Catching up and lots of pics

Hey everyone! So sorry for not having posted in over a week.  And just to let you know, there won't be much posting over the next month.....but hopefully I'll be able to at least post some pics from various travels and eats.

First let's start off with the latest produce from the farmer's market: pattypan squash, peaches, blueberries, yellow grape tomatoes, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, green beans, hot peppers, horticulture beans (cranberry, maybe??), cucumbers, golden zucchini, yellow crookneck squash, fairytale eggplant, and green peppers.

I was a bit angry, as I noticed that the poster for my blog had been taken down at the market.  Grrrrr......not too happy about that. At first, I gave them several copies, to put on the table so people could just take them.  They decided it would be better to hang just ONE on the wall. I didn't think so....who's gonna remember the website? Anyway, now there's nothing and I know they still have several copies, unless they threw them away.  I don't think I'll say anything though......usually I would, but since I shop there every week....probably not the best idea. What do you think?

I made some of the pattypan squash from the previous week into that stuffed pattypan I'd made before.  You can find it here.  This time I used up the rest of my Teese mozzarella. Didn't melt as well on top, but melted really nicely when mixed into the hot stuffing. Still tasty though :)

Still have a ton of yellow crookneck squash, even though I've tried to sneak it into whatever I can (husband doesn't like it).  Can I puree it and freeze it? Maybe to make salad dressing out of it later? Any ideas?

Chocolate spread on matzoh! When you're craving sweets, you gotta do whatcha gotta do! Take a handful or more of vegan chocolate chips and put them in a bowl, into the microwave.  Heat them on high for 30 seconds at a time, mixing after each.  Add in a few drops of non-dairy milk and nuke another 30 seconds.  Make sure it's nice and smooth.  Work quickly and spread it onto your matzoh.  Put it in the fridge for several minutes to let the chocolate harden and there you have a nice quick dessert!

Cucumber noodles with raw marinara (my husband preferred the zucchini, but I found cucumber pretty refreshing):

I made Averie's Raw Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Balls, although to me they were more like oatmeal chocolate chip.  They are incredible!  I made them twice and the second time, I actually did 1/2 cup oats, 1/2 cup cashews and only about 1 Tbsp of sweetener.  Still incredible! Thanks, Averie :)

I made some Golden Zucchini Bread again. See my original post about it here. This time I added raisins, used all spelt flour, and it was REALLY good!

Here's a picture of my new steamer that I got for over 50% off at Dillards! And of course, a picture of my colorful steamed vegetables :)

Made some guacamole: 2 avocados, 1 chopped tomato, some cilantro, salt, and lemon juice, all mashed up together.

My guacamole, mixed with cooked brown rice, taco seasoning, and broccoli slaw for a great cold power lunch:

Made Choosing Raw's Zucchini Dressing (with golden zukes, since that's all I had) and it's really delicious! (her Tomato Curry Dressing is great too)

Cooked up some red quinoa and mixed it with a ton of chopped vegetables, added some balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, and garlic for a great dressing.

And last, but not least, I made up some of that great Tempeh Barbecue (used shiitakes this time):

Ok, I think I'm mostly caught up. It's been really hot here...in the mid 90's with high humidity.  Still trying to get my walking in, though.

Still contemplating the blender vs. food processor situation.  But...I think I've decided to wait on the Vita-Mix because it's so dang expensive.  I'm going to get a large food processor and get some sort of small cheaper blender. Any suggestions? Something good for salad dressings, smoothies (that can handle frozen fruit) and sauces.

Blogger of the Week: FatFreeVegan.  She's got TONS of recipes that are right up my alley: fat free (or lowfat) and vegan, yay! Check her out. This was one of the first blogs I ever started following.

Giveaway: CSN stores $40 gift card giveaway at OperaSingerInTheKitchen!

Eat smart,
T.

Food for a Stormy Day

Yes, I made the stuffed pattypan squash again.  But, I decided to try some fried okra on the side.  Was pretty good, needed perhaps a bit more salt in the breading.

Tanya's Fried Okra:


7-8 large okra, sliced about 1/2 inch thick
3/4 cup or so of yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup whole wheat breadcrumbs
creole seasoning, salt, pepper, garlic
1 Tbsp olive oil

Sprinkle a lot of salt over the okra, then cover with cold water and let sit for an hour.  (I read about this somewhere on the internet...not exactly sure what it does).  Then drain the okra.  Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.  Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a pan.  Add okra to the dry ingredients, mix well.  Put okra in pan and fry about 8 minutes, before starting to flip them over.  Mix it up every couple of minutes.  You want to get it nice and brown on all sides.


Now don't forget, my amounts aren't totally exact.....hahaha......because I never write them down.  So I'm just thinking back to when I made it....."hmmmm, how much did I use??".  


And for my pre-dinner snack: Guacamole!

Tanya's Guacamole:


1 large Florida avocado, peeled and pitted
juice of 1 key lime
1/2 large tomato, chopped
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tsp ground cumin
cilantro, salt, pepper


Mash up the avocado.  You can leave some of it chunky if you want.  Add the lime juice and mix.  Then add the tomato, onion, and spices. Done!


(The Florida avocados tend to have fewer calories than the California ones)


And so that's the end of my post.  Tomorrow's a busy work day, not sure I'll get to any recipes.  Probably will have leftover veg. bake from yesterday.  And I didn't have to make lunch today because food magically appeared at work today, yay!  AND there was a veg. option, double yay!  Usually we can't eat it, because it all has meat in it.

So take care and come back soon!
Eat smart,
T.

Pattypan, pattypan, bake me a pattypan!

Today, I have no recipe for you, only a link to a recipe I found, with my minor adjustments. Remember how I had no idea how to prepare pattypan squash, which I got in my CSA box last week? Well, it's such a tasty food! So juicy and it makes the kitchen smell like cinnamon.....not sure why (I didn't add cinnamon to the recipe). It smells like Thanksgiving in here!!

Here's a link to a recipe for stuffed pattypan squash: http://mommygourmet.blogspot.com/2009/08/stuffed-pattypan-squash.html

I slightly adapted it for my own taste (and I had no feta!).

First, I put the 2 squashes in a pot of boiling water for about 10 minutes. Instead of feta, I used a little monterey jack. I also added a little cajun spice for some kick. And since I had okra in the fridge, I cut up some of that and added it to the skillet of tomatoes and onions.

I thank her very much for this tasty recipe. Really, if you've never had pattypan squash, now's the time! You could probably also make some sort of cinnamony, nutmegy (are those words?) filling too....would work well I bet.

Ok, I'm going to wrap up this post now. Enjoy your dinner :)

Eat smart,

T.

T goes to the farmer's market(s)

Wow, what an exciting morning! Two farmer's markets and lots of good vegetables and fruit now in my kitchen.

This is what we picked up: zucchini, lima beans, pears (yes, THOSE pears), green satsumas, creole tomatoes, brown rice, green bell peppers, white button mushrooms, okra, patty pan squash, fresh corn and cucumbers.

I have no idea what to do with: patty pan squash

Previously, we've gotten okra at the market....I made a pretty good Bhindi Masala. However, if you've never tried, they're not bad raw with a little salt! (and perhaps not so slimy when you eat it raw)

I'm excited about the lima beans because last week I came up with a great lima bean and tomato "stew" that we ate over brown rice! So I'll be sharing that recipe with you soon. I was hoping for more shiitake mushrooms, but alas......just the white button type. And it sure will be nice to have fresh raw corn this afternoon as a snack! Right off the cob.

Now I must go drink my second cup of coffee and think about today's food!

If you have a good recipe for patty pan squash, do let me know. Also, if you know what the heck I'm supposed to do with green satsumas, do tell. Do I let them ripen? Are you supposed to eat them green?? Hmmm....

Happy fooding!

Eat smart,

T.