Picatta-Style Cashew Chickpea Medallions

I had a discussion with a good friend the other day about how one of my favorite things in the world is sauce. A frequent craving for me is "gravy" or "something with sauce". Picatta-Style Chickpea Medallions {page 266} were a dream come true, because not only did they include a sauce right in the recipe -- they themselves were the perfect vehicle for said sauce {along with the possibility of many others}.

The medallions themselves were mildly flavored, but pleasant, and fairly neutral. I can see them being the perfect accompaniment to many meals, as well as the perfect vehicle for many different sauces. They were very easy to put together, and very quick. It was also handy that they were made out of things I generally have on hand.

The sauce was lemony, light, and delicious, with just the right bite from the capers. If I have one complaint, it's that there wasn't nearly enough sauce for my liking. In the future, I would double or even triple the amount of sauce.

This is another one of those great multipurpose recipes in the book that I can see being useful in a number of applications. It is a good pattern to have on stand by to add some quick and delicious healthy protein to your meal.

-- Your Friendly Neighborhood Batgirl

Lemony Rice-Stuffed Grape Leaves

Along with the spreads I greeted my guests with upon their arrival, Lemony Rice-Stuffed Grape Leaves (page 28) made an appearance. We again have something similar in Romania – which is probably why we like Mediterranean foods: we've got our own versions of the stuff. Only they're called sarmale and are made with cabbage leaves. Still, same idea: the filling involves rice and the wrapping is some manner of sweet or sour leaf. Some people prefer their sarmale sour; some sweet. Grape leaves are usually sour; and if there's lemon involved, like here, the tartness factor is amplified.

My guests were delighted by these aromatic, lemony little packets. My dad, though, told me he prefers sweet sarmale; still, he liked them all right despite not being much into anything sour, unlike myself and one of the other guests – we're sour-holics. Well, I'd say pleasantly tart rather than sour, as dolmas should be. Simple and elegant, these make a fine appetizer, side-dish, or buffet-feature. (Use basmati rice; the filling's simple so you want all that aroma.)

And, though wrapping the filling into grape leaves is somewhat time-consuming, it's entirely worth it for the “I've done that too and it wasn't as complicated as I thought it would be!” feeling you get afterward. I'm only a few months into cooking, and this book has been affording me a lot of exciting firsts with, so far, no blunders to speak of. Wait, it gets more exciting presently, I'm all about jumping in headfirst.

- - Ulpia, [grape] leaf roller - -