Update on the garden

Since the crazy rainstorm and disasters in my backyard, I've been reluctant to tend to the garden. Not only is it a bit depressing to go out there in all the mess, but every time I do I get about 1000 bug bites. My legs look like they did when I was a 10 year old at sleep away camp-- bruised and fully of bug bites-- not good. But, thankfully, we've gotten some rain recently and despite all odds things are still growing. I even have a second tomato and some baby tomatoes.

Take a look:

I hope I am able to eat something from the garden before the end of August. We will see...

The best thing to do with tomatoes

Also while visiting NJ, my sister and I prepared my favorite appetizer for my mother while she was at work. This is an amazing recipe from Food and Wine and I was shocked that it was not on my blog available for you to try. I love this! I could eat the whole thing myself. It takes patience to wait for the bruschetta but it is worth it. Try to get the two varieties of honey, but it is not a deal breaker if you can't. I've made the recipe many times with only clover honey.

Honey-Tomato Bruschetta with Ricotta (from Food and Wine)

What You Need

- 2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise
- 1 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons clover honey
- 2 teaspoons thyme leaves
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- 12 baguette slices, cut 1/2 inch thick on the bias
- 1 cup fresh ricotta (8 ounces) (see my post on how to make it)
- 1 tablespoon buckwheat or chestnut honey (unfortunately, I only had clover so I just used 3 tablespoons clover honey)
- 6 basil leaves, thinly sliced or torn

What You Do

1. Preheat the oven to 300°.
2. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a large bowl, toss the tomatoes with the olive oil, honey, thyme leaves, salt and pepper.
4. Scrape the tomatoes onto the prepared baking sheet and turn them cut side up.
5. Bake the tomatoes for about 1 hour and 25 minutes, until they begin to shrivel and brown. Let cool.
6. Preheat the broiler.
7. Spread out the baguette slices on a baking sheet.
8. Broil for about 30 seconds on each side, until the edges are golden brown.
4. Spread the ricotta over the baguette slices and top with the slow-roasted tomatoes.
5. Lightly drizzle the tomatoes with the buckwheat honey, sprinkle with the sliced basil and serve with additional buckwheat honey on the side.

This is a great dish to share with family and friends while tomatoes are at the peak!

Soup, Summer, and Roasted Red Peppers

I spent the early part of this week with my family up in NJ. It was wonderful to hang out, relax, and spend a day at the Jersey shore. We spent the day at Spring Lake, had lobster at Klein's, and got yummy salt water taffy. We also did some fun family cooking, including this wonderful summer soup. Rarely do I eat chilled soup, so I was nervous to try it. But, how can you go wrong with roasted red peppers?!

Creamy Chilled Red Pepper Soup (from About.com)

What You Need

- 4 red peppers
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary (I used more)
- 5 cups vegetable broth
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1/2 cup cream
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- salt and pepper to taste

What You Do

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees or set to broil.
2. Slice peppers in half and remove seeds.
3. Broil peppers for about 20 minutes. (I sprinkled some olive oil before broiling)
4. In a large sauce pan, cook the onion and rosemary over medium high heat.
5. Add the peppers and vegetable broth and reduce to a simmer.
6. Add tomato paste and allow to cook for at least 20 minutes.
7. Transfer soup to a blender or food processor and process until smooth.
8. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine well.
9. Serve chilled.

Since this one was a success, I'm curious to try some more summer soups before August is over. I suggest you do to.

One Tomato Emerges from the Mess

I'm a proud momma of a baby heirloom tomato, finally. And it is perfect timing because my yard is still a disaster zone and making me a little bit sad.