Cooking On the Fly

(Photo credit: JL)

When JL asked me to come and cook dinner one day after work, I learned what the term “flying by the seat of your pants” really meant.

She was on her way to pick up her weekly CSA bag full of fresh summer vegetables and wanted to know what I think we can make with it.  My mind went spinning into overdrive.  I have done plenty of recipe-free meals on my own but whenever I am cooking for someone else as well, I prefer to think out the meal and follow recipes – makes things a little more predictable.

Nonetheless, I am always up for a challenge so after making a stop at Grandaisy bakery for two slices of pizza bianca and almond meringue cookies, I headed over to JL’s kitchen.  JL and I looked at the options (including some delicious fillets of salmon) and tried our best to make use of the beautiful ingredients she had on hand.  Once we had a vision in mind, we got down to work:

The pizza bianca from Grandaisy was topped fresh summer squash, caramelized onion, tomatoes and feta.

And the salmon went into the oven at 250F, nestled on a bed of lemon slices, onions and sprinkled with thyme.

The final result of our hard work was ready after 30 minutes.  The salmon came out beautifully, succulent and flavorful from the lemons and onions that perfumed it throughout the slow roasting process.

The flat bread was crunchy and the summer squash shone through with its sweet freshness.  Perhaps goat cheese would have been a better choice for creaminess but this was about making most of what we have in the fridge after all!

For dessert, I pulled out the almond meringue cookie from Grandaisy and topped it with some nectarine slices heated in brown sugar butter and of course, whipped cream.   Tasted like summer…mmm.

All in all, I thought dinner was a pretty decent effort for not working with a recipe.  I will update the post with my write-up for the salmon.  The flat bread needs a little more work though – so perhaps that will come another day.