What Was For Dinner: Grilled Eggplant with Feta, Tomatoes, and Herbs

With our csa subscription this summer, we are experiencing the bounty of the season like never before. And it's kind of overwhelming. Not that I like wasting food, but for some reason every bit of csa produce that's gone bad before we've gotten to use it I have felt way more guilty about than anything from the grocery store that's ever rotted into inedibility on my watch. I think at least part of the reason for this is that each week we actually come face-to-face with the people working so hard to grow all the beautiful fruits and veg and to bring them practically to our door stoop. And I know the opportunity to eat so fresh and local is a privilege, and a fleeting one, therefore it's a real shame if I don't make the most of it.

I hadn't been feeling very inspired for the last week or so, which isn't good given the pile of produce that's been staring me in the face. Then, just in the nick of time, I came across this post on the Kitchn this afternoon. And as a result we had the delicious grilled eggplant above for dinner. The recipe is here. We had one medium-large eggplant, so that's what we made. I winged it and didn't measure the vinegar or oil. I just had regular balsamic and I forgot to add the sugar, but it tasted just fine to me in the end. I did drizzle just a little more balsamic over as I was eating, but I ♥ a little more of any kind of vinegar than maybe others would. We subbed feta for goat cheese and used basil, oregano, and parsley, cause that's what we had. Easy, delicious, gorgeous, and healthy to boot. It would make a great simple starter, but this was the main course for us tonight. 

Yum!

♡,

Erin  

Happy Place

Hello there. It's been a bit of a mixed bag of a weekend here with digging further into basement business, but one of the high points was the usual Saturday morning trip to the Worthington Farmer's Market. These posters by Igloo Letterpress have been up all around town for awhile now and I've been coveting one. Going to have to pick one up. And maybe going to have to look into dropping into one of their Saturday morning classes. They're on Etsy too, if you're not presently hailing from these parts.

It is definitely the height of fresh produce season. The last couple weeks I've really had to restrain myself from buying one of everything in sight.

Again, if you're not in the Columbus area, check out Honeyrun Farm on Etsy. They have delicious honey, lovely soap, and sweet moulded beeswax candles. Be sure to check out their profile for a nice back story. And here is their website as well.

Earlier in the season we had sort of made it a habit to stop by House Wine for an a.m. adult beverage (ok, Greg always just got a beer, but I definitely was always after something with champagne in it) on their sweet little patio after our market shopping and before heading on to brunch. For various reasons, we've been skipping over this part of the routine for quite awhile now, however it's a habit I definitely want to resurrect while good weather remains. Earlier in the season their fizzes were with Tessora Limone, a very good locally made limoncello, now it looks like they're on to fresh Ohio fruit. 

Blue Jacket Dairy makes absolutely phenomenal cheese. Their aged cow's milk Ludlow is sooooo tasty, we've been buying it regularly for awhile now. And I just sampled their plain and herbed chevre Saturday and as soon as I finish off the goat cheese I've got in the fridge now, I'm bringing both kinds home. 

We've been buying most of our meat this summer from Oink Moo Cluck Farms. Very tasty naturally, humanely raised stuff. Their chipotle honey chicken sausages are my favorite thing to be had off the grill of late.

The sweetest, tenderest, juiciest corn. Just add a bit of salt. Yum, yum. Update: I couldn't remember this vendor's name at the time I published this post, so better late than never, they are Wishwell Farms.

Between our csa share from HW Organic Farms and the other odds and ends we picked up, I admit, we're sitting on nearly an embarrassment of riches here. Though we have put a bit of a dent in the pile since just post-market. 

Last Saturday I passed on the gorgeous bouquets the same seller I got this beauty from had because I had brought some zinnias home earlier in the week. Then I spent the whole of last week dreaming of her dessert-plate sized dahlias, so I just couldn't pass again.

And as promised, here is her info.

Going to the farmer's market has really become one of the things I look forward to most each week. And our csa has really been forcing me into the kitchen a lot more of late, and lo and behold I've been quite enjoying myself there. I'll try to start sharing some of the recipes I've followed/concocted. I know I promised one for cherry lemonade and now cherry season is well over. So if I want to be timely, I suppose I'd better get on it.


I hope you had a fresh and tasty weekend.


♡,


Erin
  

High Summer

Another great summer weekend drawing to a close. We went out for cocktails (at Mouton), dinner (at The Rossi. First time we'd tried it. Really good atmosphere, food, and service. Fabulous Deco bar.), and a nightcap at Bodega in the Short North Friday night. For those not familiar with Columbus, the Short North is situated north of downtown and south of the Ohio State University's campus. Centered on High St., it's a mostly commercial district chock full of restaurants, bars, shops, and galleries. It's where we like to go when we're in the mood for that energetic, hip sort of vibe and good people watching.

Saturday morning it was the Worthington Farmer's Market as usual, where I picked up these lovelies. And as when I posted on an earlier bouquet here, I'm not sure of the vendor's name. I will look in to both next time we're there (in two weeks, going home to Illinois for my birthday this coming weekend!), I promise.

Then we took our hungry selves to our usual Saturday brunch spot, Northstar Café in Clintonville. 

Followed that up with an estate sale I'd scoped out on Friday. They were advertising everything would be half price Saturday after noon, so I held out and only ended up missing out on one goodie I really wanted. I'll share what we scooped up in the next couple of days.

Then to beat the heat, we headed to the theater for The Deathly Hollows Part 2. Maybe for the second weekend in a row, maybe not.

We concluded the day by making cherry lemonades (with a splash or two of vodka. Will share the recipe here in the very near future) and a tasty, nearly entirely grilled dinner.

Today was more work and less play, but it ended with a nice big thunder and rain storm as we tucked into tasty chicken sausages, corn on the cob, sliced tomato, and potato salad, topped off with ice cream.

I hope you've enjoyed the gratuitous floral-ness.

This final bloom fell off the main event, but was too pretty for the trash.

Hope your weekend was nice and summery.

♡,

Erin

Patriotic Nautical-ness, A Fine Sunset, and Fireworks

We had a wonderful time in Michigan with very, very good friends. It's great to be home however. I missed my little house and my sweet animals terribly. I am ready and raring to get going on all the projects in the pipeline. But first some vacay pics, taken with my regular camera and my (relatively) new-to-me favorite thing, the Hipstamatic App for iPhone. 

Above and below, the channel in South Haven     

The Friends Goodwill (see last post)

Natural fireworks before the manmade ones 

Only just working with my little point and shoot sans tripod, but still pretty. Abstract neon jellyfish, anyone?

Hope everyone in the US had a great holiday.

♡,

Erin

Setting Sail

We are heading off on vacay today, returning to our old stomping ground, southwest Michigan. Going to get reacquainted with the lovely lake you see above. There is no internet at the house we've rented (gasp, I know) so I don't know if I shall post again till we return (next Friday). In the meantime, Happy Independence Day.  

For a bit on the ship, whose port is South Haven where we'll be located, see here.

Goodnight Moon

Gorgeous moon tonight over O-hi-yo. Greg set off tonight on a business trip, and I feel like this an appropriate sort of sky to feel a bit lonely under. And then "Somewhere Out There" popped into my head and I flashed back to first grade music class.

In other randomness, perhaps this is the post where it comes out that I do my picture taking with a 5+ year old Canon point-'n-shoot that doesn't do so well in low light. But let's pretend that that doesn't have anything to do with the above pic, and that it's actually the product of a neat-o vintage analog. But I do have a birthday coming up, a big one actually, and a new camera of the fancy variety is top of my wish list.

Ok then. Night, night.

♡,

Erin

Market Spoils and Riches

I got a bea-utiful bouquet of garden flowers at the Worthington Farmer's Market Saturday. Peonies, sweet william, nigella, delphiniums, etc. ♥ Unfortunately I'm not sure of the vendor's name. Get back to you on that one.

And we picked up our first csa share from HW Organic Farms. A lot of what you see here is going to be going into this not-just-potatoes potato salad I came across over at Smitten Kitchen. And speaking of farmer's markets and Smitten Kitchen. I made this strawberry rhubarb crumble last night with rhubarb from HW, but unfortunately not Ohio strawberries. I already had some in the fridge from the grocery, but as it turned not enough to make this, and silly me passed up the gorgeous pints for sale by another vendor on Saturday, thus necessitating more grocery strawberries from afar. I won't be making that mistake again! But in the end it was still absolutely delicious. So go to the market on Saturday (or whatever day of the week yours happens to be) with this in mind, then come home and make it. Do it!

Before baking.

After baking and eating glutinous portions complete with Graeter's vanilla on top. Go ahead, say it. "Oink, oink!"

Summer ♥!

♡,

Erin

What Was For Dinner - Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

I hope everyone had a lovely Memorial Day weekend. (Or a lovely regular weekend for those outside the US.) Mine was absolutely perfect. Cocktails, local dining, farmers market, grilling out, relaxing on the screened-in porch, watching movies, and even a parade. And it was hot! 90 degrees and then some. 

Anywho, I've been wanting to share this recipe for awhile now. Truth be told I made it nearly a month ago when neither tomatoes nor basil were really in season. But basil has arrived on the scene, and well, tomatoes are a ways off, but not too far really.

They're so pretty, they'd make for a lovely special-occasion lunch main. But they were fab for dinner too and they actually reheated really well in the oven. 

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

from Barefoot Contessa, Back to Basics

1 package (2 sheets) puff pastry (I used Trader Joe's)

Olive oil

4 cups thinly sliced yellow onions (2 large onions)

2 large cloves garlic, slivered

Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

3 tablespoons dry white wine

2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme leaves

4 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

4 ounces garlic and herb goat cheese (I used Chavrie)

1 large tomato cut into 4 1/4" thick slices (or I used two Campari tomatoes, slightly larger than cherry tomatoes, for 8 slices)

3 tablespoons julienned basil leaves

2 ounces Parmesan cheese, shaved with a vegetable peeler

Unfold a sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and roll it lightly to an 11 by 11-inch square. (I couldn't get mine quite this big, so if you can't either, don't sweat it.) Using a 6-inch wide saucer or other round object as a guide, cut 2 circles from the sheet of puff pastry, discarding the scraps (or bake them and eat them smothered with preserves later). Repeat with the second pastry sheet to make 4 circles in all. Place the pastry circles on 2 sheet pans lined with parchment paper and refrigerate until ready to use.                                          

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium to low heat and add the onions and garlic. Saute for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onions are limp and there is almost no moisture remaining in the skillet. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, the wine, and thyme and continue to cook for another 10 minutes, until the onions are lightly browned. Remove from the heat.

Using a sharp paring knife, score a 1/4-inch-wide border around each pastry circle. Prick the pastry inside the score lines with the tines of a fork and sprinkle a tablespoon of grated Parmesan on each round, staying inside the scored border.

Place 1/4 of the onion mixture on each circle, again staying within the scored edge. Crumble 1 ounce of goat cheese on top of the onions. Place a slice of tomato in the center of each tart. Brush the tomato lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with basil, salt, and pepper. Finally, scatter 4 or 5 shards of Parmesan on each tart.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. Serve hot or warm with some mixed greens and white wine. And be proud you made something so gorgeous and delicious!


♡,


Erin