Taking time to enjoy the change of seasons

Well, it is official. Spring has definitely begun in the Ozarks.The fruit trees have arrived in the Wal-Mart and feed store parking lots. Soon to follow will be the big bales of peat moss and then the flats of early veggies like cabbage, onions, spinach and kale. Can you feel the energy building? Just like the trees and flowers, it seems we allow the excitement to build to that crescendo that marks the first truly warm weekend. We are still a few weeks away from that explosion but the path has been laid out and the kernel of excitement planted.

Last weekend we had the Filipino Flavor Excursion. Twenty lucky folks were taken for a dining adventure that included 10 courses, 5 wines and lots of new flavor combinations. I have written a full report that you can read separately, if you wish. I haven't uploaded it to the website yet, but I will. The next Flavor Excursion is planned for a weekend in June and will feature the foods of Morocco. I have already begun preserving the lemons and searching for an appropriate tent-like solution.

Starting NEXT week we will be open for lunch on Mondays. Amy and Drew will be manning the cafe along with Vincent. Amy, who has a strong background in vegetarian fare, will begin introducing Meatless Monday specials. If you know a few vegetarians, this might be a good time to invite them to join you for lunch. The full regular lunch menu will be available as usual, it is just that the special will be vegetarian and often even vegan. I am excited about this expansion as it will broaden our exposure to an new audience plus it doesn't involve more work on my part. Yippee!!!!

I am excited that we suddenly have access to a wider seafood selection. Though frozen, these fish options are much more readily available and don't require a 25-30 pound minimum purchase in order to access. I'll still be keeping my eye on the sourcing, quality, additives and sustainability. We'll still bring in fresh seafood on a fairly regular basis but we can keep other fish more available for weekly consumption. I'll always designate the fresh as being fresh from the boats. This week for dinner, we will have 8 oz cod baked in packets with wild mushroom sauce and bok-choy with snow peas and garlic. $13.99. Available Wed- Fri.

Lamb, anyone? While exploring dishes for the Filipino dinner I found a recipe for a Malaysian lamb dish~~ Vindaloo Lamb. It combines flavors of Portugal, China and the Islands- such is the melange of Malaysia. It has chilis, ginger, shallots, garlic, cumin seeds and black mustard seeds plus vinegar in the braise. {My reference is a book entitled A Spoonful of Ginger, and it credits cumin seed with removing impurities from the blood and increasing milk production while nursing. It goes on to say that if you have a skin rash you can boil 3 tablespoons of cumin seeds with 1 cup of water and add it to bath water for relief. You can get bulk cumin seeds at Meadowbrook Health Foods and likely at JB's Healthmart, as well.} Back to dinner...we'll have the lamb and serve it with rice and bok-choy stir-fried with snow peas and garlic. Available From Tues.- Fri $14.99.

Here's this week's lunch specials~~

All week~ Winter Solstice Salad ~ Spinach, arugula, red onion, feta, red grapefruit sections, orange sections, pomegranate, almonds, avocado, and chicken with an orange vinaigrette. Usually $7.59- this week $7.25

Tuesday~ Teri-yaki chicken with jasmine rice, stir-fried bok-choy, snow peas, swiss chard and garlic plus cup of miso soup $7.99
Wednesday~ Sirloin steak salad ~~ Romaine, arugula, feta, red onion, tomatoes, cucumber topped with slices of medium rare sirloin steak and our oriental sesame dressing $7.99
Thursday~ Chicken mole tacos on corn tortillas with guac, salsa, sour cream and tortilla chips $7.99
Friday~ Crab and Avocado Salad with Japanese Dressing $7.99

All right, Kids! I am ready to dive into the week. Let's make it a happy one! Thanks for being along for the ride.

~~Susan