This is the kind of thing that I found

really made me feel like a kitchen artist.

In the summertime some friends and I

had some ambitious plans to make an

urban garden and planted some tomato

plants. Well we thought we had green

thumbs as the plants yielded an abundant

supply of lovely red ornaments. We had so

much harvest that we began to put

tomatoes into plastic bags and freeze them. Well when winter came I pulled the bags of tomatoes out of the freezer and let them thaw.

As they began to thaw from the outside the skin became easy to peel off and the frozen remnants went into a large cooking vessel. After

the smoke cleared there was a delicious brew of home made tomato soup. This was the kind of thick and zesty home made tomato soup

that warms your bones after a good winter surf and leaves you with that cozy feeling.

Serve with crackers.

update-7/27

Thank you faithful eaters and readers. since it is that time of year when all of the urban gardens around town are exploding with

tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, corn, broccoli, squash, etc. the tomato soup referred to in the original post was in need of an update.

Using fresh grown produce is satisfying and makes the gardening experience come full circle. The flavors are robust and the freshness

is unbeatable even by your local farmers market. Also the nutrition factor is at a premium when your food is vine ripened at home.

Another cool thing i learned about the tomato soup was freezing the tomatoes and then peeling them easily as they thawed. Great time

saving trick.

I never really was a “trekky” but as i sit in the kitchen with my beer in one hand and the spatchula in the other and tell stories

of fighting off spiders and pulling weeds with 4 inch roots with just my left hand while the aroma of cooking goodness permeates the

kitchen, i know the greatness captain kirk must have felt cruising his way through the galaxy.

live long and prosper,

dude out.

Take the bok choy, grape tomatoes, broccoli, green or white onion and other desired veggies from the fridge, wash and dice to desired size. I like the bok choy whole so I don’t bother chopping it or the tomatoes, but please  yourself.

Put some olive oil in a pan with some soy or teriyaki sauce over medium heat.

Add veggies and cover, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking and promote even heating. Cook for 10- 15 minutes depending on heat level.

When it looks ready to eat, scoop a heap on a plate over some warm rice and serve. For a lovely extra flavor, stir in drained pineapple chunks to the pan about 5 minutes before removing from heat.

Sit. Eat. Enjoy. Be happy.