A Winter Farm Feast

A winter farm feast for the family.

MENU:

• Apple and Bartlett Pear Sauce
• Pasta Salad with Lemon, Fresh Herbs, Capers, Olives and Parmeasan Reggiano
• Pickled Green Tomatoes
• Freshly Ground, Freshly Packed (Freshly Killed) Venison Burgers

Pasta Salad with Lemon, Fresh Herbs, Capers, Olives and Parmeasan Reggiano

• 2 bags of small shells (cooked and drained)
  
• 1 lemon (juice of 1 and zest of 1/2 lemon)
  
• Fresh basil and oregano (small handful each)
  
• 1 small container (small) capers (drained and rinsed)
  
• 1 cup kalamata olives (pits removed and diced)
  
• 2/3 cup good quality shredded parmesan reggiano
• 1/2 cup EVOO
• salt, to taste

Apple and Bartlett Pear Sauce

• 2 Granny Smith apples: peeled, cored and quartered
  
• 6 *VERY ripe Pears: peeled, cored and quartered
  
• 1/2 cup of water
• 3 tablespoons agave nectar
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• cinnamon stick

Put the apples in a pot with the water, agave, lemon and cinnamon stick. Bring to a boil, cover, and cook for 5minutes (until apples are soft). Turn heat to medium, add VERY RIPE pears and cook for 5minutes. Turn the heat to simmer, cover. Smash. EAT.

Spring Cuisine

I'm trying to channel Spring.

I feel like maybe if I dress, act and eat like it's Spring,

that it will finally arrive.

SO, Today for lunch I had:

Grapefruit & Avocado Salad

Lemon Linguini

w/ Sparkling White Wine

It was pretty tasty...certainly a Spring menu, so I figured that I would share the recipes with you. The grapefruit avocado salad is a version of an old Martha Stewart salad recipe...and the Lemon Linguini is my interpretation of a Nigella Lawson recipe. The sparkling white wine -- well, that's just genius.

Grapefruit Avocado Salad

- 1 Grapefruit

- 1 Avocado

- Romaine Lettuce

- Salt & Pepper

- E.V. Olive Oil

Slice up the grapefruit into sections...for a quick and easy time, you could even buy the Del Monte pre-sliced Ruby Red Grapefruit. Slice up the avocado as well. Prepare lettuce as you normally would, decorating with the avocado and grapefruit. The salad dressing is made out of the juice squeezed from the grapefruit(2/3), 1/3 olive oil, salt and pepper. For some extra sweetness, add a splash of Balsamic Vinegar. Boom. That's it.

Lemon Linguini

- Linguini (1/2 lb)

- Fresh Parsley

- 1 Lemon

- 1 Egg

- Parmesan Cheese

- E.V. Olive Oil

- Garlic {Powder}

- Oregano

- Salt & Pepper

Prepare linguini. Coat the cooked pasta with olive oil. When completely coated, beat egg YOLK (toss the egg white) and pour over pasta. Mix in well. Squeeze the juice of one lemon over pasta. Sprinkle with 1 to 2 tablespoons of oregano, 1 tablespoon of garlic powder, and a dusting of parmesan cheese. Salt and pepper to taste. Cut up a handleful of fresh parsley and mix into pasta.

For those who don't drink...instead of Sparkling White Wine, substitute with a fizzy Spring beverage: 3/4 Seltzer Water, 1/4 Juice {Cranberry} and a lime wedge.

Perfecto. Come on Spring...we're all rootin' for you!! No more rain or cold weather!

Happy Spring Everyone!!!

Hopefully all of these April showers will bring May Flowers.

April is a promise that May is bound to keep.

~Hal Borland