Summer Tributes

Our little girl was born here in Kansas (with a lot of love brought in from Iowa).

But something tells me that she's got a lot of her mama and daddy's (and Grandpa's) Iowa-ness in her. 

Corn is in her blood...and all over her face.

We had so much fun whipping up Summer Squash & Corn Chowder with this Kansas-grown treat (delicious, but not quite the same as good old Iowa sweet corn) that we decided to add it to the dinner list again this week.  I hope you get to try this recipe from Cooking Light- it is a pure tribute to summer, and best if you get your produce from your local farmers market-especially the corn.

Yumminess for the Week

Tuesday: Green Onion & Bacon Breadcrumb Pasta

This is a huge favorite of ours tossed with whole-wheat spaghetti. Look at the first slide for instructions on breadcrumbs, and then flip to the second slide for this particular version- there are several! I used green onions (scallions?) instead of chives. That's just what I had on hand. And because I have trouble saying 'no' to cheese, I stirred in grated parmesan for additional flavor and cohesiveness (if that's not a real word, I'm making it one).  Feesh calls these delicious, cheesy bits of cohesiveness 'bacon crunchies'. 

Wednesday: Grilled Peach & Goat Cheese Salad
We turned this into a side salad without the chicken and did not grill the peaches. All you have to do is get the most local, delicious peaches you can find and dice them up (two or so).  Crumble of some fresh goat cheese (chevre) and dice up some good white country bread for homemade croutons. Fry those diced-up bread pieces in olive oil for a few minutes and toss them with grated parmesan after removing from heat. Sprinkle with pepper. Dress the salad (we used fresh spinach for greens) as directed. Serve grilled chicken or shrimp skewers on the side. 
Thursday: Summer Squash & Corn Chowder
The recipe calls for frozen corn, but that's just ridiculous to even think of using at the end of July when you live in the Midwest.  We used two medium-sized ears and used it raw. This soup thickens up very well on its own with the fresh corn and milk puree- but I'd use a touch less milk if you're like me and want a thicker soup.
Friday: Grilled Cheese on Sourdough

I just can't make grilled cheese on regular old bagged sandwich bread anymore. Farm to Market Bread Company, a local set-up, makes some pretty awesome product. If you live in the area, make sure to check out their pretzel buns! An awesome shop called Little Freshie (they hand-craft all-natural snow-cones and sodas- hello, Blackberry Lavender) puts sharp cheddar, almond butter, and sliced green apples on the aforementioned pretzel buns.  One of the best sandwiches I've had, hands-down.
Saturday: Hoping to get out for one more date night before Baby 2...we'll see how that goes. If it doesn't, we'll just chalk it up to a FIO night- Figure. It. Out.
Sunday: Chorizo-Potato Tacos

This is a new recipe from Real Simple magazine. Looking forward to trying this one out. While the idea of radishes usually makes me turn up my nose, I feel they just might work here. Also will throw in some tomatoes with the black-bean salsa. What is a summer salsa without tomatoes?
Monday: Quesadillas 

A good way to use up any leftover produce. Which is good- summer is a great time to go overboard on things like tomatoes, zucchini, even peaches. And Feesh will remind you to not forget the corn!