Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Tomato and Cucumber salad

I am off to another summer of boring salads, not yet, of course. Today is just the start. Yesterday I enjoyed my first home-grown-by-me tomato of the season. It was a small Sungold, but very sweet and appreciated. There was another one ready for lunch today, so I combined it with a cucumber that E gave me.
I couldn't believe my eyes when E pulled the cucumber out of the garden and offered it to me! For me??? You'd think she was handing over the Hope diamond or something. I had a pickle chip on an exception night out a couple of months ago, and one slice of fresh cucumber on a salad when I was out of town over a month ago. Finally a local cucumber showed up at our June Locavore potluck. After last summer's bounty, I never thought I would ever crave another cucumber, but it finally happened.
I will be able to pay E back soon, hopefully. I planted three varieties of cucumbers and have a total of 16 plants, but with the cold weather, maturation has been slow. I have 19 tomato plants.
There are three more Sungolds on the kitchen counter, ripening out of the way of the backyard animals. I can't wait to be bored tomorrow.

Monday, June 8, 2009

June Exceptions

A new month!, and already so far into it. I guess I am starting to behave like some others on this challenge. I am not eating or craving the exceptions as much. As the summer garden produce upticks, I find that I am going for plates of fresh-picked stuff instead of the usual staples. This month I will continue with rice and sesame, but add wheat and nix the fish. In the summer, I minimize cooking in the kitchen, so quick-cooking pasta dinners work. I probably won't fire up the oven until some of the winter squash comes in.