Plum Tart

This came out exceedingly well. Instead of using the food processor (which I lurv dearly) to make the pastry dough, I went for a manual approach with a pastry cutter. It was a pain and I wasn't entirely sure I was getting the butter down to the right grain size, but what do you know? IT WORKED. It worked better than any other crust I've made in the past, and I've made many. Flour, butter, sugar, salt, ice water and that was it. Perfectly flaky. I'll have to try this out a second and third time to confirm, but in the meantime, I'm enjoying the fruit of my labor.

plum tart, pre-oven

I had some leftover Fig Almond Spread in the fridge from a wine and cheese thing a few months ago. Expensive, but it had been sitting there for a while so I figured that I'd spread the stuff on the bottom of the tart. Worked like a charm. Arranged thin slices of dinosaur and black plums on top and then sprinkled a healthy dose of brown sugar above. Done.

plum tart, shitty photo

UPDATE:

plum tart, better photo

Pasta With Zucchini and Chicken Garnish

I often get blown away by what a meal costs in a restaurant, particularly if it's something easy to put together with cheap ingredients. This meal at home took 20 minutes to prepare and the cost per serving is somewhere less than a dollar. Zucchini squash is deliciously in season and dirt cheap. Pasta, red onion, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper... nothing exotic, but the ensemble is mighty tasty. And I had some leftover chicken salad in the fridge so I sprinkled some of that on top. I love a little irony.

pasta with zucchini, chicken garnish

Leftover Pork Butt Tacos

These tacos made from leftovers have a remarkable semblance to the tacos I originally made with the roasted pork butt on Saturday. Fresh corn is missing and the chopped onion got mixed in with the meat when packing it away, so those got cooked in the reheating. The turmeric pickled zucchini I made is the same. Sriracha is an addition. All leftovers are delicious when you know what to do with them...

pork shoulder tacos with house-pickled turmeric zucchini, sriracha

Just Popped My Ice Cream Cherry

For years I've been putting off making ice cream because I don't have an ice cream machine. I finally sat down and did some research and found a way to do it manually. Actually, it's a brilliant technique that involves no churning except at the very end, and with a food processor! By reducing the water content of the solution and increasing the rate of chilling, there's absolutely no hassle while it's in the freezer. Minimal ice crystals form. Set it and forget it. Will post on this some more later. For now, I'm just enjoying some of the best vanilla ice cream I've ever had, topped with some macerated cherries. Dense, smooth, creamy...

homemade vanillla ice cream with macerated cherries

Sopressata and Something Else

Spent the weekend up at a friend's house on Lake Lanier. Each of us brought food for one of the meals. I roasted a boston butt (how predictable) for some tacos with red onion and some homemade turmeric pickled zucchini. Connie brought some fresh cut sweet corn that went absolutely wonderfully with the tacos. They actually didn't photograph well in the evening, but here's a pic of the sandwich spread David brought for lunch. Ciabatta, sopressata and all sorts or other tasty things.