More squash, more beets (I like beets, but MORE BEETS? Seriously?). Also tomatoes, a cucumber, a bunch of dill, a tease of a melon, three zucchini, and a study in purple: eggplant, basil, and potatoes.
The melon I had planned to make into a sorbet. The flesh was gorgeous, but it had no flavor. I think it sold its flavor to the devil and what I received is the picture of its flavor that is supposed to stay in the basement while the perennially luscious flavor is out debauching all over London (an imperfect metaphor, I admit). So, I did what I generally do when I’m stumped: I pickled it. We ate it in a salad at Jay’s birthday dinner (more on that coming soon). The pickling definitely improved it, but still it disappointed.
The eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes joined a couple of robust crookneck squash donated by the lovely Lucy Oullette Santis in a rustic ratatouille which we ate at Jay’s pre-birthday dinner, topped with a healthy mound of Narragansett Creamery ricotta, a swish of olive oil, and lots of black pepper.
The purple basil garnished a Asian-inspired cucumber salad (cucumbers, rice wine vinegar, toasted sesame oil, fish sauce, chopped peanuts) and took a starring role in a crayola-colored cocktail (St. George’s gin, purple basil, pomegranate, simple syrup, lemon juice, lemon bitters*). Now that’s what I call multi-tasking!
I pickled the beets (of course) and used the potatoes in Jay’s birthday dinner. All good stuff.
*I have a ton of homemade bitters looking for a good home. If you’re interested, hit me up.
Signing off with the Gourds, covering Snoop Dogg.
Seriously … ya gotta love purple hooch! 😉
Truly!