Cherry tomatoes and rhubarb in sinkGadzukes zucchini in garden
And so it begins. Every year I look forward to the garden producing fresh vegetables. Every year, I plan, prep, plant, and – most years and this one is no exception – get overwhelmed. Production and problems and pests, oh well. Even so, being able to walk out back and pick –ingredients for supper, radishes and cukes to slice for quick frig pickles for snacks with toast, cherry tomatoes for Greek salads or chopped salads with olives and a little hot pepper, fresh herbs, fresh hardneck garlic, chard, spinach, and more makes the obstacles well worth it.
This week the squash has started coming in — along with the rhubarb and a few cherry tomatoes and a coupla cukes and a Big Daddy pepper or two and the last of the glorious harvest of fresh shell peas, though I still have hopes for the second planting, so we’ll see. But I digress.Happiness is a full crisper
The squash. Zucchini fritters with spicy adobo sauce or quick sautéed for supper with onions and salt and pepper, or ratatouille or grilled or sliced and layered with pasta and tomatoes, browned ground beef, some Worcestershire, herbs and whatever cheese you have leftover in the frig (and baked, obviously). But the thing I look forward to having every year now is an ab fab squash gratin that we first tried two summers ago and fell in love with. It’s a wonderful concoction of homemade pesto wrapped around sliced squash, shallots homemade breadcrumbs and layered with gruyere. Each component makes the whole thing special, but the standout ingredient from my standpoint is the pesto. In addition to the usual garlic, herbs and olive oil, it includes capers and anchovies for umami (pronounced Oooooo Mommy!) that depth of flavor that makes a dish truly satisfying. The result is rich, flavorful and filling. A whole meal until itself. It’s even good leftover and cold for lunch.
Casual dining with fresh, organic, locally farm-raised
The recipe prescribes specific quantities of fresh herbs, which I don’t always have so I substitute. Cilantro to make up for my garden’s low inventory of parsley, for example, and more oregano, and a fistful of basil. I use wholegrain breadcrumbs made from some of the leftover crusts I stick in the freezer. Also, there is rather a lot of olive oil prescribed, at least for our tastes, so I cut it in half, which works for us.
I don’t have a picture of that casserole (again, we ate it all before I even thought of pictures) so I’ve included other stuff to keep eyes entertained. Recipe link below. Eat hearty.
p.s. just added the pics of a meal since I remembred to take ’em. Local grass fed Jersey steak, chimichuri from our cilantro and hardneck garlic, and grilled sweet peppers along with black bean and grilled corn salad. By way of apology for not staying on target with pics of the food I’m talking about!
I grew up sailing and building boats with my dad, married a tugboat captain, (who I'm still happily married to) and embarked on a life of adventure, challenge and fun. My first book, Woman in the Wheelhouse, told the sometimes harrowing story of working on an old coastal tugboat as cook/deckhand then worked in Mexico in the Campeche oil fields on a supply boat. I was one of the first women in the country to earn a tug operator's license. I'm the author of three other books, Course of the Waterman, which won the Fred Bonnie Prize for the novel, the historical novel, A Love Like No Other: Abigail and John Adams, A Modern Love Story, and OK Now What? A Caregiver's Guide to What Matters, which I wrote with longtime RN and hospice nurse, Sue Collins during the time my mother-in-law was moving to the end of her life.
My second, Course of the Waterman, the coming of age novel of a young Eastern Shore waterman, won the Fred Bonnie award in 2004. My third book, second novel, A Love Like No Other: Abigail and John Adams, A Modern Love Story, takes readers into the lives of the new nation's strong-willed second First Lady and her stubborn, often-absent and adored husband, John, our second US President. I wrote the book because I'd spent big chunks of time raising children alone while my husband was at sea and felt an affinity for Abigail, but also looked to her life as a MUCH bigger challenge that informed and encouraged my own. My fourth book, OK Now What? A Caregiver's Guide to What Matters (Head to Wind Publishing, 2014) was written in collaboration with Sue Collins, RN and longtime hospice nurse and has received heartwarming feedback on how helpful it's been to many caregivers.
A freelance writer for many years, I've published personal essays, features, maritime reporting and analysis, travel, garden and more for such places as The Washington Post, Yachting, House Beautiful, The Baltimore Sun, the Christian Science Monitor, Southern Living, Sailing, and more. I'm also a University of Maryland Master Gardener who grows and cans the family's fruits and vegetables, and a Bay-Wise program certifier. I write, sail, race sailboats (occasionally), walk the German Shepherd dogs, and cook for friends and family.
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Nancy Taylor Robson 