use real butter

We had a very summery meal for dinner tonight. While I was preparing the food, I came to the conclusion that I not only like winter for the weather, the skiing, the warm covers, but also for the kind of cooking I can do – filling the house with warmth and good smells from the oven or the slow cooker or a pot of simmering chili… Summer meals involve more grilling, salads, and summer produce.

potato salad begins with potatoes, green onions…

…and ham, boiled eggs, and seasonings

**Jump for more butter**

summer food
Artichokes remind me of summer. I picked up a couple of these beauties at the store yesterday and had one for lunch. The artichoke is a member of the thistle family although our cultivated versions have come a long way from their wild cousins. Typically you trim the base, remove outer leaves, lop the top off, and cut the pointed ends of the leaves off.

Boil or steam forever and then serve with lemon and/or olive oil. Actually, I prefer to eat them plain. Peel the outer leaves off and scrape your teeth on the inner base where the meat is. Peel them down to the heart, remove the choke, and enjoy the best part.



A good deal of this plant is fiber – lots and lots of fiber. Which might explain why I get gas when I eat them… Artichokes contain cynarin, a chemical which stimulates the sweet receptors on your tongue. Pairing wine with artichoke is a pain in the ass because it alters the taste of the wine.

Oh I hate the thought of losing an hour. Although it won’t get dark until 7:30 tomorrow! Jeremy was up at 5 am to run the largest moving radio dish on earth. I snoozed on and off for an hour and decided to start cleaning the house at 6. I got a lot of things done today including huge progress on Sarah’s gift, which I can’t show any pictures of at the moment.

Jeremy got a pint of Ben and Jerry’s Vermonty Python yesterday. Tasty coffee liqueur ice cream – mmmmmm. I’m not so fond of the fudgy cows in the mix, but the rest is divine.

More snow on its way this week. Tee hee. It’s snowing on Eldo right now.

avocados were on sale