Field Hockey Fun

Field Hockey season has begun and the challenge is in how to prepare at least a decent dinner with games encompassing the 4:00-7:00 time period. For the first challenge, I used the oven timer and a roasting pan!

Italian (turkey) sausage, onions, peppers, and garlic, were placed in the roasting pan and drizzled with Merlano Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I set the oven timer to begin a half hour after we left the house and to roast at 325F for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Upon return, we sliced heirloom tomatoes and added a splash of Olio2go's Merlano and Goccia Umbra Balsamic Vinegar (not from Olio2go) -- along with a few tiny ball of fresh mozzarella. With a good loaf of bread, it was a nice dinner to come home to after sitting through a foggy and drizzly game.

Carly was voted as one of the team's three Captains. I'm also coordinating the Sports Booster side of the team's activities.

Now reading: Vivaldi's Virgins and it is highly recommended. I just wish I knew where in Venice the Ospedale della Pietà is located!

Vinegar Buzz

On Satuday we made a quick trip to the Italian Store in Arlington, and purchased goodies including a Star brand jarred sauce with grape tomatoes and their wonderful homemade pizza dough. We used the recipe from Williams-Sonoma Florence and added the paper thin onion and the rocket. Wonderful!

Even better was the salad. Yes, another combination of field greens, lusty extra virgin olive oil, a good vinegar, sea salt, fresh ground pepper and one crushed garlic clove. I think I need to start keeping a list of the best oil-and-vinegar combinations.

This time we were evaluating Goccia Umbra's Aceto Balsamico de Modena, which came packaged together with an olive oil. I chose to combine it with Gourmet Sardinia Fruttato Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The combination was entrancing....award-winning....enough so that I may have to create a chart of the best oil-vinegar-and-greens combination for Olio2go. Perhaps I'll even create the all-salad-diet because I could live on these combinations.

The local middle school has been performing High School Musical this weekend and we saw it last night. It takes guts to do a big show like that while the original is still popular. The kids and their directors are to be commended!

Here's something crazy: I'm supposed to "coach" field hockey this afternoon. I'm the designated parent for our group, and the coach is in Arizona, so the responsibility falls to me. I sure hope those girls all know what they are doing. Most of the parents know that I can usually be found knitting on the sidelines.