OK, so my previous baby announcement wasn’t really about a baby, but about our first broccoli.  We don’t really have new twins to share, but we are ecstatic about our twin tomatoes.  Other than prolific lettuce production, our garden has been lagging.  The excessive spring rain compacted our soil and our new seeds had some trouble punching through the surface.

Rob replanted, and supplemented with additional nutrients, most of our transplants and new growths a couple weeks ago.  Most everything is happier in the looser soil, but our peppers and eggplants still seem unhappy.  We are watching and hoping.  The twin tomatoes renew our hope that we will eat more than just lettuce and a few heads of broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage from our garden this summer.

The other item that is growing well in the garden is parsley.  It was sort of on a whim that we planted it because I don’t really like it.  I thought I might throw it in here and there.  Well I have basically ignored it and it has flourished.  I needed a picnic food for last Monday night.  We were going to be away from home at dinner time and I wanted an alternative to the tuna fish or peanut butter sandwiches I usually pack for picnics.

I made the Quick Lemon and Garlic Quinoa Salad from Feeding the Whole Family by Cynthia Lair.  I cut the parsley and added the tomato.  It did not include sunflower seeds, but I have in the past.  The recipe is easy to make, can be made in advance, travels well and tastes great.  I had picked up Feeding the Whole Family a few times in the bookstore, but kept putting it down.  I was drawn in by the beautiful cover art by Nikki McClure and Cynthia’s affiliation with Bastyr, but the recipes didn’t quite grab be (and I definitely don’t need another cookbook unless it is going to be well loved.

I took a cooking class through Lost Arts Kitchen and we ate the Quinoa Salad during our snack break.  It was delicious.  I immediately bought the book and we have enjoyed everything I have made so far.  The recipe ingredients tend to be more on the eclectic side and I usually don’t have everything on hand, but if I plan ahead, it is easy enough to gather the necessary items.  I am really looking forward to trying out more of the recipes once we harvest more beauties from our garden.

Tomorrow is the East Portland Sunday Parkways ride.  We can’t wait….