<h2>Joining the Lotus Eaters</h2>

God is so amazing. What a creation! I went to a plant sale today and could not resist this lotus. It's like a foot across. And, it was so beautiful I had to share it with you. Next year at this time, I'm hoping mine will bloom. I got a small rooted starter and it's now in my pond, awaiting SHOWTIME!

Also, I will be a lotus eater since all the parts are edible: flower, young leaves, roots & seeds. And, very healthy too. Just from weeding out my pond.



Another thing I want to share is my Gazpacho experience of last night. I got this terrific recipe from Lobstersquad, a very artistic sort of cooking blog by Ximena in Spain. I have a surfeit of cherry tomatoes right now and wanted to do something other than salsa. Not that I have anything against salsa, but anyway...

Gazpacho
With a few variations - mainly that of using cherry tomatoes instead of the plum kind - here it is. And it came out very good, I must say. A refreshing, summertime cold soup, and nice alternative to salad.

• 1.5 lb. ripe cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
• 1/2 orange or red bell pepper
• 1/2 a peeled cucumber
• a wedge of onion
• 1/4 - 1/2 a garlic clove (more if you want)
• 1 slice day old bread
• 2 tablespoons Sherry vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 cup water
  
• salt (& grind of pepper- optional)

I let the bread soak in the water while I chopped and sliced the vegetables roughly; then dumped the bread & water, about 3/4 of the vegetables, oil, & vinegar into the blender; whirred to get it semi-smooth & for the level to go down sufficiently to add the remainder of the ingredients; then blended very briefly so it would still be a bit chunky. Refrigerate until well chilled.

Ximena blends it smooth and then strains it, but to me, that is a vegetable smoothie, not what I think of as Gazpacho. But hey, I'm American, what do I know? That sprig of garnish is mint, but basil would work nicely.