This past weekend it officially became summer. Why? Because summer squash were at the farmer's market!
That was a dad joke, I apologize. But I was being somewhat serious; I know that summer is in full swing, that it's really the heart of the season, when the squash show up their wooden boxes, dirt still caked to their slightly spiky skins. They're the most beautiful yellow; bright and bold, they round out the color spectrum when they're next to the brilliant reds and oranges of the beets and carrots. I will never cease to be amazed at the colors the ground can produce (fewer dad jokes and more photos and recipes after the jump).
I love to roast the summer squash with patty pan squashes (best name ever) and zucchini; you just heat the oven to 385 degrees, cut them up to be about 1/2 inch thick, toss them in a bowl with a little olive oil and sea salt, and roast them for about 35 minutes. The timing doesn't have to be exact, just make sure you don't totally blacken their bottoms or you'll have trouble getting them off of the pan. They're also great on the grill; give each side around 7 minutes on high heat.
Now, for photos: last weekend I got to the market a little late and a lot of the produce was gone already. I was devastated at the selling-out of the squash blossoms and carrots, because not only did it mean I didn't get photos of them, I didn't get to eat them, either. Fear not, though, dear readers, because my mom and I went to the Wednesday market yesterday, and while I didn't bring my big camera, I did have my handy iPhone (and my cousin Andrew just taught me how to make collages, hence the photo above). I photographed AND bought carrots, beans, squashes, and all the other goodies I missed on Saturday. We hunted and gathered, and as a result had the best yellow bean salad for dinner (with salmon and sweet potatoes...uh-mazing).
So here's a collection of the iPhone photos I took yesterday and Saturday's rather sad Nikon haul. More to come next week, because I'm apparently obsessed with vegetables.
Beautiful blossoms. I want to learn how to fry these up with ricotta. Does anyone have a good recipe?
Blindingly bright carrots and beets.
Peaches!
I love Brae Maple Farm's sign.
Chard.
Lots of lettuce.
'shrooms galore!
