what do two adults and one dog do with a watermelon?

in a busy kitchen, one adult was prepping dinner.  another was so hungry she needed a snack.  and a dog ensured she was constantly in the way, hoping for something, begging, "come on, mom! share!"


after chopsticks enjoyed her snack....


and we laughed hysterically at ojp and her snack....

ojp enjoying her watermelon

i prepared a drink.

watermelon cooler

week 18: add on week

we were really hoping for the spicy sweet dill pickles to be an add on this week after having demolished the entire jar last week.  and, of course, we were getting some more salsa as that mysteriously disappeared last week too (look at you, ojp!).


but, wait, what's this?!  shiitake mushrooms?!  yes, please.


to supplement out add-ons we went with box "b" this week.

clockwise from top left: tomatoes, shiitake mushrooms (add on), butternut squash, cherry tomatoes, lee's produce fresh salsa (add on), sprite melon, peaches, red potatoes, bell pepper

a rat, a dog and a fish...

ratatouille.  


chopsticks looks up, "we've already seen that movie."  


ojp stops, "a friend for me, dad?!" 


no, not the movie.  and, no, ojp, we're not getting a rat for a friend.  i am going to play with the concept of ratatouille, however.   plus, chopsticks is craving fish.   let the experiment begin.


the menu (08july10):

• paprika dusted fish (pan sauted)
• ratatouille croquette
• avocado puree
• siracha oil drizzle
• potato chips (sliced red potatoes, home fried)

the croquette didn't stay together as well as i had hoped (add an egg next time, spoon), but the taste was spot on.  

chopsticks the baker vs. spoon

this isn't really a fair fight here.  chopsticks is, hands down, the baker in the house.  


meanwhile, we have a wealth of blueberries waiting to be used. chopsticks is going for the blueberry pie.  i'm attempting an olive oil cake with blueberries (ojp stops, "dad, you're going to cook with me?!"  no, ojp... olive oil, not olive) with a blueberry topping.

 chopsticks' blueberry pie

 olive oil cake with blueberry topping

the winner, in a close decision..... chopsticks.  i want to think i put up a fair fight on this one, but have to hand it to chopsticks, she can definitely bake.  

fourth of july = grilling

to start out, i made sure we had enough propane to make it through the cooking process. needed to learn something from last week's wonderful mis-adventures.


the menu (04july10):

• turkey burgers
• grilled potato wedges
• grilled corn with ancho chili butter
• bruschetta topped with  tomato and basil (and, yes, the bruschetta was grilled... had to keep the theme going)

bruschetta topped with tomato and basil

so full... must take ojp for walk in an attempt to recover...  "walk dad?! did you say walk?!! ok, ok, i'm ready!"




p.s. happy birthday, owlie

making up for last week... i blame the contest

or maybe i should be thanking the contest as it has forced me to plan out a few things.  and, as i'm home alone tonight (let me tell you the house is ultra quiet without ojp and chopsticks around), i can take some time to think up a few things.


since it's just me, i wanted something a little lighter.  and, well, that eggplant is staring at me.


the menu (01july10):

• egg white frittata with summer vegetables
• roasted red pepper tomato sauce

egg white frittata with roasted red pepper tomato sauce

this was good enough to make another one the next morning for breakfast.

eggplant two ways

this is, honestly, the first time i've had an eggplant in the house...  let alone more than one.  and since chopsticks has never had it, i wanted to make sure this was one of the first things we attempted this week.  so was trying to think of some of the more well-known "standards" that are out there to highlight it a bit.  as the rule in the house goes, "you have to at least try a bite or two before you can pass judgement.  if you don't like it, we don't make it again. but you have to try it."


first up.  a play on baba ghannouj.  chopsticks calls out, "baba who?!" not, "who," hon, it's a what.  a small snack for us.


the menu (19june10):

• eggplant and white bean hummus:  used the white beans to "cut" the eggplant a bit.  chopsticks approved.

eggplant and white bean hummus

next was a play on eggplant parmesan because "everyone says that's what you have to do with eggplant."  fearing someone may not like this entirely (ojp look up, "me, dad?!  i'll eat it!  is it time to eat?!"), it was paired with some marinated grilled chicken.


the menu (20june10):

• grilled eggplant stacks:  grilled eggplant topped with melted cheese, homemade spicy tomato sauce and wilted spinach
• marinated chicken

1. grilled eggplant stack with marinate chicken

2.  just another view

all by myself

ojp looks up, "dad?!  i'm here!  is it time to eat?!" so, not completely by myself.

chopsticks is working tonight and the storms are rolling in.  no grilling here.  and, after having lost 15 minutes to one of those "i had no idea i was tired" naps, i'm in the mood for something a little lighter.  

the menu (15june10):

• pesto tuna salad, served open-faced on spelt bread with tomato, cucumber and mixed greens

open-faced pesto tuna on spelt

pool is open, summer is here

the temperatures have certainly indicated summer for some time, but we'll mark the "official" start to summer with the long awaited opening of our community pool.  chopsticks is already sunscreened up and ready to go... ojp is staring up at me with those puppy dog eyes that just scream "dad, can i go too?!"  

time for some much needed vitamin d with a light meal to follow.

the menu (24may10):

• summer lasagna

kiss

as in "keep it simple, stupid."  ojp looks up, "dad, did you just call me stupid?"  no, ojp, but you could get out from under my feet in the kitchen!

nothing special here tonight.  nice day, time to grill.

the menu (13may10):

• bbq chicken -- sorry, no real recipe here.  season and brown the chicken (set aside).  throw a ton of stuff (tomato paste, beer, onion, garlic, seasonings, jar of  bbq sauce) and simmer in the le creuset.  put the chicken back in for 20 minutes, remove and put it on the grill for another few minutes.

• zucchini & squash  -- same here.  garlic, zucchini, squash, salt & pepper.  grill.

an addiction & a dog

let me tell you, i'm addicted to my google reader (i can hear chopsticks chuckling).  great, now ojp is up and wanting to play...

i digress.  i'll save you having to hear from me much today.  so, here's an article that came through serious eats by way of carolyn cope (umami girl) about making the most of your csa: the crisper whisperer:  10 secrets for making the most of your csa

oh great... red ball... neighbors are going to love me... this is for you, ojp!