Food Funk Suspended

Well I trashed my kitchen this weekend. I mean that in a good way.  While I didn't make anything new I did manage to cook dinner on Saturday and Sunday.  Good for me!  Not only did I make dinners I also made a batch of granola.  Most store-bought granola is just way too sweet for me, even the stuff that is made in the store.  Making my own means I can use whatever kinds of fruit and nuts I want to which is nice.  Not sure why I bother since my granola will never be as good as Macy's.  I wonder if they have a subscription plan and will just mail a bag to me each week.

As high as the temperatures are here they will never prevent me from wanting soups and stews.  Made this on Saturday.  The cumin and lemon juice work well together.  Shame on me but I almost forgot to add the red pepper flakes.

For the record I can't remember eating a fresh apricot I have enjoyed.  To me they are either unripe and sour or completely flavorless.  This is one of the few items I actually prefer to eat dried.  In the past several months I have experimented a little with cooking fruit and using it as a topping for yogurt.  I mixed halved apricots and mixed them with some sugar and lime juice then cooked the mixture to soften the fruit.  I may have used a bit too much lime juice, but it worked.  I'll probably try something similar with plums at some point.

On Sunday I dug out my copy of The Italian Country Table which is my absolute favorite cookbook and made a batch of Siracusa Market Pasta.  Here spaghetti is sauced with sauteed onions, garlic, raw cherry tomatoes, basil, olives, orange zest, and a few other things. The residual heat cooks the tomatoes and makes the cheese a little melty.  Good stuff.  Of course I am having issues with the pictures I took of the finished dish. I'll try to get them posted soon.