strawberrylust

A number of you posted or e-mailed for info about my Toronto Island posting, so I've added a link with more info to that entry. I'll also include it here: You can find more information about the island and ferry schedule on this page.

After writing yesterday, I went to the St. Lawrence Market to shop for dinner ingredients...I decided to make a Greek stew recipe from the Moosewood Cookbook, with potatoes, onions, green beans, tomatoes, oregano, with parsley, lemon juice and kasseri cheese added at the last minute. Whenever I go to the market, I like trying one new food item I've never had before, and this time was kasseri cheese, a Greek cheese usually made from sheep's or goat's milk. Also picked up a crusty farmer's loaf from Ace Bakery to go with the stew.

I find the whole process of walking to the Market and then cooking with the fresh ingredients enormously comforting, especially browsing the aisles of wonderful colours and textures, the variety of produce, the sounds and smells. I also picked up two quarts of Ontario strawberries, which are WONDERFUL right now...very sweet and full of flavour.

Strawberries in season are my favourite fruit in the world. I cut them up and add them to cereal, with vanilla yogurt, dipped in chocolate, in salads, in blender smoothies, or just by themselves. They're at their best for a only couple of weeks in Ontario. The rest of the year, I find grocery market strawberries tend to be a pale comparison, relatively tasteless, often not worth the effort of even washing. Yes, I'm a strawberry snob.

(pause while Debbie rushes to get her strawberry fix from the kitchen because she can't stand the craving anymore)

Ah, that's better. I also picked up a huge bunch of fresh basil, more for just SMELLING than for eating, though I love basil with freshly sliced tomatoes and mozzarella, drizzled with balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil.

(another pause to wipe drool off the keyboard)

Anyway, the stew turned out well, though my arms got sore partway through the chopping. Frustrating, that, especially since it meant that I lacked the strength to slice the farmer's loaf I had bought to go with it when I had my dinner. My tendinitis is continuing to gradually heal, but it's hard not to get impatient sometimes.

And now I have lots of leftovers, yay! I could go on much longer about how I adore leftovers, but I'll save that for another food Blathering...


June 2004 comments:
Read Blatherchat | Post in Blatherchat | Livejournal comments