Summer foods and sales
and a note on patriotism.
July 4th! What a day to eat! Yesterday, we had our friends Paul and Christine over, and I learned that I don’t really know how to cook for just four people. We spent the entire day eating. Here’s what we had.
Guac: I somehow managed to find six ripe avocados at the grocery store. Am I a witch? Yes! I mashed them with a potato masher (genius) and mixed them with many sliced cherry tomatoes, half a red onion that I chopped really small, half a serrano pepper without the seeds, two garlic cloves, the juice of two limes, and a lot of cumin, salt, and smoked paprika. If you’re like, “where’s the cilantro?” Ask my husband.
Charred corn salsa (esquites-esque): No mayo in sight here, folks. In a cast iron pan, I charred eight ears of corn. While those were going, I zested and juiced three limes, then I added a lot of sliced scallions, and a good half a cup of cotija cheese. Once the corn had some nice char, I sliced it into the bowl and mixed it all up so the cheese melted and created a nice little sauce. Then I mixed in about two tablespoons of chili crunch. Then I topped it with more cheese.
Tomato mozzarella panzanellish: A no-recipe bread salad situation. In a massive salad bowl, I added spinach and spring greens, as many sliced cherry tomatoes as possible, a chopped English cucumber, and a finely chopped shallot. I sliced a baguette and toasted it with olive oil and salt. Then I burned it and cut off the burned pieces. I tossed that into the salad, along with a full log of mozzarella cheese torn into pieces. For the dressing, I took out my nutribullet and added a big handful of basil and parsley, two garlic scapes, a handful of pine nuts, a big glug of olive oil and 2X that of red wine vinegar, and a large spoonful of whole grain mustard. Then more salt than one would think is necessary because it’s a big unseasoned salad. I blitzed this and poured the dressing over the salad and let the salad sit for about three hours before eating so the bread would soften.
Roasted chili crunch potatoes that I GREW IN MY GARDEN: Cut potatoes to approx the same size. Put into a large pot with water, add a big pinch of salt and bring to a boil. Simmer until potatoes are pierceable with a knife. Drain. Preheat oven to 400. Lay potatoes out on a sheet pan and with a potato masher, gentle smash each potato once so it’s flattened. Drizzle with olive oil and more salt than feels necessary. Use a spatula to make sure all potatoes are covered in olive oil and salt. Roast for 30 minutes until potatoes are very brown and crispy. After 30 minutes, check them. If they aren’t all crispy, mix them around and roast for another 10 minutes. Once they’re done, take a big spoonful of chili crunch and drop it on the still hot sheet pan and mix the potatoes around and into it.
Jamie Oliver’s steak salad: Gabby made this and did a bang-up job. It was perfect. Gabby also made that cocktail: He blended stone fruits with ice and spearmint. It was completely delightful. I had the NA version, but he also added A for those who wanted. Not pictured: Gabby made the skillet stone fruit streusel pie from Four & Twenty Blackbirds cookbook. I can’t express enough how good this pie is and what a wonderful baker Gabby is. I am very lucky. I forgive him for not liking cilantro.
Ice cream pie: This is a family recipe. Layer one: Homemade graham cracker crust (13 sheets of graham crackers and 8 tablespoons of butter smashed into a pie plate and baked at 350 for 10 minutes). Layer two: Three Hershey’s Symphony bars melted. Layer three: Ice cream of your choice. We did mint chip. Layer four: homemade whipped cream. It’s a pain in the butt to cut through but damn if it’s not the best thing in the world.
A couple of fun sales!
Reporting for duty!
30% off Hatch: For all my mamas-to-be, Hatch is having a great sale. It is a pain to buy maternity clothing because you know you won’t have it forever but also it sucks feeling like crap in your clothes. So…getting the good stuff on sale (that maybe you can even wear post-baby) is a good idea. Yes to maternity shorts and a good pair of jeans. Also, this jumpsuit.
Up to 30% off Brooklinen: There are a lot of bedding sales happening. I tend to like Brooklinen. Do a bundle for the best discounts!
Extra 15% off at Kule: I’m really tickled by this brand. Everything is so colorful and fun. Plenty of summery stuff is available, like these shorts. But I’m eyeing this pretzel crewneck for time indoors.
Extra 20% off Hawkins New York: Such a fun time to stock up on cool home items, like striped melamine plates and throws.
Up to 30% off Coming Soon: File these under things that make me happy: a bright shower curtain, a butt bath mat, a fresh and summery rug.
Up to 40% off Atelier Saucier: Upgrade your napkins and dare to delight in these confetti espresso cups.
Extra 10% off Goop Sale: Devastating at full price. Sad on sale. An extra 10% off? Now we’re talking. An excellent pleated skirt, summery shorts and more summery shorts (sizing limited), and a gorgeous blazer that would be so good for fall.
Up to 60% off Alex Mill: The way Alex Mill discounts, please remind me to not buy it full price. The deals are amazing and the quality is so good. This linen midi skirt please and this button down. Shorts for when it’s too hot to wear anything. Don’t forget the men’s stuff too.
A free planter with a plant purchase at The Sill: Plants make people happy. Do it!
Garmentory: Want to shop real small? I love looking at Garmentory for new and vintage items. I love these Shaina Mote painter pants, these wild coupes, and this extremely cheerful lemon-printed set.
On patriotism
Yesterday, as I’m sure many of you were, I was confronted with my patriotism. When I grew up, it all felt so simple: I loved America. It was a good place: a land of opportunity for all. Even though I never said the pledge of allegiance in school, I knew to put my hand over my heart at games and that the American flag should be respected. No one told to me to do these things. It was just learned from watching and existing in privilege here.
But recently, I’ve been finding myself saying a lot that I hate America. It’s like our friendship has soured.
But what do you do when your friend that you’ve always trusted starts lying to you? What do you do when they start turning their back on your family and other friends? What do you do when they start buying guns…and using them? When do they stop being your friend? When do you start to wonder if they ever really cared about you in the first place?
The thing is I don’t hate America. I just don’t know her anymore or maybe I never did. And I’m sad. More than that, I’m afraid.
I think my brand of patriotism is telling America that she’s going down a dark road: that her new bangs were a bad choice, that her boyfriend’s a dick. That keeping a gun in her purse only increases the chances that she’ll hurt someone and regret it. That she’s alienating all of the good-hearted people that once believed she could be something great: the immigrants looking for safety and freedom, the women who want abortions so can they work or escape bad men (and do whatever they need to do to take care of their bodies), the LGBTQIA+ people who want to marry their partners simply because they love them, the aging population that needs extra care in nursing homes, the low-income families that need SNAP benefits to get nutritious food on the table, and so many more.
As I sit here on July 5th, I wish I could have my friend back. But that patriotism of my youth, that all-encompassing trusting love, that feeling of safety no longer exists. So I’ll be here calling my old friend out on her bullshit until something changes.
Because I do love America. I just want her to live up to her promise.
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XO,
Rel
It is a dark moment in the history of the country, but perhaps there are some small things we can do that, together, when joined by the millions of people in this country who are decent and who want the best for all people who live here — not just the ones who voted for this president — will eventually make a difference:
1. Make sure the generations that follow us — our children, nieces and nephews, grandchildren, students — learn that “We The People” means every person who currently calls the United States home and not just white, affluent, straight, American-born men who vote Republican.
2. Hope that in the next four years of this administration, more and more Republicans will remember one of the two columns on which democracy stands: a democratically elected official must understand the difference between power and authority. That person has been given the authority to do certain things, while always supporting and defending the Constitution; the power remains with the people.
3. Vote.
As someone who lived through a dictatorship, I know that governments come and go. The America that you used to love and which is now disappointing you so deeply — eventually you will reconnect with her. It may take years and even more years to repair the immense damage done by this administration, but it will come back.
Keep writing, Ariel. It’s good for all of us who love your writing and who love you so much.
So eloquently put, Ariel. I’m feeling those same feelings so deeply. It feels particularly complicated after the last week…
On a lighter note, that menu sounds incredible!