Fix-It and Forget-It

You can learn a lot from your kids. This is not new. But I was recently reminded when my cousin began telling me about her husband Robert’s Sunday evening ritual.

Somehow as we were wandering along in conversation, she told me about making yogurt in a slow cooker—a practice she and Robert picked up from their daughter who’s off somewhere in the world, but still sending her parents tips. (Yes, this happens, those of you who are right now spooning food into your child’s mouth, or wiping up a sticky trail that your Little Person seems to have had something to do with . . .)

Robert gets out the slow cooker as Sunday winds down. “It’s a 5- or 6-quart one that’s 30+ years old,” he patiently explained to me (you see it here in the photos that Robert sent me). “And since I’m an American Businessman (too bad you can’t hear him guffawing right here), I’m always looking to maximize productivity as well as production!” That means he makes more than 4 quarts of yogurt each Sunday afternoon.
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I always anticipate cooking with fresh herbs in the summer-time. The smells and tastes of just-picked herbs are simply incomparable.

One of our recent lunch classes at The Good Cooking Store was “Cooking with Fresh Herbs.” We chose a selection of herby recipes—some of which require no cooking at all!

Here is a refreshing summer soup which we made in the class. It is a great way to expand cucumbers from your garden into more of your diet. And it will cool you down on a warm summer night!
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