It was kind of a strange weekend weather-wise. Saturday dawned murky and humid. The sky was a washed-out gray. We took Mia down to Wayne to the farm stand to buy the ingredients for our veggie-loaded menu. They have the best sweet corn and Jersey tomatoes. It was so humid and hazy that as we drove, drops of moisture collected on the windshield and it was not raining. The air was that dense.

We came home and took advantage of the pool for a little while, just sitting out there reading while Robby the Robot cleaned the pool. I looked at the radar and saw that a storm was headed our way, so we got the robot out of the pool and came inside. And just in time too. The heavens parted and rain poured down from the sky. And it just kept coming. We got over an inch of rain in very little time. It rained on and off for the rest of the day and was still drizzling when we went to bed.

Dinner was delicious! We tried a new recipe: Corn Fritters with Roasted Tomatoes.

The tomatoes were slow roasted in the oven for about an hour and half, melting them down to intensely flavored rounds. The fritters were light and fluffy. The recipe called for topping it with a slice of prosciutto, but we thought it was basically not necessary. In fact, next time we’d probably leave it off and also make a different aioli to dress it with.

Prosciutto is pretty though, isn’t it?

We had fritters leftover, so breakfast also featured fritters under our over-easy eggs. I can’t tell you how good this was!

Sunday morning kind of looked the same way that Saturday morning looked: hazy and gray. It didn’t stop us from taking Mia again, this time up to Warwick for the farmer’s market. We had originally thought to buy ingredients for a simple salad, but we realized that we had bought a watermelon at the farm stand that we needed to use up.

I had seen a recipe for a Watermelon Gazpacho but couldn’t remember exactly what went into it. Thank goodness for technology as Rick looked it up on his iPhone right then and there at the market. We bought bread, (not in the gazpacho recipe!) a gorgeous cucumber, a jalapeño pepper, flat leaf parsley and shallots. No red peppers were available at the market so we had to stop at the grocery to pick one up.

It was so refreshing! Delicious!

Half of the ingredients were pureed in the food processor, but some were kept out to stir in for texture.

We ate out by the pool and it was lovely. I cut a couple of hydrangea blossoms to put on the table and stuck them in one of my favorite little vases.

Just as we finished up our lunch it started to rain. At first it was just a light rain and we were under the umbrella so it didn’t bother us. Then it started to rain hard and the dogs didn’t all fit under the protection of the umbrella and they were getting soaked, so we packed up and came inside not trusting it to stop anytime soon.

It rained for a bit, then the sun came out. We went back to the pool and in the pool. Another round of clouds came by. We got out of the pool. The sun came out. We got back in the pool.

By that time it was time to start on guess what? More food! It does seem like all we do is eat!

I was mostly in charge of the risotto.

Rick was completely in charge of the chicken done on the grill with indirect heat. Chickens cook faster when they are spatchcocked. (I know it sounds a bit nasty but all it means is it’s split down the middle of the back and flattened.)

The weather cooperated and it was a nice evening complete with a swim. The cicadas started in as we completed our swim and nearly sang us to sleep as we sat and watched night fall more deeply around us.

“Spatchcocked”—now THERE’s a word I’ve never heard before!

When I was in the Peace Corps, all the volunteers used to joke about how much time in the day went toward buying food, lugging it home, cooking and eating. But that’s because we were visiting separate market stalls, buying all fresh stuff, and shopping every day for that day’s menus. The result was REALLY good food. That seems like how you’re cooking—it takes time, but it’s worth it!

sounds like a perfect week-end! 

Steve, I know ... spatchcocked is a strange word! I guess you are right, we do eat like that but mostly on the weekends. And it is worth it!

Maggie, I know, what could be better than good food (with a little wine thrown in) !

Your food looks delicious - especially the chicken.  How great that you have access to such lovely food markets.

Yuummm those corn fritters do indeed look good - and of course you know I agree - prosciutto totally unnecessary!  We had lots of rain too on Saturday - at one point I looked out and saw the outside cat food dish floating by on the patio!

C, yes of course I would agree with you as well. In this case the prosciutto was not necessary, but in the risotto I would have to disagree! The corn fritters with the roasted tomatoes were so tasty just by themselves!

Yes to the corn fritters!!! I’d rather not see the chicken in such an undignified posture, but glad I didn’t see it pre-grilled. (you know me and chicken. I eat it and like it, but would rather not think about how it looks and feels before it is cooked.) I know…I’m not normal!!

Bigsis, it’s a chicken for pete’s sake! And no, you are not normal where chicken is concerned!