A Mid Summer Nights Dream Come True...

Carrot Ginger Salad
Cheese Ball with Pears
Chicken with Sundried Tomatoes
Picnic Basket Bread - filled with chicken, swiss and Parmesan cheese, onions and spinach
Tomato and Tepenade Tartlets

Another delicious dinner -- Obviously I am not a food photographer! Emily and I laughed as I tried to photograph this first salad, which we kept getting a shadow on, no matter where she held the plate.

Summer Squash Ribbons with Oregano, Basil and Lemon

So good! A must try for squash lovers. Kind of like eating linguini made from squash.

Summer Vegetable Tart with Goat Cheese and cream filling

The filling on this was DELISH! And it's healthy because it has vegetables on it, right??

Blackberry-Avocado Salad with Kiwi Dressing

Tessa wasn't thrilled with this salad, but we all LOVED it. The Kiwi dressing was mmmm good.

We enjoyed a lovely dinner at Jennie's home. She gave us a tour of her newly planted thriving garden, where she harvested all of the vegetables to make her fresh vegetable tart. Ar Ar. Thanks for hosting Jennie!

Milk Chocolate Creams

Prep: 5 minutes Total: 65 minutes Serves 4

Ingredients:
* 12 ounces milk chocolate, roughly chopped
* 1 cup light cream
* 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* Coarse salt
* 4 large egg yolks
* Strawberries and raspberries, for serving
Directions
1. Place chocolate in a blender. Bring cream to a simmer in a small saucepan. Immediately remove from heat, and pour over chocolate. Blend until smooth. 2. Blend in vanilla and a pinch of salt. With the machine running, add yolks. Blend until well combined. Pour about 3/4 cup chocolate mixture into each of 4 serving bowls. 3. Freeze, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Then refrigerate, uncovered, for 30 minutes. (The texture should be soft and creamy.) Serve cold with berries.
Helpful Hint
The egg yolks in this recipe are not cooked. This dish should not be prepared for pregnant women, babies and other young children, the elderly, or anyone whose health is compromised.

Chevre, Marmalade and Ripe Pear Crostini

2 oz chevre, such as Montrachet
8 to 12 crostini
1 ripe pear
2 to 3 tablespoons marmalade
(ginger, orange, or lemon)
Grated lemon zest or orange zest
(optional)

Spread some of the chevre on each crostini. Cut the pear lengthwise into havles. Remove the core and thinly slice the pear along the width of the fruit, producing half-moon shape slices. Arrange 2 or 3 pear slices in a fan shape on each crostini. Spread 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon of the marmalade over the top of each with the back of a spoon. Garnish with lemon zest or orange zest.

Makes 8 to 12 appetizers

Watermelon Salad

This recipe originated from Wilson Farms in Lexington, Massachusetts. It came by way of my dear friends Brett and Erin Blake.

1/2 seedless watermelon, cubed
1 log goat cheese
1 bunch basil, thinly sliced
1 bunch scallions, chopped

Mix watermelon, basil and scallions, place in bowl. Sprinkle with goat cheese. Garnish with basil sprigs.