On the Water

If you're looking for something fun to do during your oh-so-short summer ... get to some water. The beach, a lake, river, pond, whatever is closest. We usually opt for a day at or on the ocean but yesterday we did something different. Our neighbor owns a power boat that he uses to go fishing or to spend some time on the water with his kids. He invited us to go with him to a local lake. Oh my gosh! We had a great time. I should probably put in a plug for waterproof sun screen here, because we all got a bit toastier than we should have. I can't believe I spent a day in the sun when the temperature was over 100! But, on with the fun stuff.

I packed a quick picnic lunch with sandwiches, cherry tomatoes and plums from the garden, some chips and lots of drinks. We towed the kids (and my young-at-heart husband) in some inner tubes and stopped in a little cove to eat lunch. After much jumping in the water, and our neighbor's son "painting" his body with some amazingly slippery and deep mud, we launched off for more tubing. We ended the day tired and happy to have spent some time with family and neighbors. This weekend why not ask another family to join you for a simple activity, boating, fishing or just walking on the beach. Your kids will love it (especially if you remember the waterproof sunscreen).

The Cookout

This evening we are having some good friends over for a cookout. I want to spend my time visiting and not cooking so I planned a menu that is quick, easy and yummy - my favorite way to do things! I've decided to do classic barbecue fare with a twist.

So instead of plain burgers, I'm going to make Caprese Burgers (inspired by the Caprese Salads I've been making with fresh basil and tomatoes from the garden). I add a heaping tablespoon of sour cream and a tablespoon of fresh minced basil to each pound of hamburger before I form the patties. Just before removing the burgers from the grill I'll add a slice of fresh mozzarella. Vine ripe red tomatoes will top it off.

This morning I made a compound butter with paprika, salt and pepper for the grilled corn on the cob. A compound butter is just butter with seasonings added in. I mixed together all of my ingredients to taste and rolled it into a cylinder in a piece of wax paper. I put it in the fridge and when I serve the grilled corn-on-the-cob I will add pats of the flavored butter. You can make any kind of meal special with compound butters. Try adding chives or rosemary to a compound butter for steak or honey and cinnamon to top corn bread.

If you want to grill your corn on the cob, peel back the husks making sure to leave them attached. Remove all of the silk and replace the husks. Put the cobs in a large pot of water to soak for a half an hour and then wrap each cob in aluminum foil. Place on a preheated grill for a half an hour.

For the Ranch Style Beans I just use my favorite savory canned beans and add a dollop of salsa. And for the watermelon I made a minted simple syrup to drizzle over top. Simple syrup is easy to make. Simmer one cup of white sugar with one cup of water till the sugar dissolves. I added some fresh mint from the garden. Perfect for a cooling mint julep, ice tea, or Planter's Punch.

Last but not least, Allegra is baking a chocolate bundt cake. She is not a fan of frosting so she adds a sprinkle of powdered sugar on top. I just bought some of Nestle's La Lechera caramel sauce. Yummy! I think I will add pool of it to the plates before we place the cake slices on top.

So there it is. I have company coming so I gotta scoot.

Take care . . .

Fourth of July

Its Friday night and we are headed over to the home of some friends for a little Fourth of July warm up! I'm so happy that we can take a gift from our garden; herbs, summer squash, baby carrots and fresh plums from our tree. I like to make it kind of pretty so I made a basket out of a brown paper grocery bag. I schrunched the bag up and gingerly turned it inside out. Then I rolled down a wide cuff several times till the "basket" was at the right height. Tonight I rolled it down to almost the bottom of the bag so it was like a tray. Then I arranged the fruits and vegetables and topped it off with a pretty sage blossom from the garden.

Tomorrow I will be busy making Southern Fried Chicken, Sweet and Tangy Coleslaw and Corn Bread for our celebration with family and friends. Then we will be off to the fireworks show.

Wishing you a day full of picnics, friends, fun and tradition.
Happy Fourth of July!