Tasty Tuesdays: Baked Ziti with Summer Veggies

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Welcome to Tasty Tuesdays!

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I was pretty excited to come across this recipe in Cooking Light because many of the ingredients I had growing in my garden - zucchini, eggplant, tomatoes, basil, and oregano. 

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{ I've adapted the ingredients slightly from the original Cooking Light recipe.  To see the original recipe, click here }

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Ingredients:

- 6 ounces uncooked ziti or penne

- 1 tablespoon olive oil

- 3 cups of any combination of zucchini, eggplant, or yellow summer squash, chopped

- 1/2 cup chopped onion

- 2 cups chopped tomato

- 2 garlic cloves, minced

- 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese, divided { I used smoked mozzarela and it was delicious }

- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano

- 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided

- 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper

- 1/2 cup (2 ounces) part-skim ricotta cheese

 - 1 large egg, lightly beaten

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1.   Cook pasta according to package directions.

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2.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees

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3.  Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan. Add eggplant, zucchini, and onion; sauté 5 minutes. Add tomato and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in pasta, 1/2 cup mozzarella, herbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and pepper.

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Combine ricotta, remaining salt, and egg. Stir into pasta mixture. Spoon into an 8-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish; sprinkle with remaining mozzarella. Bake at 400° for 15 minutes or until bubbly and browned.

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Top with additional herbs { if desired } and enjoy!

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What did you cook this week?
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Party Rules:
- Add a link in your post back to this post.
OR
- Add the Tasty Tuesdays button to your post.  You will find the button & code on my sidebar.
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Remembering: September 11th, 10 Year Anniversary

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It's one of those days that none of us who were old enough to remember will ever forget.  It's a day that will be forever scarred in our memory.

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On September 11th, 2001, I was 24 and I was on the other side of the state in meetings at an elementary school we were remodeling.  I remember the principal of the school coming into the conference room and telling us what was happening, but I remember her seeming somewhat nonchalant about the whole thing.  There wasn't a TV in the room so I wasn't able to see any of the coverage.  I remember being upset about having to continue the meetings - I wanted to know what was going on.

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That night I was staying in a hotel.  I had a friend who lives somewhat close to where I was staying, and thankfully he came to stay with me.  That is a night I would not have wanted to be alone.

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What I remember most about the days and weeks following that awful day is the way our country came together.  It didn't matter if you were a Republican or Democrat - we all stood together for our country.  We were all in it together.

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On the one year anniversary, I again had to travel to the other side of the state for work.  I was listening to the radio who was broadcasting a special on the anniversary.  At 8:46 AM, the moment that the first plane hit, I passed a man on the expressway who had pulled over and was standing along side the road waving a huge American flag.  It's something I will never forget.  It still brings tears to my eyes when I think about it.

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I took all these photos yesterday at a memorial called the "West Michigan Healing Field".  There is a flag representing every person who lost their life that day - 3200 flags.

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Each flag has a tag with a name and information about those who died.  There are flags without tags, representing those who have not yet been identified.

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Reading the names attached to the flags was a moving experience.

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Each flag is available for sale, with the proceeds benefiting first responder charities.  If you are interested in purchasing a flag, or to learn more about the healing field, click here.

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I hope we never forget September 11th, or the patriotism that we felt afterwards.

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"A great people has been moved to defend a great nation. Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America. These acts shattered steel, but they cannot dent the steel of American resolve.

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America was targeted for attack because we're the brightest beacon for freedom and opportunity in the world. And no one will keep that light from shining.

. Today, our nation saw evil, the very worst of human nature. And we responded with the best of America — with the daring of our rescue workers, with the caring for strangers and neighbors who came to give blood and help in any way they could."
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- President George W. Bush; Address to the Nation, September 11, 2001

Coobook Review: Simply Scandinavian

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Recently, I was asked to review a cookbook - Simply Scandinavian: Travelling in Time with Finnish Cuisine and Nature by Tero Kallio and Kimmo Saira  What a beautiful book!  Even if you don't enjoy cooking, the photographs in this book are simply stunning.  The photography makes this book beautiful enough to be a coffee table book. 

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Even the table of contents page has a beautiful photo:

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The book has a chapter for each season: Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter.  Within each chapter are recipes for appetizers, main courses, and desserts.  It's a nice way to be able to cook with seasonal ingredients.

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I typically tend to favor Mediterranean flavors and wasn't sure what I would think of the recipes in the book.  But, I found many things I want to try.  Like these pancakes:

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{ If that photo doesn't make you want to go and make pancakes right away, I don't know what will! }

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And this blueberry cheesecake:

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And these rhubarb smoothies:

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Some of the recipes include ingredients not common in the States.  But from what I could tell, most could easily be substituted for common, readily available ingredients.

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I decided to make the lemon and lime sorbet from the Summer Desserts section.  A very simple recipe calling for only 5 ingredients.  It couldn't have been any easier to make and it tasted so refreshing.

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Doesn't that look good?

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More beautiful pages from the book:

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Throughout the book are notes about Scandinavian life.
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I told you - the photographs are stunning!
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The book includes a wide variety of recipes, including Loin of Pork, Lingonberry Jelly, Hunter's Sandwich, Dill Stew, and Beef a la Rydberg.
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If you are interested in Scandinavian cooking, or are just looking to branch out and try something new, this cookbook would be a good choice.  You can find it on Amazon.
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{ Fine print: This book was provided to me in exchange for a review on my blog; all of the opinions are 100% mine }
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Tasty Tuesdays: Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde

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Welcome to Tasty Tuesdays!

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I found this recipe on Pinterest { via Sara Waters } earlier this Summer and wanted to make it right away! The original recipe is from A Spicy Perspective (a very cool blog, by the way). You won't believe how easy it is to make!

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Ingredients:

- 2 ½ lbs. tomatillos, husked and rinsed

- 2 large onions

- 10 cloves garlic, peeled

- 4 jalapenos

- 2 Tb. vegetable oil

- 4 tsp. ground cumin

- 2 tsp. salt

- 1 cup packed cilantro

- 3 avocados

- 1 lime (optional)

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{ Look, the tomatillos match the dish towel! Ha, I did not plan that! }

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1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

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2. Husk the tomatillos and rinse. Peel and chop the onions into quarters. Place the tomatillos, onions, garlic and jalapenos on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with oil. Place in oven and roast for 15 - 20 minutes. The outsides will be slightly blistered when they are done.

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3. Meanwhile, half the avocados, remove the pit, and scoop out the flesh.

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4. When the vegetables are done, remove from oven. Cut the jalapenos in half and scrape out the seeds. Discard seeds and stem.

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5. Place HALF of the tomatillos, onions, jalapenos and garlic in a food processor { or blender; I don't have a food processor, so that's what I used and it worked just fine }. Pulse until mostly smooth. Place in large bowl.

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6. Add HALF of the cumin, salt, cilantro and avocado. Pulse until the avocado is pureed into the mixture. Add to bowl. Repeat for remaining ingredients.

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7. If desired, add lime juice to the mixture and stir to combine.

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8. Divide salsa among containers. This is supposed to freeze very well, so that's what I did with most of mine. It will be nice to enjoy this salsa through the winter.

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{ Recipe yields 4 quarts }

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What did you cook this week?

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Party Rules:

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1. Add a link in your post back to this post.

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OR

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2. Add the Tasty Tuesday button to your post. You will find the button on my sidebar.

Designer Diaries: Middle School Remodel

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I'm starting a new series on the blog called Designer Diaries.  From time to time I'll share a little peak into my work life as an Interior Designer for an architectural firm.

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First up, a Middle school project I recently worked on.  The project scope included remodeling the media center, locker rooms, and auditorium. 

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The portion of the building where the media center is located was built in the 1970s....and hadn't been touched since.  We gutted the space and came up with a different layout.

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Here's the floorplan:

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This is the carpet tile:

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The minute I found this upholstery I loved it with the carpet.  The upholstery is going on new lounge seating.

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{ Double Dutch by Designtex }

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These plastic laminates are being used on built in storage.

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As far as plastic laminates go, I am in love with this one...

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This is a very cool product called Lumicor.  I'm using it on the walls between the main media center and the computer lab instead of glass.  The product is made of resin and is translucent.  It's going to be really pretty.

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The Auditorium is in the original portion of the building - built in the early 1920s.  This part of the building has some really beautiful details and was originally built as the district's High School. 

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Right now the auditorium renovation is in progress and looks like this:

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They have demoed the old carpet and chairs and are in the process of constructing a new ramp up to the stage, building a stage extension, and painting.

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This is the carpet that will be going in.  I wanted to use a pattern that would be appropriate for a space this old.

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Here's the upholstery that will be on the auditorium seats and the paint colors:

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All of the decorative plaster mouldings will be painted this Pratt & Lambet metallic.  It's from the series Ovation and the color is Opulence.  This isn't a good photo because you can't even tell that it is a metallic!

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Not a great photo, but here's a peak of the painting.  The mouldings are really going to stand out now, before they were painted the same off-white as the walls and they were hardly noticeable.

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Here's the board I put together for the athletic areas of the building.  Maybe not the most exciting thing, but let me tell you, the coaches and P.E. teachers are really excited about their new spaces!

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The wall tile in the locker rooms was just installed and looks like this:

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That's the old tile floor in the photo.  It is being covered up with a poured resinous epoxy flooring.

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So, that's what I've been up to at work!  I'm really looking forward to seeing the completed spaces.