Lazy Hazy Summer

The dog days of summer have hit with a vengeance. A week’s vacation, followed by the requisite crazy week at work that almost (but not quite) makes you regret the time off, coupled with the first dismally hot spell of a D.C. summer have sapped me of the will to do anything productive. The blog is clearly suffering as a result. Cooking and eating have, however, continued unabated. So here, in lazy list form is a synopsis of recently test driven recipes and food other people fed me since my last substantial blog post.

• Grilled pork loin with pineapple basil salsa. The basil really really made this one. I’ve tried it a few different ways, really it’s the salsa that makes this worth trying. Simple. Delicious. Repeatable. And has officially replaced mango salsa as my fruit based condiment of choice.
• Plums cooked with rosemary, sugar and juice over any kind of cream based goodness. It’s equally awesome with a dollop of mascarpone, sour cream or whipped cream. I think it’d be equally phenomenal paired with Greek yogurt, ice cream or quark.
• Fresh tomato sauce with capers and olives over penne. Needs some tweaking, but I’m developing a mild obsession with capers. I plan to revisit this one.
• Raw oysters and clams on the half shell eaten on the dock, with a steamed crab follow up. Clearly this was not a cooking episode, but to the cousin who kindly shucked them all for us: my thanks. Yum.
• Quinoa salad with grilled veggies and a champagne vinaigrette. I’ve been intending to try cooking quinoa for months. Finally did it. And surprisingly loved it! The specifics of the recipe aren’t as important, it was a definite kitchen sink approach, but glad to find a new grain to play with.
• JH made some seared tuna steaks after our fish market trip (more on that later) that were outrageous. She served them with some soy, ginger, sesame, wasabi sauciness… Awesome. Plus an Asian cole slaw on the side that might have changed my opinion about cole slaw forever. Seriously.
• Cod steamed on the grill with capers, dill and lemon, also procured at the fish market, see above. Never ceases to amaze me how buttery cod can be without the slightest bit of actual butter added. Awesome. And another caper-obsession fueled dinner.
• Have had bbq ribs (cooked by others) twice in the last two weeks. I’d forgotten how awesome they can be. Messy and a bit carnal, but delicious. One set was wet, one dry. I know bbq purists tend to favor one over the other depending on their personal style, but I have to say I love both. The dry rub on the most recent set was amazing, and even better the next day. And the ribs done with sauce were also great.
• IAG rolled fresh picked peaches and goat cheese in chicken. And grilled it. Enough said.
• Got my fill of Country Market pies on vacation with the whole fam at the beach. They’re an institution in our family. Strawberry rhubarb, peach, berry. If I could make a pie crust half this good I’d be a very happy girl.