I took this platter of veggies and dips to a BBQ recently, using jam jars for the dip holder — it made it easier to transport by fastening the tops to the jars.

Side note: For those of you who have ever driven in Montecito, you would know why you have to secure your dip in the car. It may be paradise, but navigating through six-way stop signs, ridiculous roundabouts, dodging the plethora of Prius-driving town-goers who think they are Dan Gurney, makes a two mile trip down the road a whirling maelstrom that sends your homemade goods-a-flyin’ … okay, I feel better now — back to the food.

This bean puree is great smeared on flat bread or as a veggie dip. Flageolets are small, light green beans that are mild and delicate tasting. I buy mine at Tom Shepherd’s stand at the Santa Barbara farmer’s market. Some afternoons, after I pick up the girls from school, we go see Tom at his farm in Carpinteria. He has a beautiful antique wagon filled with produce. The girls mingle with the sheep and chickens, and I collect the “goods.”

Keep in mind that dried beans double in size when they are cooked, so for every cup of dried beans you get about 2 cups of cooked.

1 cup dried flageolet beans

2 bay leaves

1 chili de arbol, stem removed

3 cloves garlic, whole and peeled

¼ large white onion

Rinse the beans in a colander and dry on a kitchen towel. Check for rocks and clumps of dirt — yes, rocks and dirt. Put the beans in a pot on the stove and cover with water by about 3 inches. Additionally, discard any beans that float to the top of the water line. Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot and cook until beans are cooked thru and soft. In my experience, the fresher the beans, the quicker they cook. Usually they are fully cooked in about 30 minutes on medium heat.

NOTE: If you are just making beans and not the puree, be sure to add one teaspoon of salt after the cooking process.

For the puree, drain your beans and reserve the liquid. Next, pull out just the bay leaves and pour the beans (including the onion, chili and garlic) in the blender.

Then add:

1 clove fresh garlic, peeled

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup olive oil

¼ cup of the reserved cooking liquid

Blend until smooth and serve at room temperature. This can be made up to two days ahead of time.

This is the most delicious egg dish! These ingredients might seem like unusual combinations but they are a marvel in your mouth. I can’t wait to serve it in the summer with freshly picked tomatoes from the garden. If you can get you’re your hands on some good tomatoes this spring (I just found some yummy ones at the farmers market that were grown in Palm Dessert) this would be a great starter for entertaining over Passover or Easter holidays.

Peggy showed us the technique for grating the tomatoes in our Moroccan cooking class. I had never prepared a tomato sauce this way but it opened up my eyes to many possibilities. Whether you are making this Berber Omelet or tomato sauce from any region (i.e. Mexican salsa or marinara) it is a beautiful consistency and easy to do.

Garden note: I planted my “early girl” tomatoes this week.

Berber Omelet

Serves 6 in one tagine
8 large tomatoes (grated)
5 cloves garlic (minced)
2 T parsley (chopped & mixed with cilantro)
2 T cilantro (chopped & mixed with parsley)
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 lg tsp salt
1 tsp ras al hanout
3 bay leaves
1-2 T olive oil
12 eggs (about 2 eggs/person served)

Grate the tomatoes into a large sauce pan or bottom of a tagine, Add garlic, parsley & cilantro mixture (saving a touch for garnish at the end), ground pepper, salt, ras al hanout, bay leaves and olive oil.

Cover and simmer all ingredients (on stove top or on a brazier) for about 10 minutes.

Crack the eggs one at a time directly into the tomato sauce inside the tagine. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes or so, until the eggs are cooked, but slightly runny inside.Add parsley and cilantro for garnish and serve out of the tagine.

Recipe by: Peggy Markel

Photos by: Blue Caleel

Rica surprised me with this terrific soup the other day.  Pozoles have a rustic vibe,  a fresh taste that is spicy and simply delicious.  We all loved it.  This soup is a great option for casual entertaining.  Set-up a little condiment bar of garnishes and invite your friends to customize to their liking.  It would be an excellent diversion from the usual Super Bowl Sunday fare.   Your guests will be so impressed, you don’t have to share how easy it is to prepare.

Rica’s Pozoles

Serves 6

1 whole pork tri tip

5 pork neck bones

3 whole cloves of garlic

½ medium white onion chopped in half

5 dried chilies

1 16 oz can of hominy drained and rinsed

Cover meat, bones, garlic and onion with water and bring to boil. Turn heat down to medium and cook covered for two hours.

Soak dried red chili in hot water until soft.  Put in a blender and puree.

After the pork is finished cooking add hominy and pureed chili to the stock. Cook for another ten minutes. Just prior to serving the soup, pull apart and shred the chunks of meat (I like to use two forks).  Discard bones and large pieces of onion.

Garnish the soup with shredded cabbage, diced green onion, chopped radishes and a squeeze of lemon wedge.

Green garlic is garlic that is harvested early – which is now for us in Santa Barbara.  This garlic is not as pungent and potent as mature garlic. The green stems add a bright freshness to what you are cooking. I often use it to flash-fry Ridgeback shrimp (Kim taught me that).  Recently, I created this green garlic salad dressing or dip and a couple of nights ago, I served it to some friends for dinner.  They wanted the recipe, so I figured why not pass it on to you too? It’s tangy, garlicky and keeps you coming back for more.  I served it over chilled romaine leaves and baked croutons made from French bread.  I plan on serving it for a yummy and original dip for Super Bowl Sunday.

Yields about 1 ½ cups

½ cup mayo preferably home made

(I recommend Thomas Keller’s Ad Hoc at Home for the easiest homemade mayo recipe ever)

½ cup plain Greek yogurt — low or nonfat is fine

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon Meyer lemon (they are currently flourishing in my back yard and are less acidic than regular lemons, but use what you have on hand)

2 tablespoon white wine vinegar

¼ cup chopped green garlic with stems

2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

In a food processor fitter with a steal attachment puree the first 7 ingredients until completely smooth.  Add olive oil slowly followed by salt and pepper.  Taste for seasoning and serve over greens or as a dip with Crudités ….give those football fans some healthy veggies!

I braved the stormy weather a week ago Friday for my weekly trek to the farmers market.  God bless the farmers who weathered the rain and the stylist who made rubber boots chic!  I was on the hunt for the perfect flowers for my Saturday night dinner party.

In knew I wanted something casual, non-stinky (flowers that smell are not a good match for a dinner table bouquet) and simply lovely.   I spotted Ranunculus and was filled with glee- a perfect match.   Ranunculus are currently in season and so beautiful, I often think of them as the winter sister of the rose. They bloom in a variety of gorgeous colors from (canary yellow to deep crimson). A divine bargain at three dollars a bunch, I grabbed 10 burnt orange bushels and headed home.

I rummaged through my very neatly organized flower vase shelves in my garage (check my recent blog post on starting the new year with your home clean and organized) to find the right container to make the arrangement be an uncomplicated showstopper.   I decided on a rectangular (14×4) copper pot for this arrangement and in no time I had a truly special and effortless bouquet.

I simply trimmed the stems, making the flowers about 8 to 10 inches long and stuffed them in the container filled with water from my outdoor flower sink.  I have a reverse osmosis water system in the house, so I always make sure to use water from the outside so the flowers last longer in the vase.  Ranunculus will last about a week.  Gorgeous! The arrangement was worth my wet car interior and frizzy hair.  Oh, the meal was pretty good, too.