It is Reveal Day for June's FPP Program !!!

Key points of the program:

-On the 5th of the month, you  receive your penpal pairing via email. You contact  your penpal and get their mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.
-You  have to mail your box of goodies by the 15th of the month. On the last day of the month, you post about the goodies you received from your penpal!
-The boxes are  filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box, to a fun recipe…use your imagination!

-Foodie Penpals is open to blog readers as well as bloggers.
- Foodie Penpals is open to US, Canadian residents & UK residents.  

This is my third month being part of the Foodie Pen Pal program,  this month the person I sent my Foodie goody box to was Mabel  you can check out her  blog at  http://funfabdelish.com/  to see what items I sent for her  to try .

I received my goody box from Kelly , her blog is  http://sweatingforsweets.wordpress.com/2013/06/28/june-foodie-pen-pals/   . I was so excited when I opened my box this month because the theme was spicy!!! I also was excited because Kelly had included a spice mix along with a recipe for some of the best chicken I have had.  Below you will see the amazing items that Kelly thoughtfully picked for me. 

The Anticipation the moment before I ripped the box open

Kelly included a very thoughtful note

Amazing Recipe ( simple & healthy) 

This Salsa from Trader Joe's has a a little kick , great flavor and was good on everything

Cookie Butter was the sweet treat in the box, very smooth and yummy

The Pecans were good right out of the bag and tossed on a salad

Ok, so have you ever eaten something that you weren't sure what you thought about it but you had to keep eating it because it was interesting, that would be these chips, they tasted like a  baked potato with horseradish from an upscale steak house

This was the star of the show along with the spice mix that Kelly put together ( I have made this three times since getting the recipe)

Ingredients for Spicy Honey Chicken Thighs

Chicken Thighs coated in Spices

chicken on baking rack

Honey and Vinegar to coat chicken

Green Tea Leaf Mints  ( SENCHA)

I am always looking for new products to try and share with others and I recently ran across SENCHA Dragon Fruit Mints. These mints are my new passion. The mints come in a cute little paper tube with a twist top and the mints are shaped like tea leaves. Three of these yummy mints equal the antioxidants in one cup of green tea. They are 100% Natural, Vegan , and Gluten/Sugar/Caffeine-free/Kosher. 

Over a few days I shared my mints with everyone I saw and soon my container was empty, I returned to the shop where I found these little gems and bought their entire display. I did some research on the mints and the company that makes them and found out they have several flavors. Sadly no one locally sells any of the other flavors, but they can be purchased online. My goal over the next month is to try all of their flavors. Bombay Chai will be next on my list followed by the Fuji Apple. I will keep you all posted !!!!!

Go to their website to learn more   http://www.senchanaturals.com/

  

 This Weeks Produce and Eggs from Feast DownEast

 First thing I made with this basket of goodies was Fried Squash Blossoms:

I didn't take any take pictures as I made the Squash Blossoms since it was my first time working with them I was so involved that I forgot.

I mixed together some ricotta , lemon zest, sea salt , black pepper , mozzarella cheese , Parmesan cheese and a few drops of olive oil.

Then I dusted the blossoms in flour to make  them easier to open without tearing the blossom , I used a mini spoon to scoop out the inside of the blossom and then spooned the cheese mixer into the blossom, twisted he them closed and dredged in flour. Once all blossoms were filled I mixed together ice, water and flour, dipped the blossom in the flour mixer and then dredged in Panko.  Once all blossoms were coated I dropped them in the a cast iron skillet with a few inches of hot oil and turned to brown all sides. They cook very quickly. They were crispy outside and ooey gooey cheese inside

Roasted Eggplant, Zucchini ,

Tomatoes , New Potatoes with Ricotta

Eggplant

Lemon Zest

Lemon Juice

Garlic

Tomato

Zucchini

New Potatoes

Ricotta

Thyme

Basil

Olive Oil

Pink Peppercorn

Pink Himalayan Sea Salt

French Bread

Cut Eggplant in Half score flesh and salt eggplant , place in a colander  to drain for 20 mins

Cut zucchini and potatoes  into thin slices ,toss tomatoes, zucchini and potatoes  with minced garlic , thyme , lemon zest, salt and olive oil   Roast in 450 pre-heated oven for 15 to 20 mins until tender

Rinse salt from Eggplant, Pat Dry and Place on baking Sheet top with Garlic , thyme  , Salt and drizzle with Olive Oil Roast at 450 degrees until tender

While Eggplant is roasting Mix Ricotta , Lemon Zest, Lemon Juice, Salt , crushed Pink Peppercorn , chopped basil and drizzle with Olive oil

Serve with toasted French Bread

Lasagna with Summer Vegetables 

Whole Foods had some amazing ground  beef of sale today that inspired this lasagna along with my fresh vegetables from my Feast Down East Rent-a-Farmer vegetable box (Zucchini , Squash ,Green Bell pepper, Green Onions and Tomatoes) I rarely cook with ground beef but the beef from whole foods was fresh ground , had great flavor and not that weird texture you sometimes get with ground beef.

I sauteed the onions , bell pepper and garlic with olive oil then add in the beef and cooked until browned , drained the small amount of fat released from the beef and then added in the tomatoes with some fresh thyme, salt and pepper.

I diced the yellow squash and thinly sliced the zucchini , then mixed organic ricotta with  fresh shredded  mozzarella , Parmesan cheese, basil (picked from my daughters garden) , black pepper  and some lemon zest.

To assemble I spooned some of the meat sauce in the bottom of the casserole then layered fresh sheets of lasagna noodles , followed by some more meat sauce, diced squash and a layer of zucchini topped with the cheese mixture and then more noodles, repeated the layers and finished the top with crushed tomatoes and mozzarella cheese.

Baked for 30 mins covered at 375 and then uncovered for 10 mins , topped with fresh basil once out of the oven and let it rest 20 mins before cutting.