"Tomato Pies, 25 Cents" by Grace Cavalieri + Margherita Pizza

**In case you missed my announcement, Eat This Poem now has a newsletter! The Right Brains Society a digital club for creative-types. Stop by to join, and you'll get letters from me in the mail!

Andrew and I just had two cases of Zinfandel shipped to us from one of our wine clubs. You know, house wine for the holiday season... Obviously, we needed to test a bottle or two before serving it to our family and friends, so pizza night was in full force. And it got me thinking. Isn't pizza one of those quintessential childhood foods? So many memories of mine include dough, cheese, and red sauce. Pizza parties after soccer games. Ordering Little Caesars pizza every Monday night when my dad was teaching at the university. Sharing a pie at Woodstock's with my college roommates. Then I picked up the pre-made dough and sauce at Trader Joe's while my cooking muscles were still flexing. Today, there are gourmet pizza restaurants in every city, which I love, but making pizza at home is one of great pleasures of home cooking, I think. It's really not to be missed.

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"To Be of Use" by Marge Piercy + Cheesy Corn Crostini

We're poised to wave goodbye to spring in favor of longer days, warm breezes and the satisfaction of summer. This is truly a poem for June, then, as it praises the labor, the farmer, the gathering, and the feasting of the coming season. (Also, thanks go to The Yellow House for posting this poem last month and providing some of the inspiration here today.)

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"Cherry Tomatoes" by Sandra Beasley + Pasta al Pomodoro

I remember the evening well. I was sitting with my parents and boyfriend on the shaded patio of an Italian restaurant in Santa Barbara. This was one of those "let's take you out to dinner to be sure you're eating well" meals parents often take their children to when they're still in college. By this time I had been cooking for myself out of necessity for at least a year, but wasn't the most adventurous when it came to trying new dishes. When I scanned a menu, once my eye paused on Pasta al Pomodoro, the decision was made. But this particular evening, I couldn't shake the price. Although I wasn't paying for it, fourteen dollars for a bowl seemed somewhat unreasonable considering I could buy a bag of spaghetti, two pounds of tomatoes, some basil and cheese for less than $10 and have multiple servings. Suddenly, my mentality shifted as I began to realize that my favorite restaurant meals were achievable in my own kitchen.

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"The Corn Harvest" by William Carlos Williams + Farmer's Egg Sandwich with Basil Aioli

Today I'm collaborating with fellow blogger Megan from Feasting on Art. We both take a similar approach to our food blogs. She creates recipes inspired by paintings, and I do the same for poetry. It seemed like only a matter of time before our paths crossed and we decided to pursue a joint venture.When Megan and I first started discussing this post, William Carlos Williams immediately came to mind. He wrote a series of poems titled Pictures of Brueghel, in response to Brueghel's paintings. If you're curious about Brueghel, head over to learn more about the painting, too.

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