I don’t know their names, but I love the different flowers I find all over the city.  Have a great week, all!

Paz

I was in the park with my friend and her kids when this wedding entourage came our way to take photos.  I had no idea who the bride, groom, or the rest of the party were but I knew that they made a gorgeous picture, so I couldn’t reisist aiming my camera at them. 

It was a beautiful day for a wedding.  Weather wise, the day was perfect.  Not too hot and not too cold — Just a bright, cheery day with a slight breeze and the sun kissing everyone’s face.  I like weddings.  Everyone is happy, dressed up, and in a festive mood — just like this group. 

Have a great week.

Paz

Penne with Fish Sauce

Adventures of an Italian Food Lover

Ivonne of Cream Puffs in Venice and Catherine of A Blithe Palate joined together to host a food blogging event in celebration of the release of cookbook/travelogue, Adventures of an Italian Food Lover by Faith Heller Willinger.  The rules for this event were simple:  Instead of writing a review, participants were asked to choose and prepare a recipe from the book and share a story about a friend or family member with whom they’d share the dish.  Or the participants could share a story  about a friend or family member who inspired them to prepare the dish.   

Many recipes, from this book with beautiful watercolor illustrations that took me to Italy, caught my eye.  I decided to make the Penne with Fish Sauce.  Penne is one of my favorite pasta types and I was intrigued with the idea of the fish sauce. 

My friend Francine inspired me to make this dish.  A wonderful cook, I think it’s something that she’d like.  She’s one of  my best friends from my college days.  I still remember the times when we  suffered breezed through our Classical Latin classes together, trying to remember those damned challenging declensions and conjugations.   We studied very hard and prayed (very hard) that our translations of the authors and poets’ works, like Virgil, were correct.  We prayed that our professors wouldn’t pick on us.  *Sigh* Those were the days.  Thankfully, we passed our Latin classes with good marks. 

For many years when I didn’t cook, my friend would invite me over her place and prepare meals for me.  She’d encourage me to cook and give me simple recipes with which to start. 

The recipe calls for fish to be cut in small strips.  I cut the fish in strips but as it cooked and I stirred the pot, it crumbled.  Probably it was because of the type of fish that I used — blue fish (one of my favorites).  However that didn’t detract from the taste.  The combination of the fish sauce, lemon zest, parsley and penne make the meal delicious.

I think that if Francine tasted this meal I prepared , she’d like it alot and I hope think hope that she’d say I did a good job. 

Paz

Dinner alone is one of life’s pleasures.  Certainly cooking for oneself reveals man at his weirdest.  People lie when you ask them what they eat when they are alone. A salad, they tell you.  But when you persist, they confess to peanut butter and bacon sandwiches deep fried and eaten with hot sauce, or spaghetti with butter and grape jam.    ~ Laurie Colwin,  Alone in the Kitchen with an  Eggplant

Have a great week, everyone!

Paz

Isn’t it cool when anyone of any age can enjoy the use of an apron?  Here’s Sydney, my friend’s granddaughter wearing her favorite apron to bake Christmas cookies.  So adorable!  Here’s what her grandmother, Kathleen has to say:

"Isn’t that a funny thing about aprons? I’m “fond” of mine, too! I have a Christmas apron with teddy bears on it that I ritually put on when I start to make Christmas cookies. It must be at least thirty years old, and I can’t imagine starting the cookies without it. The other is a heavy-duty one in pink and cream vertical stripes that was my late brother-in-law’s barbeque apron. Apparently, he loved his apron, too, and my sister gave it to me after he passed away. When I first started showing my little granddaugter how to make cut-out cookies (it was Christmastime) I thought for sure she would want the teddy bear apron. But, no, she wanted the pink stripes one and now that’s “her” apron when we make cookies. Mike was a big man so it covers her completely from under her arms to her toes, and the apron strings have to be wrapped around her body twice, but she loves that apron!"

Thanks for sharing these pics with us, Kathleen.  

Show us your aprons, folks!  I’d love to see ‘em.

Paz

Ilva of Lucillian Delights is hosting an event called Show Us Your Apron.  This is my contribution. 

Very satisfied with my first apron designed and made by  fellow blogger Mischief Mari, I returned to her store (Mischief Mari Superstuff) for a second apron.   Oh, I love my newest apron! 

Like my first apron, this one is reversible.  It’s also fun.  I like to have fun in the kitchen.  No time to be serious.   ;-)  For me, the aprons are part of my kitchen and cooking tools .  I get excited when I get something new to use in the kitchen (You should have seen me when I first got my zester).

When I saw the fish design, the apron called out to me.  I love that when I turn it around, I find fun-looking flowers — a whole other apron.  I won’t get tired of this apron soon.

You, too, can take part in the event.  Go here for the guidelines.  Come on, show us your apron!

Paz (taking a moment to do her happy dance in her new apron)

The fruits and vegetables look so enticing as they’re arranged no nicely in front of the super market.  Even if you did not intend to do any food shopping, you’re sorely tempted to stop and by something from the food display outside.  For the past month, I’ve been buying cherries, everyday.  What’s your favorite food item to buy during the summer.

Have a great week!

Paz

In the months of June and July there are several birthdays in my family.  So we get together at my cousin’s nice,  big house to celebrate.   As usual, this year, many different foods were prepared but my favorite was an unplanned and simple one — roasted corn.  My cousin’s neighbor, who’s originally from India, decided that he wanted to prepare the corn the way they do it in the streets of his country.  He roasted the corn, then rubbed salt, red hot African pepper (normally he’d use Indian spices but none were available) and lime over the corn.  Delicious!  When I eat corn, it’s usually boiled and covered with butter, so the roasted corn was a treat for me.  My brother also grilled some chicken, which wasn’t bad at all.  Good eating was had by all. 

Paz

Preparing the chicken

Grilling the chicken

Have a wonderful week, all!

Paz