Yes, I know - I've been MIA for about a week now....its been a little crazy lately, with us buying a house and all, but no worries - I'M BACK!  I know all of my loyal readers have really missed me, (all three of you) and I've definitely missed the food blogging community too! I haven't been doing a lot of cooking lately, but my mom and I went to the Dallas Farmer's Market yesterday and stocked up on all kinds of fresh, delicious fruits and veggies - including a big bag of purple hull blackeyed peas, which I decided would be a good way to get back into the blogging groove!

Every summer, my mom always makes a big pot of blackeyed peas with okra- usually served with cornbread and fresh sliced tomatoes (a pretty typical southern meal) - its one of those summer meals I just couldn't live without! However, I've never actually made them myself! So when I saw that they had fresh peas and okra at the market - I decided now would be the perfect time to try my hand at them!

These peas are so easy to fix (after two or three phone calls to my mom making exactly sure how to do it) - just give them a good rinse, season with plenty of salt and pepper, throw them in a large pot with 3 - 4 thick slices of bacon and enough chicken broth to cover the peas, bring to a boil then lower the heat and simmer for about 2 hours or until tender. When they're pretty much done cooking, throw in some fresh okra and let them cook for about 10- 15 more minutes and you're done! I must say, this was one of the best batches of blackeyed peas I've had! And so easy!

Now, if you want to be REAL "southern" about it (the way my Daddy eats it), take a piece of cornbread, slice it in half and lay both sides on the plate; then cover the cornbread with a big spoonful of peas and PLENTY of the yummy "juice" (or "pot-lick" as we call it in my family - don't ask.) and you've got yourself a mighty tasty dish! However you decide to serve and eat your blackeyed peas - they're DELISH!

It's been one heck of a week. Between late night opera rehearsals, work and plenty of uncalled for D-R-A-M-A, I haven't had much time for cooking, cleaning, quality time with my husband, or shoot, even eating! Needless to say, I've been a little stressed. But today, thank the good Lord, I had a day off. There was a pile of whites on my couch that desperately needed folding, my kitchen was in less-than-perfect condition, and my dining room table looks more like dump grounds than a place to sit down and eat. Yeah, I know - lots of work to be done! However, it was a gorgeous, sunny day and it felt like summer outside, sooooooo, I decided to go hang out by the pool (The laundry can wait.). It was glorious....97 degrees with a delightful breeze, drink in hand, sunglasses, iPod playing the Beach Boys....the makings of a perfect afternoon! As I lay there soaking up the sun, slowly letting all the stress melt away, I was (of course) thinking about what to fix for dinner - not a hard decision - two words: grilled vegetables. One of my favorite things about the spring/summer is going to the farmers market and wandering around to see what looks good. I almost always come away with corn on the cob, tomatoes, cantaloupe and green beans. One of my favorite meals is grilled corn on the cob, green beans and red potatoes, fresh sliced tomatoes and a fresh, ripe cantaloupe . I decided to do an all-vegetable meal like that tonight. The weather was too perfect! So my buddy Alyshia and I headed to the farmers market and loaded up on yummy, fresh, delicious veggies and fruits. I decided to just do some simple grilled corn on the cob, zucchini and summer squash served with a sliced cantaloupe, sliced tomatoes (delicious with salt and pepper!) and some sliced oranges (Joel loves oranges!). There's not much of a "recipe" for this post - I just seasoned everything and threw it on the grill - but it was too yummy not to blog it!

Grilled Zucchini and Summer Squash

One large zucchini, sliced
Two small summer squash, sliced
Olive oil
salt, pepper, seasoning salt

In a large bowl, toss sliced zucchini and squash with olive oil (as much as you'd like), salt, pepper, and seasoning salt. Grill on one side for 3-5 minutes, then turn and cook for another 2-3 minutes.

Grilled Corn on the Cob

There's really no recipe for this - I just cleaned off the husks, seasoned them with salt and pepper, wrapped them in foil and cooked them on the grill for about 25-30 minutes, turning every 5 minutes or so. Top with butter and serve! Yummy!

It was such a nice evening, we decided to have a little "picnic" on our balcony! Mmmm, grilled corn, zucchini, squash, sliced tomatoes, cantaloupe and oranges...the perfect all-vegetable, yet completely filling and delicious summertime meal!!