I know that I’ve been saying it for weeks, but summer is my favorite time of year for eating. It’s when I go into hyper-drive around seafood, stockpile tomatoes like I’m dying, and find as many spots to sip a spritz al fresco. Summer isn’t, however, my favorite time for cooking—mostly because it’s hot as fuck in my kitchen and the idea of turning either my stove or my oven on is enough to send me into a spiral.
So I’ve been spending the last month figuring out delicious things to nosh on that require zero cooking—AKA my versions of girl dinners. And luckily, summer also happens to be a perfect time for snacking and cobbling together food you score from the farmer’s market. Below, find my favorite things I ate this month.
Oh! And in case you missed it, I was on the Italian American Podcast talking about this newsletter and the project of cooking through my grandmother’s recipes. I was also on the Betches Brides podcast talking about Ben and my upcoming wedding. And for those who asked, no—I won’t be writing about weddings and planning and all that jazz here. Mostly because it’s stressful. But also because I’m taking over writing the Betches Brides newsletter Say Yes to the Betch in August and will be covering all the planning weekly there. So if you’re interested in hearing me whine about how expensive baby’s breath is and figuring out how to cram as many disco balls into my venue as possible, please subscribe!
Now, on to the food porn!
The eggplant pancake from Theresa’s South in Bay Head, the best restaurant on that stretch of the Jersey Shore.
Speaking of the shore: Zeppoles, Kohr’s ice cream, and some cheese balls from Steaks Unlimited all along the Seaside Heights boardwalk.
We also cooked up some incredible fish tacos and used the seasoning to make shrimp tacos, too, for my entire family as our contribution to our shared home that week.
A lunch of tinned trout, roasted red peppers, feta cheese, focaccia, and an ice cold Diet Coke.
Multiple servings of tomato toast, smeared with garlic mayo, and topped with basil from my window sill garden.
Cucumber and cream cheese sandwiches with the crusts cut off that I ate for lunch for basically a week straight.
A delicious picnic of anchovies, tinned tuna, apricots, tomatoes, mozzarella, and crackers that Ben and I enjoyed with an orange wine on a Thursday night because we could.
The St. Louie and Truffle Shuffle pizzas from Speedy Romeo that I scarfed down with Hannah and Katie over a long overdue dinner.
Another toast (apparently this is my toast girl summer) that I smeared with ricotta and piled with roasted peaches.
Yogurt with fresh new plums and a drizzle of olive oil for breakfast.
Many martinis and truffle fries with my Betches coworkers from the Ivory Peacock.
The chicken Caesar wrap from Lenwich that I scarfed down during Amazon Prime Day.
A paneer dosa and a South Indian thali from Saravanaa Bhavan in Murray Hill that we ate after a trip to Fotografiska.
And finally, pasta with fresh tomatoes, scallops, shrimp, and tilapia (don’t knock it!) that my mother whipped up while we were down the shore.
Tomato toast all summer! 🍅🍞