we've got salad! all i had to do is thin the lettuces and cut back the basil. pull up some scallions. and there you have it. i've been tucking seeds in everywhere waiting patiently for some sprouts, and now we can eat the vegetables of my labor. i feel like a farm girl. yippee.

i had a really wonderful tofu (don't roll your eyes) salad at the river inn restaurant in big sur this week. extra firm tofu marinated in some secret sauce and then sauteed. served on top of roasted vegetables and mixed greens. sprinkled with almonds. very tasty. and it will hopefully inspire a spring of tofu/vegetable combos. forgive the photo...but isn't that a cute almond heart on top of that tofu???

i'm with you, tutti foodie. nothing feels as good as putting the kitchen to bed at night. all clean and tidy. as soon as i did just that and snapped this picture...i opened a bottle of french berry lemonade. which exploded all over my freshly scrubbed kitchen. some nights are just like that.

thinking of italy on this sad easter week-end. what to do? i'll remember a wonderful easter week i spent in puglia a few years ago. the thursday night before pasqua includes mass. and the washing of the apostles feet. and lots of visiting. you MUST try his wine. and her limoncello. oh, and have a slice of her frittata...she uses mint in hers. and her taralli. one sweet and one savory. then home for dinner.
good friday brings more cooking and visiting. at night in town out come the statues for a parade through the old streets. later on at night, stations of the cross through cento storico. saturday there is pasta to be made. and a torta. and taralli.
easter sunday is a beautiful feast, and monday??? because they are italian and really know how to live...monday is a holiday. pasquetta. there is a fair in town, and later on that night, fireworks. ah, italy.
so in honor of my beautiful italian amici, i'll be making some taralli. and a fritatta. with mint.

it seems like i started my seeds so very long ago. probably too early. now it's time to transfer some to larger and pots and actually put some in the ground. after weeks of nothin' it's starting to look a bit green around here. maybe there's a homegrown salad in the near future.

finally. a perfect loaf. it took a few tries to get it right...reading the recipe all the way through helps! i actually combined a few different recipes to get this guy. it was amazing to see that starter come alive. amazing to knead the loaf and know exactly when it was ready to put in the bowl to rise. amazing to eat. i made lentil soup to go along...and after that my husband had a few slices with my homemade blueberry jam. i'd say he liked it.

every month at the flea market i spend the first half of the day people watching. i look at what they're wearing...or what they bought. and then i must have lunch. and stare at people some more. this past sunday we seemed to have no focus at all. we just wandered aimlessly up and down the aisles. and then there they were. lots of lovely, affordable vintage tablecloths. great condition. and they came with napkins! my kitchen is feeling very cheery today. it's good to stumble about the flea market. you just never know what you're gonna find.

all my little seeds were started in egg shells this year. when the time came to plant them outside i just squished the shell and set the roots free. i feel very virtuous. and soon i hope to be feasting on chard, broccoli and fava beans. more veggies to follow...