Sunday Morning Coffee: July 5, 2020

Good morning.

I hope today finds you well and rested after what felt like a somewhat muted 4th of July weekend. It makes a ton of sense why this year’s holiday felt different: we’ve spent much of the spring and summer reckoning with the flaws of our nation’s present and history, and because of the pandemic, the gatherings are small and fireworks (at least the shows put on by the city) are cancelled.

Instead, we got a fly-over of military jets, which, while it thrilled my kids, was a bit bizarre and felt out of sync with the reflection and introspection I’m noticing people engage in.

This has felt like a holiday weekend in someways, with Friday being a day off for David, we were able to slow down a bit and spend more time together. We went strawberry & blueberry picking: I didn’t realize we were getting there just in time on the last day of strawberry season, so the pickings were somewhat slim but still delicious. The blueberry season was just starting, and I’d never gone blueberry picking before, so that was new and fun.

Here’s what I’ve been reading and cooking this week:

What I’ve Been Reading & Enjoying Recently:

I shared a lot of favorite recipes for backyard cookouts on my Instagram feed & stories (not necessarily 4th of July themed, but they were ones I considered for this weekend):
Vivian Howard’s blueberry BBQ chicken
Deviled eggs with a hint of dill (I tried Simply Recipe’s steaming eggs method and misread the instructions so went back to Martha Stewart’s classic method.)
Saveur’s ceviche-like pickled shrimp (a delightful, crisp, cool dish for a hot day)
Half-baked Harvest’s blueberry Basque cheesecake

I ended up baking Silver Palate cookbook’s peach cake, which was a big hit.

On to non-food subjects:
Having spent a lot of time in the garden this summer, I’m also now thinking about bringing more plants into the kitchen.

Continuing to connect with #BLM with this impressive NYTimes piece: “My Body is a Confederate Monument”

Also: “A Bittersweet Moment for Black Bookstore Owners”

It’s July now, and it seems people are starting to turn their attention to what the school year might look like this coming fall. So far, I’m a bit nervous about how this will all play out. My program has announced it’s going online and is engaging this summer in pedagogical initiatives to help ensure the quality is on par with what folks need and expect. But for the public school systems for my kiddos… there’s a lot still up in the air.

Deb Perleman (who I love from her food blog Smitten Kitchen), writes that you can have a career or kids this fall, but not both.

Emily Oster, who writes from an Economist’s perspective on parenting topics, shared this piece on learning loss and inequalities.

What I’ve Been Cooking This Week:

Sunday: Caramelized onion + sun-dried tomato pasta with green beans
Monday: Southwest salad with black beans and corn, paired with guacamole and chips
Tuesday: Leftovers
Wednesday: Grilling bratwurst and guac.
Thursday: Homemade mac & cheese with roasted broccoli
Friday: Leftovers (and 4th of July prep)
Saturday: Appetizer noshes of strawberry & tomato bruschetta and deviled eggs, then grilling BBQ chicken and cheeseburgers alongside potato salad and a green salad with tomatoes, bell pepper, and ranch dressing.