Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Some menus to chill with....



Grilled Chicken Cobb Sandwiches--marinate chicken, grill, top with bacon and cheese, with tomato and avocado slices on the side

Serve with roasted potatoes, green beans, German cucumbers, and a green salad.....

Grilled grass-fed sirloin steaks with blue cheese sauce

Serve with corn, baked potatoes and a Michigan salad

Peach cobbler for dessert


Fresh Whitefish
from Charlevoix Michigan, topped with a beurre blanc


Pork loin with mustard, rosemary and garlic
(it was cold the other day--this was great!)

Served with mashed red-skinned potatoes, pearl onions and homemade applesauce

Peach and raspberry pie

All Hail the August Tomato!





Tomatoes rule. For a short time anyway they are the best food on Earth.

My three favorite tomato dishes this August were a tomato tart, tomato soup, and sliced tomatoes.

Let's start with the most simple:

1. A childhood favorite is sliced tomatoes with a dollop of mayonnaise. I now use canola mayo (but I should make my own). It's a guilty pleasure I allow myself at least once a summer (but I've long given up the mayo on the wedge of iceburg lettuce though).

2. Homemade tomato soup. It was heaven. Very simple recipe--had soup in an hour and a half start to finish. One son loved it, the other ate it but said it was too flavorful. I used a new Mexican cilantro I bought (it has leaves, but is spiky and looks like a cactus) and just a quick pass of the herb though the soup gave it great flavor. Served with crusty bread and it was perfect.


3. The tomato tart was SOOO good. The recipe calls for draining the tomatoes with salt on paper towel and they move in the direction of sundried tomatoes. Served on puff pastry with mozzarella and a little Parmesan, basil, olive oil and cracked paper. It was great for breakfast too!

I got my summer fix of tomatoes, but am still planning on making sauce, soup and plain old tomatoes to can for the winter!

Till the next meal.....