Heirloom Tomatoes- Missoula, Montana

I'm seeing red today - and yellow and interspersed swathes of green: all the best colours of heirloom tomatoes from the Missoula Farmers Market. 
I'm feeling healthier just looking at them!

Better Than Bacon - Missoula, Montana

"Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon."

- Doug Larson 

Colours Of Summer - Missoula, Montana

Ahh, the colours of summer brightening my kitchen sink! (Not to be confused with the more stately colours flying from our porch to honour this Independence Day.)

This rainbow chard spurred memories of our mother's sink full of greens picked from our garden. Funny how that sink seemed so huge packed with enough lettuce or chard for our family of 9, when it was probably just the standard double bowl stainless steel variety. (Insert your own tangential musings of childhood perspective and plenty.) Anyway, it was explained to me that it's important to fill the sink with enough cold water to float off any dirt and/or wiggly travelers. Wiggly travelers are NOT on my list of preferred proteins. 

I am thankful for other people's gardens that provide seasonal bounty for our table. Sautéed with sliced onion in a little olive oil (okay, a LOT of olive oil, because it just makes things yummy!) with a hearty splash of lemon juice, a scant dash of Chinese 5 spice, and a sprinkle of sugar (a secret from my mother - raw & organic these days, of course), we had ourselves a gorgeous summer mess of greens!

Ravishing Radicchio - Missoula, Montana

"Castelfranco Radicchio

wilted slightly

maintaining backbone

Aubergine Du Burkina Faso Eggplant

grilled in olive oil

fresh ground peppercorn

and basil

gently laid onto a delicate bed

bright green and fresh..."

- from just another salad poem by Sam Temple

(Hungry yet? I gotta say, it pays - in health dividends - to start a shopping list with "carrots - celery - greens". The fresh brightness of Albertson's produce section inspired me to stick to the grocery list and avoid the junk jumping at me from heavy-laden end-aisle displays. With kettle chips being my Kryptonite, I'll take a gold star, thank you very much, for slicing my own carrot chips to guiltlessly appease a crunchy-texture fixation.)

Pumpkin Parlour - Missoula, Montana

“I would rather sit on a pumpkin, and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.” - Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

Beautiful Red Onions - Farmers Market, Missoula, Montana

"Red onions are especially divine. I hold a slice up to the sunlight pouring in through the kitchen window, and it glows like a fine piece of antique glass. Cool watery-white with layers delicately edged with imperial purple...strong, humble, peaceful...with that fiery nub of spring green in the center..." - Mary Hayes Grieco, 'The Kitchen Mystic'

Almost Ready - Missoula, Montana

"Sonny, true love is the greatest thing in the world - except for a nice MLT - mutton, lettuce, and tomato sandwich, where the mutton is nice and lean and the tomatoes are ripe." - Miracle Max in The Princess Bride

Of Cabbages and...Cabagges, Missoula, Montana

Driving to work over the past month, I've been watching the cabbages at Benson's Farm get progressively larger. If your family's culinary heritage does not include tasty, comforting fall cabbage dishes, as mine does, more's the pity! But all is not lost - the Internet can save you and broaden your cabbage view beyond coleslaw!
Ukrainian comfort food includes holubtsi (cabbage rolls), and if you are blessed with meticulous aunties, your family visits will include delicate versions smaller than your thumb.