Good Eats

In the last few weeks, I've had a chance to enjoy some good cooking--and most of it wasn't done by me. A few weeks ago, at the Gourmet Club dinner, we had a delicious hummus. The recipe can be found here. What gave this hummus a great subtle taste was adding a couple of mint leaves and a little Greek yogurt pulsed in with all the ingredients in the food processor.

The tabouli was also delicious. The large amount of parsley in it gives you not only good nutrition, but also a very fresh taste.

Since I had a lot of chick peas left over, I made this soup. It was earthy, cheap and nutritious.

Finally, a few nights later, I made these chick pea burgers with tahini sauce. The sauce was divine.

The best part of all of these recipes is that they are healthy, delicious and MEAT FREE!!!

Farm Share

Last spring we bought half a share in a local farm. For $300, we got to pick up fresh veggies, greens and herbs each Wednesday for 24 weeks. Many people are doing this, as it supports local farmers, and those who buy a share receive fresh and pesticide free vegetables. We also signed up to cut fresh flowers from the U-cut garden. Having a beautiful bouquet on one's table was such an added bonus. This add on was $60 which came to about $2.50 per bouquet. After a day's work in an office, getting to stroll through a huge flower garden, scissors in hand was most wonderful.

And you get to meet the farmer, Nikki Johanson, who is about as down to earth as they come.


Check out this link to learn more about buying a farm share and supporting your local food growers.

Farm Share

Last evening after work, I drove to Pheasant Fields Farm to pick up our 1/2 share and cut our weekly bouquet of flowers. Work had been pretty busy, so the quiet drive to the farm was a nice change of pace. This week we got kale, chard, green onions, chives, radishes, peas, and a HUGE head of lettuce.


When I had finished bagging our food, I grabbed a scissors hanging up on a pillar and headed to the enormous flower garden. What a calming and healing thing that is to do after a long day! So many beautiful flowers, so many types, smells, little bees, all congregating in this lovely space. With a big bouquet in hand, I picked up the food, said goodbye to Rocky the dog, and headed home much more happy than when I had arrived.

Veggie Burgers with Tahini Mayonnaise

Trying to eliminate meat from my diet, I have been looking for healthy recipes with some protein packed in. Last Saturday I was watching "Everyday Food" on PBS. Margot Olshan was making veggie burgers with bulgur wheat and pinto beans with some spices and veggies chopped in.

They looked really good, so I decided to make them. I added salt and pepper to taste, as they were not in the recipe. Bulgur wheat can be found in bulk at both Fred Meyer and Central Market (down the street from my work) and is inexpensive. The recipe makes 4 good sized and very filling patties which got me through 2 dinners and 2 lunches. You can find the recipe here.

A college friend also told me that his wife makes delicious red lentil rice cakes. I'll try these this weekend as I have a nice new bag of lentils in the pantry. :)

Also, we get to pick up our first box of veggies from the farm next Wednesday, so it will be fun (and healthy) to try vegetables which I've never or rarely bought.