Natural Delights

In addition to wasting far too much time on Facebook, as mentioned in the previous post, I have been spending most of the spring outside.  Mainly outside in my own immediate surroundings.  The first spring task was to get rid of the weeds that sprang up in great profusion in the yard/gardens as a result of a somewhat wetter winter than we often have.  We managed to get most of that done before it began to warm up to summer levels.  It was a cool though hideously windy spring, and the spinach and chard that I planted in the late fall have continued to thrive.  In addition to those two I now have four different varieties of lettuce, cilantro, basil, as well as lots of  perennial herbs in profusion: sage, thymes, chives, tarragon.  We are rapidly moving into summer heat - by the weekend it will be at least one hundred degrees, maybe a little higher by Sunday and Monday.  So we are living on salads, sandwiches full of vegetables, and smoothies.  The kitchen gets so hot in this weather, that I can't even bear to turn on the stove.  The Growers' Markets are opening now, so there are loads of local produce available, in addition to the salad fixins in my own back yard.  I've planted tomatoes and cucumbers too, but it will be a good while before they show up. Exciting news is that Deborah Madison's new cookbook is finally out.titled  Seasonal Fruit Desserts: From Orchard, Farm and Market, it's one that I've been eagerly awaiting.  It will be awhile til I can afford it, but I can drool over it in bookstores, pick up some ideas while browsing.  There is so much gorgeous fruit available now, we have been inventing our own dessert delights - strawberries and watermelon in ginger sauce, mangoes and oranges with mint and lime, to name just a couple. Nothing fancy, but cool and delicious.