Sabrina,
I want to be in Martha’s Vineyard with you – all of this seafood looks incredible. I will definitely try your cod recipe. And I have had Oysters Rockefeller, but didn’t think about having it with clams. I can’t wait to try Peter’s restaurant with you the next time I am in New York.
My update is that I have been reading a book called Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and The Teachings of Plants, by Robin Wall Kimmerer. She’s a Potawatomi botanist and poet who writes about the importance of melding indigenous knowledge with scientific knowledge if we want to repair our relationships with the earth. I think you would love this book if you haven’t read it.
I just read her chapter about how wild strawberries are the perfect gift from the earth, and was thinking about this a lot this weekend because I went on a blackberry picking expedition with some friends outside of London.
England is full of wild blackberries – they grow in the forests and in the fields and even in the hedgerows along the roads. Last summer it was dry, and the blackberries were shriveled and sour. Apparently this summer has been ideal blackberry conditions (this is very hot news about town). The blackberries are perfect - they’re juicy and sweet and plentiful. Like Robin Wall Kimmerer says, they really are such a nice gift.
After an afternoon of roaming some fields we were covered in scratches and nettle stings, but we had several tubs full of berries. So, I have been thinking about the best things to make with them, and wanted to share a few ideas in case you are also flush with summer berries.
Eton Mess
I didn’t know about Eton Mess until I moved to England – if you haven’t had it, it’s crunchy meringue broken up in a bowl, topped with whipped cream and fresh berries. I am always too lazy to make meringue, but if you buy some pre-made meringues you can make this very quickly (here’s a classic BBC recipe)
Ice cream sundae with berry coulis and granola
The ice cream stand in the park by my flat sells vanilla soft serve topped with a raspberry coulis and granola (here’s their cookbook). It’s the perfect combo of sour and crunchy and sweet. I want to make a homemade blackberry coulis version (with Samin’s granola, of course)
Allison Roman’s Crushed Blackberry and Cornmeal Cake
This is a super simple cake to make, more like making a muffin batter than a cake. The cornmeal makes it more interesting and less sweet. I’ve made this before and then eaten it for breakfast for a few days and felt very happy.
Berry shortcakes
A homemade biscuit topped with fresh whipped cream and berries cannot be beat. I usually make them with strawberries, but I think blackberries macerated in some lemon and sugar would also work well.
Goat cheese bruschetta with honey, blackberries, and thyme
I have not actually tried this, but I am mentally inventing this and I think it would be nice?
A running letter between long distance friends who love to eat
Do you miss your best friend? Are really hungry you right now? If the answer to either of these is yes, you know what to do.