Small steps, small steps

I can't believe it's been more than a month since I last posted. I guess life gets in the way sometimes.

G and I are still trying to get grass to grow in our front yard. One side of the yard has verdant fescue, it's a couple inches high, and although there are a couple of thin spots, the grass has taken quite well. The other side, well, I'm at a bit of a loss. We have several sparse patches of grass and a couple of baby Sweet gum trees (not that we particularly wanted saplings in our front yard). I managed to procure some unwanted zoysia sod from a friend, but we won't know if it's taken for another couple of weeks.

G's mom gave me a rabbit foot fern. At the moment, it's sharing our front step with a potted cucumber plant. I'm hoping to get the cucumber plant in the ground by next weekend. G's brother has a superb vegetable garden this year. He brought us fresh salad greens as part of the meal we made for Mother's Day. Right now he's getting his first squash of the season, as well as some early cukes (my cucumber plant looks pitiful by comparison).

Even though my dreams of a vegetable garden didn't materialize, G and I found out that we have a farm in the neighborhood. City Roots is only a couple of blocks from us, and they have an ever expanding list of fruits and vegetables for sale. A few weeks ago, I picked up half a gallon of organic strawberries for $6. Delicious. Unfortunately, some of the berries had been sitting in water over the weekend and the were starting to go bad. It seems like we've gotten a fair amount of rain in the last few weeks, but NOAA is showing my part of the state as being abnormally dry. Here's hoping we don't get into drought status again this year.

Today was a marathon of cooking. I've gotten a little off track as far as cooking at home and making sure I have lunch to take to work. Some of this week's dishes are a little labor intensive, and with summer starting up at the library, I can't afford to not plan ahead. G and I would be eating out every night otherwise.

I found a really nifty website called No Meat Athlete. There are lots of fantastic recipes there, including three that made it onto this week's menu. One recent post is specifically about beans and rice, five different ways. This week we're having beans and rice, Indian style. No Meat Athlete also has a feature called Sweet Tooth Fridays. I made black bean brownies to satisfy my sweet tooth, and as a way to resist temptation at work. There is constantly food at work. Always things like cookies, cake, brownies, or ice cream. I haven't gained weight from eating crap at work, but it certainly isn't healthy. I've been a little lazy lately. I haven't had the foresight to take snacks to work, so when I get the afternoon munchies, I just eat whatever is in the break room. This week I have brownies and strawberries. It's a small step back to where I need to be.

Our last recipe from No Meat Athlete is one I'm really excited about. They're called wheatball subs. The wheatballs aren't actually so much wheat as chickpeas and mushrooms. I have high hopes for these guys. G adores meatball subs (as do I). Since G and I are trying to gradually eliminate meat from our diet, we're looking for suitable replacements for foods we already enjoy. I don't think I'll ever find a replacement for my beloved czirke paprikas, and I don't think I would have a problem with consuming the occasional piece of humanely raised meat.

Bread so good you'll think it's absurd

Yesterday, even though I was utterly exhausted, I was apparently feeling a deep need to bake. G and I decided on sandwiches for dinner, but I didn't think regular sandwich bread would satisfy. So, after mulling it over, I decided focaccia bread was the order of the day. G and I couldn't keep our hands off the bread. Before it was even cool, G called his brother to come get the other half of the loaf so we wouldn't eat it all.

This recipe is an altered version of Tyler Florence's Fabulous Focaccia.

To make delicious focaccia bread, you will need:

• 2 teaspoons rapid-rising dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 1/2 to 4 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon coarse salt
• 1/4 cup olive oil

In a bowl combine the water, sugar, and yeast. Wait for the yeast to foam, then while mixing, gradually add the flour. Mix in the salt and olive oil. When the dough starts to come together, turn onto a floured surface, and knead until elastic. Place the dough in a well oiled bowl, turning to prevent a skin from forming, and let it rise in a warm place for 45 minutes to an hour, until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Oil a 13x19" baking pan and turn the dough into the pan. Stretch and press the dough into the shape of the pan. Allow the dough to rise, covered, for 15 minutes. When the dough has risen, dimple the surface with your fingertips (don't go all the way through the dough, but make sure you press most of the way through), brush the surface with olive oil, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the bread is golden.