hello!!!

This recipe is absolutely fantastic!  I had a plethora of tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant that needed some attention, and this was one of the first recipes to pop up upon googling "eggplant pepper recipe"...This garden has been so satisfying and I will be sad to see it go (but on to Fall vegetables!).  I made a big batch so plenty for a week of lunches and some to go into the freezer and maybe Dan can try some in a few weeks when he returns home!  I also made a loaf of bread...mmm fresh bread with butter and the eggplant braise - delicious!!  Well worth sweating in the kitchen for the hour - whew!  I heeded some of the advice in the reviews of the recipe - tripled the turmeric, added some ground fenugreek, cayenne pepper, and coriander and a teaspoon of garam masala at the end for that full on "Indian" punch...I've been surprised how satisfying these veggie meals have been - the heat certainly curbs the appetite as well.  I've also surprised how little basil I've been using....It's been growing great but I just haven't had the desire to add it to many meals.  I went out for Thai yesterday and I noticed their parking lot was lined smartly with alternating bushes of Thai basil and lemongrass - how functional!! I snapped off a small stem of the basil and I'm hoping it'll take root!!  Although I don't seem to be using it much in cooking, I love the smell of basil when I go out to pet my basil plants....

For the next recipe adventure I may try this one.  I went to the organic market last week when picking up a friend from the airport and we loaded up on goodies that are scarce or pricey here in Tuscaloosa - chocolate covered espresso beans, dates, unsweetened shredded coconut, and these dates rolled in coconut flakes that Dan got me hooked on in Moscow. mmmm.  Anyhow, the recipe sounds pretty tasty, and I never cook with dates (except wrapping them in bacon thanks to Adam!).

A few random pics

AND!!  From Dan:

"Check out this seminal paper that was just published.  I have a feeling it may revolutionize science as we know it.  "

Congrats dearest!

:)

xo

hi-o!!

a new round o pics!
xo!!

Sigh...

Well we are t-minus 1 month and a day until Dan returns to T-Town.  sniff sniff..We get by with short chats on the phone (about 10 minutes), random skype sessions when we overlap with the 5 hour difference, and reminiscing by looking at old pictures.  Aw shucks....So here is a photo album that I haven't posted on this blog, but I have shared it with some in the past.  It's from 2009 Memorial Weekend Day which was one of the funnest weekends ever - I think it was our official "trip" together.  We drove out to Leavenworth, WA, camped and bouldered near my field sites, and then went to the Gorge for the Sasquatch Music Fest.  It was so much fun an looking at the pics make me miss the Pacific Northwest so very much (as well as Dan!).

anyhow, enjoy a blast from the past that I at least enjoyed hope you do too...

xo

A few random pics...

Here.
:)

An Iceland post from Alabama...

Hi there, this is just a reminder to check out the Iceland blog, the Hengill Diaries.  As an aside, when you type in "Hengill" in google, this link is the first thing that pops up!  Cool!!

There are pictures of the heat exchanger that I've been slowly taking apart and packing up here at work.  Keeps me busy along with gobs of lab work and the smattering of field work!

xo

ct

More pics!!

Here's another batch of pics from some garden changes from the past few days!!  I unfortunately now know what a lizard egg looks like... eeps - check the pics for more info..
xo

A video greeting for dad!

My dad had a hernia surgery yesterday, all went well but he'll be laid up for a few weeks. So here's a get well greeting Hannah and I made for him! (Hannah does not take direction well - such a picky diva!)

Get well soon Pops!  Rest up and do your daily exercises!!! Love you!

Hi!

Yesterday I made this recipe for dinner - AMAZING!! and so simple...I hope to have it in heavy rotation in the future!  Right now I'm awaiting a focaccia to bake for a potluck for a grad student's defense party (Scott's).  I'm already late, but a focaccia was the only thing that seemed to do.  And while I wait for it to bake I can have a short blog.

Enjoy some pics!

xo,

ct

Happy 4th of July!!

Not only is it the 235th anniversary of America, but it is also the 1st anniversary of Dan and I's Southern migration!!   I can't believe it's been a year already!!

Right now it is finally pouring down rain after a week of flirting with precipitation.  I think the rain should clear by 7pm tonight, which is when the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater opens up for the Tuscaloosa Orchestra Symphony plays some America songs and fireworks go off!  I was unsure if I wanted to attend since the weather was so dang hot, but the rain should cool things down and make the outdoors bearable!

On the bird front:

The hummingbirds have returned!  Anthony noticed one last week when one stopped by our feeder and was dismayed when it realized I had neglected by bird friend duties (in my defense, the ants had taken over the feeder and I was tired of feeding ants - it's not as satisfying).  Now the feeder is full and the birds seem happy.

The family of cardinals are aging well with the little ones now in an awkward teenage stage.  They are gangly and still not successfully feeding themselves.  They keep chirping for their parental units to feed them, even when I put out a platter of bird seed for them, p-shah!!

On the garden front:

It's totally wigging out with productivity.  The peppers are about a week from being fully blown ripe - waiting for the golden bells to reach "golden"levels, I've gotten about 5 eggplants so far and I'm pretty pleased with that, they are definitely on the list next year!!  I think I have to think of a different way to grow squash because they're such space hogs...

I worked a little on the garden, still haven't taken pictures of the mini progress though, stay tuned.

In any case, the tomatoes have been made into sauces and salsas thus far - both turned out quite delicious.  The Farmer's Market has a salsa contest and I think I may submit a recipe just to use up tomatoes!!

Roasted tomato, garlic, jalapeno salsa (adapted from Joy of Cooking!):

2 large garlic cloves, unpeeled
2 large jalapeno chile peppers

Roast in a dry pan over high heat for about 10 minutes, remove garlic skin and chile pepper stem, place in food processor (magic bullet!) with 1 teaspoon salt - make into paste

~1 lb of plum tomatoes (as many that fit in a 9" baking pan) broiled in the oven ~5 minutes on each side in a baking pan until skin is charred, cool and peel

Add to food processor and puree, mix with

2 tablespoons white onion, finely diced

Add more salt to taste - yum!

When I make the salsa for the Thursday market I might try to roast garlic and jalapeno in with the tomatoes to make it a bit easier.

I also put together some deer meatballs with some ground deer meat from Mike.  I tweaked the recipe a bit using oregano to merge better with my marinara sauce.  They are soo tasty. I've been eating it with the sauce, but also with the salsa and yogurt to do a gyro type of thing - amazing!

Random Pictures