At our house "Small Plates" means leftovers. Today they will be leftover pizza and I'll make a salad, Canal House Cooking's Mock Cesar, from volume 3, p. 35. Leftover dressing and garlicky croutons are waiting in the fridge from last week.
Tamar Adler's book has gotten me excited to roast my vegetables all on one day, make a pot of beans and reheat the two for the rest of the week. But I know there will be more tomatoes coming in the produce box and we have to eat those first. She does have instructions for oven roasting tomatoes, but this soup, Ribolita, sounds better.
Last week we got a whole bag of cute little ciopollini onions from Eatwell Farm, so I'll be taking the long road and slow cooking them (on the stove) into Canal House Cooking's version of French Onion Soup, from volume #3 p. 40. Alongside will be my second favorite salad in the world, their Mock Cesar, from the same book, p. 35. Luckily I have some old bread going stale in the fridge to make into garlicky croutons to crush and sprinkle on top.
An old favorite of mine, there is nothing better than a toasted summer tomato, cheese and mayo sandwich! From our Eatwell Farm CSA Newsletter, I'll post a link to the recipe when I find it, in case you need some inspiration. This is another dinner my kids most likely won't want to eat, so I'll mix up some tuna salad for them and serve that, too.
Toast isn't something I usually associate with gardens, but at the Wild Flour Bakery in Sonoma, the two go hand in hand. For my husband, this bakery is a regular refueling stop along one of his lengthier bicycling routes. For me, it is a beautiful place to visit for a meal, some time in the sun and botanical inspiration.