We are entering the time of year when I frequently think it would be extremely unpleasant to stand near a hot stove at the end of a working day, but not yet the time of year when we can eat tomatoes every night. So the plan is to have a number of items that can be mixed and matched chilled or at room temperature, maybe alongside something very very quick to cook at the time, like scrambled eggs. Ideally they would also serve as nice components of smørrebrød, the existence of which I have only recently discovered.

Smørrebrød is an open-faced Danish sandwich constructed on that dense European bread that comes in remarkable dark brown bricks, sliced thin -- "health" bread, or that specially bricklike pumpernickel, or whateverelsebrot in that vein. I picked some up from World Market this morning. It is always covered completely by its toppings and always, or almost always, has a sauce of some sort on top (which makes sense when you experience how very dense indeed the bread can be). I found thinned Greek yogurt, a bit of salt, and lemon juice was easy and nice for the purpose. You always eat these with knife and fork and always butter the bread thickly or spread it with goose schmaltz, to seal it against the toppings. (You will note that the smørrebrød concept is very closely related to the simple, down-home habit of Piling Tasty Things on Top of Toast.)

I like this concept and think I will pursue it often, while I also intend to pursue often my more tried-and-true habit of the eclectic mezze. Today's cooking was therefore directed towards suitability for both, with some hardboiled eggs, sauteed mushrooms from the farmer's market, asparagus roasted in the toaster oven, etc. Two other dishes were new for me, and the recipes appear below.

MOROCCAN CARROT SALAD OR DIP
This is not original to me in any way, but I also certainly did not make it directly from any one recipe. So I may as well make a record of the version that sprang from my fingertips.

1 lb carrots, peeled and roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, smashed
2 T. olive oil
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. harissa
salt
splash of vinegar

Boil the carrots in lightly salted water until they're cooked through -- say, 5-10 minutes. Drain and toss them into your food processor with the garlic, olive oil, and cumin. Pulse until you have a nice hummus-textured (but a bit drier) puree. Scrape out into a bowl and stir in the harissa. Add a splash of some nice vinegar, ideally sherry vinegar and taste for salt.

SPINACH WITH INDIAN SPICES AND GREEK YOGURT

1 T. mustard seeds
1 T. cumin seeds
2 T. olive oil
1 small onion, diced (red onion is nice, but not required)
1 t. ground fenugreek (optional)
3/4 t. salt, or to taste
1 bag of the nicest frozen spinach you can find, the kind with individual leaves that rattle around in the bag, not anything where it's all pressed into a block
1/4 c. thick greek yogurt, such as Total

Heat the mustard seeds, cumin, and oil in a medium or large pan over medium-high heat for a minute or two, until the seeds crackle. Add the onion and turn the heat to medium. Cook until the onion is very nice and soft, about 15 minutes. Add the fenugreek and cook a minute more. Then add the salt and the spinach. Cover and cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove cover and cook a bit longer, if necessary, to evaporate any pooling spinach juices in the pan. Remove from heat and let cool at least 10 minutes. Stir in the yogurt and taste for salt.

The result is very thick and creamy, just on the side of "spinach dressed with yogurt" rather than "spinach in yogurt". You cannot have this hot, because the yogurt will separate and it will not be nice. But at room temperature, it is divine. It would be great heaped on toast, or sturdy crackers, or inside a pita, or as a side dish or one of many mezze on a hot evening.