Summer squash carpaccio

What's cooking? Not much around here you might say, but here's a little recipe that continues the non-cooking, while letting you eat in a flash. It's a beautiful and simple summer squash carpaccio. I've tried several variations of this in the last few weeks and so far, this recipe from Tyler Florence is my favorite. But it also lends itself to countless variations: tried it with some toasted pine nuts or walnuts, throw in some dill or chives, cut the squash lengthwise, rather than in disk, add tomatoes. You name it.

Summer Squash Carpaccio

Adapted from Food Network

2 medium zucchini or yellow squash
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 leek, white part only, sliced thinly
1/4 pound piece Parmesan
Fresh mint leaves, for garnish
Directions

Using a mandolin, vegetable peeler or a very sharp knife, slice zucchini into very thin rounds. I used a vegetable peeler for slicing: zucchini and squash are quite tender, so it works like a charm. I chose one zucchini and one yellow squash since it makes a pretty presentation.

Arrange zucchini disks slightly overlapping in a single layer on a plate and season with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the olive oil and lemon juice and scatter with leeks. Shave very thin slices of Parmesan over the plate with a peeler. Scatter mint leaves over top and serve immediately.

Garden balcony update

Hello! Summer is flying by and as you can probably tell by my lack of posts, I've been swamped getting ready for a full round of fall craft shows. I thought I would check in with everyone with a small garden update. Let me say, I'm pleased as punch.

1. The Corn

The ears are still a bit small, but growing away.

2. The Basil
After our latest harvest of 22 cups, the boy's new dream is to be a basil farmer. This is all from one window box! It quickly became pesto that should last us through the winter.

Pesto
3 cups basil
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/3 cup pine nuts
1/2 cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic
Throw all in the blender and puree. Add salt and pepper to taste.

3. Jalapenos
We've harvested one jalapeno so far, but after the short heat wave we had a few weeks back many more have sprouted. There are now about seven or eight coming along.

Stay tuned for another cucumber soup recipe — it's chillin' in the frig right now, so I'll post it when I can. If it's not before the weekend, cheers and have a great Labor Day!