Rough sketch of Friday night

Springtime!

I love spring, for all the reasons anyone likes spring. In Los Angeles, the effect is not nearly as strong as somewhere with, say, actual seasons. But nonetheless, I enjoy the colorful burst of new fruits and veggies popping up at the farmers' markets after several months of mostly leafy greens and root vegetables. At left, today's haul: tomatoes, asparagus($2), artichokes($2), spinach, strawberries($5 for 3 baskets!), pita bread, oranges($6 for the 10 lb bag), and rum and carrot cakes. Not pictured: feta cheese & sundried tomato dip, tabbouleh, and trout($5/lb). Pretty awesome deals.

In other recent news from my culinary world: I harvested the first strawberry from my little strawberry plant! It was delicious. For some reason it grew and ripened much faster than the other three, but they're all coming along nicely.

Quick meal idea: Thai noodle salad

I made this salad the other night because we had Thai noodles lying around. I added shredded cabbage and carrots, bell peppers, cashews, cilantro, shallots, sesame seeds, and for Mark, sesame marinated chicken.

For dressing, I mixed soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, fish sauce, Marie Sharp's grapefruit habanero hot sauce, lime juice, garlic, and sesame seeds.

Quick, easy, and filling- a perfect weeknight meal. I love food that is colorful, and this certainly fits that bill. If you like Thai food, I highly recommend stocking up on the basic ingredients like fish sauce and curry paste- the recipes are super easy once you've got those staples in your pantry.