When it's this hot . . .

there's only one thing worth cooking . . . or should I see freezing--ICE CREAM. Or how about this refreshing Raspberry Sorbet from Lick It! Creamy Dream Vegan Ice Creams Your Mouth Will Love.

Raspberry Sorbet
Makes 1 generous quart
Since I like red wine with a hint of raspberries, I thought I’d try raspberries with a hint of wine. Don’t worry if you don’t have any wine on hand; this sorbet is wonderful without it as well.

5 cups raspberries
3/4 cup agave syrup
1/2 cup water
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup fruity red wine, such as Syrah (optional)

Combine the raspberries, agave syrup, water, and lemon juice in a blender and process until smooth. Place a fine-mesh strainer over a medium bowl, pour the blended mixture into the strainer, and press it through to remove the seeds. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, or until cold. Whisk in the wine, if using. Then freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Note: If you use the wine, the sorbet will need to harden in the freezer for several hours, or until it reaches the desired consistency.

GE Corn at Templeton Farmers' Market

According to the Atascadero News,the North County Farmers’ Market Association passed a new rule last November that would require any vendor selling genetically engineered produce to label the produce as such. Well, according to Jesse Arnold, a member of SLO GE-Free, he was at the Templeton Farmers' Market last Saturday (9/18/10) and genetically engineered corn was being sold--and the only label it carried was "yellow corn." (According to Arnold, the grower told him it was Monsanto BT corn.)

As a consumer, I would be very upset if I found out I'd served genetically engineered corn, which has pesticides engineered into every cell of every kernel, to my family--especially if I trusted the Farmers' Market Association to enforce their ruling.

Please contact Board Chairman Mike Broadhurst at 924-1260 or Market Manager Sandra Dimond at 748-1109 and ask them to enforce their ruling--even better, ask them to stand up against genetically-engineered produce, which is bad for our environment and bad for consumers, and keep GE products out of our farmers' markets.

pizza problems

Tried and tried but could not get this pizza dough to get round or even square . . . still tasted good though!

Crockpot

I don't usually think of using my crockpot in the summer but it really is handy when I have a busy day and don't want to have to worry about dinner. Today, for example, I knew I'd be running around driving kids to parties, grocery shopping, doing laundry--all those things to get ready for another busy week of work/school. I threw the ingredients for split pea soup in the crock pot this morning and come dinner time, I'll just have to serve it. It'll be nice to have a bit of down time tonight before the week starts.

Pizza almost as fast as take-out

We love pizza but takeout pizza gets pretty darn expensive and, I'm sorry to say, I don't really like it much (I'm from Boston where you get really good Italian pizza!)--but homemade can take a while and I'm not usually up for it after a busy day of work and driving the girls to after-school activities. However, thanks to Trader Joes I get the best of both worlds. Take their premade whole wheat pizza dough, a jar of marinara sauce and a bag of shredded cheese (we like the mix of mozzarella, cheddar, and jack--or the nondairy equivalent). Add some veggies and herbs from our garden, and voila . . . a quick and delicious dinner. Better yet, it's easy enough for my kids to make, while I have a cup of tea and catch up on emails!

Search for a Perfectly Ripe Cantaloupe

There is nothing worse than an underripe cantaloupe . . . or an overripe one. And for some reason, I've never been able to determine when a cantaloupe was at the perfect ripeness--so as much as I love them, I stopped buying them altogether because I was tired of being disappointed.

Believe it or not, I finally overcame my cantaloupe block and figured out how to tell when one is at the perfect ripeness for eating. It's been a couple of months now and I've gotten it right time after time so I figure it's time to share my revelation.

I had read that you should sniff your cantaloupe at the stem end and if it has an aroma, then it is ripe . . . but it's a little more complicated than that. If the melon has no smell, it is not ripe. Let it sit out for a day or two. However, don't wait until the smell is strong, by then it is overripe--that's been my problem in the past. The cantaloupe should have just a subtle, pleasant smell and that's when it's perfect.

Try it and see if this works for you.