Hey everyone...hope you had a great weekend! I CAN. NOT. BELIEVE. that it's the LAST week in August. NOT that I'M complaining! I couldn't be MORE excited that Saturday is SEPTEMBER 1st! (even if the forecast is "hot & humid"...bleh!) But I thought I'd show you 2 dinners we had where I actually EMBRACED the beauties of summer....
Starting with last Saturday where we piled into the car and took Miss Katie on her first ever annual beach picnic...
And like last time, we make a quick stop to Jersey Mike's subs along the way. Although this time we had someone to guard the bagJ
This year I went with the grilled veggie wrap, which was made with grilled peppers & onions, along with provolone cheese, shredded lettuce & ranch dressing on a wheat wrap...
This thing was SO. DAMN. GOOD! I was pleasantly surprised since I felt like branching out from my usual tuna fish. I will definitely get this one again!
So after out dinner and introducing Katie to the Atlantic...
....we made a quick stop before heading home. One that is so very necessary, it's a crime not to goJ
Hoffman's ice cream in Point Pleasant is TRULY some of the best ON. THE. PLANET! On our car ride home, Scott & I tried to rack our brains to think of anyplace better and really couldn't come up with one. (although Lake Champlain in Vermont, Flamingo Crossing in Key West & Berthillon in Paris rank right up there. And no, for the record, Italian gelato is just in a category unto itselfJ)
Again, we gathered up our tickets. (At least this time they were already on 37 when we got there!)
And I got my VERY favorite from there: Chocolate Chip...and a scoop of a now NEW favorite: BROWNIE ALA MODE!
For the love that is all good & holy, if you are in NJ...GET. TO. HOFFMAN'S! The chip ice cream tastes like pure whipped CREAM, dotted with chocolate CHUNKS....while the Brownie, oh my the brownie, had chunks of brownie bites & swirls of fudge. Just too die for!!
Even if SOMEONE was NOT impressed...J
Last night's dinner was another definite embrace of 'summer delights,' if I do say so myself...
It all started with these beautiful zebra tomatoes I found at the farmer's market on Saturday. The end of August is certainly the peak of tomato harvest season in Jersey and I knew I had to give a new variety a try..
So while at the market, I also gathered up some fresh mozzarella...
....a nice loaf of Italian bread...
...and PLENTY of fresh basil.
(and don't forget the sea salt & good quality olive oil to bring out all of the great flavors!!)
A quick roast of the sweet zebra tomatoes...
...and a chip chop of the rest of the ingredients and dinner was served! (oh yeah...I tossed some sliced prosciutto on there for good measure tooJ)
Load everything up on a slice of baguette and you have the perfect summer bites!
I was so happy I had tried the SUPER SWEET zebra tomatoes even though they were not the ones I usually pick out. The market is the GREAT place to find & try out produce you might not be familiar with. And even better yet, you have plenty of farmers & workers there who will give you the 'insider tips' on what are great for different types of dishes. (comes especially handy in the fall when you have 87 varieties of apples and someone there to tell you what's great to eat vs. great to bake!)
Have a great Monday!J
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