i was hunting through old posts for a recipe i needed and i stumbled upon some vintage angela ramblings. it was some longwinded monologue on the fact that wesley and i are in a constant battle over style vs function. 

it got me to laughing about how nothing has really changed, and our garden has become as big of a battle ground as our kitchen. i'm all about introducing colors and flowers into the garden so that our eyes are as pleased as our pallets. but wesley only wants things in the garden that we can eat. 

well i found a solution to our conflict. lots of edible flowers. i get my florals, he gets his function. the only downfall is that we have way more nasturtiums than i know what to do with. so i'm getting creative. btw this is ONE of my areas with nasturtiums AFTER i harvested it. 

wes has been raving about a few of the dishes at his new job and all of them seem so beautifully simple. so i took that idea to the nasturtiums. and the results were delightfully bright, spicy and crisp.

nasturtium & crispy shallot salad
serves: 2
prep time: 15 minutes
cook time: 5 minutes
total time: 20 minutes
ingredients: 4 cups chopped nasturtium leaves. 2 cups nasturtium flowers. 1 shallot, sliced thin. .25 cup + 2 tbs olive oil. 3 tbs lemon juice. 2 tbs soy sauce. 2 garlic cloves, so finely minced they become a paste. 1 tbs brown sugar. .5 tsp kosher salt. .25 tsp pepper.

start by combining the leaves and flowers in a salad bowl and setting it aside. 

to make the dressing, combine .25 cup olive oil, lemon juice, soy sauce, garlic, brown sugar and pepper in a medium bowl and whisk until well combined. 

set it aside with the greens. heat your remaining oil in medium pan. 

season the shallots with the salt and add the shallots to the very hot oil. 

you will know the oil is hot enough when you test one shallot and it sizzles the second it hits the pan. fry up the shallots till golden brown and crispy. about 5 minutes. 

remove them from the pan to a paper towel to remove any excess oil. 

drizzle your salad with the dressing and toss well.

top with crispy shallot and serve. 

xo, a

nasturtium & crispy shallot salad
serves: 2
prep time: 15 minutes
cook time: 5 minutes
total time: 20 minutes
ingredients: 4 cups chopped nasturtium leaves. 2 cups nasturtium flowers. 1 shallot, sliced thin. .25 cup + 2 tbs olive oil. 3 tbs lemon juice. 2 tbs soy sauce. 2 garlic cloves, so finely minced they become a paste. 1 tbs brown sugar. .5 tsp kosher salt. .25 tsp pepper.
start by combining the leaves and flowers in a salad bowl and setting it aside. to make the dressing, combine .25 cup olive oil, lemon juice, soy sauce, garlic, brown sugar and pepper in a medium bowl and whisk until well combined. set it aside with the greens. heat your remaining oil in medium pan. season the shallots with the salt and add the shallots to the very hot oil. you will know the oil is hot enough when you test one shallot and it sizzles the second it hits the pan. fry up the shallots till golden brown and crispy. about 5 minutes.remove them from the pan to a paper towel to remove any excess oil. drizzle your salad with the dressing and toss well. top with crispy shallot and serve. 

if you couldn't tell from the soaring temps or lingering smell of barbecue, summer is in full swing. 

wes usually works sunday evenings and we do not have air conditioning, so i've started retreating to my parents house to cook, catch up over cocktails and swim in their pool. 

my parents have a beautiful large yard and plenty of beautiful herbs growing. since i can't seem to grow chives, they are usually a sunday ingredient in one way or another. 

after a busy work week, and a saturday spent cleaning my house, for sunday's dinner i needed a fool proof, low maintenance dish that would deliver in flavor but leave us free from dishes. basically the goal was to spend as little time prepping and cooking in a hot kitchen and the maximum time swimming and enjoying the summer evening. 

this marinated steak and quickly blended herb sauce takes almost no prep time, about 10 minutes on the grill and less than a handful of dishes. 

and it's freaking delicious. win. win. 

herb marinated flank steak
serves: 4
prep time: 5 minutes
cook time: 10 minutes + 10 minutes to rest
ingredients: 2 lbs flat iron steak (about 1 inch thick). 1 c red wine vinegar. .5 c soy sauce. .25 c olive oil. 2 tbs roughly chopped chives. 2 tbs roughly chopped oregano. 5 garlic cloves, smashed. 2 tbs brown sugar. 1 tsp salt. .5 tsp fresh ground pepper.
chefs note: you can easily sub any cut of steak that takes a marinade well. if you can't find flatiron you could use, flap meat, flank steak, hanger or london broil. 

start by patting your meat dry with a paper towel. place the steak in a flat dish and season both sides well with the salt and the pepper. 

in a medium sized bowl, combine the herbs, garlic, liquids and brown sugar and whisk well to combine. 

pour the marinade over the meat, cover and set the meat aside to marinate for 1-24 hours. note: if you are going to marinate the meat for longer than 1 hour, marinate it in your refrigerator and take it out 1 hour before cook time. 

preheat your grill to a nice high heat.
when the grill is nice and hot (400-425f) remove the steak from the marinade and place it on a hot part of the grill. close the grill and sear until the meat has good grill marks. 4-5 minutes. 

flip the steak, cover the grill and sear the other side for 4-5 minutes.

at this point your steak should be medium rare in the middle with some more done parts on the thinner/smaller ends. if you desire your meat a little more done, move the meat to a cooler part of the grill and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes covered. if medium rare is how your prefer your meat, remove the steak after you have seared both sides. when your meat has been remove from the grill, cover with aluminum foil and let it rest for 7-10 minutes. 

while the meat is resting, assemble your chimichurri. 

chive chimichurri
serves: 1 cup
total time: 3 minutes
ingredients: 2 tbs roughly chopped chives. 1 tbs roughly chopped thyme (mine had blossoms and they were beautiful so i included them). 1 tbs roughly chopped oregano. .75 c olive oil. .25 c red wine vinegar. zest of 1 lemon. juice of .5 lemon 2 garlic cloves, smashed. 

in a food processor or blender, combine the herbs, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice and vinegar. blend until everything is minced and well combined. if you are with out a food processor or blender, you can mince the ingredients by hand and whisk them together in a bowl. with the processor on, pour in the olive oil. once combined, serve over the grilled protein or vegetable of your choice. 

after you meat has rested and the juices of settled, slice the meat into .5-1 inch slices against the grain. drizzle with chimichurri and serve. 

xoxo
a

herb marinated flat iron steak
serves: 4
prep time: 5 minutes
cook time: 10 minutes + 10 minutes to rest
ingredients: 2 lbs flat iron steak (about 1 inch thick). 1 c red wine vinegar. .5 c soy sauce. .25 c olive oil. 2 tbs roughly chopped chives. 2 tbs roughly chopped oregano. 5 garlic cloves, smashed. 2 tbs brown sugar. 1 tsp salt. .5 tsp fresh ground pepper.
chefs note: you can easily sub any cut of steak that takes a marinade well. if you can't find flatiron you could use, flap meat, flank steak, hanger or london broil. start by patting your meat dry with a paper towel. place the steak in a flat dish and season both sides well with the salt and the pepper.
in a medium sized bowl, combine the herbs, garlic, liquids and brown sugar and whisk well to combine.
pour the marinade over the meat, cover and set the meat aside to marinate for 1-24 hours. note: if you are going to marinate the meat for longer than 1 hour, marinate it in your refrigerator and take it out 1 hour before cook time.
preheat your grill to a nice high heat.
when the grill is nice and hot (400-425f) remove the steak from the marinade and place it on a hot part of the grill. close the grill and sear until the meat has good grill marks. 4-5 minutes.
flip the steak, cover the grill and sear the other side for 4-5 minutes.
at this point your steak should be medium rare in the middle with some more done parts on the thinner/smaller ends. if you desire your meat a little more done, move the meat to a cooler part of the grill and cook for an additional 3-5 minutes covered. if medium rare is how your prefer your meat, remove the steak after you have seared both sides. when your meat has been remove from the grill, cover with aluminum foil and let it rest for 7-10 minutes.
while the meat is resting, assemble your chimichurri.
after you meat has rested and the juices of settled, slice the meat into .5-1 inch slices against the grain. drizzle with chimichurri and serve. 

chive chimichurri
serves: 1 cup
total time: 3 minutes
ingredients: 2 tbs roughly chopped chives. 1 tbs roughly chopped thyme (mine had blossoms and they were beautiful so i included them). 1 tbs roughly chopped oregano. .75 c olive oil. .25 c red wine vinegar. zest of 1 lemon. juice of .5 lemon 2 garlic cloves, smashed.
in a food processor or blender, combine the herbs, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice and vinegar. blend until everything is minced and well combined. if you are with out a food processor or blender, you can mince the ingredients by hand and whisk them together in a bowl. with the processor on, pour in the olive oil. once combined, serve over the grilled protein or vegetable of your choice.