Art of Natural Living

Enjoying the Green Life

Sun Dried Tomato Pesto

By Inger Aug 13, 2026 Appetizers, Condiments, Preserving & More, Cooking & Recipes No Comments

Savory, rich and unconventional, Sun Dried Tomato Pesto is an easy condiment or dip. Add to pasta, sandwiches, crostini, and more.

It was probably a decade ago when I first tried Sun Dried tomato Pesto. One of my CSA owners brought it to an event–and I had to have the recipe.

Alas, when I tried it myself, it wasn’t as good. So I put the recipe away.

Thankfully when I decided to revisit it for today’s Farmers Market Week post, I managed to find the recipe–and my notes. A few small tweaks later, it got a unanimous thumbs up at last weekend’s Saturday brunch!

This recipe can be made with commercial sun-dried tomatoes in oil (drained) or your own dried tomatoes (rehydrated). Read more

Strawberry Goat Cheese Salad

By Inger Aug 11, 2026 Cooking & Recipes, Salads 6 Comments

Strawberry Goat Cheese Salad is tasty, impressive and easier to make than you think. Life’s too short for boring salads!

On busy days, I’m always tempted to take short cuts. Use a bottled salad dressing, skip the salad toppings.

But it truly reduces the flavor experience. And isn’t life too short to eat boring salads?

So what if minimal toppings and a simple dressing could give you both ease of preparation and a special salad experience?

Today’s Strawberry Goat Cheese Salad does just that. By using only a scant 3-4 toppings and just over a half dozen dressing ingredients. Yes, you can have a nice salad and time to eat it too! Read more

Tuscan White Bean Soup with Kale

By Inger Aug 9, 2026 Cooking & Recipes, Soup, vegan, Vegetarian Recipes 7 Comments

With a bright fresh flavor, this Tuscan White Bean Soup with Kale is easy, healthy and delicious all year round.

Like many natural foodies, I enjoy cooking locally. And this means I get excited about recipes that work with local ingredients all year long.

Like this hearty Tuscan White Bean Kale soup, full of kale, tomatoes and hardy keepers like onions and carrots. Tasty and versatile, it will take you seamlessly from late summer into winter.

Now I hate to say it, but sometimes I find vegetable soups a little bland. But not this one! This is thanks, in part, to an ingredient combo known as mirepoix . Mirepoix is a classic mixture of minced carrots, celery and onion that is sauteed to flavor a soup base.

And it requires minimal effort if you use a food processor! Hooray for natural goodness made simple!

Peach Hot Sauce

By Inger Aug 1, 2026 Condiments, Preserving & More 5 Comments

Fruity with a nice kick of heat, this Peach Hot Sauce will liven up your harvest. Why not can a few jars to preserve the season!

My family has never been big on jams. So when I decided to do more canning, I knew I’d need to work harder to find fun and unique recipes. Why so challenging? Well for food safety reasons, canning recipes aren’t supposed to be modified (with just a very few exceptions).

This means you can’t really punch up a boring recipe at will, in contrast to day-to-day cooking. So I was delighted to discover a recipe for Peach Hot Sauce in a favorite canning blog, Food in Jars.

The sauce is seriously tasty with a sweet fruitiness and nice kick—even using a milder pepper than the original called for (see below). And I love the light golden color. Makes it look kind of innocent until the heat kicks in.

You can use this beautifully complex sauce in many ways. Try it in wraps, on hot wings, or as a grilling sauce or marinade. Or atop cream cheese for a spicy appetizer. Really anywhere a hot sauce would be good! Read more

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