Another Friday slip

Friday once again slid by with no sign I left a trace here. But to anyone observant, I actually did add something. Thursday's post, mentioning Lucy and Lola now has a photo of them. I was late to the cart and they were early, so we missed each other in the a.m. I caught up with them at Ann's Paradise store, happily indulging in a bowl of ice cream each.

Balloon John was wearing his computer John hat, but switched for the delightful Lola and Lucy, making Lucy a cat (3 times, silver balloons do not like being cats) and Lola a flower. Mom & Dad took the pic and emailed it to me as we sat on the porch, oh technology wonders!

Here is why Friday slipped away. A woman named Marissa was playing on the water front and she was too good for just a quick listen...I have video on my camera and have tried to get it here on the blog but it's a learning curve where I've not quite gotten over the hump. I'll be working on it, but it's why this is being posted now instead of this morning....argh. She was incredible.






Going backward, which I do so well, the day was beautiful from the very start...helped greatly by the construction workers leaving for the weekend. Thankfully. While it might not lessen the dust whirlwinds, it does lessen the noise and we are grateful. Plus, Nadine's street is open, which means Nadine's is open. It also means you can park in front of Ann's shop now that it is its proper one way going again. But only until Monday, so enjoy it!!




Being Friday, the veggie guy was in and I was without my camera (my arms were loaded with Treats of the Day and hot sauce to mail to customers who don't check in baggage - thanks, y'all, for buying anyway!). I will really try to get a picture next Friday because the veggie guy has gone way upscale, to our shock and food joy. Here is a sample of how this works on Culebra.

Me (at the pizza place before it opens, glancing into the cooler & seeing it full of veg): Heather, can you believe the veggie guy today?? PORTOBELLA mushrooms?? ShiTAKI mushrooms! LEEKS!

Carlos (prepping the bar): LEEKS??? He had LEEKS? oh maaaaannnnnnn...

Heather (showing off what she has to Carlos): Yeah, Saturday brunch will be shrimp and leeks with white asparagus and....

Carlos & me: Drool.

Carlos (whimpering): White asparagus????

Carlos: quietly sobbing

Heather & me: Laughing

The line was two deep at the veggie stand, with the veggie guy, Alex and Pan working as fast as they could and the shoppers having to shop while standing in line. This is some of what was on offer (if you live in a regular place, you might shrug and wonder...but if you live on or visit regularly, you will appreciate our stunned faces):

Mushrooms:

Portobello
Shitake
Oyster
Crimini (which I bought, having never tried them - had to rip open the package and share with Heather and Carlos - Heather says, small portobellos? I say, succulent!)

Peppers:

Sweet - red, yellow, orange

Hot - ancho, poblano, jalepeno, thai, banana, another one I'm not sure about (but I'll be using the seeds from all of them!)

Apricots
Shallots
White asparagus
Corn on the cob
Leeks
Scallions
Parsley
Spaghetti squash
Large cherry tomatoes

and lots more but those were some of the stand out highlights. Amazing! And the day just kept on being wonderful from there.

Now, for the What's in that...Friday recipe.

I have to say I was a vegetarian once. For about a year. It was great but the truth is, I'm a major carnivore...to the point that when I was little, my Dad would give me the bone-in portion of whatever meat we were eating, calling me the ever so endearing nickname, The Dog. Only at the table mind you. So when I gave up my vegetarian ways (which my father noticed, finding me in front of the fridge at 2 in the morning with a rib from a beef roast in my hands, gnawing away - "Oh, eating meat again.") I enjoyed those meals I'd put together NOT using meat. Living on islands and boats for a pretty long time, good vegetables and fruits are highly appreciated, so in honor of the veggie guy, here is a recipe for veg kabobs for one, but obviously easy to expand for however many you need.

Grilled veggies with rice.

Bamboo skewers
1 ear of corn
4 crimini mushrooms wiped clean (becauuse I CAN!!! - use whatever kind you can get)
6 cherry tomatoes
1 large jalepeno pepper (seeded - and save those seeds if you have organic peppers, you can plant them!)
3 shallots (because I CAN - you can use a chunk of any mild white or red onion)
1 smallish yellow summer squash
1 bell pepper of any color, but red is good

1/2 cup basmati rice

Skewers need to soak in water at least an hour, so start with that.

Cut corn into one inch sections (short wise, obviously).

Slice jalepeno length wise and remove the seeds. Cut into pieces big enough to be threaded onto the skewer (some suggest using gloves for this, I just make sure I wash my hands and use lemon on them after...and keep fingers away from sensitive body parts for the rest of the day/night).

Peel shallots and cut in half length wise. Option for onions - if you use onions, you can also slice them and put them on the grill a few minutes before the skewered food is done.

Wash squash and slice into 1 inch sections.

(Photo from the sizzleonthegrill.com blog, not recipe perfect! )

Options again. At this point you can either marinate everything in a plastic bag or covered bowl for an hour or so, or go straight to the grill (don't have a grill? Use the oven, not the same but it can be done - but you can buy a hibachi grill & use charcoal for about 10 dollars and it's worth its weight in gold) If you go for the marinade, you can keep it simple:

Marinade (for soaking and/or basting):

1 finely minced garlic clove
Juice from one lemon (or 1 tablespoon lemon juice from a bottle - fresh is best, as always)
1/2 t. dried oregeno
1/2 t. basil
1 T. spicy mustard
3 T. olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste

Moving along here.

Your grill (or oven, at 325) should be ready to go at this pointTake all veg and thread it in rotation - corn, mushroom, tomato, pepper(s), shallot, squash - onto the well soaked skewers. set aside and

start your rice. 1/2 cup of rice means 1 cup plus a couple tablespoons of water, and a touch of olive oil. Bring the water to a boil, add rice, bring down to a simmer and cover. Back to the skewers.

Lay on grill and cook about 20 minutes, rotating & basting regularly. Check on your rice in about 15 minutes. If it is 'almost' done, turn off the heat and leave the lid on. Perfect.

Put the rice down to form a bed for the veggies. take the skewers and gently remove the vegtables onto the rice (yes, I know the corn is on the cob...play with your food). You can drizzle a little of the remaining marinade over this if you like.

Enjoy!

One last thing for a Saturday catch up. Today two very pretty girls came up to the cart (with a good looking guy tagging along). It was a little crazy with two funny, nutty customers there from Ohio (who knew?) so they had to wait a bit for us to finish up our deal. I asked if I could take their photo for the blog and they said yes, if I would let them interview me for a class project. Deal! I had to answer the "Why did you move to Culebra?" question. I always want to lie and embellish...but it's the same old thing. Perfect place, I'm lucky.

and last but god knows not least. A reader came by today and asked about the CWIM, who seems to have been missing from my posts. She is just fine. Yesterday she decided she would bring a mouse IN the house...show off. I convinced her to take her toy outside...She made out like a bandit while I was on St. Croix with Francie feeding and petting way more than I would. Right now she is on the table behind the computer, keeping watch out the window for the White Dog. Or maybe a hummingbird...



Thanks for asking!