For my birthday this year, Shawn bought me a full size food processor. For years, I have used a mini food prep, which I love. But after doing batch after batch of pestos and whatnot to store in winters past, I really wanted a full size one for big jobs … and guess what? I use it a lot. Like so often that it immediately found a permanent home on my kitchen counter.

And with the food processor just sitting there, beckoning me to chop, slice or puree something in its bowl, I was called to make this … sort of. It all started when mahi mahi, one of my very favorite fish, was on sale. Wild caught mahi mahi, that is … So, knowing that Shawn wouldn’t be home for dinner (man hates fish), I bought some.

Mahi mahi has a firm flesh, that holds up to the stab of a fork, but it’s also a light texture. Honestly, and this is such a funny thing to say, it reminds me a lot of chicken. There I said it. Tastes like chicken. Seriously though, mahi mahi is a wonderful fish that doesn’t have that fishy taste to it. Dressed up with some citrus and other bright flavors, it’s delectable. (I almost write divine and then delish, but really, I use those words a lot. Might be time to branch out a bit on the food adjectives.)

Anyway, long story short, this sounds and might even look fussy, but really it’s not. And frankly, I tell you to serve it on a plate, but it might be better in a bowl so you can grab a spoon and finish off the amazing tomato puree. It totally has a kick to it, but adjust the hotness to your liking.

Enjoy!

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Some people are bakers. They savor the exacting measurements that come along with creating perfect, moist, delectable breads and sweets. Other people are cooks, who find joy in the chopping, sauteing and forgiving nature of creating savory dishes. I know very few people who really love to both cook and bake. For me, I definitely fall into the cooking realm of things. I love the instinct of cooking, being able to add a bit of this and that and come out with excellent dishes.

Last weekend though, I really wanted some cookies. It was the night before a friend was coming to visit and go foraging with me. Out of chocolate (seriously, I have no idea how that happened!), I decided on peanut butter cookies. When Shawn saw me baking, he asked if I was trying to prove that I can bake too (she’s an excellent baker).

Okay, I know I don’t bake often, hun, but that is so not me.

Honestly, I just wanted the cookies, which turned out to be wonderfully crisp and full of peanut buttery goodness. I would choose cooking over baking any day. Although I do love to bake a lot at Christmas … otherwise, baking involves way too much measuring and cleanup for me.

So, which are you? The cook or the baker?

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After coming back from vacation last week, I had a rough time getting back into the rhythm of blogging. That transition from relaxation to dedicated workerbee sure is a hard one, isn’t it? That’s why there was only one recipe last week. Forgive me, there will be more recipes this week. Promise.

So let’s talk favorite comfort foods today.

There are some meals that I could eat several times a week and never grow tired of them. Among them is Chicken Parmesan, and I think Will, Paige and Shawn would agree. It’s comfort food at it’s best: tender, juicy breaded chicken with a solid, crisp crust that is neither too hard nor too mushy. Cooked with brilliant basil infused marinara sauce and topped with melty cheese that pulls apart in long strings when you eat it, it’s just mouthwatering good. For the sauce, I love homemade, but if not that then we all adore Bove’s Basil Marinara. It’s the freshest jarred sauce I’ve ever tasted.

Yum.

This particular recipe for Chicken Parmesan comes together really quickly and is super simple. And the results are something that everyone in the family just devours. Heck, we even fight over the leftovers. And with a limited amount of added fats, it’s not too bad for you either.

What’s your favorite comfort food?

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Growing food at home is hard. Really hard. And not in the way I expected it to be. I expected it to be challenging to get plants to grow strong enough to grow up and develop into good. That was the easy part, as it turns out. The hard part? Keeping the critters away from them! Last week it was slugs. This week? Deer. One of my tomato plants shrunk more than I care to think about at the mouths and hooves of deer. I was and am devastated, but we are doing the best we can to move forward.

And by moving forward, I mean erecting rudimentary fencing. Oh yes, that black monstrosity is my temporary barrier to keep deer out and plants in. We need a more permanent solution, but I am afraid it’s just not in the budget yet. Read the rest of this entry…

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Before I tell you about this delish Garlic Scape Risotto recipe, I want to stop for a moment and say something …

I’ve avoided the coverage that’s been everywhere about Michael Jackson’s death. Frankly, I found it pathetic that the same media outlets that have made him out to be a bizarre individual for the past decade and a half are now exulting his contributions to music and humanity. He was never allowed in the media to forget his past mistakes. Ever. And that, my dear readers, is very, very sad.

But today, the kids and I watched much of the memorial service for Michael Jackson. It was touching to see his family come together in such solidarity and to hear the sincere remembrances of the King of Pop. Michael Jackson had a wonderful gift and he willingly shared it with all of us for so many years. It is absolutely tragic that he has died at such a young age.

Furthermore, if you watched today, then you saw his young daughter Paris speak very briefly about her father, saying that to her, he was simply the best daddy in the whole world. Michael Jackson, the man who wasn’t allowed to forget his past or live a normal life, was a father, a brother, a friend and a son. He was a person who will be greatly missed by the people who loved him and knew him best. Those people are the ones who stood by him all the while … Rest in Peace, Michael.

Take a lesson from this: Michael Jackson was an amazing, talented, generous individual all along … He should have been shown the love and respect that he’s been afforded since his death while he was alive. Next time you read an allegation in a tabloid, stop for a minute. Does that person deserve the ridicule? Is the allegation even true or just a tidbit from “a source?” Do you really know the facts?

As a member of the mainstream media, I am the first to say that many reporters do their best to provide only the true, verified facts. But, that said, you also cannot believe everything you see in print. Some publications have no scruples. Some reporters aren’t honest … So, when you see allegations – whether it’s of child abuse, infidelity, drug abuse or whatever – read with a grain of salt, and give people the benefit of the doubt.

Now, about the recipe. A friend saw the above picture of Garlic Scape Risotto on my Flickr feed and sent me a note saying that I am torturing her with risotto since she ate the Creamy Artichoke and Herb Risotto recipe one I wrote about recently and loved it. Honestly, I have been a little obsessed with risotto lately. With the cool start to summer, this creamy, magnificent comfort food just warms you from the inside out with rich, bone-coating goodness. So, when I noticed that I had some garlic scapes begging to be used, I wanted to try them in a risotto recipe.

The result is a heavenly, hearty dish with a mild garlicky-ness to it. It won’t overpower your senses, but rather tickle them just a bit … Will, Paige, Shawn and I all ate it with gusto. Mmm. As far as garlic scapes recipes go, this is a must-make.

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For the better part of June, and too much of May, we had a little problem: rain. It has rained almost every day for a month. Seriously. Sure, we had a good day here and there, but it’s been a crazy wet season. And what comes with the overabundance of wetness? As my cousin, Farmer Jim, told me recently: slugs. And boy, when I went to take these photos yesterday, did I see what he meant. There were slugs all over my cabbage. It took a good 10 minutes to get them all off of my plants.

I hate slugs. So I Facebooked my frustration and a friend of mine immediately offered a solution: place a bowl of beer under the plants and the slugs will naturally be attracted … and then they won’t be a problem to anything any longer. That sure beats the salt method I was threatening them with. So, I am going to try this ingenious slug removal technique. I’ll report back next Friday on the success of it.

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It’s funny. It seems like with beets, people either love them or hate them. And of the people that hate them, I find that most haven’t ever actually had fresh beets. If you fall into the latter category, my condolences and I urge you to give fresh, wonderful beets a try. Seriously.

Now for those of us who love them, it’s a whole different ballgame. Boiled with a touch of salt? Perfection! Roasted? Even better. But tonight, oh tonight, I found something better and more wonderful – Roasted beets! With rosemary! And feta! The salted and peppered beets pick up a lot of the rosemary flavor, blending and melding in a wonderful, harmonious symphony of flavor. And then the creamy, but slightly salty feta just makes it burst in your mouth.

So. Good. These qualify as one of those OMG dishes where the serving might be for two people, but chances are you will eat them all yourself. Don’t worry, I won’t tell.

Looking for more delicious beet recipes? Try these:

• Roasted Beets, Leeks and Eggplant
• Vinaigrette Beet Slaw
• Roasted Beets with Thyme

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One of the great joys of summer is salad made with local greens. It’s vibrant, green and refreshing. It tastes of cool breezes on hot days and warm paperback pages read on a sunny porch. It’s something that you really start to appreciate the older you get …

Today, the kids and I scored a few heads of Boston Bibb lettuce at the farmers market. I like romaine and iceberg and other lettuces just fine. But I relish in a salad made with either fresh spinach or Boston Bibb … I love the firm, smooth leaves – not firm as in hard, but firm as in solid and having some mass.

Top it with some fresh strawberries sliced up while they are in season, or some juicy, just off the vine, tomatoes later in the season. Even blueberries or sliced apples (at the end of summer) can make a nice salad topper.

And then comes the crunch. For me, a salad just has to have that crunch. And what better crunch than homemade croutons? Just slice up whatever left over bread you have (sometimes, for me, it’s my fav semolina bread ends. Other times, it’s leftover hamburger buns or even just slightly stale sandwich bread — in a pinch, of course), season and go.

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