Recipes for when it's patio sittin' weather

The bugs haven't hatched. The weeds haven't sprouted. Life is good.

Hello, chefs.

I love springtime like Oprah loves bread. I grew up in Western NY, where spring was winter and summer was perfect, but since moving to Nashville almost a decade (?!?!?) ago, spring is the new summer. The air doesn’t feel like a wet, sweaty sock yet, and you can be outside all day without getting West Nile virus. It’s incredible.

I’ve seen a lot of springs in my lifetime, but they still feel novel every year. I roll my eyes when people say “you need bad days so you can appreciate the good ones,” but annoyingly, when it comes to the seasons, it’s true. The leaves have come in over the last week here in Nashville and I think I’ve asked literally everyone if they’ve heard them rustle. Like, come ON, it’s incredible.

Still, my peace is fleeting. We’re working with a ~2 week window where I can sit outside and enjoy myself without immediately jumping up to pull up weeds, spray for carpenter bees, trellis tomatoes, clean outdoor furniture, transplant sad-looking plants…

There is something nice about wintertime when everything is just…dead. No bugs or weeds to worry about. No pretty things either, but at least you can enjoy your ugly, grey yard without being under constant siege.

One of my ~*intentions*~ this month is to invest in things that give me more quality time with my people. That includes obvious stuff, like trips and dinners and unplugging, but also non-obvious stuff, like biting the bullet and paying to have my house cleaned so I can enjoy Saturdays with friends instead of scrubbing my baseboards and dusting light fixtures. I’ve been thinking about also hiring a landscaper so I can enjoy my yard in peace, sans weed war, but mentally I can’t accept that I could be a person with a landscaper. That’s a level of adult I’m not ready to unlock. But give me another month and I might be singing a different tune.

So serious question: do you pay someone to pull your weeds? Is it worth it? Or should I spend my money on, I don’t know, something that actually matters?

-Faith

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PBJ bars

I make this dessert probably every weekend as soon as the weather gets above freezing, and it becomes synonymous with Sunday Family Dinners (sunfamdin) in the spring and summer. Recipe from Dawn Perry at NYTCooking.

1. Preheat your oven to 350

2. In the bowl of a standing mixer or with a hand mixer, beat:

   1. 1 cup peanut butter

   2. 1/2 cup room temp butter

   3. 1/2 cup brown sugar

   4. 1/2 cup regular sugar

   5. 1 egg

   6. 1 tsp vanilla

3. Add:

   1. 1.5 cups flour

   2. 1/2 tsp baking powder

   3. 1 tsp salt

4. Grease a square baking dish and press 1/2 of your dough into the bottom. In a large bowl, toss 1 small bag of frozen berries (blackberries or mixed) with a few spoons of sugar, then tip onto your dough. Crumble the remaining dough into chunks and drop on top of the berries.

5. Bake for 50 minutes and sprinkle with sea salt.

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Turmeric chicken and asparagus

I made this for my mom and BIL last night, and both of them said “oh, we make this all the time,” which means we have +2 points for easy and delicious. This is an Ali Slagle recipe:

1. Get your mise en place prepped:

   1. In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup warm water, 3 tbsp honey, 1 tsp pepper, and 1/2 tsp salt

   2. Chop a head of asparagus and set aside

   3. In a large bowl, combine 2 tbsp flour, 1.5 tsp turmeric, and a tsp of salt

   4. Chop a package of boneless, skinless chicken thighs into bite sized pieces and toss in your flour mixture

   5. Get your rice going for serving

2. Heat a tablespoon of canola oil over med-high. Add your chicken and cook for 3 minutes until it starts to brown a bit. Add your asparagus and cook for 2 minutes or until it starts to soften. Add your honey/water mixture and cook until your chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened, about 3-5 minutes.

3. Turn off the heat and add a drizzle of soy sauce.

4. That’s it! Serve over rice.

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Spinach salad with sweet soy dressing

If you want some extra green on your table, this dressing is like candy. In a small jar, combine:

• equal parts rice vinegar, soy sauce, honey

• a drizzle of sesame oil

• a bunch of everything bagel seasoning

Toss your spinach with the dressing until it softens a bit. Serve with chopped scallions, toasted almonds, even a package of crushed and toasted ramen noodles is great here.