As the holidays always go, I'm glad to bring the noshing and sipping and constant cooking, cooking, cooking to an end. It was a wild ride, what with double tenderloins and buttery lobster tails and souffles and pastries and pate and cheeses and cookies and all the uff da that comes with the season. But now I am done for a while. Perhaps due to feeling unwell on the 26th, but mostly in the name of moderation, it is high time for the food pendulum to swing back to simple salads and soups, fresh fruits and vegetables, and things that taste lighter and more restorative. Do you agree? I walked by some caramel popcorn at Whole Foods today and gagged a little - I am most certainly caramel-ed out, blech. A lovely brown-rice-and-veggie-sushi sounded (and tasted) amazing instead, and I knew the holidays were over.
The brothy beef-and-barley soup I made last night was a nice transition - hearty (I have to use up this defrosted beef!) yet not heavy, it hit the spot for all of us. If you can find your grill in the snow (I had to shovel a path on our deck to mine), grilled fish with miso glaze is sounding delicious right now. In fact, so is simple miso soup. Or fish soup with rouille, ooh, I'm overdue on busting out that beauty, one of my all-time favorites. Even a basic-yet-warm, meatless meal of roasted vegetables (brussels!) alongside polenta sounds comforting without being rich.
What are your favorite post-holiday restoratives?
Also to read this week (and every week): the awesome The Moment blog at the NYTimes Magazine website (love) - spend your New Year's Eve with this spectacularly affordable, achievable menu and be very, very Happy. Understand my deep photographic jealousy by scoping The Kitchen Sink blog (sigh). Be inspired by gorgeous, healthy dishes at 101 Cookbooks blog (veggies, yum!). And if you're of the Minneapolis variety, make sure to check Dear Dara for the scoop on the latest hot spots (and old stand-bys too). Alrighty then.
