Lunch

I had just enough pesto leftover for lunch today and it was delicious and so was the slice of tomato. Nothing like homemade pasta, and fresh basil, parsley and tomatoes from the garden. The tomato was not from my garden, I paid a greenback for it at the local farmers market.

Black Raspberries!

My first harvest. They are SO sweet, delicate and just melt in my mouth!

Patio Garden

Lavender............................... peppers, tomatoes, tomatillos...............more lavender


Sweet Basil......................... Tomatoes.................................. Curly Parsley


Stevia................................ Tomatillos, Peppers........ Texas Tarragon..............More Tomatoes

Thank you Mother Nature for all the rain, rain, rain last week and for all the sun, sun, sun this week. The perfectly mixed combination has made my patio garden green, green, green!

Tonight's menu: Pesto with bow tie pasta, grilled shrimp, roasted yellow crookneck squash, sun tea with stevia and lemon.



This is the best cookbook, ever! The spine of my book is broken, the pages are falling out, but I love it just the same. I bought this cookbook about 20 years ago, I think I was about two years old, yeah two. I even bought one for my sister. I knew that as we got older and wanted to cook, this was the book for us!

This Pesto recipe is so easy, and a favorite in my house. Every summer my nieces and nephews request to make Pesto, and I let them. Sometimes my kitchen walls end up splattered with flecks of green, but it wipes off and there is nothing better than a child learning in the kitchen! The great thing about this recipe is you can add or subtract ingredients and it still is really, really good. Our favorite Pesto recipe is from the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook pictured above.

Pesto
Original recipe from Better Homes and Gardens Complete Guide to Food and Cooking
1 c firmly packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 c firmly packed parsley sprigs with stems removed
1/2 c grated Parmesan Reggiano or Romano cheese
1/4 c pine nuts or walnuts
1 large clove garlic, quartered
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c olive oil

In a blender container or food processor bowl, combine basil leaves, parsley, Parmesan or Romano cheese, nuts garlic, and salt. Cover and blend or process with several on-off turns till a paste forms, stopping the machine several times and scraping the sides. With the machine running slowly, gradually add oil and blend or process to the consistency of soft butter. To serve, dollop some of the pesto atop hot soups or toss with hot cooked pasta. Makes about 3/4 cup.

Nutrition information per tablespoon: 76 Kcal, 2 g protein, 1 carb, 7 g fat (2 g saturated), 3mg cholesterol, 110 mg sodium, 66mg potassium

Shrimp
Created my own little recipe.
1 T light olive oil
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Juice of 1/2 lime
dash of salt
few grinds of fresh pepper
1 T fresh chives
12 shrimp tails on, thawed
3 skewers or foil

In a medium size bowl, stir together the first six ingredients. Add shrimp and lightly toss. Let sit for ONLY a minute or two minutes. If you own skewers, place four shrimp per skewer. Place on grill for about 1 minute per side or place shrimp on a foil bed, sides raised and cook. Shrimp are done when the shell turns pink and the flesh turns opaque. They will cook quickly.

Roasted Yellow Crookneck Squash
My sister taught me how to make this simply delicious summer time vegetable. It's a favorite.
Thinly slice squash lengthwise about 1/4" thick
Place on a bed of foil, lightly oiled with olive oil.
Sprinkle with water, freshly ground pepper to taste and grated Parmesan Reggiano, about 1-2 tablespoons. Place foil bed containing squash on hot grill and cook till just tender, and cheese is melted.

You can also make this in the microwave or oven. The directions are all bit different.
To microwave, arrange sliced squash in single layer, if you can, on a microwave safe plate. Really wet a paper towel or two and cover squash. Microwave on high for about 1-3 minutes or until tender. Be careful, the water will create steam! Once tender, remove from microwave and season with pepper, and Parmesan. Serve.

Oven: Lightly grease the bottom of a baking dish with olive oil. Arrange sliced squash in a single layer in a 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle with water, and season. Bake, covered, in a 350F oven for about 10 minutes, remove foil and continue baking for 5 minutes or until slightly tender and the cheese has melted. I have baked the squash in the oven uncovered, the squash tends to dry out a bit.

Melt In Your Mouth Strawberry Muffins

I found this recipe on the underside of a Stoneyfield Farm yogurt label.
Sounds good, really good, I thought. Fast forward to strawberry season and I thought I had the perfect lazy Sunday breakfast, paired with an espresso. Let's just say the espresso lived up to its name.

I did make one change in the original recipe; I was out of yogurt, so I substituted plain Kefir and added a bit more flour and a dash of cinnamon. OK, so I made three changes. The muffins did not melt in my mouth and they really did spread creating a bit of a mess. Disappointing. So in all fairness, I am going to remake according to the original recipe, plus cinnamon. I'll let you know or you can bake them and let me know.

Melt In Your Mouth Strawberry Muffins
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup Stoneyfield Farm yogurt
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped strawberries fresh or frozen

Preheat oven to 375F. Yields 12.
In a bowl, mix together flour, sugar and baking soda. In another bowl, mix eggs, yogurt, butter and vanilla. Toss strawberries into the flour mixture. Then, pour yogurt mixture into flour mixture and stir. Spoon batter into greased muffin tins. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until tops are golden brown.

Wet Your Whistle!

I prefer fresh squeezed juice. I buy organic fruit, plug in the juicer and wa-la! Perfect, every time. Simple, fresh and versatile.

L0LAde! (Lemon Orange Lime)

Juice of 1/2 a lemon, plus slice to garnish
Juice of one lime, plus slice to garnish
Juice of one orange, plus slice to garnish
1 T sweet water to taste* if desired
or a twist of a Stevia leaf or two
Ice

Juice each fruit, pour into an ice filled glass, sweeten to taste and garnish.
*(50/50 boiled water to sugar. Cool)

Here's what else you can do with this recipe:

Popsicle Freeze!
Tupperware makes a great little make your own Popsicle container. I layer each juice into the Popsicle holder, add the sweet water to the lemon mixture first then layer. Add the Popsicle stick and freeze.

Adult Beverage
Add 1 oz Tequila and 1 oz Grand Marnier
Pour into shaker or blender with LoLade, and shake/blend.
Rim glass with lime, dip in salt. Add ice, pour, garnish and drink responsibly.

Please Wash Your Hands

Scrub a dub dub!

Think back, who taught you how to wash your hands? Hand washing was a huge deal growing up in my family. We all learned to wash our hands and often at a very early age. We also learned to welcome OCD into the family, kidding, a little.

My family rarely used public restrooms growing up. I do not ever remember being taught that public bathrooms were "bad" they were just "gross" and something used ONLY under extreme circumstances. "Can you hold it or do you HAVE to go right now"? my mom would ask. Holding was the right answer but sometimes you just had to go and relieving yourself on the car dealership's floor was frowned upon. Half the roll of toilette paper would be placed on the seat with firm instructions, "Do NOT touch ANYTHING"! Your foot was used not only to sweep all the paper into the bowl but to also flush the toilette.

After using a public restroom I remember feeling slightly contaminated. Y0u know what comes after using the toilette, wash your hands! Washing your hands was an even bigger production proving "holding it" was the better option. After exiting the stall we were taught to ready the paper towels, wash hands, turn the water off but NOT with your clean hands but with the paper towel in waiting, then grab a fresh paper towel, dry your hands and leave but do not touch the door. Either gently kick it open and hope a sibling wasn't waiting on the other side or use the paper towel you just dried your hands with.

I was extremely petite growing up and could barely reach the faucet without touching the sink counter which always resulted in water running down my arms. Whatever top I was wearing would instantly become a mop for any standing counter water. The final step, to find a trash can to dispose of the paper towel you just used to open the bathroom door. Yes, All this had to be done without flesh touching anything!

Funny the things you remember. I can remember why to avoid a public restroom, but I have no solid memory of when or how I was taught to wash my hands. I just remember my mom saying, "wash your hands before you...," and all I know now is I am always washing my hands and counting.

Ask yourself the following:

• When, how often, and how long do you really wash your hands when you wash your hands?
  
• Do you use a common towel, the clothing you are wearing, jeans - shirt, air dryer, or a disposable towel to dry your hands?
  
• Do you use HOT water and soap or just a slight rinse under cold running water because your hands may fall off if overexposed to H2O?
  
• The public door knob, do you touch it with your bare hands thinking you have super powers?
  
• And finally, do you really want to eat food made by a person who does not really wash his/her hands thoroughly and wears a dirty apron or stained gloves?
  

We all think we are clean, right? Wrong! We are not. Most people do NOT wash their hands properly and as often as they should. Think of hospitals, day care centers, food service workers, nursing homes, schools, and then the rest of us.

Do you wear gloves? Why? Are you protecting yourself from the food or the food from you?
Do you wash your hands before you put on your gloves or just put on your gloves? Here is a hint, wash first then put on gloves. Do you take your gloves off and then reuse them? That is a BIG NO-NO! Do the finger tips of your gloves ever yellow? Well, you should be banned from the kitchen, and any type of cooking. Your gloves are old and worn from use, so wash your hands and put on a new pair.

I was told multiple times by a chef that as a whole, we do not wash our hands properly. "We are filthy dirty creatures" he would often say. I hate to say it, but it is true. Just observe the people around you, especially the people who are preparing your food.

Do you have 20 seconds? If not, slow down. Take the 20 seconds it takes to wash your hands and help yourself stay healthy! And use a clean disposable towel to dry! This step by step hand washing procedure is from the ServSafe Coursebook, fifth edition.

1. Wet your hands and arms with running water as hot as you can comfortably stand (at least 100 degrees F, 38 degrees C.
2. Apply soap.
3. Vigorously scrub your hands and arms for ten to fifteen seconds. Clean under fingernails and between fingers.
4. Rinse hands and arms thoroughly under running water.
5. Dry hands and arms with a single-use paper towel or warm-air hand dryer. When leaving the restroom, consider using a paper towel to turn off the faucet and to open the door.

No cheating!