snowy wonderland.
Back in SF, life took off almost immediately. I'm working again and I got accepted to start grad school this fall. I look back at the past few months with deep gratitude. When I quit work last summer, I'd had all these crafty plans....lots of knits and sewing projects, quilts (plural!) were to be made. In the end, I spend a lot of time doing nothing. Literally, sometimes I would just sit for hours on the sofa, watching my cat sleep. I read a lot, and I baked a lot (and henceforth went to the gym a lot). It was the best thing I've done in a long time, and I feel recharged and happy. The baking frenzy I went through is taking a backseat now, but I wanted to share a few recipes with you that I thought were just fabulous (which is high praise from a picky, fresh-loving country girl). All these recipes contain some kind of citrus, which is just my favorite flavor and scent ever! This recipe from Martha Stewart had been on my list for a long time, Pistachio-Lime Tart.
Pistachio-Lime-Tart1
It takes three days to finish (you have to drain ricotta, make lime curd, and let the tart rest overnight). It's really worth the trouble though, the end result was delicious! The crust is made with pistachios, whose flavor get a little lost in the lime, but tastes awesome when you have a crumb by itself. The lime curd was so good, I could have eaten it just like that (never mind that there are 20 egg yolks in there).
The only adjustment I would make next time would be to substitute drained greek yoghurt for the ricotta. I'm not sure I love the ricotta grainyness, I even pushed it through a sieve once more to get it smooth. It tasted wonderful, however, I was envisioning thie filling to be super smooth, like the curd. I'm going to make this again, just thinking about its tangy goodness is making my mouth water. You can get the recipe here.

14 comments:

Philigry said...

that looks yummy! i love citrus too. glad you had time to rest and relax and that you are feeling great!

Risa said...

Hey! Welcome back and congrats on grad school. How exciting!! What will you be studying?
Hope to see you soon!

lori said...

I am glad that you had a great time off of working. It must have taken guts! So often in my world, I feel like "time off" is looked upon negatively, as it means less progress and productivity.

What are you going back to school for?

yaiAnn said...

YUM!!!!

spajonas said...

wow, that tart looks mmmmmmmm..

nicole said...

Ohmygoodness, my mouth is watering too! That dessert just sounds divine. And I'm right with you on the citrus.

Speaking of divine, your sabbatical sounds heavenly. And now you're embarking on ambitious academic adventures. Congratulations!

Anonymous said...

Congrats on grad school! That tart looks absolutely delish!

Linda said...

I am glad your time off was refreshing. is grad school like university here in the UK? What are you studying? It sounds exciting!

maritza said...

Sometimes you need to do nothing. Glad to hear that you are feeling recharged. :)
Congratulations on grad school! That is exciting news.
Must try that tart some time - it looks divine.

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on graduate school! What an exciting time.

And, oh, that tart looks lovely.

seedless grape said...

Congrats on grad school! That's fabulous. Best wishes to you!

And I must chime in on the tart as well--it looks heavenly. Now I'm craving limes!

Anonymous said...

Congratulations on grad school! And thanks for the recipe - definitely something to try. Did you ever read Ferdinand The Bull? I think the premise of the story is just what you did, sit back and relax for your self. Definitely worked for you! Terry

craftoholic said...

Terry, yes I did read that book, one of my favorites when I was little. Ferdinand just did what he wanted to do, and not what everyone else expected of him. Thank you for reminding me of that story :-)

Kaviare said...

I like to make lemon curd. My mum eats it on bread. One of my friends prefers a spoon and a jar and a good movie.