Almost three months after my trip to Dominica, I invited the ladies I met at Jungle Bay Resort to my apartment for a reunion. Six of us ate, drank, talked and hung out for eights hours! I was pretty tired the next morning, but was grateful for the new friends I met during a pretty tough holiday. Jai was the only vegetarian in the group, so while I served everyone else pulled pork-style center loin, I put this salad together as her main course so she could have the bite of the farro grain and the earthiness of the mushrooms while we devoured our meat.

This dish was also inspired by my last trip to San Francisco because the mushrooms for sale in the farmers’ market were less expensive. I saw plenty of them in the Ferry Terminal and that made me wish I had access to a kitchen. So now back at home, I bought a combination of hen of the woods, shiitake and oyster mushrooms for twice the price. Farro to me is so California: I saw it several times on different menus while I was there; I rarely see it here in New York. When you make this on your own, try some chanterelles if you can add a few more bucks to your grocery budget and buy crimini and whites to add to the quantity without breaking the bank. A good Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese will do, but I like Pecorino better for this. Use a vegetable peeler to shave the cheese. Everything is quite pretty but you’d be even happier with the smell.

Ingredients:
1 cup uncooked farro
1/2 pound mix of wild mushrooms
salt
pepper
olive oil
lemon juice
Pecorino cheese, shaved
a handful of parsley, roughly chopped

1. Heat the oven to 350º. In a medium saucepan, combine the farro and enough cold water to cover it by about an inch. Soak for 20 minutes. Drain well and return the farro to the pan, again covering it with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat to cook. Lower the heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes, until the farro is tender but still has some bite.
2. While the farro is cooking, toss the mushrooms with salt, pepper and olive oil in a large bowl. Spread the seasoned mushrooms out evenly on a lined baking sheet and put in the oven for 20 minutes.
3. When the farro is cooked, drain well and spread it on another baking sheet to cool. Do the same with the mushrooms once they are cooked. When both farro and mushrooms are close to room temperature, combine them in a serving bowl. Drizzle with some lemon juice and toss gently with Pecorino cheese and parsley.

Related post/s:
Dominica travel stories

I was surprised to find green figs at the fruit stand downtown where I work. Even Whole Foods only sold the black figs. What I like about green figs is that they’re less sweet than the black ones even though they look like they would be rindy and bitter. The ripes ones are actually pretty soft and they easily give when sliced in half.

You can use tempura batter here if you have access to an Asian grocery store, but the recipe that follows uses the flour you already have in the pantry. Any yogurt would do, too, but the plain Greek kind has that whipped texture that’s great for chopped fruits. I also find the Greek yogurt less tart and does not compete with the natural sweetness of the figs. My personal preference is the Total Classic kind from FAGE (pronounced “fa-yeh”).

Ingredients:
fresh green figs, washed, dried with paper towel
1 cup of flour
ice bath
one egg
oil
Greek yogurt

1. Make the tempura batter. Beat the egg in a bowl. Add ice water. Add flour in the bowl and mix lightly. Do not overmix.
2. Heat a deep skillet with some oil. Just right before frying, drench the figs with the tempura batter and gently add to the hot oil to fry. When batter is light brown, spoon battered figs out using a slotted spoon and remove to a wire mesh colander on a plate to let the excess oil drip. Do not use paper towels as to not make them soggy. Serve with Greek yogurt on the side.

Related post/s:
One of my favorite tarts uses figs and Stilton together
Make a fig preserve and save them for autumn dishes

So far I can only buy shishito peppers from two places here in New York City during the late summer months: Sunrise Mart off St. Mark’s Place and the TriBeCa Greenmarket a couple of blocks from work on Wednesdays. I don’t ever get tired of eating or serving them. They’re so easy to prepare and, without fail, guests can’t get enough of them.

Word is that the Japanese cultivated them because they can’t take the heat from the more popular peppers. I first had a taste of blistered peppers in Cal Pep when we were in Barcelona. They use pimento peppers over there which has the same subtle sweetness; the shishito are skinny while the pimentos are greener and a little bit more plump.

When blistering either, make sure you watch out for the splattering hot oil. Remove them to a mesh colander on a plate after blistering–using paper towel to drain the oil will just make them soggy.

Ingredients:
oil
2 handfuls of shishito peppers, stems intact, washed and dried thoroughly with paper towel
sea salt

1. Heat a large skillet. Add some oil and let it warm up until almost smoking. Add the shishito peppers and begin tossing around by swiveling the pan.
2. When most of the peppers are blistered on all sides, use a slotted spoon and remove them to a wire mesh colander on a plate to let the excess oil drip and immediately sprinkle with salt. Serve.

Related post/s:
Where to eat in Barcelona, Spain