Author Archives: Laurie

Pasta with Raw Tomato Sauce

Posted on by Laurie

This dish is probably my favorite way to enjoy fresh tomatoes in the summer. It is delicious and easy to make. The key is to have very ripe tomatoes.

Ingredients (measurements approximate)

2 servings of pasta

3 c. diced raw tomatoes at room temperature

2 T. extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

8 fresh basil leaves, shredded, plus extras for garnish

1 T. fresh thyme leaves

sea salt, to taste

crushed red pepper flakes, optional

several dashes balsamic vinegar

1/2 c. fresh grated Parmesan cheese

While pasta is cooking, combine tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, basil, thyme, sea salt and red pepper flakes. When pasta is done, drain and divide between two bowls. Top with raw tomato sauce. Dress with balsamic vinegar. Top with Parmesan cheese, garnish with basil leaves, and serve right away.

Thank You Flowers

Posted on by Laurie

Recently several people have kindly nominated A Taste of Morning for awards. In thanks, here are some pictures that I have recently taken of wildflowers out on the Konza Prairie. I thought this would be a fun way to acknowledge those readers who have shown such warm support! Thank you to Diana Staresinic-Deane for the Reader Appreciation Award, to  Share Chair for the Beautiful Blogger Award, to Letizia from Reading Interrupted for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award nominations.* You should check out these blogs. Diana writes about Kansas, Share Chair about technology (especially iPad and iPhone), and Letizia about reading, writing, and related topics.

Here are a few blogs that I really enjoy following and that I would like to nominate for an award. I think that all of them deserve a Reader Appreciation Award; and some are inspiring, some are beautiful; some are both! (I’ll let them decide which should they choose to accept.) The people behind these all bring enthusiasm, effort, and a special perspective to their work.

Roho Ya Chui for photography insights that inspire me to think

Neely Wang  for beautiful photography of a wide variety of subjects

Words & Images for beautiful photography of a wide variety of subjects

SKEdazzles for beautiful photography and travel inspiration

Retiree Diary for beautiful photography and travel inspiration

Doli Siregar for beautiful adventure photography

Cumin Seeds for colorful, mostly gluten-free, recipes featuring wonderful spices

Boy Drinks World for tips on cocktail-making

Bebe’s Kitchen for interesting recipes and food photography

Beyond the Green Door for a fun mix of recipes, gardening, and decorating ideas

Becca’s Green Kitchen for delicious vegetarian recipes

Pearls & Prose for garden and travel photography

A Word in Your Ear for colorful travel photography

Goss Coaching for positive and inspiring perspectives

Crazy Train To Tinky Town for interesting stories
Some random facts:

I am a “mostly vegetarian”.

The first cookbook that I ever bought was James Beard’s Theory & Practice of Good Cooking (1977). I still own it.

I have really enjoyed watching the Olympics over the past two weeks.

The last book that I read was Sea Change by Karen White.

I just started reading The French Gardener by Sara Montefiore.

I had a great great grandfather who was French.

One of my goals for the next year is to travel to some beautiful place that I have never been before.

* Rules …

Reader Appreciation Award: Post link to the person who nominated you; include a picture of the award on your blog; nominate some other bloggers for the award; tell 7 things about yourself.

Beautiful Blogger Award: Post link to the person who nominated you; include a picture of the award on your blog; nominate 15 other bloggers for the award; tell 7 things about yourself.

Very Inspiring Blogger Award: Post link to the person who nominated you; include a picture of the award on your blog; nominate 7 other bloggers for the award; tell 7 things about yourself.

On a personal note …

Having accepted blogger awards several times now – each time quite happily and feeling flattered – I feel that it would be selfish of me to continue to do so. Hence, I humbly request that if you enjoy A Taste of Morning, that you simply send me a note letting me know. I hope that this does not sound presumptuous or offend anyone. Thank you kindly to all of you who have shown your support!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Growth

Posted on by Laurie

When we moved into our house twelve years ago, this American Linden tree (a.k.a. Basswood tree) was a scrawny specimen. I could reach up with a pair of clippers and prune out competing leaders.  I did my best to shape this tree in its formative years, but now it is in the neighborhood of 30 feet tall (give or take). Not realizing how quickly it would grow, when we moved in, I planted sun-loving perennials near the tree. I should have known better. Now I am trying to find other locations in the garden for those very same plants as they are in shade too much of the day. If it grows to full size, this tree could reach 70 feet tall and 50 feet wide. Then I would really have to rethink my garden!

Zucchini Chickpea Risotto

Posted on by Laurie

One of our guests recently gave me a bunch of young zucchinis from her garden. (Thank you, Madonna!) After serving Zucchini Pancakes, Zucchini & Roasted Chicken Omelettes, and Zucchini Bread for breakfast over several different mornings, I decided that it was time for zucchini at a different meal. For lunch today,  I made Zucchini and Chickpea Risotto. It was a sunny and delicious dish for a gray, humid day.



Ingredients: Arborio Rice, Olive Oil, Minced Shallots, Vegetable Stock, Chickpeas, Zucchinis, Red Pepper Flakes, Dry White Wine, Butter, Lemon Juice, Grated Parmesan Cheese. For instructions on making risotto, see my earlier post Ah … Risotto. Have fun making your own risotto! Feel free to be creative!

One of my go-to wines for making risotto, and serving with it, is Pomelo Sauvignon Blanc, a crisp, citrusy white wine from California. Enjoy!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Purple

Posted on by Laurie

Manhattan is home to Kansas State University. Since the school colors are royal purple and white, there is no shortage of purple around town. (For more photos see my post Putting on the Purple.) Thank you to Varney’s Bookstore for letting me take the bottom two photos inside the shop.

I’ve Been Inspired By … Donuts

Posted on by Laurie

It’s been a while since I’ve posted in my “Let the Inspiration In” series; but I just had to try Frugal Feeding‘s Cinnamon Dipped Doughnuts recipe. Since I am gluten-sensitive, and couldn’t imagine making donuts and not having one, I used white rice flour instead of wheat flour in the recipe. (My batter looked a little thicker than Frugal Feeding’s appears in his photos.) The only other change that I made was that I needed to double the amount of butter used for dipping the donuts. I served these for breakfast this morning – with roasted turkey and fresh tomato omelettes and dishes of fresh berries – and everyone, including me, agreed that they are delicious. Thank you, Frugal Feeding for the recipe!

Cinnamon Dipped Donuts

1 3/4 c. + 2 T.  (250 g.) sifted all-purpose flour or  1 3/4 c. (250 g.) sifted white rice flour for gluten-free

1/3 c. (80 g.) granulated white sugar + 3 T

2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. ground nutmeg

pinch of salt

3/4 c. (180 ml.) buttermilk

2 lg. eggs, beaten

4 – 6 T. unsalted butter

1 T. ground cinnamon

(1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Spray a six-mold donut baking pan with oil.

(2) Melt 2 T. of the butter. In a small bowl, beat together butter, eggs, and buttermilk. Set aside.

(3) In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, 1/3 c. sugar, baking powder and nutmeg. Whisk in buttermilk mixture until smooth.

(4) Divide batter between molds. Bake for 6 to 10 minutes or until they spring back when pressed or until they are firm to the touch (if using rice flour). (I baked my rice flour donuts for 10 minutes.)  Let pan cool on a wire rack for a few minutes before turning the donuts out. Meanwhile combine the remaining 3 T. sugar and the cinnamon.

(5) Melt the remaining 2 – 4 T. butter. Dip both sides of donuts in melted butter then in cinnamon sugar. Serve right away.

Thank Goodness for Rudbeckia

Posted on by Laurie

Thank goodness for Rudbeckia fulgida “Golsturm”, commonly known as Black-eyed Susans. Rudbeckia is one of the few plantings in my garden that doesn’t seem to be struggling with the weather. Despite the fact that we’ve been watering every day, a number of our plants are showing severe signs of heat stress. I suspect that some of them will need to be replaced next Spring. We lost a tree and several shrubs after last summer’s heat. Every now and then I toy with the idea taking the Rudbeckia out of my garden because it is an odd companion for my roses and Asiatic lilies; but then when midsummer heat sets in – and it is extreme again this year – I am so glad that better judgement prevailed and that the sunny faces of  my Black-eyed Susans are still out there to cheer everyone who walks by. As I write this at almost 5 pm, our official temperature in Manhattan, Kansas is 109 degrees F. The thermometer in our yard is reading 112. In the last month, we’ve had 24 days with a high of 100 or over and we’re about 8″ behind in rain for the months of June and July. There is a 40% chance of precipitation for tonight, however, so everyone has their fingers crossed for rain this evening and a cooler day tomorrow. It would surely make the garden happy if that were to happen.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Inside

Posted on by Laurie

I keep plants by a few of my kitchen windows. These photos look inside two of the orchids in my ‘inside garden”.

Two Little Chefettes Monthly Cooking Challenge: Strawberries

Posted on by Laurie

Thank you to Bebe and Ridha from Two Little Chefettes for suggesting this month’s cooking challenge. My entry is a Strawberry Watermelon Soup with Blueberries swirled with Blueberry Honey Sauce. (These recipes are from my first cookbook A Taste of Morning after which I named this blog). I serve the soup as a fruit course for special occasions or as a light summer dessert paired with a sweet wine. It is easy to make and very refreshing.

Strawberry Watermelon Soup with Blueberries

Serves 4

Except for the sugar, use chilled ingredients.

3 c. sliced fresh strawberries

2 c. seedless watermelon chunks

1/2 c. fresh orange juice

1/3 c. granulated white sugar

1 T. fresh lemon juice

1/2 c. fresh blueberries

Blueberry Honey Sauce for garnish (recipe below)

Place strawberries, watermelon, orange juice, sugar, and lemon juice in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until fruits are puréed. Divide blueberries between four dessert bowls. Top with soup.  Swirl 1 T. Blueberry Honey Sauce through each bowl of soup, being careful not to blend it in.

Blueberry Honey Sauce

2 c. frozen blueberries

1/4 c. cold water

1/3 c. honey

1 t. fresh lemon juice

In a medium non-stick pan, bring blueberries, water and honey to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until blueberries begin to pop. Stir in lemon juice. Push berries and liquid through a sieve to remove skins. Use right away or pour into a glass jar, cover and refrigerate. (Yields about 1 cup.)

So You Think Kansas Is Flat?

Posted on by Laurie

So you think Kansas is flat? Okay … most of the state is. But not the Konza Prairie which is located in the northern Flint Hills of eastern-central Kansas.  This narrow chain of hills counts as its own ecoregion because it is home to the densest remaining tall grass prairie in North America. Early European settlers, unable to plow the area due to its rocky soil composition, used the region for grazing livestock thus leaving the grasslands intact. Due to dry conditions this summer, the grasses probably will not reach their full height. Nevertheless, this expanse of prairie with its soft, rolling hills is still something to see … and it proves that Kansas isn’t all flat!

The Konza Prairie is co-owned by The Nature Conservancy and Kansas State University. While much of the area is dedicated for use as a biological research station, fortunately there are several trails open to the public. The trails are frequently used by hikers and joggers, birders, and photographers and other artists out to capture the beauty of this land. If you have been following my blog this week, you’ve probably figured out how much I enjoy photographing this area. (I’ve also done a few paintings of the prairie.) However, my next post will be back to food.