Ain’t It Funny

Sometimes life is funny. I’ve planted carrots and lettuce and peas three times now this summer, and we’ve enjoyed a big old nothing. I planted a pony-pack of broccoli from the hardware store and one measly cucumber plant, and they are exploding.

I go down to the garden with my basket and shears, and come back with cups of broccoli and stacks of giant cucumbers. You know what? I don’t really like broccoli. When we were little kids, my folks would set a bowl of frozen broccoli straight from the microwave on the table. Then came the fine dance of whether three or for florets would be considered a proper serving. If I got it wrong, my dad would grab the spoon and pile a huge scoop on my plate. My family didn’t subscribe to the “no-thank-you-bite”. We were totally members of the clean your plate club.

Then when me and the MR were engaged we went to this wedding planning event, and he won a wok that came with a booklet of recipes. Beef and broccoli stir-fry became a staple in our household. The MR doesn’t like eggs, but he likes broccoli. I learned to adapt. After all these years, I can handle broccoli in moderation.

But what about cucumbers? Neither of us like cucumbers. Well, why plant them you foolish woman? The girls like cucumbers, and they’ve actually done well most years unlike half of things I plant in the garden. Sometimes, it feels good to enjoy a little success. I guess the key word is little versus inundation.

So lately, I’ve been scanning Pinterest, and Yummly, and Tastespotting for recipes. It’s been a bit of an adventure. We’ve enjoyed spiralized cucumber in Mango Curried Cucumber Salad from Eat, Spin, Run, Repeat (the link to their site isn’t working). I didn’t have any mangoes, so I substituted some sad looking nectarines that really should have been eaten earlier and green peas for the soybeans, since I didn’t have those either. This is a great meal on a hot summer night; yes, we have had a few.

Sunday, we enjoyed Gluten-Free with LB’s Beef Meatballs & Roasted Broccoli. Super tasty and not too labor intensive. I made the meatballs in the afternoon and baked them in the oven. Then I heated them in a frying pan with the sauce while the broccoli (I’d prepped ahead of time) was roasting. Sometimes a little work earlier in the day can make dinner come together so much quicker.

Last week, we had Bacon, Avocado, Cucumber Sushi Rolls from My Korean Kitchen. Another tasty, easy meal. Unfortunately, we had trouble finding seaweed for the wraps at our local independent grocer, so I just made a pile on the plate. I had more success in the seaweed department at the large chain store yesterday, so I’m going to give it another go.

The last two nights, we’ve had Hapanom’s Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Buns. They’re served with Quick Pickled Cucumbers and an amazing Siracha Barbecue Sauce that Baby Girl helped whip up. I made the steamed buns that the reciped called for, but that was a little time-intensive. Maybe next time, we’ll move away from the Asian influence slightly and use burger buns. While, no one in our family likes pickles, these quick pickles added crunch and a little vinegar-y tang to yummy pork sandwiches.

Finally, we have Baked Broccoli Poppers with Honey-Siracha Sauce from Oh My Veggies on the menu. I think these will be fun to munch on while I’m trying my hand at rolling cucumber sushi, so I can serve it up properly.

I managed to hand off four giant cucumbers at knitting group yesterday and one to my friend that I met for lunch on Monday, that means we only have two left before the next batch. People have worse problems.

Any favorite broccoli or cucumber recipes to share?

(Sorry not to share links. I’m having some software issue. If you Google the recipe name or type in a few key words on Tastespotting or Pinterest, I have faith that you will find them. Enjoy!)