We are back in a routine. School, girl scouts and boy scouts, karate and piano lessons. Dad gets home at dinner time, kids are in bed at 8:00. It's lovely.
Don't get me wrong. I do love summer, what with the sleeping in, running off to the beach on a whim, eating dinner any time between 4:00 and 9:00 pm, and going days at a time without looking at a clock. Now that I think about it, I am not sure why I feel so happy to be back at school.
But it's true. After a couple of months of relaxing, we are ready to get back to normal. I get tired of running a 24-hour diner, and there are only so many times I can ask "Who left the __________ (legos, books, dirty clothes, dirty dishes, towel, shoes, crayons, athletic supporter) on the ____________ (living room floor, dining table, stairway, hallway, entryway, doorway, kitchen counter)?" before I go insane. It's nice that the kids get away from each other and from me for a few hours a day.
Last week, I left some green beans roasting in my oven when we went to karate class. I had it all planned out so that the food would cook while we were gone and I could do the last minute glazing and tossing when we got back. I forgot, though, to set the oven timer. Oops. So the green beans were a little bit shriveled and dry. There are worse things, right? Like... the house could have burned down, and it didn't. So there.
If the kids continue to be as involved in after-school activities as they are now, I see a lot of crock-pot cooking in my future. Crock-pot cooking seems so autumn-ish, that I think I'll wait a while yet.
Anyway, part of the new routine is Meatless Mondays, and here is a roast vegetable dish that I managed not to overcook. Although it is probably considered to be a side dish, I served it as the starring attraction, along with some crusty bread and a green salad.
Summer Vegetable Tian
(I got this recipe here.)
1 sweet onion, cut in half and then sliced
2 Tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 potatoes, un-peeled
1 zucchini
1 summer squash
4 roma tomatoes
salt and pepper, to taste
dried thyme, to taste
1/2 cup grated Asiago cheese
Preheat oven to 375. Coat a round baking dish with cooking spray.
In a skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil. When hot, add the onions and saute for about 9-10 minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic and continue to saute for about another minute.
Transfer the onion mixture to the baking dish.
Slice the potatoes, zucchini, summer squash, and tomatoes into 1/4 inch slices. Stand them upright in a spiral in the baking dish, alternating the vegetables. Sprinkle the salt, pepper, and thyme on top, and drizzle the remaining olive oil over it all.
Cover the dish with foil, and bake until the potatoes are tender (about 40 minutes). Uncover, and sprinkle the cheese over it all. Bake another 25 minutes, until the dish is browned.
