Summer is rushing by!

Here it is mid July! The gardens are unexpectedly gratifying. Oh, there are lots of changes to be made, decisions about plant selection and placement to second guess, but basically they are so lush and beautiful, that it's hard to feel much remorse. A veritable "riot of colour" - everywhere I look (especially at the neighbour's gardens across the road), there is beauty. When I look around, it feels like it does when I put drops in my eyes - that feeling of softness and relief. No wonder I hate winter. Perhaps I really should consider leaving my beloved place for somewhere, well, prettier, during the bleak winter months...I'll think about it.

The vegetable garden is a surprise. I was convinced I'd never actually get any vegetables - I'm still such a city girl that I just expect things to come in plastic wrap or not at all. But, the tomato plants are going crazy, the eggplants are growing, and even the broccoli is doing really well..peas and beans not so much, but who cares - I'm in love with growing my own! I could get really carried away with this! I found raspberry (maybe blackberry) bushes on the property, as well as a gigantic grapevine. I have visions of groves of fruit trees and berry bushes. How I wish I'd gone all self-sufficient 30 years ago - my sister (who was a homesteader-type) isn't as weird as I always thought!

I haven't been very adventurous with food this week - of course, I never am, but I always intend to be. Yesterday I made cornmeal muffins with jalapeno and curry, to go with halibut. They were pretty good and the blend of tastes was really quite nice. I think my husband thought it was kind of a waste of potentially good cornmeal muffins, but he kept saying they were good. Expanding your food horizons is a slow journey... I have signed up for a Mediterranean cooking class next week - does that count as adventurous?

I really must stop baking for the sake of it - I have part of a chocolate cake (low fat variety), part of a birthday cake, the remnants of hot milk cake that worked very nicely as shortcake, and a batch of too-soft oatmeal cookies in my fridge at the moment. At least the baklava is all gone...for now.

I'm still gearing up to make croissants - and debating the wisdom of that choice...what if they turn out really well??? How dangerous would that be? Right now, I'm off to make Jamie Oliver's pizza dough for supper - makes the best crust I've ever had - yummm.

Baklava - first draft

I've been planning to try to make Baklava ever since having some from La Casbah in Waterloo - sweet, gooey yumminess! It took me several weeks to get some rose water. But on Saturday, armed with a video from dedemed.com, I took the plunge. It's not really very complicated. It would be much worse if you had to make the phyllo...but who does that??

It turned out fine - not terrific, but fine. After several pieces and much deliberation, I've decided that I used too much nut filling, and didn't chop it finely enough.

My husband keeps saying it's so rich that you only need one piece...NOT ME! I have to restrain myself from wolfing down half the pan! I wonder what it's like to be someone who feels that they've had enough dessert....defies my imagination, actually. Perhaps he just doesn't like it and is afraid to admit it. This is the guy who can eat Eagle brand milk out of the can - talk about rich!

I also tried to make lemon sorbet - not so successful. It is so tart and icy that it makes my eyes water. Think I'll save it for my daughter, who seems to have a wide range of tolerance along the sweet-tart continuum!

I really should try to actually cook something and stop all this baking. As I'm fighting the late midlife battle of the bulge, this is fairly self-destructive! So my self-imposed goal for next week is to try a new dinner recipe and if there's dessert with it, that's OK too.

On another note, I am about ready to give up on gardening - the voracious earwigs are ruining everything from clematis to basil to eggplant. The slugs I can fight (and actually enjoy trying to outwit them with copper/salt/beer traps!) - however, the earwigs just defeat me. I am starting to really appreciate what organic farmers go through. When all is said and done, my homegrown veggies will probably work out to about $200/pound!