Sweet Teeth

Finally! I've been meaning to send this post out since Sunday. I haven’t even had time to change the silly tag line on Facebook where I get to let everyone know how tired I am or what I’ve got in the oven (and it really was a pie, folks!). Not only that, but I’ve lost my potatoes. And I’m not speaking metaphorically – I’m pretty sure that they were put away somewhere in the kitchen, but I have no clue where.

There’s only one explanation for this state of fatigue and confusion: teething.

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Yes, I do have all of my teeth, but my young brood does not. The twins are chewing through their toys and my heart—my normally-well-rested sweetie pies need extra cuddling these days, and at 3:00 AM, no less!

Despite this, I did come up with a few noteworthy treats, all in the side dish and dessert family. Here are the highlights inspired by the most recent produce lot (I’ve listed the complete organic bounty toward the bottom of this post):

Zucchini Frizzles (at least that’s what I call it) – My cousin let me know about this super simple way to prepare zucchini and said she found the original recipe in the New York Times. I couldn’t locate it, but went ahead with it because the whole thing is prepped and ready faster than you can say Rachael Ray. Here it goes: cut zucchini in wheels, arrange on foil-lined tray, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt and black pepper. Bake at 350° until brown and a bit bubble on top. I forgot to time it, but it didn’t take long. Also, I was too tired to bend down and open the oven door so I made two batches in my toaster oven instead. They were so delicious that we ate them all before I could grab the camera.

Potato and Spinach Mash/Salad – I’m always inclined to do a quick Google search before consulting the cookbooks these days and I found this spinach and potato salad in someone else’s blog when searching for potato salad recipes (I wanted something Americana for the Fourth...). It seemed easy enough and so I had to try it. Of course, I bought the potatoes since I lost the ones that came in the delivery box (so bizarre!!) My version came out tasty, but it ended up looking more like mashed potatoes with spinach folded in and I used less sour cream (and the reduced fat variety) than the recipe called for. Elizabeth, our nanny, said that it could have used garlic and perhaps she is right. I plan to add a clove or two the next time I make it.

Carrot Cake – My mom read this recipe to me over the phone since I wanted to make the one that I grew up with (she said she found it on the side of a bag of flour a long time ago). I couldn’t find a link to anything similar so I’ll have to list the ingredients: ½ cup brown sugar; ½ cup white sugar; ½ cup canola oil; 2 eggs; ½ tspn salt; 1 tspn cinnamon; 1 cup whole wheat flour; 1 cup grated carrots; 1 tspn baking powder; ¼ cup chopped walnuts; 8 oz crushed pineapple, drained; and ¾ tspn baking soda. Mix dry ingredients and fold in the wet ones. Use an 8x8 or 9x9 pan and bake at 350° for 40 minutes. I also added a little vanilla extract, doubled the recipe, used a 9x13 cake pan and baked it for a little bit longer. I’d imagine that cinnamon would be a good addition to the mix and I’d like to add a little next time around.

Pear and Plum Pie – I used another blogger’s recipe for a nectarine and plum galette – a flat tart – as a basic guideline for this dessert, but took it in another direction by changing the fruit mixture to pears and plums. I also made one galette and one traditional pie with the same fruit mixture (and store-bought pastry dough!). I pushed the pie shell edges down a bit to make it look rustic. The pie was a delicious way to say bon voyage to my in-laws who recently left for Greece to celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary. I had wanted to make a Greek puff pastry but am slightly intimidated by phyllo dough.

And now for the produce roll call: green leaf lettuce, carrots, red potatoes, spinach, corn, limes, kale, cantaloupe, zucchini, Valencia oranges, peaches, Red Delicious apples, black plums, Packham pears, and bananas.

You’ll be pleased to know that save a few apples and one last banana, it has all been used up and I’m eagerly awaiting this week's delivery. The other bananas? Well, they've been sliced up and frozen for my little teethers...