Recipe Basics and plenty of Dill. . . . . . . .

Plentiful fresh dill at the ready outside the front door!

Quite a pungent herb so use sparingly - good in soups, yogurt dressings, salads, 

especially potato salads, Havarti cheese, and of course of salmon.

My few tomato plants have not produced much this this year, however I may

 get a few Roma later - already earmarked for a nice Caprese salad - and

my generous neighbor is sharing plenty of cherry tomatoes now they are 

ripening daily in the heat and sunshine.

A basic recipe in most kitchens (especially if you've fed children!) no matter where

you cook, is of course Macaroni and Cheese. I made this dish over the weekend.

My version actually uses penne rigate, a similar short hollow pasta, but somehow

 the cheese(s) sauce clings to it much better than smooth macaroni elbows.  

Note I say cheeses, because this recipe uses not only a tasty mature English

 Cheddar, but also nutty Swiss Gruyere, and classic Italian Parmigiana Reggiano.

It's a British recipe but with strong European overtones!

It's delicious - and known as 'fit for the Queen.'

No royalty sitting at our table, in fact nobody but us these days sadly.

Hoping your week ahead will have happy moments.

We're staying busy working in the back garden still!

Heads Up! NEW Blogger changes?

I fear NEW Blogger is fooling with us again!

Where did the three little dots go (over on the right by the 'Table' square)? 

The drop down included the option to center one's text, photos etc.

It has now disappeared!

- BUT -

Actually . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . uploading photos has reverted to the original way and hopefully will stay

because it's so much better, easier and faster.

- AND -

Thankfully . . . . . . 

. . . . . . the little un-named thingamabob next to SAVE has disappeared - it was

 for changing your post to HTML and really scary if you accidentally clicked on it!

Anyone else seeing these changes today? 

Sweatshirt from ZARA . . . . . for colder days of course!

Garden Snippets - July brings tomatoes. . . .

The heat and humidity of July in the southeast has us mopping our brow, the 

mosquitoes are swarming, and the garden gets harder to care for.

Removed all the back garden odds and ends so the guys could get rid of ivy,

vinca, and hundreds of acorns which had already started putting out leaves

 saying, "look at me, I'm another huge oak tree in your garden's future!" 

Didn't want them tripping over elves, angels and stone chickens!

I mentioned they were fading fast last week, and now although this bloom is pretty,

 they are mostly turning brown from the heat and looking sad!

The Japanese maple has angel wing seeds - they are lovely. . . . . . 

. . . . . . and once again the Magnolia liliiflora is blooming.

Second time around this year - first before the leaves even opened, 

now with plenty of leaves to shield flowers from the sun.

Roses aren't doing too well - I think they enjoy sunshine, not constant heat day after day.

A candle of HOPE - for the front porch.

Pale beauty.

"The dill is as high as an elephant's eye"

Summer supper - Heirloom Tomato Galette - turned out well and so 

easy to make.