Persian Tomato and Cucumber Salad (Shirazi)

This salad couldn't be simpler or more refreshing. It's quite tangy from the lemon, and the cucumber and tomato are cool and crisp — the perfect antidote to a hot summer's day.

BBQ: Orange-Ginger Marinated Chicken and Honey-Soy Marinated Steak

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I am kind of obsessed with barbecuing. Nate and I don't have a grill, but the state parks here have small grills that anyone can use, provided you bring your own charcoal. We went to the Santa Monica Airport Park after a long day of lounging at the beach and to our surprise there were open grills - that were clean! Usually the grills are caked with charred food remains and various debris, so it felt like quite the treat to not have to spend the first 15 minutes scraping and brushing it clean.

Miscellaneous Food Stuffs

Sometimes, I make something or eat something that is really, really good - but I wasn't planning on blogging about it. I often manage to snap a picture or two, and I wanted to share with you some of the tasty morsels I've had but haven't written a full blog post about.

Epic Canning Adventure: Homemade Ketchup, Tomato Sauce, and Green Tomato Relish

Tomato Sauce, Tomato Sauce, Relish, Relish, Ketchup!

Last year I had the pleasure of going to Underwood Family Farms in Moorpark, CA, and picking Roma tomatoes for a mere 25 cents per pound over Labor Day weekend. It was amazing both how many tomatoes I got for so little money - and how little food I got from so many tomatoes!

Roasted Fig and Mascarpone Tarts

Fig season is at hand! I've been wanting to buy figs for awhile now but the price tag (usually at least $5 for a basket) kept me at bay.

Gazpacho

This is my second attempt at making gazpacho in as many weeks. The first one had potential, but the recipe called for the tomato mixture to be pureed, then strained. After straining the soup, it was so thin it resembled a juice more than a soup. Without the vegetable puree to add texture, the flavor seemed lacking as well. I was disappointed to say the least, but when I had a friend over for dinner this past weekend, I decided to try my hand at this chilled soup one more time, to accompany a side of Asparagus and Red Corn Salad.

Asparagus and Red Corn Salad

My friend Dave came over for dinner on Saturday. I didn't want to use the oven at all, so I decided to make a couple of cold sides to accompany a main dish that could be cooked on the stove top.