Now that the 4th is over, I am jumping into this week with enthusiasim. I have painting classes today with Becky Pashia and tomorrow with Ada Koch at ARTichokes.
Wednesday I am taking my granddaughter Zoe to her swim meet at Loch Lloyd where Zoe’s team will swim against my granddaughter Ali’s team. I suppose I’ll try to find a spot in the middle so I can cheer for both of my girls.
Thursday morning I return to Artichokes to teach my Heirloom Cookbook class. It is a four week class and at the conclusion of the class each class member will have a working copy of their cookbook plus an elaborate keepsake cookbook that they will design individually. It will be interesting to see how they turn out, there are some terrific painters in the class and I hope they decide to do a painting for the cover, or possibly divider pages.
Friday evening there is open painting with Kristin Goering at ARTichokes. I need to work on abstracts and there is just nothing like painting at the studio. I’ve set up an area in my basement where there are two big windows, plenty of light and room. Once I am down there, it’s great, but sometimes I just can’t get into going downstairs! I need to figure out a wall system for hanging finished paintings. Oil paint can take up to a year to dry so you can’t just stack them against the wall. I suppose as time goes by, I will work it out, and I will always have ARTichokes.

Somerset Ridge Vineyard

It is hard to believe that we are discussing harvest already, but after strolling through the vines over the holiday weekend, it is obvious the grapes are growing by leaps and bounds. This is July, which means 7 to 8 weeks from now, we will be right in the middle of harvest time. The menus have not been set yet, but I am sure they will be soon. It looks like I will be cooking one more year, and we are trying to find someone to help me now.
It has been tradition at Somerset Ridge Vineyard to have a Greek theme for our first weekend of harvest. The weather is usually still pretty warm and Greek food is so perfect under the bright sun.

Food
I’ve been frequenting some of our Farmer’s markets over the last few weeks. It is so fun to wander through all of the fresh veggies! I’ve purchased some tomatoes, but honestly, they have been mushy, very disappointing. But the rest of the vegetables I've tried have been so good. I ran across a recipe on the Food and Wine web page the other day which calls for thick asparagus. I am going to prepare this on the grill. I’m thinking about trying it on Fennel also.
Chef Nate Appleman of San Francisco swears by coating vegetables with a marinade, it creates a beautifully blistered crust when grilled.

Grilled Asparagus
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup grainy mustard
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 pound thick asparagus, trimmed

Light a grill. In a shallow dish, whisk the mayonnaise with the mustard, oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, salt and pepper. Add the asparagus and turn to coat. Let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Grill the asparagus over moderately high heat, turning occasionally, until the spears are tender and lightly blistered in spots, about 6 minutes. Serve the asparagus hot or at room temperature.

I’m thinking this will be a perfect side for a big thick Rib Eye Steak! Both grilled, no mess in the kitchen. Perfect! Naturally, a bottle of Flyboy Red wine from Somerset Ridge would be my choice, but you may prefer Ruby Red. Don’t forget a big chunk of cold watermelon for dessert! You just can't get it any easier than this. Yes, I know I left out carbs....but do you really need them?