Plant, Grow, Eat - Day 5 . . it's Friday!

It's been a busy week of good eating, 

so tonite I was feeling like a lighter dinner !

Today I made a large batch of Basil Pesto,

(the second for the summer already),

and it smelled so good that I decided to make a dinner of it!

(see recipes for the PESTO)

On the Menu:

Basil toast with flaked parmesean a drizzle of olive oil and pepper.

Side of cherry tomatoes

Grilled Cucumber

Sauvignon Blanc

Have you ever grilled a cucumber? I hadn't . . I was experimenting.

( We need 50 ways to eat a cucumber here!)

I cut it in 4ths, spritzed with olive oil added salt and pepper and grilled.

Serve plain or drizzled with Balsamic glaze.

Quite yummy!!

Plant, Grow, Eat - Day 4

You will see a recurring theme this month of recipes made with cucumbers, tomatoes, 

& onions . . . these seem to be pretty prolific this year!

Tonite we had one of our favorites,

"Village Salad"

(see recipes)

This is one of our all time summer favorite fresh salads.

It only takes a few minutes to prepare and tastes amazing!

On the Menu:

Village Salad

Steamed Green Beans with onions and garlic

Whole Wheat Orzo with olive oil and Mizithra

(Mizithra is a wonderful Greek hard cheese made from sheep or goat milk

find it in gourmet or Mediterranean markets.)

Enjoy,

Lori Ann

Plant, Grow, Eat - Day 3

This evening we have a slightly "Healthy" version of Risotto

Today's Menu:

"Healthy" Asparagus & Leek Risotto
(see recipes)

Side of cherry tomatoes, simply dressed with sea salt, pepper, olive oil and a splash of lemon.

This is finally the end of our asparagus,

I didn't expect to have another meal of it, but lo and behold, there was a perfect amount!

This healthy version of risotto skips the butter & cuts down a bit on the olive oil and Parmesean,

all without sacrificing taste.

The Vegan Version would leave out the Parmesean and still be quite decadent!

Enjoy,

Lori Ann

Plant, Grow, Eat . . Day 2

Tonite was burger night.

Of course my husband had a "real" burger

But I had one of my favorites. The Veggie Marsala burger from Trader Joes.

On the Menu:

Veggie Marsala Burger

Side of Quinoa

(Topped with cherry tomatoes, simply dressed with 

salt, pepper, fresh basil and a drizzle of olive oil.) *

&

Freshly made Bread and Butter Pickles. *

(see recipe page)

* Yum from the garden!

Lori Ann

Plant, Grow, Eat - Day One

Today is August 1st.

It is also: 

Lughnasadh 

This "Green Man" visited us last year
 from the Cypress trees. Can you see him?

The first Harvest arrives with Lughnasadh, the Celtic festival held in celebration of the first fruits of the harvest on August 1st.  As the Green Man’s foliage begins to change colors , we begin harvesting in our gardens, making bread from our grains, storing the fruits of our gardens for winter and celebrating another year of the earth’s bounty.

(To see more history, click here)

A fitting beginning to my Plant, Grow, Eat challenge don't you think?

As we are still getting the last bits of asparagus from the garden I thought I would begin there.

Tomatoe, Asparagus and Feta Fritatta

On the menu:

Tomatoe, Asparagus & Feta Fritatta

(see Recipes page )

Sliced tomatoes

Roasted Mild peppers stuffed with feta.

Quite a lovely meal for day one!

Enjoy,

Lori Ann

It's looking like dinner!

Hi there!

Well . . .  August 1st. will be the first meal of my 

"Plant, Eat, Grow" challenge!

(See prior post or sidebar)

 Monday will be our first meal.

The results will be posted later Monday evening, say about 9pm or so!

Hmmmm . . .  what to make?

We are actually still getting a few stalks of asparagus here and there!
I think I'll start with those!

The Kitchen Garden

The garden looks a bit like a veggie jungle, but good things are hidden amongst

all those green leaves.

I'm getting quite hungry !

Enjoy,

Lori Ann 

A personal challenge . . .

So, here is my silly personal challenge idea!

Is it a hair "hare" brained scheme? 

Will I be torturing my husband with vegetables?

 Will this just be fun?

to ALL of the above . . .  YES!

Plant, Grow, Eat

is a self imposed challenge to create 30 meals over 30 days

from what is growing in the garden.

In addition to what we pick I am allowed 3 additional ingredients.

Items like cheese, eggs, a piece of fish, etc.

There is a small list of "free" items as well:

Sea salt, fresh ground pepper, olive oil, lemon juice or vinegar, butter (for DH) and various condiments.

Every meal will be foremost . . .

FRESH, HEALTHY, SIMPLE and EASY!

Now . . .  my husband and I eat a little differently, this challenge really is pretty easy for me as I don't eat meat, I do eat some fish, eggs and cheese, tho I could easily live on fruits and vegetables!

So, if I show a grilled Portobello meal, there is a good bet that his plate holds a steak in place of a mushroom! 

Other than that I'll do my best to get him to try a few new veggie dishes!

(Hmmmm . . . .  might be another challenge in there!)

Check "Barefoot in the Basil" on August 1st. for the first yummy meal! 

Right now I'm getting a couple meals in the queue, 

Just in case we are out for a day, or real life intervenes.

 I'm taking the week to prepare a few things ahead like Sweet "fridge" Pickles that take a

week to cure, and compiling recipes and ideas too!

In the meantime . . .   go stick your fingers in the dirt!

Lori Ann