Using up the bounty

There's one problem with my husband being gone so often during the summer - all of the fresh fruits and vegetables we're getting at the farm need to be either put up or used fairly quickly. Of course, Ro and I have been having a lot of salads. It's a good thing we both like greens!

I've also been craving briny flavors for some reason today. With that in mind, I threw together a salad that is reminiscent of the ones my father would make on Sunday afternoons or for a late night snack. Only, no onions. Not today. Today isn't an onion day for me ;)

Fresh picked golden cherry tomatoes, Greek olives, a cucumber, about an ounce of crumbled feta and a drizzling of balsamic vinegar seems to do the trick today. Fast and fairly healthy for both of us.

Cooking with the Next Generation

I'm such a proud mom.

My daughter has been wanting to learn how to cook something more than just macaroni and cheese from a box. So today she learned how to make tomato sauce (or gravy in the lexicon I grew up with as a NJ Italian princess). Fresh basil, fresh oregano, red pepper, garlic and garden fresh tomatoes all combined with a bit of red wine to make a heavenly scented sauce that I'll reheat tomorrow over a nice, sturdy pasta. It's big and chunky and smells oh, so good.

Oh, and she learned how to uncork a bottle of wine. She's not sure she likes the non-cork corks!

Simple meals

I love simple meals bursting with fresh flavors. After an amazing haul at the farm today, I came home to make a Greek cold cucumber soup. It was a simple matter of blending some cucumbers, chicken stock, garlic, yogurt and fresh dill, which took all of 5 minutes. With that I had a decent feta, Greek olives and Italian bread drizzled with a very fruity extra virgin olive oil. A small glass of wine would have rounded this out nicely, but I have an hour until I have to go to my martial arts class, so that will have to wait.

Now to figure out what to do with all of the vegetables from the farm today - if I can keep myself from eating the still-sun-warmed tomatoes as they are!

Well now, this should be interesting :)

I love to cook. I love to bake. Most of all, I love to eat. After the myriad notes I've sent friends on restaurants and recipes, both good and bad, I figured it might not be a bad idea to keep track of some of that here.

Homemade meals, chain restaurants, mom and pop places, holes in the wall, 4 star experiences: they'll all get their turn eventually!