Zucchini Gratin

Most home-gardeners complain about too much zucchini. Dale and I haven't had enough! Our plant was very productive bearing delicious golden fruit daily but we still want more! However, as the temperatures cool I needed some recipes to use the last of my zucchini in tasteful ways. I made Zucchini Gratin last week and we all cleared our plates! Dalyn, Dale's sister, made this dish meal-request for Thanksgiving so I made sure to freeze some sliced zucchini for the honor.

Zucchini Gratin

Ingredients

nocoupons

• 3 tbls unsalted butter
• 1-2 onions, thinly sliced
  
• 2 big zucchini slice, 1/4 inch thick
  
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup hot milk
• 3/4 cup panko (or seasoned bread crumbs)
  
• 3/4 cup grated parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a very large saute pan and cook the onions and zucchini over low heat for 20 minutes, or until tender but not browned. Add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg and cook uncovered for 5 more minutes. Stir in the flour. Add the hot milk and cook over low heat for a few minutes, until it makes a sauce. Pour the mixture into an 8 by 10-inch baking dish.

Combine the panko and parmesan and sprinkle on top of the zucchini mixture and bake for 20 minutes, or until bubbly and browned.

California, Camping, and Cats......

I have been meaning to send out a blog update for the past few week but somehow have managed to steer clear of all things technology related. I think after my trip to California being surrounded by mass media, cell phones, and cars sent me into a techno-coma! As immediately after landing in Montana, the quiet was almost deafening and persuaded me to shut my cell phone and computer off for just a few days of recovery. Of course, as a result, I am majorly behind on updates!

Dale and me on the Queen Mary

The rest of my trip in California was amazing. I was able to spend some quality time with family, which was the first time in over a year! My mom spoiled me with new maternity clothes, bras that actually fit, and jeans that can be worn without a fear of them falling down!! Of course, my grandparents did their part spoiling me as we ate delicious food every night, food that made the baby kick like crazy and me, almost forget how to cook! I was sad to say good-bye to everyone as I am the family girl, or rather, Nana&Papa's girl, because I love spending time with them and hate saying good bye!! The next time I see them, I will be carting around an infant!


Almost the whole family!

Of course, Dale made that sadness go away when I arrived in Missoula. He surprised me with roses lining our walkway, a clean house, freshly set dinner table, and a feast for two (actually, 3)! We have since then been relaxing and enjoying what little time we have before friends and relatives start visiting in August, soon to be followed by our new addition in October!


My brother and me at Belmont Shore

Since I had a few weeks off of work, Dale and I spent our days playing frisbee with Emma (she got a new KONG frisbee which has been like crack for a dog!) cooking, and sleeping. We made some amazing meals! One night, we made seared flank steak served over corn polenta and drizzled with a white wine reduction. Another night, we made 40 cloves of garlic chicken served alongside a crimini mushroom risotto. And another, we got more creative and using lettuce and radishes from our garden we made flanksteak seared with radish and served over fresh greens. I promise I will post these recipes soon!


Leaf Lettuce from my garden!!

Tis the season for summer garage sales and Dale and I have been stalking sales in search of baby stuff and new household items. We havent had much luck but we were able to find a THREE wheel bike that has a basket large enough to hold Emma and stable enough to support my pregnant self without a fear of falling. It is amazing and I have been enjoying my tricycles (as Dale refers to it) riding to the park! We were also purchased a new Calphalon 16 inch saute pan which has been an amazing addition to our new family!!! It sears perfectly and cooks evenly and is a major improvement from our former skillet that leeched teflon into our cooking.


Dale on my NEW bike!

We were so excited to head out camping for a few days but realized about 30 minutes from our destination that it was almost 4th of July weekend. Stunned by all the RV's behind us, we were determined to find a suitable campsite free of people. We ended up at Lindbergh Lake (2 hours aways) where we did find an amazing campsite and spent two blissful days floating in the lake, hiking, and reading around a campfire and playing rummy. Unfortunately, our second night was interrupted when a bunch of people showed up drunk, setting off fireworks (which is ILLEGAL!) and making noise well after 10pm. We tried to ignore the noise, but we really came out to enjoy nature not listen to a bunch of idiots so we packed up and returned home.


My mom and me on the Queen Mary

I was a little disappointed having to cut our trip short but it was a good thing we did because when we got home we discovered that our cat, Sascha, had a urinary blockage again. He had struggled with this back in January and he spent 2 days with a catheter in at the vet. We thought the problem had fixed itself, but apparently not. We took him to the vet and $326 the crystals causing the blockage are gone, but he will have to stay on a special diet, drink filtered water, and continue taking prednisone. Normally I am opposed to spending this kind of money on animals but in Sascha's case, the problem, which is easily fixed, is fatal (within 48 hours) if left untreated. Fortunately, we have been saving money to buy a new bed this month and we had extra cash....bye bye bed, hello vet bill! He is home now and doing well but he is going to need extra attention over the next few weeks.

Lastly, Dale and I are starting to get baby ready. I am in the process of washing all of the new baby clothes we received at our baby shower. We have a crib coming our direction shortly and are starting to look more seriously at strollers and carseats. We have narrowed down to four names, but will probably not decide on one until D-Day (although we do have a favorite that will not be revealed until afterward!).


My nana and me

Dale is starting to get more serious about his career in the beer and wine industry and is looking at becoming a certified sommelier through the Court of the Masters Sommelier program. It is an intense program that has a very low pass rate, there are only 171 Master Sommeliers in the US! Nonetheless, they have a two day class and exam at Big Sky Resort (MT) September 21-23. So Dale is starting to study, blind taste, and prepare for the exam. If he passes the introductory (in which he would become a "certified sommelier"), they will invite him to take the next level all leading up to "Master Sommelier". All in all, it would be about 3 years before he could become a Master Sommelier but it would be the highest distinction in his field and would further his career astronomically!

Anyways, I will post pictures of our camping trip and California soon!

What the Pho???

So Dale and I decided to have a dinner party the other night with some new colleagues. The food was fantastic! We decided to make pho (vietnamese noodle soup), caramel simmered pork riblets and spring rolls. The food was fantastic and our guests very eager to try such adventurous cuisine.

Even though the food was great there seemed to lack conversation. I remember at some point looking at the clock and thinking, "wow, it has only been a half an hour". Certainly our guests must have been feeling the same as they departedly shortly after.

I dont understand! Wine was plenty, however, no one was drinking. Food was plenty. Movies plenty. I dont think more than 30 words were exchanged the whole night, most of them between Dale and I.

In any case, this lack of excitement left us missing our Seattle friends and hoping that we will soon find friends in Missoula to heighten our otherwise boring lives.

My grandmother put a sparkle in my brain as she confessed the disasters of her first dinner party. I never would have guessed the fifty years ago she didnt even know how to boil water. I guess getting married and having kids kicks that habit!

Dale and I watched 'River Runs Through It' today. I must confess that I cried like a baby that got dropped on its head. I cant believe I have lived in Montana and never seen the movie. The movie was filmed in Bozeman and Livingston (my former romping ground) but is about two kids growing up in Missoula. I felt such a connection to the author who left Montana seeking greater adventure only to find that his adventure was here. Needless to say, I cried, weeped, blubbered, and tried to hide my tears. Our lives have been so busy the last couple months I dont think I have stopped to think about feelings and I guess the movie coaxed them all out.

In addition to crying like a baby today, I spent a number of hours perusing a rare seed catalogue. All the seeds carried their own story in their titles alone. I became entranced reading about country gentlemen, mammoth red rock, and early wonders. The hard part of course is reminding myself to start small because I have not yet developed a green thumb and we dont exactly have a large yard. Nonetheless, Dale and I will be starting a garden this year and I hope that many of you will be able to enjoy all the fruits of our labor...literally.