Tomato Rosemary Focaccia ~ ElephantEats.com

Nate and I headed down to his mom’s last weekend, as we usually do when we have 3 days off. I decided to undertake a bunch of recipes that take longer than I typically have. I thought it was a perfect time to get into some yeasty things.

I had marked down a couple recipes, one for a cinnamon braid bread that I decided to make for breakfast, and the other was a Tomato Rosemary Focaccia Nate found in the NY Times. Nate loves focaccia so I’ve been wanting to make it for him. This particular recipe was “healthy” because it had mostly whole wheat flour.

Tomato Rosemary Focaccia ~ ElephantEats.com

While I waited for the dough to rise, I headed outside to pet the neighbor’s cat. He really seemed to like me, and after about 5-10 min of petting, I decided to come back inside. It was a little chilly and I was in my p.j.’s Well, the cat decided he wasn’t done being pet, so he followed me. No matter what I did, I couldn’t get him to leave me alone, and I didn’t want him to get near my mother-in-law’s house because she has two dogs inside that don’t like cats.

I finally was able to trick him and quickly ran in the front door and shut it. It seemed like the coast was clear until I saw him poke his head in the window. He was looking for me!

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He stayed on the front porch for about 15 min, meowing and pawing at the window. When I didn’t come back out, he then went to the back door and meowed there too for another 15 min. I felt so bad!

Finally, after about 30 min of this, I went outside and walked him back to the neighbor’s house. They were about to leave and were in the driveway, so they took him and put him inside. Phew. And I thought my cat was needy! Nate threatened to tell L.C. when we got home that I “had an affair with a floozy.”

But back to the food. Nate loves whole wheat breads, but I’m not as much of a fan. I find them a little on the dry side, and this focaccia was no exception. That’s not to say it wasn’t good, but you could definitely tell it was made with whole wheat flour. If I’m going to splurge on bread/pasta, I want it to be white flour all the way!

It sure was pretty, though.

Tomato Rosemary Focaccia ~ ElephantEats.com

We had ourselves a nice outdoor dinner. There are few months of the year when I’m willing to eat outside. Usually it’s too cold, or mosquitoes are everywhere (mosquitoes happen to LOVE me).

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Anyway, we had a perfect, sunny evening with a nice breeze.

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Nate’s mom grilled up some chicken sausage and veggies and we served the focaccia alongside it.

Tomato Rosemary Focaccia ~ ElephantEats.com

I made a chocolate pine nut tart for dessert that was as amazing as it sounds, but the recipe needs a little tweaking before I can share it. I followed the directions but ended up having to split it into two pans because there was too much crust and filling.

We had an awesome Memorial Day. I can’t believe the 4th of July is only a month away! Where has this year gone?

For the focaccia recipe, you can get it from the NY Times site here.

Nate and I are down in PA visiting his mom, and I’m cooking up a storm this weekend! I love having a BIG kitchen to cook in. Such a nice change from our teeny nyc apartment. I’ll be sure to let you know how my new recipes come out.

Just in case you need some recipes for Memorial Day, these are a few of my favorites:

Brad’s SalsaI could eat this stuff by the spoonful!

 

GuacamolePerfectly chunky, with just the right amount of lime.

Guacamole

 

Pesto Potato SaladFor mayo-haters.

Pesto potato salad

 

Roasted Corn with Lime, Parmesan and Chili– Three letters: O.M.G

corn with parmesan, lime and chili

 

Cheddar Jalapeño CornbreadSavory, sweet, slightly spicy.

cheddar jalapeño cornbread

 

BBQ ChickenYou never have to worry about undercooking this on the grill because it’s precooked in the oven.

barbecue chicken

 

Rainbow Velvet CakeThe berry garnish is patriotic! You could totally make the layers red, white and blue.

rainbow velvet cake

I hope this gives you guys something to work with and you have a wonderful Memorial Day!

I’ll be back next week with the recipes I decide to make this weekend :)