Fig season is almost over and this post has been sitting in my draft folder for almost two months. The reason being that every time I sit down to write, I'm at a loss for words. I have no stories, nothing interesting to tell. Thankfully I have blog friends who have been encouraging me to just publish the dang thing.
So for today's post I want to tell you about my typical week. It's pretty mundane, but perhaps it will help us connect as something more than voices over the internet. Okay. Here goes:
Monday through Friday, during the day, I work on the dev team at a tech company in midtown Manhattan where I spend most of my time writing code. Almost daily I get lunch with my work friends, we sit around and shoot the shit. We usually eat in the cafeteria of our building but sometimes go out for lunch, which entails weaving through the bajillion people walking around time's square. Midtown is terrible. Phillip always complains that I'm a slow walker, but he's never seen me power walk down 40th street in a desperate attempt to get back to the office and away from the throngs of tourists.
Wednesday afternoons we have a half hour guided meditation (we get a lot of perks at work). The meditation is different every week, but always focuses on similar themes, my favorite being "mindfulness." We learn to slow down and be mindful of even the most mundane task such as washing your hands or making a sandwich.
Thursday nights after work I go to pottery class from 7 to 10 pm. I'm trying to make my own props! It's actually very difficult to make good looking bowls and plates that don't look like they were clobbered together by a 5 year old, hence why you have yet to see these props in any of my photos, but I still love it and look forward to it every week.
Some nights I make plans with friends and it usually involves food and/or drinks. Two weeks ago I met Alexa from The Best Bite Of The Plum, she was a darling and we talked and talked and I can't wait to talk more. Then the next day I went to Molly's book launch party (congrats again Molly!!), watched her perfectly frost a funfetti cake and stuffed my face with gruyere mac and cheese. On weeknights when I don't have plans, Phillip and I will make a quick dinner (or order takeout) and eat while watching a movie or dumb TV show. We used to go rock climbing pretty frequently after work but in the last few months we have become Fatty mcFattersons who don't get much physical activity. When I started pottery I thought I could have multiple hobbies in my spare time, but instead one just replaced the other. Finally, I'll write for this blog if I'm feeling inspired—usually when this happens I stay up way too late because creativity doesn't have a schedule! Then the next day I'm very sleepy.
Weekends and early mornings are when I do photoshoots and recipe testing. Though I try to alternate my weekends between work and fun. So one weekend will be packed with blog work then the next weekend I'll go to Six Flags and scream my lungs out riding roller coasters then get drunk at night. Lately it's been more fun and less work, but I'm sure the work wave will come soon.
And that's it: the current status of my workaday life. Now let's quickly circle back to our typical weeknight dinner. This fig salad is the type of recipe Phillip and I will make for dinner after work. I get home pretty late and thus try to avoid elaborate meals. The simpler the better, and it usually doesn't get any simpler than a salad. Caramelizing onions is the only step that takes a bit more time, but the end result is a wonderful combination of salty, sweet, and tangy. Fruit + cheese is always a no-fail in my book. Enjoy guys, and have a great rest of the week!
Notes:
Serves 2 as a main, 4 as a starter.
Ingredients:
for the dressing:
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
for the salad:
1 medium to large white onion, diced
2 tsp oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
3 cups arugula
3 cups baby kale (or spinach)
1/4 cup walnuts
8 figs, quartered
1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese
Instructions:
To make the dressing, combine white wine vinegar, olive oil, dijon mustard, honey, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Set aside until ready to use.
In a medium stainless steel pan, cook diced onion in oil over medium heat, stirring occasionally so the onions don't burn. After 10 minutes the onions should be soft and starting to brown. Turn the heat to low and add salt and sugar. Let onions cook for another 30 to 35 minutes, stirring every few minutes until they are a rich brown color. If at any point the onions start drying and scorching, add one to two tablespoons of water to rehydrate them. Once done, turn the heat off and let onions cool for 10 to 15 minutes.
To make the salad, place arugula, baby kale, caramelized onions and walnuts in a large salad bowl. Drizzle half the dressing on top and toss to combine. Taste and add more dressing as desired. Top salad with figs and crumbled blue cheese. Serve immediately.