I think I finally dare to plant flowers and herbs. I'm usually itching to get out there; but this year, with our snowy, freezing, miserable April and May? Meh. Then I walked outside this morning... Oh, it smells like flowers! It smells like (gasp) spring! And just like that, I'm ready.

Hmmm, I think I'll plant pots of basil, rosemary, parsley, sage, dill, and mint. Lots of lavender, because I love the way it smells. And tomatoes, of course, I've had good luck planting them in pots on my deck, this will be the third year. Good output, fantastic flavor and texture. Ripe tomatoes, wow, that sounds just decadent. And soon enough my LaFinca CSA veggie share will kick in (yay!) and we'll be bustin' with fresh vegetables. There is neither moderate nor epicurean without fresh vegetables. Yeah. I'm ready!

Last night we finally got to celebrate Stacey's birthday with the kids. Although it was a brief celebration (enter orthodontist, play practice, and yet another cough), we managed to sing Happy Birthday and wolf down a piece of strawberry cream cake (white cake "iced" with lightly sweetened creme fraiche and piled with fresh strawberries, I won't even post a recipe because that's all there is to it).

Oh, that reminds me, a shrimp tip (we had sauteed shrimp for din): if you've noticed that farm-raised shrimp from Thailand or other Asian countries tastes like mealy, soggy crap...it's worth seeking out wild-caught shrimp. I found frozen 1-pound bags at Whole Foods, wild-caught near Key West, Florida. They're in the shell, but it's worth a little effort to taste real shrimpy shrimp again, crisp and sweet.

With that, (take an allergy pill and) enjoy the gorgeous, sweet smell of all that pollen in the air!

Moderate it: go ahead, bake a cake for a loved one. Enjoy a small slice, then send what's left home with them!