Happy Solstice!

Well folks, summer is officially here and it's starting to show in my garden. Things are growing like crazy. I've even got some budding green tomatoes...stay tuned.

This weekend, I brought in summer with a bang with the help of my amazing friends and family. My bff, Radhi, and her boyfriend, David, came to visit from Atlanta and boy, did I have a time with them. On Friday, we made a delicious dinner in their honor with lots of yummy veggies from the farmer's market and from my garden, of course. There were a couple of highlights from the dinner that I'd like to mention. First, I made yet another Kneadlessly Simple bread recipe. This one was called easy four-grain pot boule. It had an amazingly yummy, crunchy crust, but was chewy and moist on the inside. I also made a new recipe from one of my favorites, Heidi Swanson. I made the recipe for zucchini and potato gratin (sans cheese and bread crumbs though - didn't have those) with fresh oregano from the garden. It was delicious even without the cheese and bread crumbs, although I think the crunchy bread crumb topping would make it even better. I don't think it needs as much olive oil as it calls for - maybe 1/4 c. instead of 1/2. 

Finally, for that dinner and again during our Father's Day bbq, I made a salad using greens from my garden. But what made it even better was sprinkling bright red nasturtiums on top as a garnish. I just discovered these edible flowers this year and I'm hooked. Not only do they look lovely in the yard, they look fabulous in the salad and taste pretty good too. 

Now, I'm just counting down the hours until I get out of school for my real summer. My garden is one of the only things on my agenda this summer and I can't wait for it to begin. Happy Summer!