Summer has arrived in all it’s glory. The world is green everywhere, the grass grows faster than we can manage, and we are about to step into a world of slower mornings, no book bags, and summer traditions. Sithean is lovely in June – everything is lush and green and magical. The peonies are just about finished, and the irises and day lilies should start to bloom soon. The back yard is a sea of Queen Ann’s Lace, and it is lovely.
The last week of school is about to kick off – a very short week, with everyone home by noon on Thursday. It’s also finally clearing after weeks of what seems like near-endless rain on weekends and warming up.
I got the rest of the garden planted this morning. This year’s garden is smaller than most, with only about half of the garden spaces planted. The rest we’ll spend the summer cleaning up, replacing the old brick and adding compost to get it ready for next year. The garlic is thriving, and it looks like we’ll have a good-sized harvest this year.
I stockpiled groceries this week for the first time in a while, mostly just to kick off summer. We are working pretty hard at making sure we meal plan and limit our grocery spending, but sometimes the things we start to run out of things that we eat all the time, and it’s just easier – and over the long haul, cheaper – to do a big shop. Add to that our CSA kicked off on Friday, and we’re a little buried in food. Which is fine with me, but requires effort and meal planning.
Eli had a health scare, and while he’s recovering, it’s also meant we’ve stuck close to home, other than finally venturing out for dinner last night in nearby Salem. That’s put us (mostly me) in the kitchen a lot, which is fine but gets a little hectic towards the end of each week, when I’m working and trying to squeak meal preparation in early morning. Our meals have gotten simpler, and that’s ok – also par for the course as we head into summer.
Our meal plan for this week mostly reflects the weather and our very full larder. We have a few waffles I froze last weekend to get us through Monday morning breakfast for the kids. I’ll warm them up and serve with strawberries and maybe scrambled eggs. My younger child only requires lunch for school 3 more days this week, so we’re winging it a little – I certainly am not buying lunch meat this week. Lunches will be leftovers across the board for the adults.
Sunday: Even though it’s quite warm, we’re making our second-ever batch of Ravioli Lasagna. Round raviolis were on sale a while back for buy-one-get-one-free, and the first attempt at this dish, based on some recipes but mostly just my own ‘winged it’ version, was devoured by the kids, always a good sign.
I made my favorite bread recipe as well as a salad to go with it. Homemade bread is so easy and tastes so good.
In preparation for the week I marinated some chicken leg quarters for grilling tomorrow – we’ll grill those along with some of our plethora of potatoes sliced up and seasoned and cut up veggies or make a salad along with leftover bread and probably some tzatziki to go with the marinated chicken – I used the basic marinade from this recipe.
Monday: Grilled chicken leg quarters, bread, salad and sliced veggies, tzatziki
Tuesday: Eli will cook, which usually involves picking a protein, and we have a ton of different options, since our Walden Local meat delivery came last week.
Wednesday: Salmon bowls are Eli and my most frequently-eaten meal when the kids aren’t here – pan-fried seasoned salmon over couscous with lots of veggies mixed in. This week we have fresh basil, spinach, onions, broccoli rabe and some cherry tomatoes to blister and add in. Today I tried an experiment – Basil Pesto with Pecans because I had no pine nuts or walnuts, but I do have plenty of pecans to use up. The recipe needed a little work. I added more olive oil, a tablespoon of lemon juice and a full teaspoon of salt. It’s definitely got a different flavor from walnuts or pine nuts, but it’s good. That said, when I run out of pecans, I don’t think I’m going to rush to make it again. It’s good – just not as good as other options.
I’ll add that to the top of the salmon, and to the sauteed vegetables in couscous for a delicious 15 minute prep dinner. If I get really motivated I’ll top it with burrata.
Thursday: We’re going to give One Skillet Chicken with Tzatziki and Orzo a try, likely with some broccoli on the side.
Friday-Sunday the kids and I will be away, returning Monday morning. Eli will eat whatever he feels like.
Monday: is Juneteenth, so we’ll likely do something very picnic-y, sit outside, and enjoy the magic that is Sithean.
I hope you all have a wonderful, magical June.
Little House on the Fairy Hill 