Gado Gado Garden Greato, Greato

PASSIONS | by SHERRY STRIPLING

LAST YEAR’S GARDEN WAS PROLIFIC, but the corn came on while we were away, the excess acorn squash ended up in a compost pile and we toyed with renaming our place Zucchini Acres.

So we are planting strategically this year, popping in only the ingredients we need for our favorite summer dish: Gado Gado.

Described as an “Indonesia extravaganza,” our Gado Gado includes yellow rice (the glow comes from turmeric) on a bed of spinach, covered with vegetables, tofu and hard-boiled eggs from our own chickens. It’s all topped by a spicy peanut sauce.

We can’t grow the rice or the peanuts in our northern climes, but we can grow spinach, cabbage, green beans, carrots and onions (Gado Gado with Walla Walla onions has a nice ring).

No broccoli or celery, both suggested ingredients in our dog-eared 1977 Moosewood Cookbook original recipe, but we will grow our own favorite additions, potatoes and cucumbers. Not a zucchini in the bunch!

You can find other Gado Gado recipes online or get the lighter, improved version with The New Moosewood Cookbook. For a sampling of other vegetarian recipes, visit the Moosewood Restaurant or Molly Katzen’s archives.

Peanut Sauce
From “The New Moosewood Cookbook”
Makes 2 cups
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 heaping tablespoon grated ginger
1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 cups hot water
4 tablespoons cider vinegar
2 tablespoon soy sauce
Crushed red pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients, spoon over Gado Gado (or anything else), and enjoy.