Theories of Spring S.A.D.
Today I'm cooking to cure depression.
Does anyone else get outrageously depressed in early Spring?
It happens to me pretty much every year and still somehow comes as a complete and total surprise. I like to think it’s a vestige of sad Easters past or perhaps a disconnect between the weather and the amount of vegetables I’m able to harvest. E, on the other hand, theorizes it’s based in an architectural design flaw. Like many people in Nashville we live in a rancher with horrible, high-up, half-sized privacy windows, effectively cutting us off from the boom of growth outside for the better part of our waking hours. He feels this is very bad for our overall health and would like our next home to be set into the ground, hobbit style.
Whatever the cause, we agree that pizza is the cure. This morning I used literally all my energy to make sauce— olive oil, red onions, tomato paste, red miso, smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, oregano, sugar, a splash of sherry, a can of tomatoes, the dregs from a jar of eggplant spread. I also smashed two big garlic cloves and threw them in whole before simmering everything until jammy. Later E will layer it on sourdough with mozzarella, red peppers, red onions and kalamata olives. On the side, romaine tossed in leftover yogurt ranch* and a grapefruit Spindrift.
*I made the laziest and most delicious yogurt ranch of my life last Friday. You thin out full fat Greek yogurt with Kosher dill pickle brine and season it to taste with powdered ranch seasoning!