Meeting and Greeting, take 3

... or is it take 4... hmmm... I don't know. In any case, I once again hosted the MFA Meet and Greet and a lovely time was had, I hope, by all. Here are some pics of the table and the various salads and things.

Everyone said they liked this salad best, so it gets to go first. Kale, roasted sweet potatoes, avocado, black beans, dates.

Next up, a salad based on one that Ellen and I had at The Rugby Grille at The Townsend Hotel. Mixed greens, chick peas, roasted radishes (the roasted-ness was my variation....), tomatoes, red onion, feta, and raspberry vinaigrette.

Next, what I call "Ellen's Salad" and she calls "My Salad!" Butter lettuce, watermelon, blueberries, cucumbers, olive oil, lemon.

And finally, something simple yet elegant. Arugula and spinach with grapefruit and toasted almonds. And my usual vinaigrette.

Oops. Almost forget: I grilled some asparagus. Nothing fancy about that, but it does photograph nicely.

The grocery store flowers were pretty too.

And that was that!

Meeting and greeting

Hard to believe it's that time of year again, but, alas. In any case, I was happy to host the MFA meet-&-greet this past weekend. Here are some pics of the food.

I made four salads.

Quinoa with edamame, corn, chick peas, dried cherries & pepitas.

Wild rice, cantaloupe, blueberries, spinach, toasted almonds & feta. My favorite.

Mixed greens with sautéed asparagus, toasted pecans, blue cheese. My vinaigrette.

Watermelon, tomato, feta salad. An old stand-by.

I also made two quick breads: beer bread and cherry-walnut bread. The latter is a Cherry Republic recipe.

And for dessert, two kinds of cookies: NY Times chocolate chip (the best...) and chocolate-pumpkin seed cookies (also very good).

Whew! That was fun.

Lots of pretty

First blooms in the garden...

And along a favorite path...

Food can be pretty too, of course.

A quick salad of asparagus, pea pods, etc.

 

And potato salad. The vinaigrette kind. A few adaptations since last time.

A simple dinner after a long drive.... grilled vegetables, sautéed spinach....

A new bread recipe. KAF buttertop. So so good.

Finally, and definitely in the "pretty" category, Lake St. Clair. A recent Sunday morning. A little before 8. Michigan...

A gentle rain

this morning... and a roundup: various things, shades of green.

Basmati rice + chicken + green beans + scallions + oh I can't remember what else.

Gemelli with swiss chard, tomatoes, pistachios.

Wild rice, farro, baby kale, mandarin oranges, dried cherries.

"Silky" zucchini soup. Food & Wine recipe. 

Meeting and greeting

This past Sunday I hosted the MFA meet-&-greet. Now my house is mostly very clean.

No grilling this year. Instead, five (yes, five) salads:

Mixed greens with feta and pecans. My vinaigrette.

Wheat bulgur and corn salad. 

Rice salad with edamame, pistachios, dried cranberries.

Chick pea and parmesan salad.

Watermelon, tomato, feta salad.

I also made some beer bread.

And then there was some fruit.

And some brownies and chocolate chip/espresso chip cookies. The Hello Kitty cookies I did not make. Alas.

Finally, a couple of pics of the table.

Whew. That was a lot. But a good time, I think.

May

Some recent items of interest...

A smaller portion of mac & cheese.

Pinto bean and red wine soup. Splendid Table recipe, kind of.

Rosemary and raisin bread.

Next, a few things I made for my MFA students for our final gathering at my house. 

Mixed greens with sautéed asparagus and almonds.

Red quinoa with edamame, feta, and sunflower seeds.

And chocolate cupcakes (King Arthur mix) with vanilla icing (homemade) and sprinkles... and a candle on one, for a birthday.

A couple of other recent things. 

First, an excellent roasted sweet potato and spinach & arugula salad with a red pepper vinaigrette. Mark Bittman recipe, kind of.

And, of course, the bread. I don't always post it, but I do keep making it. Two smaller loaves this time.

And, most of all, here's a tree I admire.

Belatedly

I hosted the annual MFA meet-and-greet—two weeks ago now—and here, at last, are the photos.

First, flank steak, already marinated in low sodium soy sauce, mirin, ginger, garlic, lime juice.

And grilled... along with some chicken that had been marinated in Greek yogurt, etc.

And some salads: watermelon with tomatoes and feta... 

and orzo with baby kale, chick peas, feta, red onions...

and a chopped salad with pears, gorgonzola, pecans and a homemade poppyseed dressing...

Finally, here's a pic of the table.. 

And yes, a good time was had by all.