I’ve been on hiatus from the blog for the past two months. I know what you are thinking, how hard can it be to post a recipe and a couple of photographs once a month? What can I say, I’m lazy. Seriously though, once May hits, life turns into a chaotic mix of school functions and soccer parties. This year was no different. In addition to all that, I thought it would be a great idea if my daughter and I took a trip to New York City. So, the day after the last day of school, Grace & I headed to NYC for a 3-day trip to visit my auntie and her friend.
We had an amazing time, despite it raining all three days. Normally, when I head to the city I spend much of the time eating. This trip was different though. It was more about introducing Grace to one of my favorite cities. I think she fell in love. Her favorite part of the trip, she told me, was exploring Chinatown. We topped off our Chinatown visit with a stop by the Chinatown Ice Cream Factory where we enjoyed flavors like black sesame, chocolate pandan, red bean & lychee. They were all delicious! We hoped to try the wasabi, but they were all out. Next time, I will try the durian (stinky Southeast Asian fruit)! I am giddy to share with you that I will be headed back to The Big Apple in September to make one of my dreams come true. I will see Aretha Franklin live at Radio City Music Hall! I will also be eating my way around town with my sister. I cannot wait! Momofuku steamed pork buns here I come!
I suppose I am overdue to post a new recipe. Well, with summer here, I’ve got the perfect one to share. I was exploring Chowhound the other day and stumbled across a thread titled “The best vegetable side – ever”. Well, how could I not be tempted? A fellow ‘hound had posted a recipe for a summer vegetable gratin – carmelized onions topped with rows of sliced zucchini, yellow squash & tomatoes and sprinkled with fresh thyme, parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs. What’s not to love, right? To me, it sounded like summer heaven in one dish. I’ve made it twice in two weeks and I’m not sick of it yet. It’s a great way to highlight all the different vegetables summer gardens are yielding these days. There are many different variations, but here is a link to a Fine Cooking article that offers up three recipes. Here are before and after photographs of my tomato, zucchini & yellow squash gratin. The link to the article details how to make it. I made a few changes, including using Locatelli Romano cheese in place of the parmesan cheese. The great thing about these gratins is that there is no hard fast rule. Use what you have and make it with what you like.
Summer vegetable gratin assembled and ready to bake.
The finished dish - bon appetit!
Mama~licious 