Some Summer Goodies

This Summer we bought a share of a CSA or Community Sponsored Agriculture. I have had a blast with the surprise each week as to what will be in our box! It's also required looking through my Taste Section recipes to find ones that will work with all the vegetables that pile up on my counter.

The June 14th Taste Section contained Salade Nicoise or French Style Potato Salad. This was tasty but not exactly attractive. I am not sure this is one I'd try again but it did require potatoes, green onions, parsely, and eggs - all that were in my box.

I think this is the most interesting recipe I made. It seemed a bit like a recipe contest winner in that it had a lot of steps and unusual "guilding the lily" that a burger doesn't really need. But, as I say, it was interesting and more importantly, good. One of the steps required you to make frickles which I had never heard of. These are fried pickles which I had heard of. You also make a topping of corn, cheese, basil and mayonnaise. That green an red slice is a heirloom tomato slice from my CSA box.

Bruschetta is one of my all-time favorite things- as an appetizer or a meal. I made Basic Bruschetta from the July 19th edition. All that recipe was was the bread brushed with olive oil an broiled. I then made the White Bean and Rosemary Bruschetta and the Tomato, Basil and Fresh Mozzarella Bruschetta recipes. They were really good- I made them for a dinner party we had on our patio. Bruschetta and wine- a meal made in heaven! No photo- it MUST have been good!

Bell Pepper and Tomato Bisque from August 9 was delicious and, although it's been a hot summer, it used up a lot of my tomatoes! I liked the peppers in this recipe and the spot of half and half was a nice garnish. 

I went to my sister's cabin for a Girl's Weekend and brought the ingredients for the Gazpacho with Shrimp and Avocado Relish. I had never had Gazpacho before and it was really nice on a hot day. I always want a bit more spice and I'm sure I could find a way to add it next time.

Our Neighborhood picnic was just last weekend and I brought Chicken Feta Salad to share. It was delicious although next time I'd tinker with the dressing. To me, it tasted a bit bitter. The recipe calls for twice as much olive oil as White Wine Vinegar and I think the proportions should call for a bit more olive oil and less vinegar.  I also thought a bit of red pepper flakes or celery or almonds for flavor and crunch would have made it just a bit better. 

It's September and I need to Crack the Whip!

As you may have noticed, I'm not going in any order. I save every Taste section but I may not have time to make what's published or I have ingredients for another recipe. Over the year, I have had a lot of fun working on this project but it's somewhat stressful and I need to dedicate more time so I can get currant (purposefully misspelled).

May 24th had Congo Bars. I just had to try them! They sounded like 7-Layer Bars that I used to make in High School but they were much better. I made them for a Wedding Shower my Sister-in-law and I held for a Niece. I don't have a picture of the bars because they went so fast but the flowers were gorgeous.

The May 31st edition had lots of salad dressings that looked very easy. I made the Weeknight Caesar, Garlic Herb Vinaigrette and the Honey Dijon. Very easy too - why buy dressing in a bottle! The Green Goddess that I blogged about before was delish!

The Seared Ginger Balsamic Salmon with Hot and Sour Slaw was a challenge for a foodie-want-to-be like me. It was delicious and now that I'm looking at it, I'll have to make this again.

Another recipe from April was the Barley and Asparagus Risotto. This wasn't as flavorful as the salmon and needed something extra to make me want to make this again.

Working even a bit further backwards, I tried the Shepherd's Pie in March. This was not my favorite either. It was too watery. I would like to try this again because it seems like a great winter recipe. My attempt just didn't do it for us.

Molasses Chicken from the March 8 Taste Section was outstanding. I realize I need to start adding recipes to my blog so you can understand why I am salivating on the keys. The recipe calls for legs thighs and wings. You wash the pieces and then rub them with crushed garlic. You then combine  ground allspice, vinegar, blackstrap molasses and mustard which you mix and brush on to the chicken. You then roast for 40 minutes at 400, basting with the molasses mixture periodically. Yum!

OK, June 7 had a Hickory-Barbecued Chicken recipe that I noted we made on July 4th. And again on the 10th, 22, and August 3. We just loved the rub and the hickory flavor from the chips you add to the coals. The actual barbecue sauce you make to baste with at the end (and serve with additional sauce) is a very simple concoction of ketchup, cider vinegar, light brown sugar, dijon mustard and hot pepper sauce. You cook this down a bit before taking part of it to baste, leaving the rest to serve with. My husband keeps going back to my files to find the recipe and yet we've never taken a picture. I guess it's the smell and taste since otherwise it's just barbecued chicken.