If ever there is a time of year that gets ahead of you, this is it for me. The dog days of summer makes one lackadaisical with the hot humid weather and closeness of the air. There is always so much to do for us at this time. Family visits, weeds on steroids and harvesting and preparing meals with all the fresh produce from the garden.
Family
Where should I start. Perhaps where I left off would be a good place.
July 28th, a visit from my sister to see my daughter and her husband gave us the chance to have some of our fresh garden produce. Juicy ripe tomatoes on penne with feta cheese, laced with garlic and thai basil were the order of the day. Originally planned to be a cold meal, the weather did not co-operate so we made it hot. It was equally as good and the company did not disappoint.
July 28th, a visit from my sister to see my daughter and her husband gave us the chance to have some of our fresh garden produce. Juicy ripe tomatoes on penne with feta cheese, laced with garlic and thai basil were the order of the day. Originally planned to be a cold meal, the weather did not co-operate so we made it hot. It was equally as good and the company did not disappoint.
Great conversation around the table while my husband prepared the plates.
Flowers
The following day and the last day of my daughter's visit, it was working in the garden picking rocks with fresh lunch of salad, artichokes, tomatoes and fresh yellow beans. Lunch under the umbrella by the pond surrounded by the scents and sights of the yellow lilies capturing the summer sun.
Food
My daughter and her husband are pretty much vegans so while they were here we tried to eat things that they would enjoy. Once they left we slipped back to being the foodies that we are.
Our first dish was a salad with papaya, shrimp, cucumber and pumpkin seeds, covered with a sweet and hot Asian dressing of lime, and coriander. Most of which came from the garden. It is always a favourite on a hot summer day.
Our first dish was a salad with papaya, shrimp, cucumber and pumpkin seeds, covered with a sweet and hot Asian dressing of lime, and coriander. Most of which came from the garden. It is always a favourite on a hot summer day.
While in Québec we picked up calf liver, something not available to us here. We were just dying to have it with fried onions, bacon and new fingerling potatoes from the garden, so the following day after they left that was supper. Salad and fresh beans on the side finished off the dish.
The next day I prepared another Asian stir-fry with Hoisin Chicken with cashew nuts and all the fresh garden produce I could pack in. With meals like this who wants to go out. A few days of gourmet fresh food and we have to get back to serious business. This would be it for a few days while we catch up on all the things we have neglected in the past week or two.