Thoughts for Monday

This morning all I could hear was rain and thunder outside as I was attempting to wake up.  It's the kind of day where I could see myself starting the day early in the kitchen and going until evening.  Alas, I had to go to work and put my daydreaming aside.  For now.  But I wanted to put some recipes up that have simple flavors and simple preparations.  They don't necessarily go together as a meal, but they are great recipes to have on hand to refer back to often.  There's a Tomato Gratin that is an easy side dish for almost any meal.  It has capers, oregano and toasted breadcrumbs, along with extra virgin olive oil, making it almost pizza-like in flavors.  But none of the typical fat and calories.  Then there's a pasta dish that will be a recipe you'll go back to many times, because you will most likely always have the ingredients on hand.  It takes no time at all to prepare and it's always a crowd-pleaser.  It's a classic sauce of Italy - Salsa di Noci (Walnut Sauce) - that requires neither expensive or hard-to-find ingredients but delivers big on satisfaction.  Next is a Florentine staple - White Beans with Sage - that does require your time and patience, but is effortless in its preparation.  If you do have a rainy day, or any other day, where you can get these going in the morning, just keep an eye on them slow-cooking and you'll have a wonderful Italian side dish ready for dinner.  Finally, I added an easy, rather whimsical favorite of mine.  It's Chocolate-Peanut ButterBark, made with both white and dark chocolate and chunky peanut butter.  What can I say?  SO delicious.  And the truth is no matter what the weather is, the skies are always a little brighter when you know these are in your fridge.  If you're cooking today, have a tasty one.  If you have to wait a bit, plan something good.  Really good.