The Whole Reason

The whole reason why I planted broccoli rabe is in this Broccolini salad from the Duplex Diner in Washington DC.  I had the salad a few times when I lived in DC from 2003 thru mid-2007 and it is To. Die. For.

I planted rabe seeds in March, nursed it along, planted it in the ground, and then got busy, and now it's begun to bolt.  Even though you see the recipe plain in front of you, it occurred to me exactly 1/2 hour ago to look it up online.  Before then I had a memory of a yummy salad and was thinking to send my Dad to the restaurant to order some and figure out the formula.  My Dad is laid up these days and I was bereft for weeks.  What to do?  What to do?  (I may be an engineer, but there's a difference between being engineer smart and being "smart" smart!)

So, anyway - I stood looking at the bolting rabe and it occurred to me like a thunderclap.  Email the restaurant!  Ask them for the recipe!  I came inside, got online to the website and the menu - and there's the recipe, plain as day.  Sometimes it's convenient when restaurants list every single ingredient on the menu!

PS:  I think maybe I planted these things too close together.  Lesson learned!