The other night I found myself home alone (Dale was working with the band and Hannah was out with friends) and hungry. I wanted something delicious but I didn’t feel like going out for take out.

I scanned the fridge and found some summer squash and zucchini.

I searched the cupboards and found a box of penne pasta and a packet of Knorr’s 4 Cheese pasta sauce.

I put on a pot of water to boil for cooking the pasta. Then I started the cheese sauce. While that was cooking I used my mandoline to julienne the squashes. I sauteed the squash as the pasta boiled and when it was all done I tossed it all together in a big bowl.

I served it on a pretty plate with lots of fresh cracked pepper and parmesan cheese.

In just 15 minutes I had a delicious home-cooked meal with enough leftovers for lunch for the next couple of days.

It was way better than take out, too!

Things I did this weekend:

Visited Dale’s sister at her campsite. I mostly sat around at the pond. It was good. (picture inspired by Claudia)

Picked up our CSA share. It included peppers, tomatoes, onions, eggplant, celery, leeks, potatoes, blueberries, green beans and these beautiful sunflowers.

Baked blueberry muffins.

Knit on the Cascata shawl. There’s a story behind this one but I’ll tell you later.

You know what I didn’t do at all? Spin. I think I have completely fallen off the Tour De Fleece wagon. Whoops.

You all know I love summer. I love the hot weather, I love the relaxed schedule, I love cooking on the grill and dining on the deck. Sometimes, though, it’s just too hot to cook. And when it is, I make this salad.

I’ve been making a variation of this Salad Nicoise since I was a young bride in 1988. I even have the same 2 plates I bought way back then at Pier 1. It was quite a splurge at that time, if I recall, but I figured if I was going to serve a cold salad for dinner then I ought to at least serve it on pretty plates.

It’s a very simple dish – a bed of lettuce topped with some steamed new potatoes, hardboiled egg, tuna (Hannah was quite dismayed that the tuna was not mixed with mayo, I told her to live a little), steamed green beans, black olives and tomatoes. The dressing is a basic vinaigrette with a little Dijon mustard mixed in for a bit of a kick. I think it’s delicious. It’s pretty and it’s perfect for a hot summer night.

So what do you cook when it’s too hot to cook?

Apple pie for 4th of July. The stars made it extra festive! Either way, it was delicious!

Have a great weekend!

So I got it in my head that I wanted to try baking and decorating some sugar cookies. This first started at Christmas but life (and Christmas!) got in the way. Last week, though, I got to thinking about it again. A lot. So, despite my pneumonia and bronchitis, I decided to give it a shot.

I managed to decorate 5. The others are just plain and they are staying that way. Good thing I don’t get paid by the piece.

Truly, this is difficult. Just getting the icing into the decorator bags makes a mess!

And then the edges bled when I tried to flood the cookies.

I did better when I gave up on the whole flooding thing and just went for pretty designs, like swirls and plaids.

I guess, in the end, they looked pretty good and I know they tasted pretty delicious.

It was a learning experience, that’s for sure. I think I’ll try this again when I don’t have pneumonia. Ya know?

You may know yesterday as Valentine’s Day but if you’ve been around this blog a while then you know, in our house, it’s Cream Puff Day. You can read the whole story here.

Luckily I was feeling a bit energized yesterday and was able to whip up 2 batches of the little devils in the morning. That’s one batch for us (which really means Dale) and one batch for his dad.

Normally Dale is not one for over-the-top stuff. When we eat chips ‘n dip he puts very little dip on his chip. Cheese ‘n crackers is always a small smear of cheese for him. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches have so little peanut butter I don’t think they should even be legal. But cream puffs? When it comes to cream puffs he is always urging me to stuff in more cream.  He has said for years that cream puffs are really just an excuse to eat whipped cream.

And he did. And it was good. Happy Cream Puff Day!

Okay, not really wordless, but just about. What with all the shopping, cooking, baking, wrapping and last minute knitting, time for blogging is scarce. So today, a photo of a selection of our gingerbread cookies.

Yummy.

One of the things I enjoy about Christmas is making special treats for people I love. Last year I made this toffee brittle with chocolate and sea salt and everyone really loved it – so I made it again for this year. It is simple and really has all you need in a food choice – fat, sugar and salt. Ahem.

I don’t have permission to reprint the recipe so I’m just going to link you to it. Toffee Brittle With Chocolate and Sea Salt.

I do have permission to show you all my photos, though, to help you as you make it yourself.

First you toast the nuts. I used pecans but last year I used walnuts and that was just as good.

Then you cook the butter and sugar to the hard crack stage. Just keep stirring so it doesn’t burn.

Spread your toffee in a butter baking sheet. It really is shiny at this point.

And then top it with chocolate chips. The heat from the toffee melts the chips within a few minutes. So simple!

When it has cooled for a bit sprinkle sea salt on top of the chocolate. Don’t knock the salt and chocolate combo until you’ve tried it. It’s goooooood.

After it has cooled you can break it into bite sized pieces and store it in a pretty tin.

All that’s left to do now is share. And eat. Mmmm.

When I was in Vegas I had a drink called the Spicy Lover at the Rhumbar at our hotel. It was delicious! So delicious, in fact, that I was determined to learn to make it at home. I finally succeeded last weekend and of course I want to share my success with all of you.

Spicy Lover
3 oz. silver tequila
3 slices english cucumber, peeled
fresh cilantro
1 oz. lime juice
1 oz. sweet agave nectar
3-6 drops Tabasco

Muddle cucumber, cilantro, agave nectar and lime juice. Pour into a cocktail shaker and add ice, tequila and Tabasco. Shake &  strain into a martini glass. Garnish with cucumber wheel.

Sip. Dream of Vegas.

Sigh.

Here we are with the final installment of Thankful Thursdays. I have so enjoyed writing these posts and reading everyone else’s posts, too. I think we should do this every year! And today, on Thanksgiving, I am thankful for food. My family has more than enough to eat and I am grateful that I have never known real hunger.

In particular, on this day of feasting, I am thankful for:

1. Turkey. It’s the star of the meal and while I love the white meat for a sandwich, when it comes to the Thanksgiving dinner itself, pass me the thigh.

2. Stuffing. Call it dressing, call it stuffing, call it whatever you want just please make mine with celery, onion, oysters, and lots and lots of Bell’s Seasoning.

3. Mashed potatoes and gravy. This combo rounds out any meal nicely but on Thanksgiving it’s the best part of the meal.

Of course there is also squash and turnip and cranberry sauce. And no Thanksgiving dinner is complete without the relish tray, stuffed dates and figs, and pie – my own contribution to the holiday meal.

Whatever your favorites, I hope you all have a Happy Thanksgiving!