Last night for supper I made a classic meal – hot dogs and mac & cheese – with the slightly unusual additional sidedish of Italian-style broccoli – blanched and then sauteed in olive oil with lots of garlic and red pepper flakes. Well, and the dogs were “special” too – bacon dogs from 4505 meats.
I think in Wisconsin we are in the food season that’s the equivalent of the brown matty grass and trash that’s in most people’s yards. Even my neighbors who have raked, while their lawns look a little neater, still suffer from the brown-ness. I remember this season from when I was a women’s dorm and sorority house cook. Heavy winter comfort food has lost its appeal; the girls are all slimming, and the light fresh spring produce is not yet available. We all need a spring tonic.
All my food photos, taken indoors without enough light, seem to be suffering this malaise as well. I didn’t even try to capture last night’s dinner. Here’s the broccoli the day after though – looking pretty fresh & green. I think I’ll make it into broccoli fried rice for dinner tomorrow with the rice that’s been leftover from the free sample spinach strudels, made for the wedding party site scouting trip last Saturday. It’s short grain rice – not the right type for fried rice – but it was cooked in some really tasty home made veggie broth (lots of thyme & garlic), and I think it’ll work just fine.
"Jumped" broccoli - with red pepper flakes & garlic
I have a peach-blackberry-cranberry-blueberry crisp in the oven – maybe it will be more photogenic – you be the judge.
