Fresh Tart, Fresh Start?

So, what do you think of the new name? Moderate Epicurean has a special place in my heart, but it’s awfully clunky to describe to people and I was ready for…something crispier. I like both ‘fresh’ and ‘tart’ for meaning sassy, because…I’m (worse than) sassy (but what I really am wouldn’t make an appropriate blog name). I like that it also alludes to fresh start, which is what this is all about. My goal is to take things up a notch here at…Fresh Tart…so stay tuned for better design, photos, and perhaps the addition of demonstration video clips. And yes, this all includes getting my recipes in order. (In case you’re wondering, the Just One Bite name I was messing around with earlier in the week is the name of…rat poison. Dang, that seriously made me laugh. Too bad though, I liked how it alluded to moderation. Ah well, so it goes in the blogoshpere.)

On my mind this weekend, other than renaming/designing my blog, is one of my favorite cookbooks, Michael Chiarello’s Causal Cooking. I’ve posted a few recipes from it before – spaghetti all’amatriciana, tomato soup, spuma di tonno (tuna spread), and herb butter. But I’m ready to try a few more, like mozarella in carrozza.  From his book: “A carrozza is a “carriage,” in this case the bread that sandwiches the mozzarella and delivers it to the table. Mozzarella in Carrozza is southern Italy’s grilled cheese sandwich, with a little anchovy to cut the cheese’s milky sweetness and an egg batter to make a golden coat.”  Oh yeahhh, right? Kinda fresh, kinda tart (definitely salty), I like it. (Recipe here.)

This pretty salad also appeals to me, using clementines in place of tangerines (because they’re so delicious right now)…shaved carrot, fennel, and tangerine salad. Paper thin slices of carrot, fennel, and red onion are dressed with lemon juice and olive oil and tossed with tangerine sections and watercress. Seriously fresh and tart, yum. (Recipe here.)

Or, a gorgeous-looking winter panzanella (bread salad), this version with roasted butternut squash and slivers of Brussels sprouts, both of which I have languishing in the cooler (not very fresh sounding, but they’re quite decent, as seen up top). I might innovate and add a bit of crispy pancetta to finish and call it dinner – I’m on my own tonight, and since the rest of the fam enjoys neither squash nor Brussels, it’s a perfectly lovely thing to make for myself. (Recipe here.)