Pan-Fried Chicken (supposed to be partridge) with a delicate pearl barley, pea, and kale (supposed to be lettuce) stew

An amazing recipe from the Jamie at Home cookbook. As the title says, it was supposed to be made with partridge, but the chicken was a great fill-in. Also, the recipe called for wilting romaine, but I wanted more texture, so we used kale, and it was awesome. Bacon makes anything better in my opinion, but I thought just the barley, pea and kale mixture would be good for a vegetarian meal too. This is a definite make over and over again recipe for us.

Asparagus!

Here is some asparagus that we are growing in our yard. Mom gave us some roots a couple of years back. Only 2 bunches survived, one in the front of the house (apparently I stuck some in my front flower bed...) and one in the back. We just steamed the first harvest, then I used the second harvest in some scrambled eggs with some mushrooms and chives from the garden. Mmm! It is amazing how sweet and nutty they are when picked fresh. I think even people who don't like asparagus would like these!

CSA's

So I have been looking into joining a CSA (though I believe we are late - I think people usually secure theirs during the winter months).

Here is the CSA I really wanted to join, but I believe they are already sold out -
http://www.trilliumhavenfarm.com/
They offer a working share that would be so cool, but again, they are already full. I was especially interested in this place because they sell at the GR farm market, so I know they are good, clean, quality, etc. I think its kind of risky not knowing who you are going with because there is another one I found info on online, but I know the people from the FM and I question the cleanliness of their operation. I wouldn't know that from looking online, though, just because I have seen them and their produce in person. Let's just say you can't sell me my salad greens while chain-smoking cigarettes.

Another one that I found and was interested in (that is unfortunately also sold out) is
http://www.groundswellfarm.org/index.html
I think I still might try to volunteer at this one.

The one I am still considering is
http://www.fatblossom.com/Site/Home_.html
I don't know anything about the farm other than they were recommended by the Groundswell Farm people, but they have a "small share" that is supposed to be for only 2 people (as opposed to most that are for 4), so I am tempted, but I want to know more about them first.

Bistecca Florentine

That cut is just the NY strip part. Amico-74 and still cutting meat. He speaks no English, but we understood each other over the coals while it cooked.

This came from Tyler Florence cookbook. I highly recommend it. The brussel sprout hash is hearty enough to be a meal on its own.

Booty from Italy

Already down at least 4 bottles of the wine, 3 smaller bottles of the olive oil, the proscuitto, capiacola, biscotti and almost all the parmesean. Sounds like a return trip needs to be scheduled.

Best appetizer

Delicious!!!! Fresh Mozzarella (jsut a bit gooey inside) with olive oil and shaved truffles. First night in italy.

Pancakes

I have started adding Malt Powder (usually about 2T) to pancakes, whether from scratch or a box. Got the idea from cook's country. Reviews have been good. It makes them a bit drier so more liquid may be needed.