zucchini

OK, first off, I don't have a grill. But you can get near it by cooking the veggies in a skillet over medium-hot flame. Secondly, I repeated this recipe a few days later as marinated vegetables. We didn't like it as well. Thirdly, I encourage you to really review my cost analysis. I knew it was a good week at the stores, but $3.00 to feed 5 people dinner is incredible! It proves you don't have to break the bank to eat healthy. It also highlights how much you can save by bringing your own lunch to work.

Recipe for Mediterranean Vegetable Pitas

• 5 Pita pockets, cut in half
• 3/4 cup Eggplant, diced
• 1/4 cup Onion, sliced thinly
• 5 Sweet peppers, sliced thinly
• 2 small Zuchini, sliced
• 1 Tablespoon Olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried Herb of choice (sage, rosemary, or Italian blend, for example)
• 1 Small tomato, cut into wedges
• 5 (heaping) Tablespoons Hummus

Heat oil in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add onions, stirring until slightly softened. Add eggplant, zucchini, and peppers. When vegetables are starting to brown, season with herbs. Toast pita pockets if desired. Spread with hummus. Fill with vegetables. Garnish with tomatoes. (Although there's nothing that says you can't cook the tomatoes, too. As they cook down, they'll make a yummy sauce for the veggies.) Another idea, my father asked for his sandwich to be served with balsamic vinegar.

This was some Italian Ice we enjoyed a couple weeks back when friends were visiting. It was such a great little treat for a summer evening. . .a hot summer evening. All that being said, the big mistake I made last week was not focusing on summer-associated recipes for our dinners. This week will be different thanks to great deals at the grocery store and the realization that our summer is almost over. Let's all take advantage as long as it lasts!

I made Sunday productive by making a collection of PB&Js to freeze for lunches. When I had finished the blueberry, I started on the cloudberry jelly. It was a great way to use up a bit of something in the fridge, plus, I made about 8 sandwiches, which should last us a couple weeks. Meanwhile, my spinach au gratin potatoes or Spinach Potato Bake spent an hour in the oven. We ate some for Sunday lunch and have two servings leftover for lunches later in the week. Oh, and I almost forgot. My morning in the kitchen started by boiling eggs for egg salad sandwiches--very summer-ish.

OK. So, it's obvious from the photograph and from proceeding ones that I haven't a clue how to flute my crust. I also think I never seem to have the right size pie plate or the right size crust for these activities. Luckily, they are reasonably forgiving if you can overlook the sometimes unappealing-to-the-eye look. By the way, this is a continuation of yesterday's story about the bright and perfectly ripe flavors of the tomato corn salad I made for my grandmother who requires soft foods to chew. (I also started writing it about 12 hours ago. My how a baby really changes everything!) We get one loan zucchini at a time from our garden. I had already had pasta the day before, and was looking for a better idea for my zucchini. I came across some eggs in the fridge with an expiration date past the return date of my mom and suddenly had my inspiration for the tart. I used my mom's oil crust recipe and created my own zucchini filling recipe. See what you think.

Cost to Make Zucchini Tart

Note: Cost is based on my shopping list even though it used my mother's ingredients.

Recipe for Oil Pie Crust

• 2 C all purpose flour
• 1 t salt
• ½ C oil
• ¼ C cold water

Mix flour and salt. Blend oil and cold water with fork (lots of bubbles). Add liquid mixture to flour and stir. Roll dough between 2 pieces of waxed paper. Place dough in pie plate. Flute if you have the talent. Poke 5 sets of holes in the bottom of the crust with a fork.

For this use, I pre-baked the crust just about 7 minutes. For other uses, it isn't always necessary.

Recipe for Zucchini Filling

• 1 good-sized zucchini, thinly sliced
• 1/3 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tablespoons milk
• 1/2 cup cheese, finely shredded and divided [my mom had the four cheese blend]
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste

Saute zucchini and onion in olive oil about 5 minutes just to soften. Beat eggs, add seasonings, salt, and milk. Beat together. Layer onions and zucchini on pie crust. Top with half of cheese. Pour egg mixture over vegetables. Top with remaining cheese. Bake at 400 degrees until top is golden brown, about 30-35 minutes.

Cost Per Person $0.36

Last week we dined on our first zucchini and hope to have another one this week. It isn't a large haul, but it's enough for the two of us to enjoy. (We did eat the first one in pasta mixed with other veggies to serve to my parents as well.)

I'm sorry to say, this week is a little crazy. I don't have any brilliant ideas for food, but Paul and his sister went to the Maitland Farmer's Market yesterday to acquire a beautiful eggplant and some giant tomatoes. We'll be having excellent sandwiches and perhaps baked eggplant parm in the next couple of days.

This is a week for visiting, which means we'll have plenty going on and enough food to be creative. Paul's sister and brother-in-law flew in for the weekend. Elizabeth gets to stay longer while Dag returns to work. And then, Paul and I will be babysitting my grandmother over the holiday weekend so my parents can go to my father's high school reunion. All that being said, we're playing everything by ear, but are grateful for the prolific fresh produce of the summer to allow us freedom to be creative.

My garden has not turned out as well as I had planned. But, I don't beat myself up. I'm new to this. It just kinda feels like a waste of money. I'm happy to hear advice if anyone wants to assist in my cluelessness.

First the positives: The basil is growing like crazy. The parsley is happy. I'm going to replace my depleted tea supply with mint very soon. I'm also imagining a mint chocolate chip shake or smoothie. And tonight we harvested our first tomato. (Not really. I noticed it was missing and made Paul dig in the midst of the basil for it cause I'm afraid to touch anything I can't see in my garden right now. It had ripened and fallen off, but it could stand another day or two on the counter.)

The bad things: Two weeks ago, I walked out to check on my budding green thumb and discovered my large carrot planter picked clean. I mean clean! Even the weed that I left hoping I'd get lucky, and it would magically turn into something edible was gone. The container was dry as the desert. I was heartbroken and even dreamed a couple nights later that I had giant, 5-inch in diameter carrots coming out of my planter at harvest time.

Last week my folks and I went to the Orlando Public Library as a play day for the four of us and Nora. There's a great little coffee shop and cafe in the library run by a couple who are vegetarians and wanted to start a vegetarian restaurant. However, they didn't want to leave out meat-eaters; so for an unusual twist, the vegetarian items can be made with meat as opposed to most restaurants that automatically think meat unless you say otherwise. The owner and his wife were very kind and patient with our slow decision making and called their patrons by name. Even having not tasted the food, I would have returned just because of the customer service.

I stepped outside my back door on Friday and to my surprise, I see positive changes in my little plants in our container garden. I was so excited, I called my parents immediately. I'm so glad to know that growing our own items really isn't as hard as I expected. In fact, it's quite a lot of fun. And what a blessing to watch the plants grow and change. I've included just a few pictures so as not to bore you.

Peacefood Cafe was recommended to us by Leigh at Marvelous Kiddo. She certainly has good taste! We loved our experience at the restaurant. It was amazing that there was always a line for a table during our entire lunch. Maybe that doesn't mean much in crowded New York City. Still, I've always maintained the belief that people being willing to wait for a table is a good thing. The staff was very friendly, and I think the serving time for our meals was acceptable.

The restaurant has a nice selection of fancy teas, etc., but we were there for the food. Of course, a pregnant woman is always there for the food! And even more of course, everything on the menu sounded amazing. It was very hard to come to a decision. I finally settled on a sandwich with lots of fresh vegetables--including my favorite, sprouts! It came with some marinated vegetable sticks on the side. That just might have actually been my most favorite part on the plate. I was pretty sure it was jicama, but the server said it was yuca. Shrug. It really doesn't matter. It was yummy just the same.

Cost Per Person $12.00

Now that it's really cold in Florida, I feel like I can share these creative plasticware snowflakes from New York and fit right in. Especially since this morning it was about the same temp as it was in New York early December. What's up with that!

We're still eating up food from Paul's family being in town last week. The only thing I'll run out of is milk and bananas, I think. So, I will have to take a quick trip to some grocery store soon. Meanwhile, I have a list of likely dinner options that will be eaten in the expected order in which it might go bad. Also, I have a number of potential lunches lined up and will share those, too.

Another picture from last weekend in New York. We already blew up a few photos, framed them, and hung them downstairs. Just glad we weren't there this weekend!

I assume your thoughts are like mine when the week of Christmas comes around. There's so much food about to go in the fridge, you just can't imagine making something new and storing it in there. Not to mention, you're about to be spending a couple days in the kitchen and don't want to spend extra time each night working on the family meal. Course, when you're 7 months pregnant and have a broken foot, things get much trickier.

I've been happy to allow my mother the joy of taking care of the meal for Christmas Day as it will just be my folks and grandmother and ourselves. Paul's family comes in late Christmas night and will be around to play for the next week. Today, I'll post my plans for meals Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, hoping my mother has cooked up a great plan for Christmas Eve, too. And, later in the week, I'll post the ideas I have for the week that Paul's folks will be in town. Granted, Paul's mom and sister are great cooks and the menu's subject to change if they bring around a recipe they want to try or if Paul requests something in particular.

Sometimes, the best laid plans aren't enough. Remember how my menu plan for the week included pre-cut vegetarian turkey and zucchini to make a second batch of soup? Well, tonight, for some reason, soup wasn't a good idea. It is a bit warmer in Florida, and I grazed on goodies all day at the office. So, it didn't take me long after getting in my car and starting the drive home to evaluate what was in the fridge and to change my mind. What I loved about the fajita idea was that everything had been prepared already. So, it was a cinch to cook, and I had two huge fajitas on the table within 15 minutes. Moreover, my only dishes were two plates, the sauteing skillet and spatula, the cutting board and knife for the onion (they were only in rings), and two knives and forks to eat with. Thanks to an empty dishwasher, clean-up was even faster than cooking!

Recipe for Veggie Fajitas

• 2 Large/Burrito Size Flour Tortillas
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar
• 1/4 large onion, diced or sliced
• 1/4 bell pepper, sliced
• 1 cup vegetarian turkey, cubed or sliced
• 1/2 cup zucchini, cubed
• 1 T Oil, olive or other preferred sauteing

Note: Proportions of veggies and veggie-meat were what I had on hand. The beauty of such a recipe is that you can always add or take away or exchange. There is no wrong as long as you like what you are putting in the dish!

Place a medium to large skillet on medium-high heat. Pour in oil and add onions. Stir until onions soften. Add bell pepper, zucchini, and turkey. Stir to coat with oil. Let sit occasionally to brown sides of veggies and stir again. Veggie-meats do not have a minimum cook time. You only need the food to be cooked through (and the veggies tender, of course). Place tortillas on microwaveable plate. Spread vegetables evenly in center of wrap. Sprinkle with cheese and roll. Microwave 30 seconds to melt cheese OR while the veggies are cooking, place the tortillas on top of the skillet so they catch the heat from the cooking. Turn often to make sure all sides are warmed. Then, you don't have to microwave the finished product.

My day pretty much started by listening to Nigella Lawson's interview by Steve Inskeep. I was most amused by the interview, especially just before 7 on a Tuesday morning. Incidentally, if you've got the 7 minutes, the radio recording is much more entertaining than the written article.

Nigella is proud to be a carnivore, and her cookbooks often highlight that fact. However, in the summer, she's all for taking advantage of the summer vegetables in season and making her veggie dishes the center of a meal. Feta cheese is a big part of those recipes, so if that's a favorite of yours, she's got great recommendations.

At the new NPR.org, you can access a zucchini and feta fritter recipe, a rolled/stuffed eggplant recipe, and a dessert recipe. All vegetarian and all with the ease of a lazy summer--albeit the end of it--in mind.

Currently, we are all feeling a little sick to our stomachs--even my dad, and he's only eaten one meal with us in the last week (but we all got sick before today). Anyway, the last thing I want to think about right now is what I want to eat this coming week. Still, it will make me a much happier camper if I can just have something lined up. I'll type rather quickly and go distract myself by something other than food after this. Much of our ickyness is likely chalked up to the extreme heat and walking around a poorly air conditioned science museum with little water breaks all afternoon. We have water bottles lying all over the house right now. I told my folks it's the price we pay for mild winters. Only this time, I'm not sure it's worth it. Let's see what I think come March.

A Loose Menu Plan

• Veggie Calzone (Fresh tomatoes, black olives, onions, broccoli, zucchini, arugula, mozzarella)
• Zucchini Spaghetti
• Veja Links and Corn on the Cob
• Bagels and Fruit
• Cereal

My mother-in-law, Kathleen, led me to this website after a good friend of hers, Dorothy, shared it with her. Believe it or not, my desk is so full, I'm just now getting around to passing it on.

Deb, the author of Smitten Kitchen, has a number of recipes posted that she has generally adapted to make work best for her. (Very similar to the way I operate.) She's a very good photographer and has a great sense of humor. I like how she enjoys the kitchen so much that she spreads her time between what appears to be time-consuming items and those that can be done in 5 minutes. My favorites posts thus far are mentioned below. If you are a Foodie at all, this is a great opportunity to drool over some fabulous looking dishes. Moreover, they are mostly lacto-ovo vegetarian recipes, which means Deb will be a great source for my continued learning in the kitchen. I'd also like to point out that her New York City kitchen is a great deal smaller than mine, which proves that you can be successful in any size space. In my case, the clean-up just takes longer because it's more spread out. But we still have fun!

Now that I am working a couple days a week in our Orlando office, I consider the extra commute worthwhile considering I am nearer freshfields farm, Super Target, Einstein Bros. Bagels, and even a Publix when necessary. I am happy to report that I hope to take on the European concept of fresh food and be able to stop at the freshfields farm next to my office more than once a week to pick up the freshest and ripest produce. An even bigger incentive is that many times the prices are better than the Maitland Farmer's Market, the produce generally looks better, and the stand doesn't have flies everywhere distracting me.

Exactly a week ago, we attended a wedding at the Omni Resort in Champions Gate, Florida. We loved the wedding and are so happy for Sarah and John, but more importantly, we enjoyed this (see photo) particular menu item so much that the efforts of a duplication will likely be part of our menu this week.

I have fallen off the wagon of my menu plan to eliminate unnecessary stress in my life the last couple of weeks due to friends and family visiting, which throws off my schedule a bit. (I'm a creature of habit.) But, I'm back on this week!

Menu for Week of June 1

• Cold Wild Rice with fruit and nuts salad, veggie-meat
• Open-faced grilled cheese with aged white cheddar on dark wheat bread and mixed green salad
• Pizza on Flatbread with veggie-chicken spinach, and zucchini
• Cereal or Smoothies and Sandwiches
• Corn(?) and. . .

I have purchased fresh corn on sale at differing grocery stores for the last two weeks. It's a great summer treat and so inspiring because the fresh flavors make you want to do something just as fresh to go with it. We've already eaten this week's supply of corn, and I hope to acquire more on Thursday or Friday when I do my big bi-weekly grocery shopping.

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