So that wasn't too bad right? With a picture and ingredients you can recreate any "recipe:! Who needs instructions and amounts when they have their own tastebuds...(Actually, if you need tips on any techniques, don't feel bad; just leave me a comment and I'll get back to you.)

Dinner Tonight:

Okay, so this probably needs to be explained a little bit. I've never actually had a real New York pastrami sandwich, but one time they were talking about one in some sitcom, and I had a craving. Immediately acting upon it, I went to the store and bought some ingredients. After a little tinkering, this is what I came up with:

Hot Pastrami on a Toasted Kaiser

Kaiser Roll

Pastrami

Crispy Deli Sliced Pickles

Caramelized Onions

Spicy Spicy Dijon Mustard

Provolone

Dinner Tonight

So if you read this blog, you'll see that I've become very lax at posting. With the new job, new house, ect I really haven't had the energy into writing up recipes. I think the thing that really pulls me away from this and in another direction is having to think about the amounts that need to be added, when to add them, and so on. When I cook, I just add a little of something here and there. I decided today that I'm going to write like I cook: a little messy and loose, but very intentional. To me cooking is an art, not a science experiment. I envision how something will taste, and then I do my best to recreate what I carry in my imagination. Though I always wish that this was a talent that I had when it came to painting or music, I will not belittle the art-form of cooking by saying that it does not compare artistically. As I've said before (and will probably repeat many times over) cooking is an art of the senses. What other art can give you sight, sound, taste, smell, and tough all in one?

Now that I've had my little soliloquy, it's time to post TWO new "recipes," (the way I want to do it - for people who already know how to cook!) Here is dinner for the past two nights.

Last Night:

Roasted Veggies and Shrimp in a Dijon Balsamic Marinade over Angel Hair Noodles

Marinade

Dijon Mustard

Balsamic Vinegar

Olive Oil

Salt

Fresh Cracked Pepper

Fresh Garlic

Veggies

Summer Squash

Zucchini

Cherry Tomatoes

Mushrooms

Whole Clove Garlic

Onion

Angel Hair Noodles

Fried Squash Puffs with Cherry Tomato, Balsamic and Apricot Relish

Fried Squash Puffs

After receiving a HUGE summer squash from my friend Ashley the other day, I got to thinking about all of the interesting a fun things I could do with it. Though I usually make "Produce Pick-up Pasta" because it's so quick and easy, I really thought it was time for another post, and wanted to get away from the rut I've been in. I found this recipe for Fried Squash Puffs and though that it would be nice with a light tomato relish. It turn out deliciously and I think that when I make it again, I'll make the Squash Puffs smaller and turn them into a nice summer appetizer. 

Cherry Tomato, Balsamic, and Apricot Relish

12 medium cherry tomatoes

1 scallion

1 T. balsamic vinegar

2 t. apricot jam

pinch salt

pinch fresh cracked pepper

Put all ingredients into blender and puree. The mix will be very thin. Pour it into a warm sauce pan, and reduce it. (Put the heat on, and let it bubble, stirring so it doesn't stick to the bottom.) Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Spoon over Squash Puffs and enjoy.

Open-Faced Italian Egg Salad Sandwich

I can admit it openly, I've never been a fan of egg salad sandwiches. I think that it might have something to do with the complete lack of aesthetic appeal; mushy white bread with mutilated eggs and runny mayo oozing out the side. But this afternoon, I was reminded of just how appealing an egg salad sandwich could be on the Fourth of July. There's nothing like the old classics to bring you back to the summer picnics in your favorite childhood novels. I decided that if I was going to attempt and egg salad, that I would need to spruce it up a little. I did, and discovered that perhaps I really do like egg salad sandwiches after all!

Open-Faced Italian Egg Sandwich

2 hard-boiled eggs, cut into small rough chops

1 heaping Tablespoon mayo

1/2 mini sweet bell pepper, finely minced

1 teaspoon red onion, finely minced

1 1/2 teaspoon fresh parsley, minced

1 Tablespoon parmesan cheese

fresh cracked pepper to taste

2 slices prosciutto 

 2 slices of French batard

 

Fry the prosciutto in a little bit of olive oil until slightly curled. Meanwhile, mix together eggs and mayo. Add bell peppers, onion, parsley and a pinch of parmesan cheese. Add pepper to taste. Remove the prosciutto and drag one side of the bread in the remaining oil. Place the bread oiled side up in a baking pan and place in the oven under the broiler. Watch this very carefully and flip the bread when the side is slightly brown. On the white side of the bread, spread the egg salad. Sprinkle the remaining parmesan over the egg salad, and place under the broiler again, until the parmesan is slightly melted. Pull and top with chopped prosciutto. Garnish with parsley, onions,  or bell pepper.

 

To remind me of summer in those cold Duluth months

Use-Up-the-Produce Pasta

There is nothing that makes me hungrier than beautiful produce (except maybe not eating all and then spend the last half-hour of work researching recipes.) There is nothing I dislike more than looking at all of that beautiful produce and knowing that you have vegetables that are a little past their prime sitting in your fridge. I have to admit that often the lure of a perfectly ripe heirloom bets out the slightly wrinkled cherry tomatoes in my fridge and I have much more food waste than I'd care to admit to anyone. Luckily, being broke greatly helps me to reduce this occurrence. Today I was really hungry (the whole staring at recipes thing), really broke, and with a lot of really ugly looking veggies in my fridge. I decided to make one of two things I always decide to make when this situation arises: pasta. (The other is some variation on stir-fry.) Though I used what I had, you could make this pasta with any other vegetables (carrots, beets, eggplant, ect.) as long as you adjust the cooking time.

Use-up-the-Produce Pasta

10 cherry tomatoes, halved

1/4 red onion, 2 in. chopped

2 small sweet peppers, sliced 1/4 inch

3 mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 slices prosciutto 

crumbled feta cheese

2 T. garlic, minced

olive oil

salt & pepper

pasta

Turn the oven to broil as you prep your veggies. Put all veggies skin side up in a baking pan and over them sprinkle olive oil, salt and pepper. Put in the oven and roast for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, fry prosciutto in olive oil until a bit crispy. When prosciutto is done, add garlic and roasted vegetables to the pan and give it a quick shake to coat the meat. Pour mix over pasta, and top with crumbled feta and fresh parsley. (Kalamata olive are an interesting addition as well.)

Fruit Salad with Ginger Lime Yogurt

I sat at work today and passed the time by drooling over Heidi Swenson's 101Cookbooks blog. I was reminded about the things I loved about natural foods, and it inspired me to make something fresh and healthy for dinner. After spend about half an hour in our beautiful produce department, I                                                      had an idea. I know it's usually pretty boring, but fruit salad stuck me as the perfect before-dinner snack. I wanted to put a little twist on it, so I decided to top it with a Ginger Lime Yogurt. There are somethings that I would probably have done differently, but I'm sure this will be a reoccurring dish throughout the summer. 

Fruit Salad with Ginger Lime Yogurt

Fruit includes:

Tangerines, Strawberries, Honeydew, Mango, Banana

Ginger Lime Yogurt

1 cup plain yogurt

1T agave nectar

1 t minced ginger

juice from 1/2 small lime

lime zest

Mix all ingredients together and spoon over fruit salad. 

Nice, quick, easy.