Eat this right now

You have maybe a week left in which to catch fresh figs at the market. Go get some and rinse them off. Quarter a few (three or four) and toss them with arugula, olive oil, lemon juice, pepper and salt, and toss with a few shavings of pecorino. Comme ca.

Post haste!

Get it while it's hot

I'm allowing myself one more post about summer produce, because the sweet corn has all but disappeared, the heirloom tomatoes will soon all but disappear and it will be all squash and kale until next May.

Here we have simple grilled ribeye made just a touch better with grape tomatoes and garlic quickly sauteed in a hot pan, just until the baby tomatoes start to wilt and blister, finished with a few shredded basil leaves. It's late summer on a plate in ten minutes flat.




Guacamole and ceviche are already well-worn territory in these pages, but to round out a beer-and-margaritas scene one night I made these Sriracha chicken wings from Food & Wine. I have a hard time finding or making adequately spicy Buffalo sauce at home, and even a lot of bars' wings are subpar (paling in comparison to the fiery excellence of Ouch wings at Blondies); these give off a fruity heat that makes a great appetizer and/or complement to conventionally spicy or salty foods.

And finally, an early-September trifecta -- an improvised succotash of corn, tomatoes, favas, and a little onion, charred in a dry skillet, accompanied by scallops stuffed with summer basil and accompanied on the grill by some gorgeous peaches.

It's all vanishing before your eyes. Get yourself to the farmer's market quick!