Project Topsy Turvy is afoot

I planted a little grape tomato plant in the Topsy Turvy on Sunday. It's hanging from one of the support beams at the edge of our back patio, so I hope it gets enough sun. It's going to be in the low 80s today -- that's right, 82 degrees on February 26th, welcome to Houston -- so it looks like we're in prime tomato time already. I think it's supposed to take about 62 days to get ripe fruit from it, but we'll see what happens. Watering it is kind of a challenge since it needs to be watered very slowly to keep the water from running right through it. That takes some patience.

Fresh herbs are awesome

The AeroGarden's crop is now ready for harvesting, so I used some of the dill and basil last night on fresh salmon filets. The filets were about six ounces each cut long and skinny from the broader end of the same larger filet, with the skin and scales on the bottom. I rinsed the filets, patted them dry, then put them skin side-down on a sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil. I sprinkled a little seasoned salt and fresh-ground pepper on the filets. Then I put a few springs of dill on top. I tore two large basil leaves in half lengthwise, slid two of the halves down between the two filets, then put the other two halves across the tops of the filets at a diagonal. I don't like a heavy basil flavor, but I thought a little touch of it would be good. Last, I covered the filets with lemon slices, wrapped the foil into a packet, and threw it on the grill for about 15 minutes. I also put some fresh pineapple spears on the grill.

The salmon turned out incredible! Jeremy said it was the best salmon he'd ever eaten, and it definitely was up there for me. None of the flavors overpowered the taste of the salmon, so the dill, basil and lemon were all just right. It was very moist, just from cooking in its own fat and steam inside the foil packet. I'm sure baking it that way would work just as well; I just put it on the grill because I wanted to grill the pineapple too. The grilled pineapple got a little more charred than I intended, but it still was very good. Jeremy's usually not a huge pineapple lover, but he loves it fresh and grilled. Pineapple is my favorite fruit, so it's an easy win for me. This meal is going to become a regular fixture on our dinner calendar, maybe with a little green salad on the side.