My husband is heading for a guys weekend so its just me and my daughter so I have planned some fun stuff for meals this weekend including munching (bacon fat) popcorn on the couch while we watch movies and baking some blueberry zucchini bread. In between all of that I'll be making some no-knead asiago cheese bread. With my husband out of town I get to indulge my eggplant stack craving so I'll be grilling up eggplant slices tomorrow to layer with tomatoes, feta cheese and basil oil.

I'm in a rush to use the plums on my tree. We just busted someone stealing plums last night...they came prepared with grocery bags to fill and a kiddie lookout in tow. Oh, and my FIL gave us 30lbs of extremely small tart apples too, so I guess I'll be dealing with those as well. So the weekend will have me making and canning all manner of plum and/or apple jams, chutneys, and relishes.

I've decided I'm going to give your maple and grapefruit cocktail from the other day a try. I may not be able to convince my family to try it, but more for me.

I also want to try making these chocolate-covered salted peanut caramel cups from David Lebovitz: http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2009/07/chocolate-covered-salted-peanut/ Guuuuuh...

Hendrick's and tonic with cucumber for me this weekend... and a growler of microbrew. Some grilled zucchini and lamb.

Tonight we're having shrimp cocktails and chicken fried steak -- I'm celebrating the end of a long and busy week! As for the rest of the weekend I'm not sure yet.

The blackberry bushes along my street have a new crop every weekend, but it's never quite enough for a pie. This past week we've made do with blackberry-zucchini muffins, blackberry-zucchini pancakes and blackberry smoothies. If there isn't enough for pie this weekend, I'm going to freeze a bunch and try again next weekend.

So envious of all you who can cook in your kitchens, we are going into week two of a kitchen remodel so I guess I will be ordering out...again!

I'm making Magnolia Bakery's Blackbottom cupcakes for a pool party tomorrow!

@Slow Lorus -- sounds like crab apples! I love them.

I'm going to finish putting up the final few jars of the farmers' market haul from last Saturday - preserved lemons and watermelon rind pickles are all that's left. I'll probably make lime sorbet, too.

We have foodie friends coming over tomorrow for deep fried soft shell crabs and homemade pasta (they are bringing that), veal saltimbocca with speck, oysters with minionette, and panna cotta with peach compote for dessert. I put the panna cottas in the fridge tonight! My first-ever attempt, I hope they turn out well.

Also have 2 baguettes in the oven right now.

takeout for dinner tonight because my allergy meds are making me super drowsy! then I had a gin and tonic with rosemary in it. good story. :)

All the drinks recipes seem to have inspired me. I made drunken bluefish (this is the closest recipe I can find: http://www.helenrennie.com/recipes/fish/bluefish_gin_scallions.html), my mother is making gran marnier mousse for desert tomorrow (totally addictive if you've never had it), and I plan on making a kentucky whiskey cake for Sunday supper.

Booze + booze. Must be summer :)

@ SarahBerneche -- I've never cooked with crabapples but I sure would if I got the chance!

However, I know the tree he got them from and they're not crabapples. They're from a poor overtaxed apple tree up at the family cabin. It's rather neglected and they never thin out the fruit. I think he may also have harvested them way too early. The apples in our own yard could go another month probably and the cabin is 5 hrs north of us.

Not too much, as I'll be in the city all weekend. Going to a Chinese cookery class this afternoon though, so pretty excited!

Throwing a party tonight for a few of the neighbors. I have 12.5 lbs of baby back ribs that I am slow cooking for 5 to 6 hours on the grill. I broke the cardinal rule of dinner parties "don't try something you have never done before". Of course, I love a good challenge so it should be a long day with hopefully something to eat at the end.

I don't have much time this weekend, so just blueberry muffins. My friends threw a party, though, and they cooked a lot - bulgogi, char siu pork, baba ghanoush, kofta, tzatziki, homemade pita and lengua de gato

Just started a batch of fresh yogurt in the crock pot, and used some older bananas to make banana bread!

Baked chicken with Hidden Valley Ranch dry mix added to the crumbs. Amazing.

I finally used the kabocha squash that's been resting on my counter for a few weeks now to create a healthy spin on Raspberry Oat Bars. Smells wonderful while baking in the oven and very tasty!

Summer vegetable stew with fennel, fingerling potatoes, artichokes, carrots and sweet peas; ratatouille over pasta; and icy manhattans.

Real ginger beer with spiced golden rum and popcorn. And Guitar Hero. Girl's night in ;)

We've been eating lots of Caprese salad with garden tomatoes and basil. My husband grilled some awesome beef ribs with orange, ginger, soy & sesame. Grilled corn, cucumber & goat cheese sandwiches, strawberry-peach shortcake, all those easy delicious summer things.