Lazy July Update & Garden Recipe

So I've neglected this sorry-excuse-for-a-blog in recent weeks, partly because of work (y'know, I've been doing work at work instead of crafting blog posts) and partly because I've been too bummed to share this sad story:

The story of blossom end rot.  I lost ALL my beautiful heirloom tomato crop to this dreadful disease. WTF? Calcium deficiency? Next year I'll put some crushed egg shells in the soil to add more calcium.  

However, my yellow gooseberry tomatoes are doing wonderfully.  I've had a very good harvest so far, and they are still ripening every day.   

The first meal I prepared with them was a simple pasta with a white wine sauce.  I just sautéed some garlic in olive oil, added a splash (or three) of white wine, and threw in these yellow tomatoes (halved) and some basil from the garden.  The tomatoes softened just a bit, then we tossed the mixture with some cooked pasta and seasoned with salt/pepper.

And on Tuesday, we had a very light summery dinner:  Sautéed asparagus in an orange dressing, tomato & fresh mozzarella salad, and some sweet corn on the cob:

Sautéed Asparagus in Orange Dressing:

1 bunch asparagus (keep it fresh in the fridge by standing it up in a little water and covering the top with a bag)

1 orange (the juicier the better)

some grated asiago

salt/pepper

Snap the ends off the asparagus, and chop into 2-in pieces (or whatever works for you).  In sauté pan, cover asparagus with water and simmer (a minute or two) until asparagus is bright green. Drain.

Bring asparagus back to pan.  On low heat, drizzle with olive oil and add juice of orange, sauté for a minute or two.  Season with salt/pepper.  

And I like to add some orange zest (1 tbsp?) for color and more flavor.  To finish it off, sprinkle with asiago and serve.  

Tomato & Fresh Mozzarella Salad:

This is my go-to summer meal, since its so easy and tomatoes are abundant.  Toss tomatoes (I halved the cherry tomatoes - yellow ones from the garden, red ones from the store), fresh mozzarella (chopped to equivalent size), olive oil, balsamic vinegar, fresh basil (from the garden) & season with salt/pepper.  So good.

And we sat down with our meal, a Spanish Rose wine, and watched "In The Loop" which is an awesome political satire - highly recommended.

TGIFF coming next.