Seasonal Sundays (Week 22) Memorial Day

We're turning a corner here, recipe-wise, switching to ideas that express summer in both ingredient and spirit. Like summer salads that might yet be useful for the long weekend (in the US) and summer meals throughout the week. Summer has indeed arrived ...

~ Skip Straight to the Good Stuff ~

Welcome to Seasonal Sundays ...

More Funny Things I Learned During the Pandemic: for Americans, this is Memorial Day Weekend! I entirely missed this date on the calendar, perhaps because, really, who needs a calendar right now?

For us, the long weekend is just another three (good) days, still working, still gardening, still reading, still loving long phone visits, still simple cooking, still loving our dog ... and at the same time, still worrying about the future and those we love but keeping the worries at bay.

And I must ask, How is life for you now????

This week, I heard someone say, "It's horrible!" Is it horrible for you too?

This woman is a NYC-escapee "cooped up" (her words) with kids/husband somewhere Upstate and co-mingling bubbles with a family next door. Horrible? Really? I'm no fan of the absurdity coming out of Washington but really, isn't this one on her?

And so yeah, this probably isn't the weekend anybody envisioned or planned (we were scheduled to be in Chicago for a family wedding ...) but you know what, it's a long weekend and summer starts now and ... let's just deal with it, shall we?

About the Photo By Popular Request, a Little Insight into the Top Image: My dad asked about poppy flowers this week, those little paper ones that the American Legion offers in exchange for donations. Why poppies for Memorial Day? Recommended Reading: The Poppy: A Symbol of Memorial Day. Poppies are northern flowers, they thrived in our Minnesota neighbor Emily's garden but she fumed and scolded when my childhood trouble-maker-in-crime and I nabbed bright petals to shape beds for our thumbelina dolls in the Vs of the paper birches near the river. Just last week, my friend and I laughed as she recalled this fond memory ... thank you, coronavirus, for putting me back in touch with old friends and Canadian cousins for long catch-up visits.

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PICK ONE

Pick One is for those of us overwhelmed by life's unending choices. If that resonates, then check out this one recipe and then call it a day. It's one that I think could make the most difference, the one I hope will become a regular in your kitchen, as it is in mine.

• THE RECIPE Strawberry Milk Not a smoothie, almost a strawberry milkshake.

Compliments!

• "I just love your recipe ... The first time, I made half the recipe for the two of us. That just wasn't enough so I made the whole recipe the next time. I was very pleasantly surprised to see that the avocados stayed very nice for about the three days it took to finish the bowl." ~ Linda
• THE RECIPE Smitten Kitchen's Avocado-Cucumber Salad

Morning Breads

• THE RECIPE Rhubarb Muffins Whole grain, less sweet.

The Gathering Hour

• THE RECIPE Easy Easy Grilled Mushroom Appetizer The definition of "Summer Easy" ...

One Meal --> Total Grill Master!

Speaking of grills ...

Let's just say that the grill and I, well, we're not so well-acquainted. I got by fine until I met this big guy and, well, the man can cook anything outside.

We have a China box for cooking whole animals (pigs, lambs, turkeys, etc.), a smoker, a wood-fired Grillery, a Cowboy Grill / firepit, a collapsible cast iron rack, even a giant "butterfly spit" to hold a whole bison. (Yeah. Whole. Here's the story.)

Funny thing is, the man doesn't even need all that iron: the man once hoosiered a "smoker" with concrete blocks, the top of a Weber grill and ... a hillside.

But still, with all that, is it any wonder that the built-in gas grill got lost in the shuffle? We had it refurbished 18 months ago but still, I just didn't feel called.

But then! My cousin Lynda mentioned that she and her husband grill almost every night and swear by these non-stick sheets. I ordered a set the same day and last night, opened the package and 30 minutes later, one of the very best meals I've cooked in a long, long time was on the table.

I grilled butternut squash rounds plus some carrots and celery. (We are low on vegetables at the moment, that's all there was!) With just a little oil, salt and pepper? So good!

Then I mixed "my" burgers (I so owe you that Master Recipe!) and there it was, a hot dinner in 30 minutes.

The clean-up? One paper towel.

The best thing still? I felt like a total rock star on the grill and am already thinking what to cook next ...

• THE PRODUCT Kona Non-Stick Grill Mats (affilate link) My Disclosure Promise

Seasonal Showcase: Early-Summer Salads

• THE RECIPE (pictured) Strawberry Pepper Salad Worthy of the best of berries
• THE RECIPE Strawberry Spinach Salad Makes the most of supermarket strawberries

• THE RECIPE Confetti Potato Salad Great for small-to-large gatherings, no mayo!

• THE RECIPE Celery & Chickpea Salad

• THE RECIPE Cauliflower Salad with Fresh Herbs Steamed cauliflower tossed in a vinaigrette with fresh herbs.

Easy Summer Suppers

• THE RECIPE Lemon & Asparagus Pasta Light and bright for spring

What's New?!

• THE RECIPE Spinach Burgers

Light & Fluffy Egg, From the Microwave?!

• THE RECIPE Homemade Egg McMuffin A family favorite!

Just Updated!

• THE RECIPE Estonian Deviled Eggs It's got a secret ingredient!

A Summer Masterpiece

• THE RECIPE Perfect All-Rhubarb Pie Pie perfection!
• THE COLLECTION Rhubarb Recipes The motherlode of rhubarb recipes ...

Text Me Back!

I'd love to hear from you. Comment, send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com, dot-dash in Morse code, build a fire for smoke signals, launch a message in a bottle, send a Christmas letter, get the dog to yip, toss me a note wrapped in a rubberband, write a message in the sky, scratch a note in the sand, listen to a seashell, whatever.

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.

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