Fresh Tart

Hoooey it's a hot one, wowzers. Did we swim today? Hell no, we ran errands - hot errands - like crazy people, but what can you do? Let's just say that I'm very grateful for light-colored car seats. I told Nathan that my dad used to drive - waaaay back in the day, circa early-1970-something - a kelly green, two-door Ford Torino (yep, a precursor to the Starsky & Hutch car; pic is an approximation), with black vinyl seats and no AC. That was the hottest, stickiest car I've ever ridden in, ouch.

The sunshine is nice, though, right? It really feels like summer, now that it's almost August, yeah. We had post-baseball-tourney Boy Soup on Saturday, loud and fun. Nathan's Famous hot dogs on the grill and a giant bowl of potato chips - that's about as easy as entertaining gets!

Hopefully the heat gets my tomatoes going 'cuz they are behind, way behind. I'm ready for fresh tomatoes! Mom and I are heading to the Farmer's Market on Saturday, maybe we'll score some beauties there. I'm getting ready for good sweet corn too. No East Hampton version for me this year, sniff - I'll be missing the Annual Levy Sweet Corn Spectacle. The all-white varieties (Silver Queen-esque, but apparently not really Silver Queen) grown in the Hamptons are insanely delicious and different than what we enjoy here in Minnesota. We might enjoy our yellower, chewier versions with ribs and burgers instead of crabs and lobsters, but it's all good, all good.

Moderate it: although my son keeps trying to insist otherwise, I consider corn a grain (starch, carbohydrate), not a vegetable, so enjoy, you know, in moderation. Unless you're a Levy, then hells bells, go for it!

Ah, a little sun and warmth again, enough for me to be out on the porch, happy, happy. It just doesn't want to be spring around here - two steps forward, one step back, I guess. Not complaining! The cool air, warm sun thing going today is fabulous!

Our Friday lunch date at Lucia's was typically lovely. I spiffed up a bit, always fun. We scored a window table, enjoyed a gorgeous glass of rose, then split a cup of pureed chickpea-carrot soup, topped with a few tiny cubes of crispy fried croutons. Enough to add a hint of richness to the smooth and creamy-seeming soup, absolutely delicious. For our main we both had the salmon, seared crispy, buttery inside, served alongside a few boiled new potatoes (so fresh, so sweet) and sauteed sugar snap pea pods (ditto on the fresh and sweet rave). Gorgeous on the plate, simple and clean, perfect to eat. We left very happy and not at all weighed down.

Then on to the Sex and the City movie. Not completely fabulous, but fun to see anyhow. I'm not giving anything away by saying that it made me appreciate the quality of the TV version even more - more biting, funnier, more beautiful, realer. I came home from Baseball Moms to find John awake and made him watch an (HBO On Demand) episode with me (he always enjoyed the edginess of the show, thought the movie tried way too hard to be girlie; I agree). We chose the one where Carrie's shoes are taken from a party - hilarious. I just needed to put the greatness of it all back in my head, you know? Mission accomplished. And then, I could think back on the movie and enjoy it more, I do like the way the movie ended, satisfying and appropriate. Check out this review on BuzzSugar, good points (I read it this morning, not before I went to the movie). And definitely see it! It's not perfect, but you'll be glad.

It's a grilling day today! Hmmm, I might do hot dogs (Nathan's Famous and Hebrew National are both awesome picks) and a big salad. I'd say I'd only do hot dogs for the kids and throw a piece of fish on for John and me, but when I do that, the hot dogs end up looking so damn good that I totally regret not just going for it. So, I'm just going for it!

Moderate it: one hot dog doesn't have to kill a healthy diet. Yeah, they're not the healthiest choice in the world, but they're not total calorie-bombs either. Have it on a whole-wheat bun, load on the veggies, have a salad alongside, and enjoy every salty bite. Yum.

Baseball Moms and their boys were here last Sunday (sheesh, it's already Thursday, I'm behind!) for a sunny, splashy day of play and snacks and chat. So FUN! We had my favorite type of food day - potluck, baby, with yummy dips and spreads (Sonja's Gorgeous Cheeseball!) and chips and bars and pie. And hot dogs (Nathan's Famous) on the grill, of course, can't swim without the 'dogs. And coldbeer, can't have Baseball Moms without cold beer. All good, my friends, all good.

The rest of the week? With a bounty of zucchini from my veggie share, and access to absolutely divine tomatoes, we've enjoyed a couple rounds of a super easy zucchini-tomato gratin, based on the filling of the Summer Tomato-Zucchini Tart recipe I posted last summer. Lighter (no crust, just zucchini, tomatoes, garlic, onion, mozzarella, olive oil, herbs, and salt, baked until melting and crispy on top), yet every bit as delicious, especially cooled to just-warm and served alongside a crusty baguette. Or pasta. Or rice. Something to soak up all the gorgeous, garlicky juices. To. Die For. (Recipe posted in comments, below.)

Moderation? Mwahahaha...

The day started nicely - I dropped Nathan at golf, then went for a lovely walk in the North Tyrol Hills neighborhood of Golden Valley (I walk all sorts of cool Minneapolis-area neighborhoods, especially the hilly ones; much more interesting to me than walking around the lakes and more potential for torching cals). Then off to Byerly's for a few tasties in preparation for a Golf-Moms-and-Kids lunch and swim here at the hacienda, with Kris and her boys Nick and Andy, Suzanne and her boys John and Tommy, Susie and her kids Sam and Jane, and of course Nathan. Another great day for a swim - hot and sunny, but not humid at all, so we moms had a lovely chat while the kids swam and played. We had a very simple lunch - salad and hot dogs and chips and fruit, all anyone wants on a summer afternoon. After everyone said their good-byes, Nathan and I had a nice game of volleyball in the pool, and I thought I was heading into a light dinner and early bedtime. But no...

...I "let" John talk me into (twist my arm, yeah, ha) heading out for tapas and a glass of wine at Solera. So I put on some makeup, and a cute top, and heels, and a little bling, and off we went, back downtown (for him), and enjoyed a fabulously not-moderate dinner. Ham & manchego on tomato bread...shrimp croquetas...potatoes in spicy tomato sauce...braised green beans...chocolate cake... It was all absolutely delicious, particularly the potatoes and green beans, eaten together, rarrr... Quite filling, uff. We worked it off with a lovely drive home around Cedar Lake - so idyllic, with the windows rolled down, man it smells like summer tonight and I will miss that smell in just a few short months. Damn, but it goes too fast.

So now, yawn, it's definitely bedtime. Unless I motivate for a dusky walk, hmmm, that might make me feel better about all those tasties. We'll see how loudly that bed calls my name as I walk by to get my walking shoes...