Tomato Fresca Sauce

I intended to blog this in 2009 but I never got around to it.  I made it the other day, and you should, too.  You can't wait until next summer, you have to use the fresh tomatoes that you have RIGHT NOW!


Tomato Fresca Sauce
2 cups diced fresh tomato
1 tsp finely minced garlic
salt to taste
1 tbsp fresh basil, chopped or 1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp good olive oil

Best to let it sit for at least an hour, but you can eat it right away if you have to. Cook about a pound of pasta, and right after you drain the pasta, toss it with the sauce. The hot pasta will heat up the sauce. It is really delicious with parmesan cheese.  I usually use a lot less pasta because I love tomatoes, so I would probably only make 8 ounces of pasta for this amount of sauce.

I know this is a vegetarian recipe, but I knew this would never fly as a meatless meal in my house, so I bought some Italian sausage links, cooked them and then sliced them, and tossed them in with the tomatoes and pasta. It was delicious. You can change the ratios if you like, more or less herbs or garlic.

Mediterranean Meatballs with Yogurt Garlic Dipping Sauce

This recipe won "Best Overall Chicken Dish" at my church's Chicken Cook-off last weekend.

Mediterranean Meatballs with Yogurt Garlic Dipping Sauce

3/4 lb raw boneless skinless chicken breast
1 small onion, finely chopped (1/2 cup)
1/2 tbsp chopped parsley
1/2 chicken bouillon cube, crumbled
1 small apple, peeled and grated (1/2 cup)
 2 tbsp fresh bread crumbs
1 tsp minced garlic
1-2 tsp finely minced fresh rosemary


In a food processor, process chicken, onion, parsley, bouillon cube, apple, and bread crumbs. Pulse a few times until uniformly mixed, then season with salt and pepper. Lightly oil a baking sheet with olive oil Form into balls about 1 to 1 1/2 inches across and mist or brush with olive oil. Bake at 375 degrees for about 30 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees. Serve with Yogurt Garlic Dipping Sauce.


Yogurt Garlic Dipping Sauce

1 cup whole milk plain yogurt
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
1-2 tsp dried dillweed.

Mix together and refrigerate at least an hour to allow flavors to meld.


When I make these meatballs, I grate the apple and onion in the food processor, then run them and the chicken through a meat grinder and mix everything together in a large bowl.

Tide Pools

One of the first fun things we did when we moved to California was go to the beach at Half Moon Bay. The next week, about 3 people told me about the tide pools there at the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve. Since then, I have been watching the tide tables for a day when the tide was low during the day on a day with no school. The day after Christmas, despite the fact that at least 2 kids were sick, we headed over the hills and went to the tide pools. We saw some pretty cool creatures and some seals. It had been pouring buckets of rain in San Jose for days but we got a break, with some sunshine (though it was cold and windy! We brought coats!) while we were there. Next time we hope to get to stay longer if we are all healthy and the weather is nicer.