The Old Tattered Flag

Sunday, August 13, 2017

Natures bounty...

I was at my Sister's house in Vermont last week.  We had a wonderful couple of days shopping and relaxing.  I always come home inspired.  She says the same thing when she comes to my place.  I think as women/sisters we always like to go all out when each other come to visit but the fact of the matter is that my sister always cooks great meals for her family.  She always has the best recipes using fresh vegetables.  I think I talked about those delicious golden beets we had last year at her house.  Oven roasted with a bit of salt.....delicious!!
When we moved into our house, the first home we ever owned I said I was going to have a garden.  I know nothing about gardening.....in fact I have a brown thumb.  But to my surprise, stuff grew.....and what a sense of satisfaction it was to go out pick vegetables that I had planted myself.  It is so gratifying to go out and pick lettuce for the nights salad.  
When my Mother moved in with us our garden expanded.....Mom really knows her way around a garden (the manure "tea" she concocted was a bit much for me but seemed to do wonders)!!  But, soon with the growth of our business we realized we did not have time for a large garden so we downsized to small raised beds.  We only plant 1 or 2 zucchini plants, some tomatoes and some herbs and a row of swiss chard.  Things we use the most.  Oh and cherry tomatoes in pots.  


  The cherry tomatoes always appear first.  You can't help but just go out and have a snack right then and there!
But the big tomatoes, they always tease us....making us wait just a bit longer.

I love this time of year! The veggie stands around us explode with fresh corn, turnips, herbs tomatoes.  It's impossible to not want to channel your inner gourmet cook.

So, back to my Sister's visit.  She roasted some yellow squash with tomatoes and cheese and served it as a side dish.  I knew we had some waiting to be picked at home so when I got home I whipped up this dish that was so good I thought I'd share it with you.  

Following my sister's lead I roasted some yellow squash, cherry tomatoes, oranges peppers, garlic and drizzled it with good seasons garlic and herb dressing (the one you make in the cruet).  I then sprinkled it with some shredded cheese (mom bought a delicious sage cheese while we were in Vermont).  I roasted everything for about 20-30 minutes at 400, then turned it to a broil for the last few minutes so things would brown up a bit.  There was a lot of liquid from the squash and tomatoes but that was what I wanted because when it mixed with the dressing and cheese it created a nice "sauce".  I tossed all the veggies and sauce with some cooked tortellini.  I had forgotten to add some fresh basil to the veggies so just added some on top before serving.  It was delicious and even better the second day as leftovers.  


So thanks to my Sister for her inspiration.  Wonder what we'll be having for dinner on the next visit :) 
Until next time......

8 comments:

Rugs and Pugs said...

My mom always swore by her manure tea!!!

Unknown said...

Looks yummy! My mom also made manure tea but then changed to Comfrey tea later. Comfrey grows like a weed, you hack it back, drop it in a bucket and let it brew. I think it smells almost as bad as the manure tea when it's ready lol!

theoldtatteredflag said...

I'll have to pass that one on to my mother and see if she's heard of it. Thanks Karen!

theoldtatteredflag said...

It's really gross, but I guess it's all good! Those moms do know best, eh?

Samplings from Spring Creek said...

Roasted veggies is one of our favorite meals. We are building a raised bed in the fall so we can have spring, summer and fall veggies next year

Unknown said...

We do not have space for a garden, but tomatoes, garlic, peppers, beans, asparagus, and especially herbs do great in containers and raised garden boxes. Love this time of year! Just froze some basil cubes, and next will do rosemary to have this winter.

acorn hollow said...

Our tomatoes are ripening all at once so I see sauce in my future. I made pesto this past weekend for all the soups and stews this fall and winter.
Cathy

Unknown said...

look so yummy. i like it!

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About Me

Thank you very much for taking the time to read my blog. I am married and just entering the second phase of my life as a Army retiree's wife. My husband and I did 25+ years in the Army. He is now officially a retired Colonel and has just entered the civilian workforce and I am happily settled in our 1830 Stone house. I (along with my Mom) operate www.theoldtatteredflag and currently we are building a small shop in the back part of the house. We live in Northern NY, right near the Canadian border. I have two handsome sons and 2 puggles. Life is busy for us, but I wouldn't have it any other way.