Tomato, Mozzarella Couscous Salad

"What are we going to cook for dinner? Something easy and fresh from our garden?" Brady asked me when we got back home from Block Island.

"Couscous salad?" I asked him. And off he went to our small garden, coming back with some tomatoes - Roma and Big Boy, fresh basil, and scallions. I must say that for this recipe I only used the small roma tomatoes.

As much we enjoyed eating out on our vacation, we were craving homemade food, we were craving the fresh vegetables and herbs we planted this year.

Couscous is one of my favorite food to eat and I always keep it on my pantry. I thought it was a grain, but this is controversial, some foodies consider it actually a type of pasta. To me it does not matter if it's a grain, or pasta, I know it can be made from ground millet, or from ground semolina wheat and it's a good source of B vitamins, fiber and nutrients, and low in calories. It's hearty enough to fill you up, but still light so it doesn't feel heavy.

I always buy organic pre-steamed couscous, it requires no actual cooking, just soften it in boiling water, and in minutes it's ready to eat. Mix-and-match it with other ingredients like zucchini, cucumber, peas, asparagus, olives, shrimp, bell peppers, carrots, or whatever you have around.

This recipe is incredibly simple to make, it can be served immediately, or made ahead of time, and it's a good way to take advantage of fresh summer produce.

Tomato, Mozzarella Couscous Salad

♥ cooked couscous (cook according to package directions)
♥ tomatoes (preferably use small tomatoes, like cherry, grape, or small roma)
♥ mini mozzarella cheese balls
♥ basil
♥ scallions
♥ extra virgin olive oil
♥ salt

Cook the couscous according to package directions, and place it in a large bowl. Add all the other ingredients and toss very well. Taste and see if salad needs more salt, or olive oil.

It's not for nothing that couscous is one of our biggest choice for quick dinners. This salad was the perfect dinner solution!

Fresh from our garden 

Lazy summer days in Rhode Island

To find a destination on Labor Day weekend away from crowds without having planned it in advance? How's that possible?

That's what I thought when Brady told me he was going to get a few days off and would like to go to some place away from people. He is not known for being a guy who makes plan, he is more like 'going with the flow' type, and I am the opposite, I like to make plans.

I had been looking forward to go to some place with him, he's really the best companion to be away from home, but where could we find accommodations calling at the last hour?

Then I remembered of Block Island, it could be a perfect destination, a countryside-like island off of the coast of Rhode Island. We have been to Block Island a few times on daily trips only, and I thought to stay there for a few days would be fun and relaxing.

We could not find a place to stay from Sunday through Thursday on Block Island so we stayed first in Providence and went to Block Island on Tuesday, and it worked pretty fine.

When we got to Providence Brady called his good friend Frank, and we went for a walk at a park and then had dinner together at an Asian fusion restaurant. 

They've been friends since childhood, do you believe that? It's always good to listen to them swapping old stories and remembering all the silly things they did together. 

"Let's spend the day in Newport?" I asked Brady the next morning. "What about a drive to Jamestown?", he asked me back. 

This small island has a special place in his heart, he lived there for a short while when he was stationed in Rhode Island during his time in the military. 

So we took a ride to Jamestown, stopping as we pleased to take pictures and for short walks.

When we spotted this hawk-like bird in its nest on a solar panel pole in a beautiful field we drove back looking for a place to pull over so we could take some pictures of it. So majestic it looked. 

On Tuesday morning we went to Port Judith to take the ferry to Block Island. We wanted to take our car with us, but to bring it on the ferry we were told we would have to have it scheduled months in advance, so we left it in Port Judith along with our beach chairs, bringing only two bags with us.

When we got to the village of Old Harbor we walked to the B&B where we would stay for two days. A charming place tucked away from the busier streets near the harbor and yet walking distance to the restaurants and ice cream stores. Can you imagine summer without ice cream?!?!?!

If you are an outdoor person, Block Island is the place to be. Gorgeous sanded beaches, hiking trails, untouched natural beauty, a quietness not easy to find in trendy summer spots, so packed with our photo gear and water, we rented bikes and off we went to enjoy our days in Block Island, gawking at the beautiful sceneries of this picture-perfect island.

At the Mohegan Bluffs

At the farmer's market

At the end of summer we were blessed with bright sunny days. Away from home feeling at home. 

For a not planned short vacation we were pretty lucky with our choice, don't you agree?

Coconut Milk Cake and a way to impress a friend

On a lazy Saturday afternoon, when a friend called me to say she was in the neighborhood and she was going to stop for a visit, I immediately  head to the kitchen to prepare something to serve to her. You see, I am from the countryside of Minas Gerais and hospitality means food, it's unthinkable to have a guest and not have some homemade food to offer to them. 

At first, I did not know what to cook, but as I always have an emergency kit to bake a cake: sugar, butter, flour and eggs, I decided to bake a cake. 

In Brazil, it's very common to have cake with coffee, milk, tea, or fresh fruit juice for an afternoon meal,  we call it lanche, a small portion-meal served between lunch and dinner.   

This cake is easy, quick and delicious, it does not require fancy techniques or ingredients, just mix everything in a blender and pour the mixture into a cake pan. It's all about the rich sweet scents of baking a cake.

Coconut Milk Cake in a Blender

♥ 3 eggs
♥ 1/2 cup milk
♥ 200 ml coconut milk
♥ 1 1/2 cup sugar
♥ 2 cups all-purpose flour
♥ 6 tbsp butter (at room temperature)
♥ 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract (about)
♥ 1 tbsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 350°F. 
With the exception of the baking powder, puree all the ingredients in a blender in the order they are above.
When well mixed add the baking powder and blend a little more, about 20 seconds.
Butter and flour a cake pan (any round cake pan you'll do).
Bake on the middle oven rack for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick place near the center comes out clean.
Transfer the pan to a wire rack, and let the cake cool for at least 10 minutes.

I said it was a simple cake, right? But sometimes I have a problem, I get carried away and does not know when to stop. This cake is simply yummy as it is, it does not need any frosting or glaze, but I wanted to impress my friend, so I decided to add some simple crème to coat the cake. 

Sweetened Condensed Milk & Lime Cream (to coat the cake)

♥ 1 can condensed milk

♥ juice of 1 1/2 lime

♥ lime zest and berries to garnish

With a fork whisk together the lime juice and the condensed milk until it reaches a spreadable consistency. Spread the frosting with a knife and sprinkle some lime zest. Pretty easy, right?

I know my friend loves berries so I treat her with them as well. Besides being nutritious berries are so pretty, it's a way to dress up any cake, don't you agree?

In the mood for fresh food

Last weekend, I grabbed a basket and headed up to my friends and neighbors' house, Lucia & Mark, which is a small farm in the heart of the town. My mission was to pick some organic vegetables and eggs right there at the spot.

I keep a small herb garden at the deck, and Brady started a small garden in our backyard last year, but it does not compare to our friends' garden. 

They have flowers, fresh eggs and produce. Every year they plant, harvest and store for the cold days of winter, eating fresh and organic throughout the year, and that is a blessing. 

These two photos are from our small garden, and I can't wait to taste our tomatoes and eggplants.

I've been experimenting different tasty ways to cook with vegetables, specially in the summer when I find them fresh, they are so full of flavors.

That's my friend picking some fresh produce for me.

We got back home with yellow squash, onions, zucchini, eggs, potatoes, tomatoes, beets, some beans and kale as well. So much inspiration to experiment in the kitchen.

I never cook beets because Brady does not like them, but looking at these beauties I felt inspired by them and decided to cook something simple and delicious, a health attempt to change his mind - baked squash and beets, light and fresh.

Baked Summer Squash & Beets

Serves 2

It is really easy, and it's darn delicious, packed with all things good and healthy. Not only was it delicious, but Brady had a chance to eat beets for the first time and ask for more. So perfect!

This recipe is prepared in just a few steps, and frankly, I didn't have a plan, I just knew I wanted to prepare an easy dish using fresh ingredients I had at home. 

♥ 2 zucchinis

♥ 2 yellow squash

♥ 2 beets

♥ olive oil

♥ pomegranate balsamic vinegar

♥ freshly grated parmesan cheese

♥ salt

♥ freshly grounded pepper

♥ fresh herbs (I used lemon-thyme, oregano, basil from my garden)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Slice the vegetables and toss with the other ingredients but the grated cheese, which should be sprinkled at the top. If the dish you use is small you can have more than one layer of vegetables, in this case sprinkle cheese on top of each layer.

Bake for about 30-35 minutes.

Caramelized Banana Compote with Vanilla Ice Cream

There was a time my family lived in a house with a big garden filled with fruit trees: avocado, orange, lemon, lime, blackberry, papaya, passion fruit, guava, jaboticaba, and one of my favorites, banana. In the U.S., a single type of bananas dominates, but in Brazil we have 5 delicious kinds: nanica (dwarf), prata (lady's finger), da terra (plantain), ouro (sugar), maçã (apple or silk).

All year around we had fresh fruit in our backyard, and one of my family traditions was never to waste them, so besides just picking and eating them we would make smoothies, jams, jelly, preserves, spreads, compotes, never to waste a fruit even when it got overripe.

 

Every week we buy bananas, but sometimes we buy too many and if they get overripe no one wants to eat them, and that's what happened this week, so naturally, I followed my family tradition and made this banana compote this morning. It's easy, and it's delicious with vanilla ice cream. 

I made this recipe with only 6 bananas because that's what I had, but you can always adapt the ingredient quantities depending on how many bananas you are going to use.

Caramelized Banana Compote

♥ 6 ripe organic bananas
♥ 1 cup demerara sugar
♥ lime juice of half lime
♥ 3-4 drops pure vanilla extract (some people use cinnamon, or clove extract)

Slice the bananas. Bring enough water to cover the bananas to boil; place the sliced bananas in the water and turn the heat to medium low and let them cook; don't stir and don't cover the pan.
When it foams up drain the bananas and place them in a plate; squeeze the lime juice on top of them so they don't get black.

Place the sugar in a saucepan over low heat stirring constantly until it is crumbly. Pour a cup of boiling water into the pan and stir until the sugar  dissolves. Voilá, you have just made some syrup. ♥ Always be careful not to spill boiling water on yourself when you pour it over the crumbly sugar.

Add the bananas into the syrup, and then the vanilla extract, cover the pan and let it cook slowly to a gentle boil for about 15 minutes. Once the mixture is getting thick stir it until it reaches a paste-like texture. The compote does not need to be too thick as it will thicken once out of the heat.

Top it with vanilla ice cream and savor it slowly.

Art crush on Instagram

When I came across with Simone Wittgen's photos on Instagram they immediately touched my heart. Just a cute girl doodle, a piece of fruit or vegetable and a simple quote, and instantly I have a smile from ear to ear. And this is what I think makes her lovely creations captivating, they are unique, simple and fun.

Simone lives in a village in the south of the Netherlands and works as a communication & marketing consultant, but her passion is photography, and through her illustrative work she can freely express her creativity with her photos. I contacted Simone to have her permission to post her artwork here and she graciously sent me these ones so I could share them with you. She's such an inspiration to me and perhaps can be to you, too.

PhiloSophietje, that's how she named her series of doodles, quotes & photography. Philo for philosophy refers to the quotes and Sophie is the cute girl's name.

Meet Miss Saigon!  In addition to her doodle series, Simone now is having fun creating pretty face-foliage girls, and Miss Saigon is my favorite. 

Simone has been working on a project of a postcard online shop so you can own as many as you want of her lovely artwork. Anyone interested can email her @ simonewittgen@gmail.com.

I hope you are all having a super summer, I mean, for the ones on the north side of the Equator. Yesterday was super, rainy and sunny, but wait a minute, rain & sun together? Yes, and I knew I would see it, and there it was, a beautiful & colorful rainbow in an awesome bluebell sky. I love Summer!

(images: Simone Wittgen)