August 3rd, 2010 by Sarah
cassoulet and ratatouille
It’s true that in February, Legume is not the best place around get your veggies. Looking back over a menu from six months ago, I noticed that the only fresh veggies we were using (other than garlic, shallots and miripoix in our stocks and sauces) were brussels sprouts, hydroponic bibb lettuce and mushrooms. The menu from February 3rd 2010 was dominated by dried legumes, cheese, meat, potatoes and pickles. The only fruit on the menu were brandied peaches. No attempt was made to make light, refreshing food (nor will such an attempt be made next year.) In February, I want to feel warm and cozy all the time, and so that’s how I cook.
But right now the opposite is true. I want to be refreshed, renewed and reinvigorated! I want to stay up late to enjoy Pittsburgh’s summer evenings. I want veggies! Anyone who has ever complained that we do not serve enough vegetarian food (a legitimate complaint in the winter and early spring) should come now! These days, most of the appetizers are vegetarian—not from a conscious decision to eschew meat, but because the veggies are deserving of being the stars right now.
Ratatouille is a labor of love at Legume, just like the cassoulet is in the winter. While these dishes originate from another part of the world, they are perfect vehicles for expressing summer and winter here in Western PA, because to make them well requires the confluence of many relationships with growers made and continued throughout the years. The possibility of bringing together really fresh eggplant, truly wonderful ripe tomatoes, spicy fresh garlic and heirloom summer squash all fully flavored, at their peak and grown in living, flavorful soil happens for a very brief time here each year. Bringing them together in ratatouille is a celebration of the fleeting joys of summer.
Sarah and I want people to come to Legume because it is a friendly place to get tasty food. But we also hope that on some level people walk away from a meal here feeling connected to the season and to thisplace, Pittsburgh. Approaching cooking this way keeps things fresh for us in the kitchen, even though the forms of many of the dishes we choose to make may be hackneyed and cliche. What makes dishes like ratatouille and cassoulet special at Legume is that they are two dishes in which our highest aspirations for cooking 100% perfectly vibrant, healthy food are actually achieved. They are two dishes in which no principle, politic or aesthetic has been compromised. This is not true of all the food we cook, but it’s nice when it does happen once in a while. No mimicking the trends of more cosmopolitan cities are required for this; just an appreciation for the wonderful people, places and things in and around our great little city.
seafood explosion: th. august 12
On Thursday, August 12th we will be holding this summer’s Seafood Explosion at Legume. While we pride ourselves on always having super-fresh seafood at Legume, we usually only offer one seafood item on the menu in order to move through our inventory as quickly as possible, eliminating any chance of serving seafood that isn’t very fresh. But on Seafood Explosion night, we’ll be throwing caution to the wind and offering up to three or four types of seafood! Woah! Still might not be a huge selection, but at least you know that whatever we offer will be really pristine and wonderful as always. If you can’t make it that Thursday we should have some good seafood selections that Friday too. Give us a call if you’d like to make a reservation, or click here.
saving the seasons
Right now is the perfect time of year to start thinking about putting away some food for winter as backyard gardens and farmer’s markets are exploding with wonderful produce. One great resource for learning how to preserve food is Mary and Susanna Meyer’s Saving the Seasons which is on sale here and at Legume. While the forward is absolutely brilliant, the rest of the book is really quite good too. In fact, we’ve already made a few of the recipes including hot pepper jam, dill pickles and crunchy sweet pickles and we plan on making many more as the season goes on.
closed
We’ll be closed the week of Labor Day, from Tuesday, September 7th to Saturday, September 11th. We’ll be open again on Tuesday, September 14th.
facebook
Become a fan on facebook!
twitter
Subscribe to hear what’s happening right now.
