prettiest tomato

via one of my favorite bloggers, frufly.no

Grilled Peach & Goat Cheese Pizza

Does sweet and savory pizza appeal to you? I would usually say “NO,” but these peach & goat cheese pizzas seriously caught my attention. The recipe looks super speedy and the result is something that I cannot wait to taste. Wouldn’t these be fun to make for dinner party appetizers. I imagine a whole bunch of mini grilled pizzas in different fruit flavors! via the fabulous backtoherroots.com

Ingredients (4 individual pizzas):
1 batch of pizza dough, divided into 4, 6-8″ rounds
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
Pinch of cinnamon
Pinch of salt
Olive oil
2 peaches, sliced thin
2-4 ounces goat cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

Instructions:
Preheat grill to high.
In small bowl whisk together vinegar, honey, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
Carry dough, olive oil, peaches and goat cheese out to the grill.
Brush olive oil liberally on one side of each dough round. Place oil-side down on grill grates. Close lid and let cook for 1-2 minutes, or until large bubbles start to form.
Brush olive oil on top side and then flip crusts over.
Evenly distribute the peaches and goat cheese (in dollops) over the pizzas. Close grill lid, turn to low and let goat cheese met for 2-3 minutes.
Remove from grill, sprinkle with thyme and drizzle with balsamic-honey sauce. Cut into slices and serve immediately.

Strawberries

Strawberries are probably the most versatile fruit, don’t you think? I am not sure if they are my favorite…I think I actually prefer a sweet, crunchy nectarine – but I do admire the beauty of a strawberry!

They come in cute shapes!

They go well with afternoon tea/coffee.

…they make any dessert BETTER!

& make breakfast more nutritious.

They can be sophisticated.

…& even go with potato chips?

What is your favorite way to serve strawberries?

images via citronpimousse.tumblr.com

Watermelon Carving

Watermelon carving from Vid Nikolic on Vimeo.

Wow, this is really amazing! I wonder how many watermelons he went through to perfect this skill?

Watermelon Burgers With Cheese

photo via grillhacks.com

I’ve seen grilled watermelon, but have you ever tried Watermelon Burgers? I am all for being adventurous and am dying to try this recipe on my husband on Saturday!

Time: 30 minutes

1 small watermelon

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon minced onion

Salt and black pepper

4 ounces mozzarella, Monterey Jack, Gruyère or other melting cheese, grated or sliced.

1. Heat a charcoal or gas grill to moderately high heat and put the rack about 4 inches from the flame. Cut the watermelon lengthwise, into halves or quarters, depending on the size of the melon. From each length, cut 11/2-inch-thick slices; remove the rind from each slice. If there are black seeds, use a fork to remove as many of them as you can without beating the flesh up too much.

2. Mix the olive oil with the onion and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Brush or rub the mixture all over the watermelon slices. Grill or broil for about 5 minutes on each side. The flesh should be lightly caramelized and dried out a bit. Sprinkle each slice with cheese, cover the grill and cook just until the cheese melts, about a minute.

3. Serve on buns, toast or hard rolls with the usual burger fixings.

The Mutato Project

In 2006 photographer/artist Uli Westphal was strolling through a market in Berlin, Germany when he found a five-headed eggplant!

…”Stunned by the sight I kept looking for more anomalies and found one or more at almost every stand of the market, peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, lemons, all with very unusual features and shapes. I took my finds home and started photographing them. That day I got hooked on collecting vegetable and fruit mutations and the Idea for the Mutato-Archive was born.

Produce has become a highly designed, monotonous product. We have forgotten, and in many cases never experienced, the way fruits, roots, and vegetables can actually look (and taste). The Mutato-Project serves to document, preserve and promote these last remainders of agricultural diversity.”

This is seriously amazing! I wonder how often farmers find and throw our morphological irregularities??

found via A Cup of Jo.

Grow a Square Watermelon

Did you know that you can grow your own square watermelon? All you really need to do is use a square box as your “mold!”

Learn how here

Chocolate Covered Frozen Bananas

Chocolate covered frozen bananas are the perfect warm weather treat. I had one for the first time a few years ago, and they are actually good enough to satisfy your ice cream craving! Have you ever tried them?

INGREDIENTS
6 medium bananas, peeled
6 popsicle sticks
12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
12 ounces white chocolate chips
3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Toppings: toasted hazelnuts, or peanuts, sprinkles, coconut flakes, etc…

Directions:
* Line a sheet pan or a larger flat plate with waxed paper.
* Cut about an inch off the end of each banana.
* Insert a popsicle stick into the cut-end, and push the stick halfway in.
* Place all the bananas on the waxed paper and freeze for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
* Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler.
* Put the dipping decorations (nuts, sprinkles) on flat plates.
* Take one banana at a time and dip it in the chocolate, coating it completely – spoon some on, if needed.
* Roll the dipped banana in the nuts, or sprinkles (I used hazelnuts), and put it back on the waxed paper.
* Continue to do this with the rest of the bananas.
* Put the bananas back into the freezer and freeze for another 6 hours or over night.

recipe and photo via diethood.com