I’m a fearless home cook. If I want to eat cheesecake – I’ll make one. If I want to replicate a dish I swooned over at a restaurant – I’ll try it. If I want to make a healthier version of a staple family recipe – I’ll swap out ingredients. Yes, cooking is part science. Yes, people can be highly trained and skilled at culinary institutes around the world – but I’m not cooking for a Michelin rating or James Beard award. I cook for myself and my family and friends.
Right now, as summer is beginning to wane and the kids are back in school I’m all of a sudden all-in on summer dishes – after all it’s officially summer this year until September 23 and I don’t want to rush one of my favorite eating times of the year. My spirit must be able to feel the sudden subtle changes of the season and want to squeeze every last opportunity to eat a juicy, red ripe farm tomatoes grown by a local farmer.
My meal plan for the week:
Monday – grilled salmon, stone fruit salad and corn on the cob
Tuesday – out
Wednesday – grilled chicken, caprese salad and corn on the cob
Thursday – caprese pasta and spinach salad
Friday – chicken burgers, stone fruit salad and any veggies in fridge
Yesterday I was inspired to make two dishes for my family that were healthy and beautiful. I swear the beauty in a dish enhances the flavor – even if the aesthetics only serve to make me salivate in anticipation before the first bite. The first was a deconstructed caprese salad I set out on the counter for a late afternoon snack. I surprised my family by swapping out the mozzarella for burata – a cheese we’ve all eaten at restaurants but never at home. Remember my philosophy – why not try it? It was so soft and creamy – almost spreadable and a fun surprise on our typical caprese platter. A little olive oil, lots of salt and freshly ground pepper and a torn-apart crusty, warm baguette complimented the farm stand tomatoes so well. The kids went out to the garden to pick basil and I sliced the last farmer’s market cucumber in the fridge and added it to the plate for the cool crunch and something green. The cucumber even inspired a conversation between my kids and eventually Alexa, about whether a cucumber is really a vegetable or a fruit. The consensus? A fruit eaten like a vegetable. Afternoon snack has never looked so good.
The second dish I made for dinner accompanied grilled salmon and corn on the cob (yes, salmon and corn on the cob aren’t the typical pairing but again, I’m eating seasonally and corn season will soon come to an end). We recently ate out at Renata in Portland and their stone fruit salad inspired my own. It was so pretty and delicious. Their version had peaches, nectarines, plums, avocado, hazelnuts and feta. This week I’ll probably make a couple of variations of this. The first was a mix of Colorado peach, black plum and cherries. I squeezed half an orange on top, drizzled a little olive oil to dress it and mixed in feta and basil. I got some oohs and ahhs from my family because it truly felt more special to make and enjoy this pretty dish. Later this week I’ll try it with avocado and walnuts – things I usually have on hand.
I can’t wait until our next trip to the farmer’s market to see what will inspire our menu for next week. Cheers to trying something new…and summer corn on the cob.
