Tuesday, June 09, 2020

In My Kitchen and Garden for June
{Weekend Cooking and Souper Sunday}

Holy cow it's midway through 2020 already. I had been told when you retire the time and days fly by.  It's very true.  Often I can't remember what day it is and my calendar has many written reminders on it now.

Here is my offering for the In My Kitchen event hosted at Sherry's Pickings.
The meal below was enjoyed in late May as it was my pick for my birthday celebration.  It was celebrated early as I'm taking some meds which react badly with alcohol. Silver lining is I'll be done the end of this week. :-)

Well.....this bottle of St Emillion was saved for the event and since I couldn't enjoy it in June, we just revised and celebrated early.  No big deal as it was a fabulous meal and I had the best company.

The salad is a basic type but the star was the tomatoes as we grew them.  Honestly, I wish we were more successful in the garden because there is nothing like a home grown tomato.  The taste is so fresh and there is the satisfaction of having grown it yourself.


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Lovely bottle of St Emillion that went a treat with grilled filets.

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Homemade baguette with grilled asparagus and baked sweet potato.

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One of my favorite desserts - cheesecake!

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Here are the tomatoes, it was a kick getting them from the garden. I am pleased with the most mundane things sometimes.

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The peppers are close to getting picked and the beans are flourishing.  We've never grown black beans before and they are so pretty with the long stalks and purple and white blossoms.

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Last but not least I want to share this big fat cookbook called Essential Pepin.  It comes with a DVD to view him preparing some of his dishes.  This was a score from Thrift Books coming in under $12.  I would like to start exploring some of the recipes in this gem and have delicious posts upcoming.  Wish me luck.

I recently made a Penne au Gratin from this book but that's it so far.

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 Linking up with 

22 comments:

  1. That book looks like a great find! I enjoyed Pepin's memoir "The Apprentice" very much, but haven't tried his cookbooks. Happy birthday!

    be well...mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. Thank you, Mae! I read the Apprentice as well. It was a good book.

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    2. Thanks, Mae, will look for that book.

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  2. Happy Birthday Tina! There's nothing like the taste of a home grown tomato, and your other plants are looking good! I've never grown black beans but we decided to try Red Noodle Yard Long Beans this year, still waiting for them to flower.

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    1. Thank you, Emily. I will look forward to your long beans, I had not heard of that variety. So true, a homegrown tomato rocks. :-)

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  3. happy birthday tina. thanks for joining in IMK this month. you're right, nothing better than homegrown veg. so delicious and fresh. we used to have tomatoes and basil growing so could whip up pesto at the drop of a hat. so delish!
    cheers
    sherry

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    1. Thank you, Sherry. Homemade pesto sounds good. You are getting into cooler weather where you are and it's very hot here. Not sure the garden will last :-(

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  4. Happy Birthday! That meal (and wine) looks delicious. I've never made baguettes, but I'm anxious to try. Do you have a favorite recipe?

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    1. Les, absolutely. Its the easiest one I use. I'll send it to you! Thanks much for the birthday wishes!

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  5. Happy Birthday, Tina. John was on that kind of medication last week.
    I made a cheese cake this week.
    We got our fist tiny cherry tomato this week.

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    1. Thank yyou, Jackie. I apprecite it. Yes, chjeesecake may be one of my all time favorite desserts. That said, I am a fan of many desserts, ha!
      I know John will be glad that med is over with. I sure am!

      Oh, left you a comment on your blog - just heard Tana French is coming out with a new book in October!

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  6. I think it is so much fun to be able to pick some produce from your very own garden! Happy Birthday. It looks like you had a delicious celebration.

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    1. Thanks, Judee, it was fun. Early or not, it's the folks you celebrate with and what you do that makes it special. It is indeed great to pick from the garden.

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  7. Happy Birthday! Dinner looks amazing and those tomatoes are gorgeous. Thanks for sharing your salad with Souper Sundays. I can't believe it's mid June already either--the year is zooming by!

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    1. Deb, thank you, I can't believe it's mid June either. This year has been flying by.

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  8. St Emilion - brings back memories. I can drink a good French red but the NZ ones give me a headache straight away. Cheers

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    1. Carole, I wonder if it's the sulfites in the wines in NZ?

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  9. Your dishes all look so fresh and delicious!

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    1. Thank you, Marg. There's nothing like having a graden and i hope we can do it again next year.

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  10. Happy Birthday! I must say I want the same menu on my own. I crave homegrown tomatoes, so far we only have a few flowers. Most likely it will be late July or sometime in September before the local ones are ready.

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    1. Liz, by then this extreem Florida heat will have killed my other plants. Next year I will plant more and earlier.

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  11. homegrown tomatoes are a delight, i'm looking forward to our own.And belated Birthday wishes to you

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