Dachshund Parade 2010

What's that you say? There's a dachshund parade in town today? What do you do at a dachshund parade?

Eat hot dogs.

Wash them down with a beverage.

Meet new friends.

Strike a pose.

Show off new outfits.

Bust out the jewels.

Strut your stuff.

Keep things under control.

Beg for treats.

Try not to get too excited.

Look cute.

Watch it all from the comfort of your grandma's lap.

Delivered Hot

I'm a big fan of pizza, and have my fair share of favorite places to order from, (here if I want white pizza, here if I'm in the mood for red sauce, and here if I'm out with friends). Not surprising, since there are nine pizza joints all within a two-mile radius of my house. Really. We like our pizza here in Rochester. Lately, however, I've become a big fan of homemade pizza, and try to make it at least once a week. It started when I discovered that naan bread makes a superb crust, especially when cooked on the grill. I don't have to fuss around with making my own crust, it's already thin, just the way I like it, and the perfect size for a personal pizza.

It's fun to experiment with different toppings and flavors. This sausage, red onion, and wild mushroom pizza had some nice spice, which counteracted well with the earthy mushrooms.

I've found that it's really easy to make pizza a healthy meal, and also an excellent way to use up some leftover vegetables, as was the case with this asparagus, fingerling potato, and goat cheese pizza.

I prefer to cook my pizza right on the grill rack in order to ensure a crispy crust. This artichoke, goat cheese and chicken pizza was oozing with cheese -- just the way I like it!

The best way to enjoy pizza, however, is al fresco with a bottle of wine and good company.

Spinach Feta Pizza from The Vegetarian Grill, by Andrea Chesman

1 pizza crust

1 pound spinach, tough stems trimmed

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

8 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

1/2 Vidalia or other sweet onion, thinly sliced

1. Prepare a medium-hot fire in the grill.

2. Steam the spinach until just wilted, about 3 minutes. Drain well. Taking a handful of spinach at a time, squeeze out as much water as possible. Coarsely chop.

3. Brush the top side of the pizza with olive oil, then flip over. Brush the other side with olive oil and scatter 1 tablespoon of the garlic over the crust. Sprinkle with the Parmesan and top with the spinach, feta, and onion. Place the pizza on a lightly oiled grill rack and grill for 5 to 8 minutes, checking the crust after 5 minutes.

4. Slice the pizza and serve warm.

Taste of June

I always associate the month of June with many of my favorite things: strawberries, peonies, pearls, the end of another school year, my grandmother whose birthday is Flag Day, and the official beginning of summer. But nothing is more reminiscent of June than strawberry rhubarb crisp, my most favorite dessert to make and eat. I've always liked strawberries. And I've always liked rhubarb.

Three years ago, I was in New England for a friend's wedding having dinner here. It was a cozy little restaurant in a quaint little town, very unassuming and very inviting. There was a moment during dinner when I watched dessert being delivered to the next table, and knew I had to try what it was I had my eye on: strawberry rhubarb crisp. When the waiter brought mine out of the kitchen, I was in heaven. The buttery crisp topping, combined with the sweet strawberries, tart rhubarb and melting vanilla ice cream made for a delicious combination. It was one of my most memorable restaurant experiences, and since then, I've been trying to perfect my own crisp using the restaurant's recipe as a guide.

(Yes, I emailed the chef after I got home and he was nice enough to share his recipe with me).

The colors are just beautiful, all mixed in together with sugar. I got my ingredients during my trip to the public market, in anticipation of company coming to visit.

It comes out of the oven piping hot, ready to be paired with vanilla bean ice cream.

Can't you just taste it? The taste of summer-right-around-the-corner?

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

1 cup white sugar

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 cups sliced fresh strawberries

3 cups diced rhubarb

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup butter

1 cup rolled oats

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup toasted almonds, sliced

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine and macerate white sugar, 3 tablespoons flour, strawberries, and rhubarb until sugar dissolves. Place the mixture in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Mix 1 1/2 cups flour, brown sugar, butter, oats, and almonds until crumbly. Sprinkle topping over strawberry and rhubarb mixture. Bake 45 minutes, or until topping has color and juices are bubbly and run clear. Top with vanilla ice cream.

To Market We Go

So much to do this weekend, and so much fun to be had! On the agenda? Visiting with friends, going to see SATC II, baking, cooking, planting. But more on all of that later. This weekend started off with an old tradition: Saturday morning at the public market. It was a beautiful, no-cloud-in-the-sky kind of morning. The kind of morning that just makes you want to get out of bed and enjoy the day.

The market was full of people also out enjoying the morning, and some breakfast.

Right now is a beautiful time of year at the market because all of the growers have brought in their plants and flowers to sell. It is so colorful and fragrant.

Everywhere you look, loveliness. It is a sure treat for the senses. An excellent way to spend a Saturday morning, and an even better way to kick off a holiday weekend. Oh, and wait until you see what I made from my market purchases. Definitely a lot of lovely.

Girls' Weekend

Hello, Lover!

It's a Girls' Weekend, complete with Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte! My friend Hannah is on her way from Boston, and we're planning to do what us girls do best. The highlight? Going to see SATC II tonight!

The Sweetest Nest

One of the things that first drew me to my house was its curb appeal, and four years later, I still love to just look at my house. Honestly, when I first laid eyes on the house, it almost didn't matter what was inside, because the outside was so cute. The day my house went on the market was March 17, 2006, and I happened to drive by on my way to work. Mentally, I had already bought the house before stepping a foot in the door, and considered myself a glad possessor of "the luck of the Irish." The deal went down the next day as I was on my way to Boston, via cell phone on the NYS Thruway. Probably not the wisest move, but here I am, four years later, living in what I like to consider the cutest house in the neighborhood.

My favorite part of the front is, without a doubt, the two window boxes. I seem to have the best luck with a simple planting of impatiens, usually pink. This year I decided to throw in a little white for a change.

They're just babies now, but should soon grow to be as big as they were last year.

I'm working on getting all my flowers bought and planted, along with herbs and vegetables. New to the garden this year? Peonies, of course!

Pick-Me-Up

A little mid-week energy boost to combat the dreary weather and allergy sniffles:

Ultimate Irresistible Granola*

6 cups rolled oats

1 cup sliced almonds

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup chopped pecans

1 cup sesame seeds

1 cup wheat germ

2 cups shredded coconut (I used unsweetened)

1 cup unsalted sunflower seeds

1/2 cup canola oil

1/3 cup maple syrup

1 cup honey

4 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup golden raisins

1 cup dried cranberries

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, stir together the oats, almonds, walnuts, pecans, sesame seeds, wheat germ, coconut and sunflower seeds. In a small pan over medium heat, stir together the oil, syrup, honey, sugar, salt and cinnamon. Cook and stir until blended. Pour over the oat mixture, and stir to coat evenly. Spread out in an even layer on two cookie sheets.

3. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, until the oats and nuts are toasted. Immediately after it comes out of the oven, stir in the raisins and dried cranberries. Let stand until cooled, and stir again to break up any large clusters.

*I made modifications to the original recipe based on others' reviews.

Remember the Bon Appétit recipe I made not too long ago, (fettuccine with peas, asparagus and pancetta)? I received some surprise mail regarding that post:

"Hi, Anna.

We loved seeing your blog post on cooking our May cover recipe.

We've added your blog link to our website and look forward to seeing more from you!"

Yep, it's there. Check out the original post and you'll see the link to yours truly, right on the Bon Appétit website!! I've been discovered, by the industry's top notch publication, mind you!! [insert delightful squealing here] I haven't quit my day job yet, but I've got my sights set on a future in magazines. My Little Sweet Nest = my ticket to the big time!