Hurricane Irene Hits the LES!

Mayor Mike (el alcalde) told us to stay indoors all day on Sunday. We took this very seriously.

This is what happened to our tree.

Pasta and Sauce. The perfect storm.

Frankies’ Sunday Sauce

All kidding aside, we hope everyone is safe and sound.

Dessert Cocktails!

I made my favorite summer cocktail, an Americano, and froze it. You can see the orange peel! It was tasty, though I think it is WAY more relaxing to sip while sitting on the couch, than lick while standing in the kitchen...

Z-licious!

These were delicious. Moist and chocolate-y.

What a great way to use up some plentiful Z!

(And no, you don’t taste the zucchini.)

Zucchini Linguini

I am always surprised when people don’t like particular foods. Tomatoes? Berries? What???

Food is delicious! It is the reason I wake up in the morning—it shapes my day. There is not a lot food that I don’t like, and even then, I’ll still eat those things... I am starting to think that maybe people taste food differently. If I had to choose my LEAST FAVORITE vegetable, I’d probably say zucchini or squash. I always found it to be really bitter. And, of course, it is so abundant in the summer—I can’t avoid it.

So, what’s changed? Well, I have noticed as I eat zucchini with more frequency that it is getting less and less bitter and more and more sweet. Has it? Or have my taste buds changed? Or maybe the idea of what I think it tastes like has changed. Or maybe it is because we’ve been preparing it differently? A different texture equals a different taste sensation? I don’t know, but I am beginning to like zucchini. There. I said it.

Last night we grated it and cooked it in oil, garlic, red pepper flakes and whatnots as per Heidi Swanson’s Summer Linguini recipe in THE BOOK. How did it taste? Not bitter at all! Good enough that I begged for seconds. Delicious with some nice red wine, salad with Lazy Girl Dressing, and some homemade blueberry ice cream. Life is sweet. Not bitter at all.

Sparkling Panakam at Sparky’s House

JustAwesome is a genius. Or, maybe Heidi Swanson is. Anyway, at a recent barbecue on our friend, Sparky Rudy’s* ginormous patio, JA came armed with a pre-mixed mocktail to drink after we had a cocktail or two, before we moved on to beer or wine. You know, so we wouldn’t overdo it.

Sparkling Panakam: Ginger, cardamom, lime juice, sugar, salt and sparkling water. And lotsa ice. It is almost like a ginger beer.

Sparky said, “I like this drink. A lot.”

*Name has been changed to protect Sparky’s ginormous patio from interlopers.