Fall Into Summer

So...that happened. You know, the part when I apparently took over two weeks off from this blog. I'm not quite sure what happened exactly. One huge part of it was that we didn't have potluck for two.whole.weeks.

My heart and belly hurt over that one.

But summer happens. Lazy days and busy weeks...trips, vacations, visitors. And so, sometimes, potluck doesn't happen. We make up for it by seeing the familiar faces during the week. At playdates, farmers markets and in town. And we make up for it by having delicious potlucks in the middle of August when the weather threatens Fall and you're just not ready for it.

Yesterday was grey and rainy and just plain gloomy. Potluck was a much needed event. We hosted and decided to make baked rice - my go to dish in soggy, chilly weather. This time we worked with what we had on hand.

I started by sauteing up some onion and carrots from the farmers market in a little bit of olive oil.

After they cooked for a bit, I added 1.5 cups of a brown/wild rice mix, a 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes (liquid and all), 2 cups of chicken stock, and a little salt and pepper. Once that came to a boil, I covered it and transferred it to the oven to bake for 40 minutes at 350*.

While it was baking, I prepped a few more ingredients.

I chopped up some dino kale from the garden and a few Italian seasoned veggie sausages. Normally I would use chicken sausage, but this is what we had on hand, and despite my reservations, they actually ended up being quite tasty and held up pretty well in the dish.

After 40 minutes, I added them to the dish, stirred it and let it bake for another 15 minutes.

Perfection.

Yeah. Potluck was rocking it out last night. In addition to the baked rice (in the lemongrass colored Le Crueset on the left) we enjoyed some homemade tomato soup, fresh bread, and a fabulous pine nut & parsley infused couscous salad. Dessert came in two forms...some Dean & Deluca cookies sent to me by a friend and a crazy.amazing.delicious macaroon/raspberry/pistachio tart. The meal was bittersweet as it reminded me of how amazing potluck can be, which makes me all the more sad to be missing it next week when we go camping in Cape Cod. But...Cape Cod. I think we'll be okay!

Also, stay tuned because I've been hard at work this month testing out all sorts of delicious new popsicle recipes featured in Anni Daulter's book, Ice Pop Joy. I'll be reviewing both the book and a few of the recipes. And perhaps there may even be a give-a-way...

Summer Salad

I love seasonal eating, and it's never easier than in the summer. It also helps when you have neighbors who are going away for a couple of weeks and need to clean your fridge...the combination can be quite tasty.

Mediterranean inspired salad:

-lettuce from the garden
-cherry tomatoes from the garden/farmers' market
-cukes (from the store, but the garden ones are coming along nicely!)
-olives & some amazing turkish farmer's cheese from the neighbors

Chop it all up and add a dressing made from balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil & a dash of salt & pepper.

It also helps when your fellow potluckers make a delicious meal that suits your salad perfectly.

A delicious cilantro infused slaw, savory bread pudding & roasted chicken. We had the requisite ice cream for dessert. Yum and Yum.

Sumptuous Summer

I love summer potlucks...

Firing up the grill.

The first taste of local corn.

The kids playing outside, running between the sandbox and the kiddie pool.

Okay, not that last one. I have a super visceral reaction to the thought of wet sand near food. But, after we hosed the kids off, they joined us at the picnic table for this amazing meal...

Hot dogs, corn, sesame kale, quinoa & zucchini salad & homemade pickles.

With the exception of the hot dogs, everything else included local ingredients. The pickles were made with local dill, cukes, turnips & beets, the quinoa had local zucchini and the kale (and broccoli leaves!) came right from our garden. The fruit salad at the end was the perfect dessert, followed by a handful of blueberries picked on Sunday.

The kids seemed to enjoy the meal as well.

As for the kale...that was our offering and couldn't have been any easier (as is my method during the summer). I picked a bunch of dino kale from the garden, and then snagged a few broccoli leaves as well, because...why not?

I steamed those up, and while they were cooking I toasted a handful of sesame seeds in a wok. I added some olive oil, minced garlic and a tablespoon or so of tamari and mixed in the kale. Delish.

Pesto Potluck

So...it's been a while.

Summer seems to have that effect. Between RV trips whisking us away and other summer happenings, it can be tricky to ensure that we keep our Monday nights going. Thankfully, last night we were back in full force, packing in our house with a lot of people and food!

When it came time to decide what we were going to whip up, it was really a no brainer. Our garden has been overflowing with basil lately, so we went with our go-to dish...pesto pasta.

The garden. Overflowing with basil *and* weeds. We'll get right on that.

Everyone seems to have their own version of pesto that they love, and to be honest, ours changes on any given day. There's no real measuring going on, and I even change up the ingredients from time to time. Here's what we did this week.

1. Pick a bunch of basil.

About that much.

2. Clean it up.

3. Toast some pine nuts in a skillet for a couple of minutes. (I probably used 1/4 cup or so of pine nuts).

4. Blend together: basil, pine nuts, salt, pepper, one minced cloves of garlic, and some olive oil (1/2-3/4 cup? I start with a little and add more as needed). I use a hand blender, but a food processor or regular blender will work just as well.

5. Add to cooked pasta.

6. Serve to friends and eat alongside their awesome food.

The pesto pasta went perfectly with chips & green salsa, greens/cheese fritatta, fresh garden salad, potato salad & a yummy peach/rhubarb cobbler for dessert!

Golden Like the Summer Sun

It's no small secret around these parts that I dream of having my own backyard chickens. The sad fact remains that we don't actually have a backyard, hence...no chickens. However, we do have friends with backyard, chickens and consequently...eggs!

I was told the breeds of the various chickens that created these eggs & promptly forgot as I ooh-ed & ah-ed over them. doh.

Over the weekend we received 2 dozen of these backyard fresh eggs, and I have to say, there's a real difference.

A hard boiled egg was demanded immediately upon receiving the eggs. Done and done.

They taste fresher and the yolks are this amazing, fabulous golden orangey-yellow color, bursting with flavor.

When potluck arrived Monday, I knew I would be using these eggs in some capacity, but had yet to make a decision as to exactly what. Would I devil them? Boil and chop them into salad? Souffle them? Then, my Joy Of Cooking calender told me exactly what to do...

Frittata!

Easy peasy, able to change up the flavorings in a pinch and a total crowd pleaser. I quickly scanned the garden and came up with the two different types I would make.

The first was a tomato, basil, mozzarella frittata. The basil came straight from the garden, but sadly, our tomatoes aren't quite ripe yet, but we always have a container of grape tomatoes around. The "recipe" is simple really...for this one I beat 7 eggs, added a splash of milk, salt, pepper and handfuls of chopped tomato, basil & shredded mozzarella. I oiled up an oven safe skillet, poured the egg mixture in, stirring it around for a bit before it started firming up. Then, once the bottom is mostly cooked (and it's runny on the top), I popped it into a 350* oven until cooked through (10 minutes or so). 

Yum, yum, and more yum.

 The 2nd frittata was a total experiment that turned out really well.

We used chopped garlic, local goat's milk feta cheese, and broccoli leaves! I had wanted to use kale, but the kale in our garden is not quite fully grown. While the actual broccoli is only partially grown, the leaves of our plants looked full and lovely, so I thought "why not?" and I'm so glad I did. Cooked, they tasted just like collard greens and went perfectly in this frittata. I sauteed the garlic 1st before adding the egg mixture.

nom.

The frittata worked perfectly with green salad, soba noodles & tofu (not pictures) and pesto pasta with peas. The perfect meal for a pre-Solstice potluck!

Happy Summer Solstice, everyone!!

Birthday Bash

I absolutely love when we celebrate a birthday at potluck. The food always tastes *that* much better and you know there's going to be a fabulous dessert. This past Monday did not disappoint in either regard.

We celebrated Rio turning 4 with delicious food and the creamiest birthday cheesecake ever.

In addition to the fresh pita, homemade hummus & spicy pickles that we brought, we dined (al fresco, yay spring!) on some cheesy rice/lentil casserole, quinoa salad, cabbage salad and spaghetti & meatballs.

Afterward, with party hats in place, we wished Rio a happy birthday before tucking in to the chocolate and strawberry covered perfection that was the cheesecake!

Holyland Hummus

This past weekend we were in NYC, and since we were staying in the East Village, we had to make a stop at the Holyland Market on St. Marks Place. They not only make the freshest pita, but they also have Israeli brands of tahina and pickles that I love. (They also sell pickles from a kibbutz where some of my family lives!)

When it came time to prepare something for potluck, it was a no brainer. I grabbed some chickpeas and whipped up some homemade hummus. If you've never made hummus before, stop what you're doing and try it now - it's easy and well worth it.

Tahina(sesame paste), chickpeas, lemon, garlic & olive oil

All measurements are approximates and will vary based on your own tastes. Drain and rinse the chickpeas, reserving a little bit of liquid for the hummus. Mince one clove of garlic and place in food processor. Add chickpeas, 1-2 tablespoons of tahina, juice of 1/2 a lemon, 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and some salt & pepper.

 

Then - puree! As it blends, add some of the reserved chickpea liquid until the consistency is to your liking.

I ended up making this into hummus masabacha. I took a cup of whole chickpeas and mixed them with the other half of the lemon juice, some cumin and salt and then topped the hummus with them. Drizzle some more olive oil and sprinkle some paprika over it and you're good to go. I personally enjoy eating hummus masabacha slightly warmed, but room temperature will do in a pinch.

Holy yum.

It seemed like a hit at potluck and went well with the rest of the festive food (we celebrated a birthday! More food pictures/details to come...)

Buggy, yet Blissful

It was the perfect day yesterday.

 

It was everything Spring should be: warm but breezy and filled with backyard potlucks. The food was perfect, the weather was perfect, the bugs were...not perfect. But, c'est la vie when you live in Western Mass and the weather has alternated between tons of rain and heat. We slathered on the neem infused bug repellent and hoped for the best. (The best included waking up with a few red bumps, but what can you do. It was worth it).

We made some pasta salad with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and basil from our garden. It went perfectly with savory mushroom bread pudding, coconut rice/avocado burritos, curried deviled eggs and sauteed greens.

Picnic perfection

We topped the meal off with homemade strawberry lime sorbet (recipe below) made with strawberries we picked this past weekend (more on that later this week).

I kind of winged it with the strawberry sorbet, but it came out perfectly (I figured that it's pretty hard to mess up sorbet, but this ended up being insanely awesome, and I'll be making another batch tomorrow. yum).

Hull/chop a quart and a 1/2 of strawberries and mix with 1/2 cup of sugar. Fridge for about an hour or 2, stirring occasionally. Zest one lime into the bowl of strawberries and add the juice of said lime. Blend/puree the strawberry mixture till smooth. (I used our hand blender and it was easy peasy and little mess). Then put in ice cream maker and follow the directions for sorbet. I use a Kitchen Aid mixer ice cream attachment and churned it for about 20 minutes before putting it into a container and into the freezer for a few hours before serving. Dee-lish.

Potluck Through Pictures

From this past Monday...

Nothing quite says "Summer's on its way" like gin & tonic

Salad with the best.dressing.ever. Saffron rice, chana masala, sweet potato pie.

Dessert = strawberry/rhubarb crumble

Is it next Monday yet?

Chana Masala

And here we are...yet another gray, rainy Monday. And I'm in need of flavor - something that packs a punch. My son was clamoring for chickpeas (he is obsessed with him, thanks to a certain televised lemur who occasionally has a hankering for them), so I figured, why not make the best of both worlds.

Enter: Chana Masala.

Usually I'm pretty hesitant when it comes to cooking Indian food because the flavors are so bold that I worry it will be completely obvious if I've messed it up. Yet this dish is easy to prepare, easy to temper to your own tastes and is a definite crowd pleaser.

Start by sauteing one diced medium onion in vegetable oil.

While the onions are cooking, organize and prep the rest of your ingredients.

Salt, coconut milk, lemon, chickpeas, curry powder, tomato paste, garlic & pepper

Once the onions have softened and slightly browned, add 1 clove minced garlic, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, and 1-2 tablespoons of curry (play with this to suit your tastes. I go with 1.5 tablespoons and it gives a nice kick without being overpowering). Stir it all up and add a couple tablespoons of some reserved chickpea liquid until a sauce begins to form.

Add the juice of a 1/2 lemon, pinch of salt, and a 1/4 cup of coconut milk (to start). Here's where I played around with it a bit. I would stir and taste and add more (tomato paste, coconut milk, salt) flavor as needed. I finally got it to where it wasn't too sweet, sour or spicy, and of course, had no idea what the exact measurements were of anything I used.

Then, add the chickpeas and allow the dish to simmer for 1/2 hour or so. (You can type up our blog post and revel in the amazing smell that's coming out of your kitchen while you do so).

I have it on good authority that this will only be the tip of the delicious iceberg for tonight's potluck. It certainly makes braving the drab, drizzly roads that much easier!

Banana Bread Bliss

It's raining.

It's supposed to rain all.week.long.

It's only Tuesday.

Sorry, just had to get that out there. While there is certainly something charming and delicious about Spring rain, when it decides to continue for a week, well...then I have some issues with it. However, since I can't change the weather, I make the best of it and...bake.

I always find that baking in inclement weather makes your treats taste extra yummy. Maybe it's because you can cozy up inside with a warmed baked good while the nasty weather takes place outside, I'm not sure. All I know is that yesterday was the perfect day for banana bread.

I'm not sure where I got my recipe from. It's one of those unfortunate ones that gets jotted down on a scrap of paper and stuffed in my recipe box, clearly put to good use based on the amount of smudges and stains. 

Just so you know what I'm working with:

Ingredients. And yes. That does say "neeners."

The recipe itself is really a basic banana bread recipe and quite simple even for the beginner baker.

Note the cooking time is up at the top.

While the kiddo mashed the neeners, I got the dry ingredients together.

I happened to have a handful of Godiva mini chips laying around, so I tossed those in as well.

It was still warm when we dug into it at potluck later that night. The rain seemed to keep most people away, as it was an intimate potluck of two families, but just as invigorating and enjoyable.  We also dined on garlic bread, a bean dish and a rice/lentil casserole. In all, the perfect rainy day meal.

Now excuse me while I go build an ark...

Spring Greenbeans

After a week of rainy days, we've finally managed to snag a few sun filled ones and I couldn't be happier. We decided to celebrate by hosting potluck and having it outdoors. The weather cooperated, giving us a sun filled afternoon that ended in a comfortably cool evening.

I wanted to make a bright green side dish, but when I was unable to find asparagus (a sure sign of spring!) at the market, I ended up grabbing a bunch of greenbeans. I knew I didn't want to mess with them too much, and ended up grabbing a few things from the pantry to create a light, flavorful and easy dish.

Most of the ingredients: beans, lemon, salt

While I cooked the green beans (4 minutes in boiling water...no more or you pretty much kill them) I roasted up some almonds in a skillet with a teaspoon of oil.

It was really hard not to eat them right then and there. Yum.

I chopped up the nuts once they were toasty brown and salted them. Once the beans were finished cooking I tossed them with the nuts, some lemon zest and a few hearty squeezes of fresh lemon juice. A bit of salt finished the dish.

 

Super easy, for sure, but still incredibly delicious. It also went well with the rest of the meal, which just screamed SPRING! 

Freshly made purple sauerkraut - still warm! - green salad, lentil/walnut/sweet potato burritos, chick peas & squash, and sticky rice

Our first outdoor potluck of the season wouldn't be complete without lighting up the fire pit, and of course, once that's going you must pull out the marshmallows.

The perfect way to end potluck.

Potato Roast

The end is near...I can almost taste the pizza from here!

Today is the last day of Passover, and my mind is already in overdrive, planning all the leavened food I'll be consuming. Although, truth be told, it's been quite the delicious week. I have also cooked potatoes in pretty much every form imaginable...baked, fried, roasted, sliced, diced, cubed and more. And yet, I'm still not sick of them.

It helps when you make awesome recipes such as this one. This crispy potato roast comes courtsey of Martha Stewart via Smitten Kitchen. It was an easy recipe that allowed me to use one of my favorite kitchen appliances - my mandolin!

Click the link above for the entire recipe. I followed it pretty closely, substituting regular black pepper for the fancier pepper they used.

I probably used about 3/4 of a bag of potatoes (granted my potatoes were on the smallish side).

I also used the mandolin to slice up the shallots - easy peasy and no tears.

I may have overfilled the dish with potatoes, so it was a little tricky to stuff all the shallots in between. However, when it baked up, a bunch of them got extra crispy delicious on top, so I figure it wasn't that big of a problem in the end. 

It was a big hit at potluck, and the rest of the meal was surprsingly Passover friendly. We had two green salads, deviled eggs, meatballs & sauce, and some snacky type food.

Sadly, my dreams of turning any leftovers into homefries this morning were dashed as...there were no leftovers.