Corn, Bacon & Clam Stew. Recipe from Food52.
Now is a good time. Corn and tomatoes are still sweet and juicy. Sunny basil hobnobs with moody rosemary. Wintry cruciferous veggies gesture towards the upcoming Season of Feasting, while roast fish with Old Bay and Panko keep summer alive. And -- my book is almost ready to be shipped out to editors. This is it. Soon it will be out in the open market. wowowowow.
In the meantime, I am thinking of ideas for my second book* and trying to take things a day at a time. I'm also enjoying weekends that let me practice the fine (and difficult) art of relaxation. (Thank you to our awesome hosts, Lin and Steve!)
The Corn, Bacon & Clam Stew (above) was inspired by a slew of corn porn I lasciviously devoured the week before. The roasted hake fillet was criminally simple -- a swipe of olive oil, a massage of Old Bay, a blizzard of panko. Roast for 10 minutes for a supple fish with a floppy flake.
For sides, we had what makes us the most happy. 1) Brussels sprouts with apple, walnuts and bacon. I kept the baby sprouts whole and cut the adults into ribbons to play with texture and maturity and char. 2) Caprese salad with fresh Hamptons heirlooms and just-picked backyard basil. And 3) roasted cauliflower, a year-round staple in my book, and tossed with rosemary.
We finished with a peach and raspberry pie with fresh-whipped cream and vanilla ice cream. The pie is made by Farmer Harry and family. Their Maize Maze is still going strong, the pumpkins are big and beautiful, the family owns land that'd make a real estate broker go bonkers. They are very happy people, and it shows in the buttery, sandy spiced crumb on top of this pie.
* Don't know what the story will be, but the second book will in the present tense, possibly with multiple points-of-view.