Eyes Bigger Than Stomach

This is the Apricot Tart with the Cornmeal Crust that I found at Epicurious last weeek--the recipe not the tart. Hie thee to the Apricot King for the best dried apricots and other stuff as well, like syrup and hot pepper jam and their delicious, thick syrup that enhances any pancake, waffle or slice of French toast. www.apricotking.com

We went to the nursery (Brigg's) yesterday to buy bedding plants, and some perennials, and pretty soon the trunk and the back seat of the car were full to capacity of well, stuff that had to be paid for and planted. I always get carried away, and my eyes are not bigger than my stomach (fat chance) but bigger than the beds and assortment of pots we have to accommodate all this greenery.

So everything with the exception of one plant that goes into the wildflower border and the new hostas and impatience (add 10 lilies of the valley) are in the ground. What a job! As in work.

A most unpleasant discovery today. The bad rabbit who eats almost everything had done a number of some of the flowers and he ate the blooms! The verbena was a mass of leaves and stems. Grrrrr! Tomorrow I sprinkle red pepper on those particularly yummy plants. I thinned out some of the dill and coriander which reseeded itself from years past. We had the best salad with fresh dill and I sprinkled coriander (cilantro) on the chili. Yes, chili.

We discovered that we never had chili all winter. Not one bowl. I concocted scads of soups, but forgot to make the New York Times chili recipe. It's so good and so easy. I substituted half a jalapeno for the cayenne, and used half the amount of chili powder, because mine from Penzeys is hot hot hot! I fried up some tortillas and grated a bit of cheddar and was it ever tasty.
www.penzeys.com

So tomorrow I finish planting and Saturday it rains and everyone is happy. Except maybe that rabbit.

The cake plate is an old one with silver on glass, very pretty and until last week, stuck in a box and forgotten.

Fresh fruit season is here, and the tarts will be coming in and out of the oven thick and fast.

Yum!

More Open Salts

I do love these beautiful silver salt cellars, and it's hard to part with them, it really is. I saved a few for my special little girl, and kept a few of the tiny spoons that are so precious.

I bought a set that I had often admired in my in-laws home town which were never part of the collection, and I'm saving those. Doesn't seem fair to keep lovely things in boxes when someone perhaps has a collection she displays. I hope.

Off to the resale shop and then I will bake a delicous apricot tart using dried apricots and a crust with cornmeal. I hope this is good. The apricots are from the 'cot king in California. All his 'cots are divine, including the hot pepper jelly and the syrup. www.apricotking.com/

My 75 pages of Festival Madness have been tweaked until they just hum, and S.O. has offered two good suggestions. He's becoming a useful editor, having sat through a zillion hours of writing discussions and panels. Who knew?

Onward, onward and onward.

Grapeshot