The 10 best things I ate this summer

some pictured, some not...potato salad recipe included!

Hi friends,

We’ve reached the end of the first week of September which means summer is not *quite* over but the back-to-school energy is undeniable. I’m starting to think about squash and making batches of roasted tomato sauce to put in my freezer… But I’m not quite ready for all of that, so today I thought I’d share some of the best things I ate this summer because celebrating food is a joy.

In no particular order, here are ten of the best things I ate this summer:

1. Potato salad. So much potato salad (pictured above with some other summer picnic salads from this class I taught). I like to let my chopped onion and celery marinate in vinegar and mustard while the potatoes cook, then mix those in while they’re warm so they absorb so much flavor. Mayo and parsley to finish. Potato salad recipe below!

2. A perfect summer meal with some of my best friends (photo above) included: potato salad (duh), grilled vegetables marinated in garlicky vinaigrette, grilled steak with chimichurri, grilled sausages, caprese salad made by my favorite 5 year old.

3. Halo halo (photo above) from Harana to celebrate 10 years of loving Grace.

4. Tons of cobbler (a tray pictured above with some peach + blueberry cobbler I shared with the amazing crew who helped us renovate our attic this summer).

5. A perfect ham, egg, and cheese with salt, pepper, ketchup + hot sauce from the drive-thru deli in Kerhonkson on my birthday (photo above).

6. The nearly 4-foot-long sandwich I served at the Queer Barbell Club summer party! (more about that here).

7. A sadly not photographed but unbelievably delicious seafood stew made with my BFF: simmered white fish in a rich tomato sauce made of sautéed fennel, onions + garlic with passata (crushed tomatoes) / in a separate pot, steamed some mussels and clams in garlic and white wine / combined the two pots / served bowls topped with parsley/lemon zest/garlic/olive oil mixture / ate with tons of bread.

8. So many tomato sandwiches — barely toasted white bread, mayo, tomatoes, salt and pepper. Heaven.

9. So many cups of vanilla soft serve with hot fudge and cones of vanilla with rainbow sprinkles from Cherries.

10. Hot dogs from Northwind Farms (SO GOOD) with mustard + sauerkraut.

11. Bonus: countless cans of Michelob Ultra while swimming + mowing my lawn (don’t at me…I love the stuff!).

Of course I want to know some of the things you most loved this summer — what did you eat that brought you joy?!??! Let us know in the comments!

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POTATO SALAD!!! (from Simply Julia)

• 1 1/2 pounds [680 g] baby yellow potatoes (about 30 small potatoes)

• Kosher salt

• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

• 1 1/2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

• 1 large celery stalk, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)

• 1/2 small red onion, finely chopped (about 1/4 cup)

• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise

• 1 large handful fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped (a little stem is fine)

Place the potatoes and a very large pinch of salt in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Set the saucepan over high heat and bring the water to a boil. Turn the heat to low and simmer until the potatoes are tender (test with a paring knife), about 15 minutes. Drain the potatoes in a colander and let them rest until they're just cool enough to handle, but still warm.

While the potatoes are cooking and resting, place the mustard, vinegar, and pepper in a large bowl with 1 teaspoon salt and whisk well to combine. Stir in the celery and onion.

Once the potatoes are cool enough to handle (but still warm—don't forget!), cut them in half and stir them into the mustard mixture. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature and then stir in the mayonnaise and parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 4 days (season to taste again if serving from cold).

I am SO EXCITED to be getting back to my regular Sunday classes this weekend — I’ve really missed teaching this summer. This weekend’s class is a ‘Make-Ahead Rosh Hashanah’ class which is really just a a great meal for fall entertaining and so many parts can be made ahead. See below for more details and you can sign up here! Hope to see you in class. Any questions? Just let me know! And, as always, if you want to join and $ is a barrier, just drop me a line and we’ll work something out.

**NOTE: If you sign up and don’t receive a confirmation email within a few minutes that includes the PDF of recipes/grocery list, just drop me a line! The platform I use has been a bit glitchy and some folks are getting their emails, but not everyone. I’m working on fixing this, but in the meantime don’t hesitate to let me know!!**

Take care everyone and happy September xo, Julia