Our Garden to Table Meal

Cook it and blog about it. That's the best way to tell you about my creations. I just finished cleaning up after a delicious and very special meal - our Garden to Table dinner.

It was nice to get back to cooking today. The heat wave had broken and it was a gorgeous warm but less humid day in North Fork, New York. Plus, there was nothing to cook or bake for...just my test kitchen, which I love on days like these.

Finally, I was able to fry up some of our very own zucchini in sticks just as my grandfather always did. Wow did they bring back memories when I tasted them! I put together our meal - from starters to main course- using as many of our garden's bounty as possible. Actually, the "Martin Farm" veggies were the inspiration for the recipe.

As our appetizer, the zucchini sticks came first. Those I battered in egg wash, flour and Italian bread crumbs. Using vegetable oil, I fried each one. The key to these are cutting the sticks very thin so they lose their toughness. It was a walk down memory lane with each bite. The other starters included zucchini/squash flowers and thinly sliced yellow squash rounds, dipped in a special batter and fried. The batter consisted of: 1 cup flour, 1 1/2 tsps. baking powder, 1 tsp. sugar, 1/4 tsp. salt, 2 eggs and milk. Blend these together so it is a liquid consistency (able to drip) and dip the flowers (or other veggies) then place in pan. Add salt to taste. The flowers are incredibly rich and mild in flavor. It is a garden experience not to be missed. It's the consistency that's so intriguing.

I sipped on the 2009 First Label Sauvignon Blanc from Raphael, while I cooked and while I ate. It was a perfect complement to the summer fare.

For our main course, I combined some interesting ingredients to create an orzo al fresca with lots of color and flavorful elements.

• First, boil the orzo pasta as directed. In the meantime, start with a large, deep skillet and extra virgin garlic and herb infused olive oil in the bottom. When hot, put in thinly sliced yellow squash and sliced Baby Bella mushrooms. These ingredients need to soften and soak up the flavors.
• Then add onion powder, red pepper flakes sald and pepper to taste (be careful not to add too much as the oil has seasonings already). Cover while these are heating. Then add sundried tomato flavored chicken sausage (sliced) into the skillet. Heat well.
• In the last 4 minutes of the orzo's cooktime, add to your skillet the following: cherry tomatoes cut in half, sliced black olives and fresh basil leaves. Stir in and cover, turning the heat to low.
• When pasta is ready, blend with all ingredients in the skillet into a large pasta bowl and serve hot with grated parmesean cheese on top.

This recipe, like those I've stumbled upon in my test kitchen, packs alot of flavor with its Italian flair but is a great summer dish for its olive oil sauce with super fresca ingredients from our own yard such as the zucchini, squash and basil. I recommend you try it. These items can be purchased from your local farm stand or grocery - and even there you can find the freshest of herbs and vegetables. Just be selective...and creative!