As I mentioned yesterday, the last few weeks of August have been overwhelming in the best way. Simultaneously, work is getting busier, and I've been thinking about ways to improve my blog. I'm interested in making a change and streamlining the content so I'm not just dumping a week's worth of meals into one post.
Excitement is not always the first thing I feel about my writing my weekly CSA summaries, but last week Davy and I joined forces to make a truly dynamite dinner. Aside from feeling satisfied because it was healthy, uncomplicated and composed of mostly local ingredients, I couldn't wait to share it. This led me to the idea of reporting on a "meal of the week," be it one I've made, a restaurant visit, or any memorable experience involving food.
As our summer share comes to a close, I thought I'd start the transition with the dinner that inspired me.
Our air conditioning was finally fixed last week, and I didn't waste any time firing up the oven (these were the first on my list). Once I got some baking out of my system, I made use of our cool kitchen to make sherry cherry tomatoes, a favorite in our house that's been neglected this year. I've written about them before, and am happy to share the recipe if any of you are interested.
It helps to start with homegrown or CSA cherry tomatoes, and the different colors made the end result even more attractive.
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I love this recipe because it's extremely versatile, and could be eaten as a main course, snack, or side dish, served over pasta, smushed on top of crusty bread, mixed into a salad, or scooped up with a fork under a layer of broiled cheese. On this particular night, we chose to grill thick slices of Billy Bread in order to more efficiently shovel the tomatoes in.
While both of us probably could have subsisted on sherry cherry tomatoes alone, I'd also gotten a beautiful piece of rockfish from Yellow Umbrella (they also supplied the bread). Before Davy took it out to the grill, I adorned it with olive oil, sprigs of thyme, a spritz of lemon juice, and minced Thai chili peppers. It was extremely tender and the flavors added just enough without overpowering the fish. The before and after are below.
At this point you're probably sick of hearing me talk about padron peppers, but I can't help myself. We grilled those, too, and they were even better than they were blistered in a pan (which I wasn't sure was possible).
There's nothing revolutionary about this meal, but it served as a timely reminder to me that simple is often better, in food and in writing.
Have a happy Labor Day weekend!
Between fantasy football drafts, Davy's birthday, book club, Tex's birthday, and a trip to Chincoteague for Labor Day, I haven't had much time to think. Some emergency Amy's macaroni and cheese hit the spot last night for a late dinner, along with a big salad featuring carrots, cucumber, sweet pepper, and edamame. Everything that doesn't get eaten before tomorrow, which will probably be most of the following is going to come with us for the weekend:
- various sweet peppers
- various hot peppers
- red onion
- okra
- salsa kit
- rosemary
- carrots
It's never easy to come back from vacation, especially after a week-long trip to the beach that involves multiple gourmet dinners. This year's features were steaks on the grill, lobster, breakfast for dinner, shrimp pasta, and the ever-popular pizza night. Cary and Brian outdid themselves yet again, with the traditional margherita, a spicy jalapeno and pepperoni pie, and an extra special clams casino pizza.
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| Jalapeno Pepperoni |
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| Clams Casino |
The back-to-reality blow was even harder this year since our house was still without air conditioning. I was hoping to score some burrata from River City Cellars to eat with fresh tomatoes and ease our pain a little bit, but, sadly, they were out of it. Instead I took home two other varieties of cheese and a new jar of spicy plum chutney, and we had another dinner with bread, cheese, Hungarian salame, and steamed edamame.
Sticking with the stove-free theme, I made a chickpea salad later in the week, minus the lettuce wraps. The poblano peppers from our share, which I diced and added at the last minute, added a little heat and extra crunch to the dish.
I put together another lettuce-free salad for lunch one day, inspired by this recipe for Mediterranean Chopped Salad from Serious Eats. Instead of onion, I added some garlic to the dressing, and was pleased with the results. I rarely think to add much besides oil and vinegar or lemon juice when I'm making dressing, but the presence of mustard makes a big difference.
One of my favorite annual events, the Hanover Firefighters Crab Feast, took place on Saturday. My parents made their second appearance, and Evan made the drive north to participate.
After the copious amounts of crab and beer, and even a few hot dogs, we relaxed, ordered a pizza, and munched on raw Dragon Tongue beans, which were sweet and crisp.
By Monday, Davy and I ended our oven moratorium. The weather was slightly cooler, and he put together an impressive pan of nachos with ground chicken, a few tomatoes, sweet peppers, salsa, lettuce, cilantro, and plenty of cheese. The oven was on at 450 degrees for fifteen minutes or so, and we barely suffered (only the cheese melted).
Amy mentioned in her latest email that there are only two weeks left in the summer CSA, and I'm still in shock. How is August almost over? I know it's been cooler, and the days are noticeably shorter, but I'm still holding on. There are still plenty of tomatoes and peppers in our share, and I'm going to enjoy as much as possible while I still can. This week, we received:
- assorted sweet peppers
- assorted hot peppers
- yellow roma tomatoes
- purple and red cherry tomatoes
- carrots
- eggplant
- padron peppers (Amy was kind enough to give these to me instead of okra)
- a fragrant bunch of tuberose, pictured below
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