The Farmer Gal's Table

Garden Fresh Salsa

2011-08-30T23:00:05Z

Oh me.

Oh my.

Has it been since THANKSGIVING since I posted anything on the cooking page?!?

How in the world did that happen?

Good thing y'all don't depend on me to be your Martha Stewart or anything. I'm sorely lacking in recipe posts these days.

These months.

This YEAR.

And after all this time, I come to you with... Salsa? Of all things? It's like one of the easiest things to make on the planet!

Well, I'll let you in on a little secret... I'm not all that ambitious when it comes to this cooking page. (You might have surmised this.) It's more of a place for me to put my favorite recipes, so that I can find them when I need them. Sometimes I spend a little time tweaking recipes just to my liking, and once I do, I want to be able to make them again. And I figure, why not take pretty pictures and share?

So here's my salsa recipe.

I start off with about four cups of coarsely chopped tomatoes...

In case you're not familiar with... me... I'm kind of a tomato fanatic. I planted fifteen different varieties this year. Hence the multi-colored tomatoes in the bowl. And these are but the beginning of the tomato crop for this year.

The nice thing about making salsa is, you can use up a bunch of little cherry tomatoes, if you have a lot of them. For spaghetti sauce, it is just way too time consuming to mess with the little ones, because you have to remove the skins. But for salsa, however, the fresh and flavor-packed cherry tomatoes work like a charm.

To the 4 cups of tomatoes, add...

...3 coarsely chopped scallions (a.k.a. green onions)...

...1/2 a jalapeno...

(or less jalapeno if you like it less spicy; or no jalapeno if you don't like jalapeno; or a whole jalapenos if you like it really spicy... you get the picture... I prefer half of one for this particular recipe, which has a mild/medium heat)

...zest of half a lime...

...juice of half a lime...

...and 1/2 teaspoon of salt.

Then put it all in the food processor...

...give it a whirl...

...und voila! Fresh salsa!

I actually made this batch to freeze, as I made a batch last week that we ate, and I'm learning that there are only so many fresh cherry tomatoes and fresh salsa that one can eat in a week.

I have the heart burn to prove it.

But I did keep a little out, in this jar, so we can enjoy it fresh for a few days...

Oh yeah, baby. Come to mama.

Menu Planning for Thanksgiving

2010-11-18T16:51:06Z

After some hemming and hawing, we decided that we are going to spend Thanksgiving day here at home. Since relaxing days with all of us here at home are hard to come by, it was just too appealing. I have extended invites out to a couple of guests, who may or may not come, but we're keeping it casual, so I'm good either way.

And, the great thing about Thanksgiving is, there's always enough food to feed an army.

Today, I realized, in order to have a relaxing day on Thanksgiving, I need to figure out my end game (the menu) so that I can have a successful pre-game preparation.

And speaking of 'game', since I'm not a huge turkey fan, I was contemplating making a duck. I just hate wrastling that big bird. However, last night, when I asked Mr. Blue Eyes what his favorite Thanksgiving dish was, his response was...

Turkey.

How can we have been together for over twelve years, and I didn't know his favorite Thanksgiving dish was the turkey?

I feel as though I've failed him as a wife somehow.

I plan to rectify that situation this year by making the best darn tootin' turkey I can figure out how to make. I'm thinking something involving maple... I'll let you know how it turns out. And since I'm probably going to spend the next five days or so scheming as to how I'm going to make the turkey, it's even more important that I get the other dishes figured out today.

First off, I think I'm going to make these...

Scalloped Sweet Potatoes. Recipe (and above photo) courtesy of Tasty Kitchen. Amy of She Wears Many Hats gave them a test drive and wrote about it on the TK blog a couple weeks ago, and I have been drooling at the thought of them ever since. Call me crazy, but I'm going to forgo both the mashed potatoes and the traditional candied sweet potatoes, and make these in their stead.

I do think I am going to stay with tradition and make green bean casserole. I think my kids would really like that. And I'm also going to make a pretty traditional stuffing. A couple years ago I made this stuffing and added an extra cup of broth and an extra stick of butter.

That's right. I added an extra stick of butter.

Thanksgiving is no time to practice restraint, people. No time at all.

And with stuffing, I must always have gravy. Oh yes, there will be gravy. Is it wrong that gravy may be my favorite Thanksgiving food?

I may or may not make some sort of cranberry dish, depending on whether or not my mom comes (one of the invited guests), as she makes a delicious cranberry relish.

For an appetizer, I'm going with a yummy spinach artichoke spread that I concocted a couple of Thanksgivings back, served with bread or crackers. I have the recipe written down, but have yet to take pictures of it, but I probably will finally get around to this on Thanksgiving, so you may want to keep your eyes peeled for the recipe in the days following. It could be a yummy appetizer for Christmas too!

And for dessert... This one has been in my recipe file for years, just waiting to be tried...

Eggnog Cranberry Pie. I printed this recipe back in 2007, but for the past three years have forgotten about it during the holidays. Then I usually run across it when I'm thumbing through recipes in June, and kick myself because I've forgotten to make it yet again. I'm really, really excited that I remembered this year!

I know that eggnog is more Christmas-ish, but I say it's never too early to break out the eggnog. And if it turns out well, I may make it again for Christmas.

In addition, if time allows, I may work up a blueberry-cranberry-orange pie that I made a rendition of last year. It was from a recipe, and it was very good, but I felt it needed tweaking. I'm determined to make that pie all it can be.

And there may be a pumpkin pie. After all, I did grow some pumpkins this year.

I'll repeat it again... Thanksgiving is no time for restraint.

I think that sums it up! My game plan is to make the pies and brine the turkey the day before (if indeed I do brine the turkey) and do a little prep for the side dishes, then on Thanksgiving morning, get the turkey in the oven and put the side dishes and appetizer together.

Oh! And I almost forgot... Thanksgiving morning... Caramel rolls! Mr. Blue Eyes begs for these on a daily basis. Between these and a turkey, I'm going to be getting back rubs for a week.

Wish me luck!

Rosemary and Red Wine Braised Beef Roast (a.k.a Man Meat)

2010-11-09T23:19:09Z

I'm on a bit of a 'man' kick these days. I would tell you to rush to your kitchen and make this for your man, someone else's man, any man, really, now. But I know that hardly ever happens. And you probably don't have a beef roast on hand, and/or the other ingredients, so me bossing you to make this now would really just be futile.

Instead, I will only bid you this: Gaze.

Gase upon this beefy, mushroomy goodness, and look into your future. A future of eating this.

I'm actually looking at a past of eating this. I made it last week. And it was gone within seconds.

Okay, maybe I exaggerate a bit. But when I presented my husband with this for supper, he was nothin' but happy. It's just the kind of wife I am. The kind who likes to have supper waiting on the table for her man. What can I say?

When my husband reads this, this will be about the time where he clears his throat, looks at me with a twinkle in his eye, and says...

Nothing.

He knows this is the best way to improve the ratio of evenings when he actually does arrive home to supper waiting to the evenings when he does not. He doesn't bite the hand that feeds him.

But back to the beef roast...

I was feeling the need for something braised, savory and dark, so I concocted this little recipe. And let me tell you, I was not disappointed. I served it simply with a side of toasted brown rice and squash, because it has a pretty bold flavor, and I didn't want the sides to clash.

Ingredient List...

~ 5# Beef Roast (arm or chuck recommended)
1 tsp. Dried Rosemary
3 tsp. Salt, divided
1/8 tsp. Pepper
2 tsp. Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp. Flour
3 Tbsp. Butter
1 and 3/4 Cups Red Wine, divided (red zin or cabernet recommended)
1 and 3/4 Cups Beef STOCK (not broth), divided
1 Medium Yellow Onion
~ 8 oz. Mushrooms (I used cremini), rinsed or wiped clean

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pat your roast dry. Mix together the rosemary, 2 teaspoons salt, pepper, brown sugar and flour in a little bowl, and rub it all over the roast.

Melt the butter in a skillet over medium / medium-high heat until it just starts to bubble. Place the roast in the pan and sear for about a minute on all sides.

While the roast is searing, go ahead and slice up the onion.

You don't need to separate the rings... This will happen all on its own in the next step.

When the roast is seared, removed it from the pan to a casserole dish and surround it with the mushrooms...

At this point I have to confess a couple of things...

1) I am a naughty mushroom washer. I know you're not supposed to. I know you're just supposed to wipe them clean with a damp paper towel or something, otherwise they supposedly get rubbery. But who has the time? All I'm sayin' is, I just want to be honest. You do your thing with your mushrooms, and I'll do mine.

2) I ended up transferring everything from this casserole dish to another one because this one wasn't quite big enough by the time it was ready to go into the oven. So just a note to self and a note to you... Use a casserole dish that allows you a little room.

Moving on...

As soon as you removed the roast from the skillet, deglaze the pan with a 1/4 cup of red wine and a 1/4 cup of beef stock, then add the onions.

Allow the mixture to simmer until a lot of the liquid has evaporated or absorbed into the onions. Then add in a 1/2 tsp. salt, another 1/4 cup of red wine, and another cup of beef stock. Again, allow to simmer until it has cooked down.

And then... Do it one more time! 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 cup red wine, 1/4 beef stock. Simmer down. You will end up with this...

Layers upon layers of savory flavor. You could whip up some onions in just this way and throw them on a burger. Oh yeah, you totally could.

Now, pour the onion and all the juices over the top of your roast, and add in one more cup of wine and one more cup of stock...

Cover and cook in the oven for about 3 and 1/2 hours, or until your meat is tender and falls apart. About halfway through, your house will take on a lovely, savory aroma.

When you plate it and take it outside to take photographs for your blog because that is where the best natural light is (just pretend along with me that you do this too), your dogs will draw near and look at you lovingly...

Just trust me... Make this for any male -- man, child or dog -- in your world, and he will be happy to know ya'.

Squashing the Competition

2010-11-05T16:44:18Z

There's been a bit of a heated debate going on around here, within my mind only, about which kind of squash I like best. Since I grew my own garden this year and all, and was gifted several types of squash in the past, I've had access to a lot of squash.

After careful consideration and taste testing, I have narrowed it down to my top three...

1) ButterNUT. Why? Because it's buttery. And it's nutty. And I love nuts and butter. I'm a very complex individual.

Butternuts are so classic, like me. And a little more round on the bottom, like me. And they photograph well, like me. I identify strongly with butternuts.

Not only do I talk to my vegetables, I identify with them personally as well.

I may need to get off the farm more.

2) Carnival. Didn't grow any this year, but I know I love them. I did use them to illustrate how I like to roast squash back in the early days of my blog. And I roasted their seeds. And I made a bisque out of them.

Why do I write about squash so much?

I'm a very complex individual.

3) Delicata. These were new to me this year. They really didn't grow very well, and after unwillingly surrendering some to the varmints in our garden, and giving a few away, I actually ended up with only one to roast myself. I was pleased with the flavor. I think their flavor is more clean and, well, delicate. They are the oval-shaped squash in the photo above.

So there you have it! If you didn't end up here by following the link on my site, I'm sure you came via the 'Trending Now' section on Yahoo. My decisions on this matter are of great interest.

Now I'm off to discuss global warming with my carrots. I'll let you know what we decide.

Orange Days

2010-10-12T18:58:34Z

The garden... It's... It's...

It's dying.

But that's okay! It's time. The first light frost zapped all the pumpkin and sweet potato vines into oblivion. What was recently standing so strong and full is now wilting and withered.

It's the circle of life.

And I stand in awe of my garden. The rapid, blooming growth. The triumph of the vegetables over the weeds (with a little help from me and my hubby). The abundant harvest.

So, aside for a couple tomato plants that are still hanging in there and the parsnips still gestating in the ground (do vegetables gestate?), the garden is pretty much done for. And I find myself trying to wrangle the last of its bounty, primarily the carrots, pumpkins, squash and sweet potatoes.

With the carrots, I've been carrying out the following process...

1) Soak in water and scrub all the dirt off.

2) Peel.

3) Chop.

4) Blanch in boiling water for three minutes.

5) Cool on a cookie sheet. (I should be dunking them in an ice bath at this point, but I'm not. Ice baths are such a pain in the behind. But we shall see if my slacker ways will come back to bite me later...)

6) Scoop into a freezer bag -- the kind that you can suck the air out of. Suck out the air, then freeze!

I don't know that a lot of people freeze their carrots like I do, but I did it last year and l.o.v.e.d. the carrots that we had throughout the winter, so I'm stickin' to it. Plus, leaving things to chance in our fruit cellar just doesn't sit well with me. When it's in the freezer, I know it's not going to go bad.

Here we have some sweet potatoes. I'm making an attempt to freeze them also. Not sure if I have a solid method to my madness here, but it's fun to experiment a little. The next round I may process a little differently.

Aren't they pretty? A little blurry in this photo (sorry... sometimes really orange things don't like to photograph well) but pretty. And they are yummy too. And so healthy. Too bad I corrupt them with butter and brown sugar. What can I say? I'm a bad influence.

And last, but not least, the punkins and the squash. I think I love them most of all. (In addition to the tomatoes. And the carrots. And the beets. And the sweet corn.) To see how I process these, just look here for the pumpkins, and here for the squash. My methods for the two are pretty much the same, yet I managed to conjure up different posts for both. And while I'm at it, I should mention that there is a yummy recipe for roasted squash bisque (mmmmm... I need to make this), another recipe here for pumpkin pie, and another one here for roasted squash/pumpkin seeds, which is my next order of business for the day, just as soon as I'm done jibber-jabbering here.

Which I think I am.

Rhubarb Blueberry Jam

2010-06-16T19:46:02Z

Let's jam.

Let's make jam.

Let's make jamalamadingdong.

Let's make jamalamadingdongloopdyloopbingbong.

Did I just say 'bong'?

Don't worry. I'm not smokin' anything. I may have a bit of a sugar buzz, however, from devouring this jam. It is lip-smackin' good.

And I don't say that about just anything.

I love homemade jam.

The reasons why are deeply intellectual.

(You know, like most things I write about.)

It's delicious. It's homemade. It's budget-friendly. It's pretty. My kids love it. It's easy peasy. It's easy peasy lemon squeezy. And it lasts for months and months.

Last summer I posted a recipe for my sister's homemade rhubarb strawberry refrigerator jam. I made twelve jars, and we ate every last one of them. This year, since my mom had mentioned that she made a rhubarb jam with blueberries, I wanted to give that a try. My mom did pass along her recipe to me, which I haven't tried yet, but hopefully will. Her version uses canned blueberry pie filling. The route I went was to use the same recipe I used last year, but to substitute fresh (from frozen) blueberries for the strawberries. I am over the moon about how it turned out.

But like I said, I'm also going to give my mom's recipe a try.

To compare.

To contrast.

To devour like a caffeinated hummingbird sucks down nectar.

For now, though, I just wanted to share the latest in jam adventures with you... Rhubarb Blueberry Jam!

Ingredient List...

6 Cups Diced Fresh Rhubarb
1 1/2 Cups Frozen Blueberries
2 Cups Granulated Sugar
4.5 oz. Gelatin (whatever flavor you like... I used 3 oz. raspberry and 1.5 oz. lemon... be creative!)

Last year I washed my jars and lids in hot soapy water. This year I decided to sterilize them in boiling water instead. Can't tell you why. It just felt like the thing to do. 'Tis a bad picture (boiling water doesn't photograph well), but I think it tells the story well enough... Hot burner, boiling water. I covered the jars and lids with enough water to reach about an inch above them in in the pot. Then I boiled them for about ten minutes, and removed them to a clean towel to dry.

In a stock pot, I combined the rhubarb (6 cups), blueberries (1 1/2 cups) and sugar (2 cups)...

Cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil, then simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, stirring every few minutes as you go.

This fruit and sugar, simmering in your kitchen... The aroma... Sweet and heavenly.

Next, add the gelatin and stir well...

I used 3 oz. raspberry Jell-O and 1.5 oz. lemon Jell-O. Use whatever makes your skirt fly up. This recipe is open to interpretation!

Now, fill your jars (I ended up using five), filling to within an inch or so of the rim. Allow to cool, uncovered, until jam is barely warm or cool to the touch. Stir from time to time to help release heat. Place in refrigerator for four hours to continue cooling, then cover with lids. Keep refrigerated.

And now... Tastebuds, watch out!

Chunky (but not too chunky) Chicken Salad

2010-06-14T16:55:17Z

I've had chicken salad where basically most of the ingredients are pureed together or at least very finely minced into a creamy, uniform configuration.

This is not that kind of chicken salad.

I have nothing against that kind of chicken salad.

But this is not that kind of chicken salad.

It's chunkier. But not too chunky. Because I have small children, and I tend to chop everything into pieces that I feel comfortable are not going to get lodged in their windpipe.

I whipped up this chicken salad the other morning for a little excursion to my mom's house for lunch, because summer is here, and summer is salad season. I had whipped up something similar last summer at my sister's lake cabin, and was pleased as punch with it, but of course didn't happen to write down my recipe at the time. So this time... Guess what. I wrote it down.

True story.

Try not to fall off yer chair.

Obviously I don't really have anything interesting to say about this chicken salad, other than the fact that it's chunky (but not too chunky), it's yummy, it's especially yummy on a qwah-sah (croissant), and I think you would enjoy it. So, let's just get on with the recipe, shall we?

Even though I managed to write it down this time, and take a few photos of the finished product, I didn't actually have time to take pictures as I was making it. But you know what? It ain't rocket science, baby. This is one of those instances where step-by-step photography of the whole process would be overkill anyway, so here's the recipe, in traditional recipe format. Enjoy!

Ingredient List...

1 Cup Mayo
1/2 Cup Plain Yogurt
1 Tbsp. Honey
1 tsp. Coarse Ground Mustard
3/4 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp. Celery Seed
Dash Fresh Ground Pepper
3 1/2 to 4 Cups Chopped Cooked Chicken
1 Cup Halved or Quartered Grapes (I used red this time)
1/2 Cup Diced Celery
1/2 Cup Diced Pear or Apple (I used pear this time)

In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the mayo, yogurt, honey, mustard, salt, celery seed, and pepper. Add chicken, grapes, celery and pear. Gently stir to combine. Refrigerate for at least two hours before serving.

One final note... If my little girl weren't allergic to nuts, at this juncture, I would add nuts. Nuts would be lovely. Nuts would be perfect. Nuts would be scrumptious. And if I were to add nuts... Slivered almonds or cashews would be very nice.

But you know what would be the ultimate?!?

Chopped up hazelnuts, baby. Oh yeah! So, if you have nuts in your life, chop up some hazelnuts and throw 'em in for me, will ya? Then enjoy this little number wrapped in a lettuce leaf, on a qwah-sah, or however you so desire!

Roasted Tomato & Pepperoni Pizza

2010-06-04T13:38:16Z

Mercy me, it's Friday already. How did that happen?

Being it's Friday, it's time for our little family to indulge in beer and pizza again (root beer for the kids, just to clarify), which reminded me I'd better get my petoot in gear and post the pizza recipe a promised you a week ago!

I named it 'Roasted Tomato & Pepperoni Pizza' because, well, that is what is on it, and I usually try to just name my recipes after what is actually in them. However, there are several other names that I'd really like to give this pizza, like...

Pizza Fantastico!

Roasted Tomato Delicioso!

Friday Night Pizzarific Delight!

I love it so.

Hope you do too. And believe it or not, that's about as long-winded as I'm going to be on the subject. Let's make pizza!

The first thing we must discuss is the crust. It is yummy. It is easy. It is not my own recipe.

It's Giada's.

You know, the Giada? De Laurentiis?

I figure she probably really knows what she's doing when it comes to this sort of thing, so I defer to her expertise.

It's taken from the March 2007 Bon Appetit issue, and you can find it here. I could rewrite it again, but why be redundant? Why be redundant when you can just click here and (voila!) there it is? So I shant be redundant. Just click here and you'll be all set to make the crust.

I will say one thing about it, though. I usually make it the day before, let it rise, punch it down, then stick it in an air tight container in the fridge until I'm ready to use it the next day, as Giada says. Before I use it, I let it sit out on the counter for about a half hour before I roll it out so it can kind of loosen up. You don't have to wait a day, however. Do whatever works for you.

I will say one more thing about the pizza dough. After I roll it out, I like to rub a little olive oil on the bottom side of the crust. (The side that will come into contact with the pizza pan.) I just think it adds a little extra flavor.

So, my part in this recipe really comes in with the selection of toppings. Let us begin with...

...the roasted tomatoes. The yumminess that will soon, when paired with parmesan cheese, elicit a tastebud explosion in your mouth. These... are... bliss.

(Pay no attention to that lemon in the background. He's just hanging out until we use him later.)

Take one pint of either grape tomatoes or cherry tomatoes, and slice them in half.

Except when I look at this picture I remembered that this particular bunch of grape tomatoes were a little large, so I sliced them in fourths. Do whatever works with your particular genre of tomatoes.

Next, put them in a bowl, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and stir gently to combine...

(Again, pay no attention to the lemon in the background, the empty pop can and dirty dishes. They are irrelevant to the process, but a permanent fixture in my kitchen. Gaze only upon the tomatoes, if you would.)

Sidenote on the olive oil: I happened to purchase this Felippo Berio extra virgin olive oil because I had a coupon, and I am now in love with it. It is fragrant and wonderful. You know how Giada always talks about extra virgin olive oil having a really nice 'fruity' aroma? This stuff has it, big time. It smells wonderfully fresh and fruity. I just thought I'd recommend it.

Sidenote on the salt: this much salt makes the tomatoes a little extra salty. I like them like this for the saltiness of the overall pizza. However, feel free to decrease the salt or eliminate it all together if that's what floats your boat.

As I said, give it a little stir. Then, spread them out on a baking sheet topped with parchment paper. NOT wax paper. Wax paper and parchment paper are not the same thing. Some of you may know this, some may not. I don't want any of y'all putting wax paper in your oven on my account.

(Again, pay no attention to the baked-on appearance of the pan. There's a lot of things in these pictures I just don't really want you to pay attention to. If you could just zone in on the actual food, that would be great.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, pop them in, and bake for about 25 minutes.

Mmmmmm. Oh yum. Oh goodness. Oh yum. I shudder to think what would happen to my digestive system if I ate all of these, but I could. To not devour them all before they make their way to the pizza is a considerable act of will power for me. And that's not to mention fending off my hubby and kids.

While the tomatoes are roasting, combine 1/3 cup of mayo (that's right, I said mayo, not Miracle Whip) and 1 teaspoon of lemon zest, and whoop it up a bit...

See? This is where the lemon comes into play. That inconspicuous little lemon that was hanging out in all the above photos is now making his move. And let me tell you, to me, the lemon is really the key to the whole pizza. It's that little something that makes you say, "Mmmmmm."

(Timesaver tip: Mix the mayo and lemon zest in the same bowl you used to mix the tomatoes. Won't hurt a thing. Easy peasy.)

Now, spread the mayo / lemon zest mixture over the crust, which should be on your pizza pan...

That's right, we're putting mayonnaise on pizza. I dunno what Giada would think about that one. But I'll tell you one thing: If she tasted this pizza, she'd say, "It is good. Rock on, Farmer Gal."

At least, that's what she'd say in the fantasy in my mind where she comes to my kitchen and tastes my pizza.

Then top with pepperoni to your liking...

Then top with the roasted tomatoes (yum)...

Top with 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese and 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese (yum x2) and roll up the edges a bit...

Pop it in the oven (preheated to 425 degrees) and bake for 22-25 minutes, remove, let sit for about ten minutes or so, slice, prepare yourself for new levels of deliciousness, and serve!

Pizza Fantastico!

The Joy of Eating - Grapefruit & Lime Cake by She Wears Many Hats

2010-05-14T19:04:35Z

If you haven't already, you should stop over at Amy's site, She Wears Many Hats, and check things out. Especially check out the recipe section! Pretty much every recipe she posts is right up my alley, so I always like to see what she's cooking up.

I decided to make her Grapefruit & Lime Cake with Citrus Glaze today. I'd been eyeballing it for awhile now, and finally had a grapefruit in my possession to use. However, since I've been somewhat trying to stay away from refined flour and sugar, I knew I was taking a risk. The photo above shows the initial damage I have done, in one foul swoop, to the cake, my resolve to stay away from refined flour and sugar, and my waistline.

However, I thought the above photo really didn't do this delicious cake justice, so I exercised ultimate self-control and cut a piece out of the middle to take a picture of.

I didn't eat it.

I put it back where it came from when I was done photographing.

I'm a pillar of strength.

I may have fallen off the wagon momentarily, but that doesn't mean I have to let it run me over too, right?

Voila! Here it is! I don't think this picture does it justice either, so you'll just have to take my word for it. If you like zesty citrus flavor and moist, fluffy cake, I would highly recommend it. There is a citrus glaze that has been poured over the top, but it has soaked in so it's hard to see. But it's there. And it's simple and delicious. I think it is the perfect topping for this cake.

Thanks to Amy for sharing this tasty recipe!

Public Service Announcement: This is Not a Recipe

2010-04-17T15:33:21Z

This looks delicious, no?

And it kind of was.

There were sugared nectarines, fried in butter and hinting of lemon zest. There was a cobbler/crisp base. There was butter.

(Butter needs no adjectives. Its perfection is known far and wide.)

It was fresh and unique and quite beautiful.

I took pictures, wrote down the recipe as I concocted it, and rubbed my palms together with glee as I envisioned putting it here on my site to joyously share with the world at large.

Unfortunately, even though it was definitely edible and parts of it were completely delicious, the dish as a whole just didn't quite come together for me. Not enough to make it 'blogworthy'. It needs a little tweaking.

I haven't been much good at posting recipes here lately.

(The last recipe I posted was 'Veggie Pizza'. Really? Yes, it's good and it's definitely blogworthy. But is veggie pizza my final cooking contribution to the world? I think not.)

It's not because I haven't been cooking. Oh I've been cooking. I've been cooking like nobody's bizness. But I have some standards when it comes to recipes that I post on my blog: They need to be really, really good.

Especially when they're a little more labor-intensive.

Well, at least I have to feel that they are really, really good.

Whether or not everyone likes them is subjective. But there's not much I can do about that.

Sooooo... If you don't see many recipes around here, it's because of one of two reasons...

a) I haven't made anything that I feel is truly blogworthy.

b) I have made something that is blogworthy but don't have enough time to post it.

That's just the God's honest truth.

But when I do make something that is blogworthy AND I have time to post it, guess what!?!

I will.