Roma Green Beans and Yukon Gold Potatoes

In the 1980s-90s, my husband and I had a little house on two acres in a rural area called Blue Jay on the Ohio/Indiana border.  He had a huge garden and I did everything I could to keep up with the produce while still working full time.  He planted way too much of everything but two vegetables I never tired of  were Roma Green Beans and Yukon Gold potatoes.  We had them several times a week during the summer and they were always delicious.  My husband and his wonderful garden are gone now and I miss him and the baskets of produce he would carry into the kitchen every day (I don’t miss having to find a way to use all of that bounty).

David pointing out the progress of the Roma Green Beans in his garden

Yukon Gold potatoes were new at that time but now they are in the supermarkets.  Roma Green Beans, however, are almost impossible to find but every Tuesday, my daughter and I go to a farm market in the historic section of Loveland, Ohio, where one farmer sells freshly picked, beautiful Roma beans.  These beans are flat like snap peas, but larger and fuller.

We buy the beans on Tuesday  and every Wednesday this summer have had a meal of Romas and Yukons plus a dessert made from whatever fruit looked good at the market.  It’s a special meal for us.

I prepare the meal in the early afternoon and put it together quickly at suppertime.  First, I put some Yukon potatoes (with skins) in cold water in a big steamer pan and place over medium high heat.

While the potatoes start to cook, I break the ends off the beans, break them in half and place them in a steamer which fits over the pot of potatoes.

I place a lid on top and steam the beans until fork tender.  By the time the beans are done, the potatoes are usually also fork tender and I remove everything to cool until I’m ready to prepare supper.

To combine the two vegetables, I cut the potatoes in bite-size portions and brown in butter, sprinkling with salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.  When the potatoes are golden brown, I add the green beans with a little more salt/pepper and a couple of drizzles of olive oil.  Stir and toss the vegetables until everything is piping hot – then serve immediately.

My daughter doesn’t like onions, but I love sliced onions sautéed in olive oil while I’m steaming the beans and potatoes and used as a topping when the meal is served.

This week, we had some good corn-on-the cob and muffins made from fresh blueberries (recipe here).  A perfect summer meal.

Cold Cucumber Soup

Here’s a tasty cold soup to enjoy on one of the remaining warm days we will surely have in September.  It’s very easy to make and tastes delicious.  It’s a light soup and I added an accompanying sturdy piece of homemade bread with a slice of good cheese, toasted under the broiler.

• Servings: 4
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• One long English style cucumber
• 3 Tblsp. lemon juice
• ½ Tblsp. dried dill weed
• 4 cups plain Greek yogurt
• 1 cup chicken broth
• Salt and pepper

Peel the cucumber, cut into sections and remove the seeds.  A melon baller works well for this.

Cut the cucumber into 1-1/2 inch chunks and place in a food processor or blender.  Add the lemon juice, dill weed, yogurt and broth.  Process until pureed.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Place soup in a covered container and refrigerate for at least two hours.

Makes 4 servings

Tags:  cook,cooking,recipe,recipes,soup,cold cucumber,cucumber,lunch,summer

Crunchy Oriental Chicken Salad

This salad is adapted from one on Mennonite Girls Can Cook.  My two daughters and I enjoyed this salad for Sunday lunch and as leftovers.  Waiting to add the dressing until the salad is ready to eat keeps it fresh and crunchy.  You could add bigger portions of chicken to the salad.  My family likes the smaller chicken servings.  We all thought the dressing was especially delicious.

• Servings: 8-10
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Dressing:

• 1 1/2 cup mayonnaise (Hellmann’s Olive Oil Mayonnaise)
• 1/2 cup of honey
• 1/4 cup of rice vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoon of mustard
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of sesame oil

Place all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together until smooth.  Cover and let set in the refrigerator for an hour to blend the flavors.  Unused dressing can be refrigerated for several days.

Salad:

• 1 cup snow peas (tips and strings removed, torn in half)

• 1 bunch of green onions, sliced (including some of the tender green tips)

•  1 small red pepper, cut in thin strips

•  1 small yellow pepper, cut in thin strips

•  14 oz. bag of cole slaw mix (shredded cabbage and carrots)

•  1 head of Romaine lettuce, torn

•  One chicken breast, grilled (I used the breast from a deli chicken), sliced

• 1/2 cup of toasted almonds

In a very large bowl, place the snow peas….

….sliced green onions, red and yellow pepper strips…

…slaw mix and torn Romaine lettuce leaves.

Toss to mix and place in a covered container.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Note:  I love the Lock and Lock containers sold on QVC.  I received them as a gift and they are the best thing I have found for keeping any kind of food fresh.

When ready to serve, put salad mix in bowls and top with sliced chicken.  Pass the bowl of toasted almonds and the salad dressing for each person to take the portions they like.  This keeps everything fresh for further meals.

This is a big salad of 8-10 servings. 

Pause and Remember – 7/6/2012

On Friday, I pause and remember a single moment from the past week – inspired by The Warden’s Log.

The Perfect Summer Supper

I was just telling my daughter yesterday that I don’t have much interest in food – nothing tastes really good to me.  We have nice meals here at home and eat out twice a week, but lately nothing seems to appeal to me.

Then, this afternoon, we visited two of our local farm markets (Loveland, Ohio) and came home to a simple supper with no recipes that was the best thing I’ve tasted in months:  Bi-Color corn on the cob (my favorite), a wonderful artisan bread with a tomato and parmesan topping, and my favorite Indiana Melon (canteloupe). The sunflowers just added to the beauty of the meal.

Pause and Remember – 6/8/2012

On Friday, I pause and remember a single moment from the past week – inspired by The Warden’s Log.

My neighbor’s perfect summer porch

Memorial Day

MEMORIAL DAY

We used to call it Decoration Day –
A day to decorate the cemetery
With tea roses snipped from Grandma’s trellis;
To decorate old soldiers’ uniforms
With medals glistening in the sun;
To decorate kids’ bikes and wagons
With red, white and blue crepe paper;
To decorate front porch railings
With a gently furling flag;
To decorate outdoor picnic tables
With fried chicken and baked beans;
To decorate winter-weary lives
With the first holiday of summer.

Lillian, 1997

The design for the mini-quilt is adapted from a World War II era bridge tally card and fuse-appliqued.

Sunbonnet and Quilt Wall Hanging

My oldest daughter made two beautiful cross-stitch pictures for me.  One shows a back-to-school scene with a quilt, lunch pail, slate and books.  I placed this piece in a rustic wooden frame.

The second piece shows a quilt, and a sunbonnet on an old wooden chair.

I decided to make this into a  wall hanging, using a 3-½ inch Dresden Plate as the center and half Dresden plates along the edge.

The quilting is also done in a half-Dresden Plate design.

The finished hanging measures 18 x 23 inches.

It’s nice to have two new end-of-summer pieces to display.

Click on pictures to enlarge.

A Salad Buffet

My youngest son and his family (including their dog) come to visit every summer around the end of July.  He graduated from college, married his fiancee, moved to St. Louis and began his engineering career all within a month’s time in 1982.  This is my favorite picture of them taken quite a few years ago.  The girls have both graduated from college by now….

…and the dog, Brandy, passed away and has been replaced by Maggie.

Each year, there’s the decision of what to cook, particularly for the big family meal when everyone gets together.  It’s always blistering hot, of course, and I don’t want to spend all of my time in the kitchen.  This year, I decided to serve corn-on-the-cob from my local farm market and a Salad Buffet.  All but one of the salads have been posted previously on my blog and are old favorites:

• Broccoli-Bacon-Pecan Salad.  All of the women in the family especially like this salad.

• Chicken and Fruit Orzo Salad.  Another favorite of the women with chicken, orzo, pineapple, grapes, banana and almonds.

• Vegetable Pasta Salad.  This is an adaptation of the Tuna and Veggie Salad posted previously.  I omitted the tuna so I could have one plain pasta salad.

• Thai-Inspired Chicken and Noodle Salad.  This is a new salad this year and we all like it very much.  It’s good either room temperature or chilled.

THAI-INSPIRED CHICKEN AND NOODLE SALAD

• Servings: 6-8
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• 8 oz. ( 4 cups) LoMein noodles (or thin spaghetti)
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/3 cup Teriyaki sauce
• 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 3 Tblsp. granulated sugar
• ¼ cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• few gratings of black pepper
• 2 chicken breast halves, baked and shredded
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves
• 1/4 cup toasted sunflower seeds

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add pasta and cook until al dente according to package directions.  Drain pasta and rinse with cold water.  Transfer pasta to a large bowl.

In a small bowl, combine canola oil, Teriyaki sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, peanut butter, ginger and pepper.   Mix well until smooth.  Pour dressing over pasta and toss to coat evenly.  Gently mix in chicken, cilantro and toasted sunflower seeds.

This makes a big bowl of salad – 6 to 8 servings.

For dessert we had a sundae bar and then went out on the patio to work off the calories.  My daughter-in-law brought water balloons and small fireworks and the visit ended with a flourish.

Already, I’m wondering – what can I cook next year?

Fresh Blueberry Teacakes

These little teacakes are just right to serve with cold lemonade on a hot summer day.   They are not as thick as muffins and make a nice afternoon snack.

BLUEBERRY TEA CAKES

• Servings: 12
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• 1/2 cup vegetable oil (Canola)
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• 2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2-3 tsp. granulated sugar for sprinkling tops

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Lightly oil or line a 12-cup cupcake tin

Note:  There is no milk in this recipe

In large mixing bowl whisk together the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla.

Place blueberries in a bowl.  Measure the flour and from this, take two tablespoons of flour to mix with blueberries.

In medium bowl mix remaining flour, baking powder and salt.  Add to oil mixture, stirring just enough to blend.  Stir in the blueberries gently.

Spoon mixture into greased or lined muffin tins.  The mixture will be thick. Sprinkle the tops with sugar.

Bake @ 350 degrees for approximately 25 minutes.  Let pan cool on rack for 3-4 minutes, then remove cakes to rack to cool.

Yield:  12 teacakes