Summertime, and the cooking is easy

Yummy (and easy) ideas for your next summer gathering. Plus, two books I am LOVING.

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Last night, we were sitting around the table outside on my deck after dinner and I asked my daughter how many leeks she’d used for the meal. We’d gone to Wegman’s that morning and I watched her try to stuff three dinosaur-sized leeks banded together into a plastic bag and couldn’t imagine we’d even use one.

“I chopped up two but there’s still a bunch leftover,” she said. “I don’t know if you’re the type to use leeks in your cooking.”

I told her, “I’m really not the type to *uses exaggerated air quotes* COOK nowadays.”

Because I’m really not that person any more. And also, it’s mostly just me that I’m feeding nowadays and After Work Amy isn’t super picky about dinner. She likes something that can be refreshed in the air fryer to enjoy while watching her prescribed one hour of television a night.

All bets are off though when the kids are home and especially if it’s summertime. I love coming home from a day at the beach and putting together a big dinner to eat outside on the deck under the umbrella.

We did a lot of that over the long Fourth of July weekend (that felt like a full week in which no day felt like either a week day or the weekend — we kept saying, “It really doesn’t feel like a Friday,” etc.).

My younger daughter was part of the mix so that really elevated the level of meals that we prepared. And I’m using the word “we” loosely since, honestly, she did the bulk of the cooking. She is an excellent cook, really good with flavors and experimenting (unlike me who mostly follows recipes). My younger son and I served as sous chefs — with the older guy heading up clean up duty — and I also baked a couple of things.

But my daughter pulled things out of the frig to doctor a box of Trader Joe’s Israeli couscous — brimming with briny kalamata olives and hints of fresh mint and parsley and big squeezes of lemon — to accompany our Mediterranean-inspired meal one night. She even made me a vat of vegetable broth overnight out of all the veggie scraps (TBD what I’m doing with all that).

Because I’m always looking to the internet for meal inspiration, I’m sharing what we made here for your next summer weekend.

Summer pasta al fresco

Guys, I still get Real Simple magazine in the mail. Mostly because I can’t figure out how to cancel but also, when I did investigate once, learned it was costing me about $20 a year and I can spare $20 to support actual magazines, which have brought me so much joy over the years. Apparently, my girl took a picture of this recipe in 2017 and added to her Pinterest and this is what she came across when trolling for something to make this weekend. Also, now I’ve eaten meals with mushrooms twice this summer! I’m really growing up.

Look at her. Sadly, our Shop Rite had a very lame pasta selection.

For dessert, I went old school and copied something my mother-in-law would serve back in the day. I baked an Angel Food cake from a box and it was soooooooo good with fresh strawberries and a big dollop of freshly whipped cream that we doctored with vanilla and powdered sugar. Lemon curd would really have elevated the whipped cream, but apparently I’d thrown my jar of it away — but next time! It’s the second time I’ve baked one this summer and has been a fan fave.

Mediterranean night

Ina’s Israeli Vegetable salad, with tons of fresh summer veggies and herbs piled on top of a lemony hummus, is just so good.

We marinated thin chicken cutlets overnight in Wegman’s Spiedie flavor (which I believe is a fancy way New York State people enjoy their meat), which I grilled and sliced.

As mentioned, my daughter doctored a box of this Israeli couscous with lots of fresh herbs and leeks.

I threw a bunch of pitas on the grill and then we piled the hummus and chicken on top and it was super delightful

Summer weekend scones

My older son was on a work call near the kitchen so I was afraid to keep going in to check the oven so these are a little more cooked than I’d like.

I’m no scone expert, but these seemed pretty perfect when we ate these blueberry babies fresh out of the oven on Friday morning. This is the second time I used this recipe I pulled off the Most Lovely Things blog, and I think it’s a winner. I also took her advice and grated the frozen stick of butter (which I happened to have in my freezer) in my Cuisinart, and the result was a texture that was not like chalk (although I might eat freshly baked blueberry chalk out of the oven).

What my actual kitchen looks like this morning.

Sunday shares: read + watch + cook + buy

Give me all the books with Talking Heads songs as titles (wink). I know I probably shouldn’t be crowing about reads before I’ve finished, but I have had a glorious few days of a lot of reading on the beach and must share. I picked up Maggie O’Farrell’s This Must Be The Place last week at Northshire Books in Vermont and I can’t put it down. Like, I can’t wait to be done putting this Substack together so I can go back to my porch and read this morning. I am in awe of her ability to pull off such a complicated structure, as the novel jumps all over time and place and points of view. But it’s working (at least for me). I love a book that tells me something up front and only later do I realize just how poignant or devastating or whatever that something was through backstory. Also, despite buying Hamnet two different ways (anyone seeing a pattern?), I have yet to read it. Definitely packing one to come to Maine with me next week.

Oprah knows (great) stories. I’ve also been listening to Oprah’s latest book pick, Long Island by Colm Toibin, which is a follow up to an earlier novel, Brooklyn (which was also a movie). I didn’t read or watch but Oprah says it doesn’t matter. And, I mean, just listen to the narrator in the link above and tell me you would not be immediately transported into this story of longing, regret and family. I have about 90 minutes to go and am worried about what the main character is going to decide to do in the end. I’ll definitely be listening to the earlier book after this.

LOL we recreated Christina’s World a few years ago on a girls’ trip to Maine and I must say, it’s pretty good. Also, vibes with my urge to visit the Farnsworth Museum on this year’s trip.

I’m Maine-ward bound! Next weekend I’ll be holed up in a cabin that’s on the edge of the ocean way down by Popham Beach. I am hoping to replicate the success of my getaway last September and get reqcquainted with my manuscript and start pushing forward in its revision. I’m also excited to connect with friends I’ve made on earlier jaunts north and to do some more exploring. I know, I know — my location is kind of out of the way but I drove all over the place last year and enjoyed seeing the sights. So, please share any and all recommendations for day trips!!!!

See you next Sunday! xoAmy