Fillings for Ricotta Spelt Crepes

As previously mentioned, the first crepe in a batch always looks like crap. I ate it. It was delicious. I considered eating the rest of the crepes unfilled. But in case my guests were not so inclined, we made some fillings to make the crepes more civilized.

First there were chopped fresh tomatoes with basil. We all agreed that the tomatoes accented the delicate flavor of the crepes. We also discovered that a little leftover ricotta went beautifully with the tomatoes inside the crepes.

Cucumber Salad with Olives, Oregano, and Almonds

I love pickles. Actually, I love any form of cucumbers soaked in vinegar. When my best friend from high school told me she'd never tried a pickle, I made her eat one the first chance I got. Unfortunately, we were on a boat at the time, so now whenever she smells a pickle she gets seasick. It's okay, though. More pickles for me. When I found this recipe for cucumber salad in this month's Cook's Illustrated, I determined that I had to try it immediately. And, since I was planning a sort of greek salad themed brunch, it was the natural choice for a side dish. The fact that it involved the three greek salad elements missing from my frittata--cucumbers, olives, and oregano--was just gravy.

One of my favorite snacks is a super simplified version of this dish, which involves nothing more than thinly sliced cucumbers, rice wine vinegar, and salt.* Of course, Cook's Illustrated makes it much more sophisticated, with a simple cucumber drying process and a tempered version of the vinegar. It's certainly fussier than simply slicing cucumbers and dumping vinegar over them, but I think it's completely worth the extra few minutes it takes to reduce some vinegar and chop some herbs. The result was simply marvelous. I liked it even better out of the fridge a few hours later (which I suppose makes sense--I like my pickles fresh from the fridge too), so I suggest letting it chill for a half-hour or so before you serve it.

Tomato, Spinach and Feta Frittata

Here it is, my friends: a greek salad frittata, full of delicious things like tomatoes, feta, and herbs. I'm quite a fan of frittatas, partly because they're so easy, and partly because they're so versatile. It's an excellent way to make eggs for a crowd without having to deal with individual eggs or (worse) individual omelets.

My frittata was also incredibly forgiving. For instance: I was forced by the supermarket to buy an entire bag of shallots (I needed one for another recipe), so instead of also buying a red onion, Daniel chopped up some surplus shallots and tossed them in. Delicious. And, when I realized an extra friend was showing up for brunch, I tossed in a few more eggs, chopped up a few more tomatoes and snipped a few more herbs, and the whole thing came out beautifully.

Greek-Inspired Brunch for Eight

Our new apartment is not air conditioned. It's okay, air conditioning is for wimps. Of course, that doesn't mean I don't spend most days draped over an arm chair unable to summon up the will to move, but still, who needs it? Besides, my lack of air conditioning has a distinct advantage: the windows on either side of my long narrow kitchen are kept open, and when there's a breeze, it blows through our potted herbs, making the whole kitchen smell like rosemary. 

I'd like to say it was the rosemary, or the chives or the oregano, that inspired this first brunch, but alas, the reason is much more mundane. My menu planning went like this: I like greek salad. I will make a greek salad brunch! With cake! And so a brunch was born. And, as luck would have it, it did use a lot of the herbs we have growing in the windows.