Purple Pantry Puzzle

It’s 5:00, I had no idea what to fix for dinner, and Ijust came home from an impromptu trip to Whole Foods. (I know, I know…shopping without a list is dangerous, especially there!) What I thought was in the freezer…wasn’t, so I faced this assortment of ingredients:

Here we have a red onion, red pepper, lemon infused olive oil, jalapeno-cilantro pesto, shrimp, zucchini, and purple potatoes! That’s right, purple as in “this is a lovely match to my cardigan” purple. How did it all come together?

I sauteed the shrimp with the bell pepper, zucchini, and onion. At the end I added the cilantro pesto for a little kick. On the side we have the lovely purple potatoes, sprinkled with lemon olive oil, sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper. I added the cilantro because, well, it needed something green on top.
The verdict? The family, bless their adventurous souls, liked it! We all agreed that the potatoes wouldn’t have worked with the standard butter and milk treatment (Play-doh anyone?) but the snazzy lemon oil was just the right touch.
Who says grownups can’t play with their food?

Why You Don’t Want to Read This Blog

Dear Loyal Readers,
Hi Mom!
Yes, you’re right. My little corner of the blogosphere has been sorely neglected. November? I haven’t posted since November? 
Here’s the thing. Every time I think about posting something, I talk myself out of it because there are already others out there who do it better. Then when I go off in search of help for how to do it better myself, I just get discouraged. I’m not seeking to make a million, make a name for myself, or make life better for thousands on the planet. Really, I just like to have a place to journal and share. Ok, “journal” seems a bit pretentious. Remember xanga? (Does anyone still remember xanga?) I went hunting through my archives the other day in search of a recipe and had fun digging through accounts of our past few years. Weddings…graduations…surgeries….Jeopardy! 
In the interest of full disclosure….
*You won’t find me giving away a Kitchenaid mixer every Friday.
*I take terrible pictures. The only camera I have is on the back of my iPhone.
*I’m in favor of faith, family, and friends, but I don’t do politics.
*I’d love to visit with you in the comments, but I can’t promise I’ll follow your blog, link to your cause, or play the game of the week.
*I post sporadically (hello! November?) but without apology.
So that about sums it up. What you see is what you get: a 40-something mom & grandmom, teacher, cook, writer, daughter, and friend with a few things to say and a place to say them.
Love,
Renee