"Sense"-ational Sundays...the Slow Food version

Our senses tell a story. I've committed to recording my 5 senses for the past week to explore my sensory world. I challenge you to do the same. If you choose to do so, just blog your 5 senses every Sunday & let me know, I'd love to read them.

So much of this week's senses ended up about food. Maybe because I just finished all my weekly prep before I typed this, or maybe because all this fresh food has been making me feel better. Or maybe because I now have to solve a weekly produce puzzle I'm thinking about food more...

I SEE: The "blue sunrise" aka "Oh, I'm Stressed..."
I got a new alarm clock about a week ago, so I'm still figuring out all of it's bells and whistles. I'm blind as a bat without contacts or glasses, so I always pick out those goofy, oversized alarm clocks that look a little ridiculous just so I can read the numbers when I'm lying in bed bargaining with myself on how much more sleep I'm going to get. The clock is great, I can see it just fine, but this one I didn't count on...it's as bright as the flipping sun. I feel like that episode of Seinfeld with the sign for Kenny Roger's Chicken Roasters...I found the clip, but only with Spanish subtitles. This is what life has been like for me until I finally found the {hidden, I SWEAR} dimmer switch last night.


I HEAR: Audio Books
I've been sucking them in like water. I'm on my 4th in 2 weeks. They're great for housework - and I've been really domestic lately. I also have them running during physical therapy {5 more sessions left!}. I'm a HUGE fan of audible.com - they are THE place to download books!

I TASTE: Pasta Fresca
I got inspired from one of my favorite dishes from the Grand Lux Cafe. I made a batch with some of the random fresh veggies I had on hand and it was a knockout - so much so I made another big batch tonight to chill for me & Meg to take for lunches this week. You can throw it together with anything you like. This is what I did for this week...

Em's Pasta Fresca
1 box enriched pasta (penne or bowtie)
Boil, drain and set aside to combine with other ingredients cooked separately.

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 small red onion chopped
zucchini julienned
yellow squash julienned
asparagus chopped (long pieces)
red & green bell pepper chopped
green onions chopped (long pieces)
1 can (drained) organic tomatoes with garlic
sun dried tomatoes julienned
chicken broth

Saute all fresh vegetables. Add canned tomatoes & sun dried tomatoes and add chicken broth until dried tomatoes plump up. Toss with pasta. Serve hot or cold with Parmesan cheese.

I TOUCH: Fresh fruits and vegetables
OK, the food has been great, but, honestly, the coop thing is a lot of work. Don't get me wrong, it's totally worthwhile, it's just takes more planning {but Matt & I like that kind of thing}. Today I spent about 3 hours prepping fruits and vegetables for the week.

Thanks so much for the beet recipes last week! I decided to roast them & put them in salads. And then forgot. And then they got disgusting and I kinda had to throw them away...oops. That's why I decided to go on a frenzy and cut, wash & cook ahead of time this week.

Here's the weekly coop report. My whopping $7 this week brought me: 4 peaches, 8 donut peaches, 4 nectarines, 8 apricots, 9 apples, 2 big bundles of green onions, broccoli, 4 ears of white corn, a ridiculous number of carrots {20+ full sized} & a full thing of celery {what is it - a head? a stalk? a cluster?}. And I still had some left over from the week before. I'm more focused than ever on trying to eat fresh & local. As a matter of fact, I'm planning on joining Slow Food...after the hustle & bustle of CHA has died down. I acknowledge fast food is sometimes the only option, especially when traveling - but after years of cooking fresher {when I had to go low sodium} and now with the coop, I find I'm really in line with the Slow Food movement & want to support it.

I SMELL: Applesauce
I got apples this week in the coop and decided to make applesauce. I boiled several apples in apple juice and added some splenda and apple pie spice. After a good while I smashed them with a potato masher. I love making applesauce. I used to do it all the time...but as I made it this evening I realized I hadn't made it in years.