Is it really already August?! This is a special month, folks, as it marks Gouramanda’s 1-year anniversary! I can’t believe it’s already been a year. So much has happened! A year ago, Gouramanda was just a seed of an idea. I wasn’t quite sure what my end goal was (which is often still the case), but I realized if you do what you love and constantly seek growth with an open mind (watering and nourishing the seed) you will end up surprising yourself. As Julia Child put it, “You never know everything about anything, especially something you love.”
A year ago, a novice in all things “food blog” related, I was taking food photos with my iPhone and especially struggling to find my voice in my writing. I knew I couldn’t merely write about the food I was making. (Really…how many adjectives can a person use to describe pasta?) I was more interested in the stories that coincided with food, the human experience. And, surprisingly enough, while a bulk of this blog takes place in solitude, Gouramanda has been an invaluable link that connects me to people with similar interests, and that’s what I love the most. I have met so many wonderful, like-minded people who have inspired me, challenged me, and helped me realize that the food experience is as much about the people who plant, harvest, create, and consume it as it is about the actual food itself. What a beautiful thing!
So, today, I leave you with a recipe for succotash, a dish that the Narragansett (Algonquin) Native Americans originally created, enjoyed, and passed on to early American settlers. And now here I am, in 2013, putting my twist on a centuries-old recipe! This version has a delicious grilled, roasted-garlicky flavor and replaces lima beans with asparagus. It’s wonderful on its own or as an addition to a simple, summer meal. Here’s to another delicious year of Gouramanda surprises! ¡Buen provecho!
- 2 squash (i.e. zucchini, yellow), top and bottom removed and cut in quarters lengthwise
- 4 cobs of corn, husks still on, then removed after grilled
- 1 red bell pepper
- ½ pound asparagus, bottoms trimmed
- 1 head garlic, top part cut off
- 1 Tablespoon plus ½ teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter (or butter substitute such as Earth Balance), room temperature
- ½ teaspoon good balsamic vinegar
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- Heat grill to medium high heat. Prepare vegetables by cutting squash and trimming asparagus. Make a foil pocket for the asparagus to go on the grill and place asparagus inside. Brush oil on all squash and asparagus, then sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper. Cut off top part of a head of garlic, add ½ teaspoon olive oil directly on top and wrap tightly with foil.
- Start by grilling corn for about 20 minutes total, flipping as you go. About halfway through (10 minutes in) add squash, asparagus, red bell pepper and garlic wrapped in foil. Flip squash once, about 5 minutes on each side depending on the thickness. Flip pepper around until nice and blistered. Remove all vegetables (including garlic) from grill and allow to cool slightly. Dice squash and red pepper, chop asparagus diagonally, shuck corn and remove kernels. Add all vegetables to a bowl.
- Make compound butter by mashing roasted garlic (squeezed out of its "shell") with balsamic vinegar and brown sugar. Use a fork or a mortar and pestle and mash until combined. Incorporate into succotash/vegetable mixture and serve warm. Add more salt and pepper to taste. Serve as a side or over pasta or brown rice.
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