Treats

I went to a dinner the other night and found that little ribbon wrapped boxes were nestled right above each place setting. I could only assume they were chocolates and because I'm such a fan, was kind of excited to think it looked like the perfect amount to enjoy, one at a time, during the next few days. I was tempted to take a look, intending to save them all for later....... and then noticed a sticker keeping the box closed:

FOR PLANTING NOT FOR SNACKING!

Turns out this was a box of four 'Garden Bon Bons': Beautifully crafted clumps of seeds, organic compost and clay presented as truffles.....each one shaped and dusted with natural pesticides such as coffee, pepper and cinnamon. An enclosed card said that when they are placed on top of soil and watered, each one will sprout Italian Large Leaf Basil, Chives, Italian Parsley or Winter Thyme. Tomorrow they'll go into a couple of pots on a sunny part of our patio.

What a genius idea......So creative and unexpected! I really didn't need the chocolates.....but I'm sure glad I brought my glasses that night, which prevented me from popping one of those delectable looking balls of seed, compost and clay right into my mouth!

Wishing you a wonderfully warm and sunny week,

Margaret

PS: The Rocky Mountain School of Photography appreciated my last few blog posts and created a link to them from their own blog, Paper Airplanes. So thankful for the kind words about me, too!  You can take a look at it here. 

Sweet Basil

I simply love Basil. I'm thinking that it's about time to use up what's growing in the pots next to my patio.......it's September and the leaves won't last all that much longer. I would sure hate for them to go to waste, especially since it is one of the few things I decided to grow this year. This morning I did a little planning in order to make the most of the last two or three weeks of this beautiful and fragrant herb.

We've been using basil all summer long in a variety of salads, including the very simple but so very satisfying caprese, which is especially wonderful when the heirloom tomatoes are meaty and ripe at the Farmer's Market. It has also made its way into dips, pasta, sauces and the occasional fritatta or scrambled egg. I keep meaning to track down a recipe for Basil-Lime Sorbet. I was served this a few years ago at a dinner party and am still thinking about it! 

This morning I picked three cups and made a double recipe of pesto which is sitting covered in my fridge until this evening, when I'll use it to make Penne With Pesto, Potatoes and Green Beans. If the remainder doesn't get used up within the next couple of days, I'll freeze it to use in a few weeks. Last year we discovered a favorite sandwich to make with holiday leftover's: Turkey, cranberry sauce, provolone and pesto on sourdough, grilled in a panini maker. Did I really just mention the holidays?! Yikes!

My plan for tomorrow is to harvest another cup or so to make up a double batch of Buttermilk Ranch Dressing, a recipe from Ina Garten's cookbook, How Easy Is That? Love this recipe (the cookbook, too), mostly because it's not difficult to make up or clean up, is relatively healthy and will last in the fridge for a week or so. In case you're interested: I usually make it thicker than called for to use it as a veggie dip, then thin it out a bit for dressing a salad.

I linked the two recipes I mentioned to this post. Let me know if you try them out!

Have a wonderful week!

Warmly, Margaret

Bountiful

For the first time in a few weeks we made it to the Farmer's Market here in town. And it was buzzing! So many people out on a sunny day, eating, listening to music and checking out the absolute bounty that is the market at this time of year. I didn't bring my camera simply because I thought it might be too much to carry what with all the fruits and veggies I had in mind. I probably wouldn't have been able to crowd into the produce stalls for good shots anyway......but the crowds or the people......now those would have been good shots!

I came home with young spinach and zucchini, beautiful heirloom tomatoes and a flat and a half of berries. We grilled the zucchini, layered the tomatoes with fresh basil, salt, pepper and olive oil, and made sorbet with the raspberries. The sorbet was so easy I can hardly believe it was the first time I've made it! I liked it best the first day when, although it had been in the freezer for a couple of hours, it was still a little soft. I still haven't figured out how to prevent homemade ice cream from collecting ice crystals after sitting in the freezer for more than a day. Any ideas? 

Afterward, Marc spent some time putting together an enclosed tumbler for making compost (see above). I have to say that I heard more than a few mumblings about the deficiency of the directions included, but it all came together and now we have it. Depending on where you live, it might appear ridiculous to set up a contraption like this just to make compost when it seems like a pile in the yard somewhere would work out just as well. Lately however, at least where we are, whatever is not locked up or locked down acts as an open invitation to an after dark feast for very persistent bears or raccoons.

So with the compost tumbler and a new fence around our garden......I think maybe this is the year to try veggies again. I've been looking into suggestions about what to plant in the fall and just read a great piece about garlic. That seems like a good place to start but would totally welcome other thoughts......especially for our climate. I'll keep you posted.

Wishing you a wonderful week,

Margaret