Spring Lunch Potato Mushroom Tart & Shaved Asparagus Mimosa Salad

It's back to being a rainy grey May day here... but yesterday was fabulous.  I love sunny Sundays... with nothing to do but spend a lazy morning in the kitchen leisurely preparing lunch to enjoy with family.  Somehow sharing a lunch on Sunday seems more restful and relaxed than any other meal of the week.  No racing off to work or doing errands, no coming home after a hard day and whipping something up to nourish the body without actually touching the soul.  No looking at watches to see where we have to be next and how much time we need to get there.
That Spring inspired Shaved Asparagus & Fennel Mimosa Salad above was just the tip of my kitchen frenzy iceberg....

Finally, I seem to have re-found my cooking Mojo, I spent the morning whipping up a couple of new dishes from my latest issue of LCBO's Food & Drink, Early Summer Issue.  Nothing quite says Spring to me more than asparagus and fennel root, so this salad was indeed a must try.

And, since my son-in-law is usually starving by the time he gets here, I whipped up a batch of their Savory Coriander, Rosemary & Pecan "Cookies" to keep him happy while waiting for the rest of the gang to show up.   I so look forward to my F & D subscription arrivals in the mail!

The main course was an old standby... Roasted Potato & Mushroom Tart more of a Fall & Winter dish, but one that tastes awesome any time of year, really.

And a heavenly find from 101 Cookbooks, and fresh rhubarb from my daughter's Joanna's garden (I probably should have asked for double the amount of rhubarb, but I did get a couple of lovely jars... naturally Joanna will get one, since it is her rhubarb after all.   I'm looking forward to spooning some over some vanilla ice cream.  So much for dieting... perhaps I'll compromise and find low fat, sugarless ice cream...then again, who am I kidding!

I've already made half of tonight's dinner... Roasted Chicken Breasts with Ginger Marmalade Balsamic Glaze 

to be served with Cauli-Fried Rice another old standby - a delicious alternative to the usual rice carbs. ... because it IS Monday and life is back in the fast lane... Everyone... strap on your watches!