Happy Labor Day weekend! Are you looking forward to a leisurely Saturday morning with coffee and the paper? We certainly are. But then we're going to be cooking a lot, too. What's on your menu this weekend? Big Labor Day picnic plans? Take a look at a few good recipes and delicious things from the past week, and tell us: what's cooking this weekend?
• New recipes and recipe reviews: Fattoush, a Middle Eastern bread salad, chicken Milanese with salad, an awesome eggplant appetizer, a very special pie recipe, super-quick microwave cheesecake, pickled cherry peppers, a grilled Nicoise salad, Long Beach-style, and a summer classic: herbed sweet corn and tomato salad.
• Quick Weeknight Meals: The Kitchn's September contest.
• Would you cook with tomato leaves?
• Living room details in the kitchen.
• Labor Day dessert idea: Grown-up ice cream cake.
• Planning Labor Day? 15 recipes for Labor Day weekend.
• What's in this jar?
• Floor cloths - an old-fashioned solution for bare kitchen floors.
• Bean burritos - a good example of a quick weeknight meal.
Have a great Labor Day weekend! Don't forget to check out the most popular posts from the last week; they're posted on Saturday mornings. Also, Dana's Weekend Meditation is coming up Sunday, and we'll have a little something for you on Monday too.
p.s. — are you working on a recipe for our Quick Weeknight Meals contest? It starts next Wednesday!
(Image: Kat from Kat & Jon's Thrifty Dollhouse)

Comments (22)
Peach Blackberry cobbler was for dessert tonight after yummy steaks, corn and potatoes. Peach Blackberry pie for a friend who just bought a house and hopefully lots more goodies after a trip to the market tomorrow!
English teacake...other than that, I'm not sure. Maybe some sausages with some boiled dutch cream potatoes.
woohoo! My first dinner party where i can actually enjoy myself
In the process of making all the appetizers and the main drink right now. Leaving the main dishes for tomorrow
I am most excited about the cookie dough i have sitting in the fridge. yum. and the deviled eggs
No Labour Day weekend here in Europe alas!
But next week, we get a 4 day weekend here in Geneva.
I am making a tagine with Mirabelle de Lorraine plums and couscous, and a transparent apple tart (Nigella's) along with a pumpkin cake with brown butter icing (for the kids).
I've got some beets to roast and am going to be completely ordinary about them and add some goat cheese lumps, possibly some chopped walnuts, and whatever form of leafy green looks good.
Thinking about making a sloppy apple pie as well.
Barley pseudo-risotto is another possible.
Since today is International Bacon Day I am making a salmon pie with a latticed bacon "crust".
I am also making lemon whoopie pies for tomorrow's bbq.
tonight: spinach and cheese stuffed flank steak (my husband works for a ranch that raises organic, grassfed beef, so we get lots of goodies pro bono!)
tomorrow: i've been craving potato soup - the plainish kind with cream and celery and onion. went to the farmer's market this morning for everything fresh.
Linguine with Brussels Sprouts Barigoule
Think you hate Brussels sprouts? Think again: http://lauraezolnoski.com/2009/09/05/linguine-with-brussels-sprouts-barigoule/
Chicken Gumbo today!
Monday I'll grill sausage and peppers, and make a new baked bean recipe that has apple, pineapple and breakfast sausage!
Made a full english brekkie today!!!
Tomorrow: Im thinking a pie as I bought the most amazing apples today.
Also Ive been in a sage mood. Maybe I'll play around with butternut squash and sage recipes...
I shelled 2 cups of fresh cannellini beans from the Farmers Market (It only took 30 mins, and I figured a twisting motion seemed to work pretty good at splitting the pods). I am leaning toward sauteed pancetta, red "torpedo" onion, seasoning, and red chard.
I will ladle it over Essential Bakery's kalamata olive bread appreciate the season.
What can I do with 7lb of Black Krum tomatoes? I had to rescue them from the garden before the rains came last night and split them. I still have the ones I canned last year. Ideas?
Big cooking day here. Applesauce from today's farmer's market apples. Pesto from last week's basil. And and impromptu alfresco dinner party with grilled pork tenderloin, oven roasted local potatoes, salad and the aforementioned applesauce.
Also the last minute grocery run neglected barbecue sauce, so I made my first attempt at homemade sauce. The recipe out of the new Joy of Cooking was not too bad, a wee bit acidic, but tasty overall.
I also baked brownies. And yesterday I made the biscuit crostada with local peaches. Yum.
And the piece de resistance, margaritas made with jalapeno infused tequila. Yum.
Tomorrow, I'm taking store bought hummus to the party. I think that was enough cooking for one day.
Didn't get around to making my teacake, but have managed to cook breakfast today (eggs, bacon, tomatoes) and french toast with more tomatoes for dinner. A lazy day
I tried making Hermit Cookies for the first time--pretty good! I used chopped dried apricots, hazelnuts, and roasted unsalted sunflower seeds. These cookies feel like fall to me.
Mostly I'm trying to use up this and that before it goes bad--tonight I MUST use the about-to-wilt mint and a zucchini that's been hanging around. Probably grated with lemon over spaghetti.
I made vegan "meatloaf" last night. Night before was summer rolls.
And a midnight snack of mochi! My man brought some home from the store last week, but I'd been hesitant to try it. Glad I finally did-- It's so fun and neato!
So far the only thing I cooked this weekend was Spam & Egg Breakfast sandwich. Alas there are no BBQs this weekend.
Last night, pizza with whole wheat crust, hot Italian sausage, grape tomatoes and caramelized onions, with ricotta and bit of parmesan.
Tomorrow (Labor Day) using up the rest of the sausage in a lentil and red pepper soup, recipe from a friend.
I made some chicken liver mousse yesterday, but today was Fried Food galore day at the county fair! Yum. I brought back some delicious honey. I love how realy fresh honey kind of taste like wax a tiny bit. :)
http://dinnersanddimes.blogspot.com/
I made Chicken Kebabs on the grill outdoors with yogurt mint chutney and grilled veggies for dinner tonight.
Homemade pizza for Saturday's family movie night, burrito fixings last night, and today I'm going to make a double batch of chicken soup as I'm really needing to stock up on fast meals to pull out of the freezer.
Flew to Sanford, Maine for a delicious diner breakfast and then cooked a light evening meal back at home of baked haddock, asparagus, and the heirloom tomato salad from August's Food & Wine magazine! I live in apartment so we had to enjoy non-grilling options!