This is neither a Weekend Treats nor a recipe post. This is a getting-back-in-the-posting-groove, I-have-to-share-this-dinner-I-totally-nailed post. Summer weather has finally arrived with gusto to Chicago. And for an easy, light, perfect summer dinner on a weeknight, this totally hits the spot. No real recipe here — just choose the elements you like the most, and chop/scoop/spoon/portion them onto a plate. As my sweet little sous chef likes to say, “it’s presentation!” Tonight’s components were:
- grape tomatoes marinated in a little balsamic vinegar
- 3 hard boiled eggs, sliced, sprinkled with fresh ground pepper
- N’s pecan pesto (recipe for this amazing pesto made by my sidekick coming soon!)
- 1/2 a ripe avocado, cut into chunks
- 1/2C almonds
- 1 Persian cucumber, halved and sliced
- extra sharp New Zealand cheddar cheese, cubed
- garlic-stuffed jumbo olives
- pimento stuffed (regular sized) olives
- two types of salami from our Farmer’s Market bounty yesterday: goat and a German kind the specific name of which I can’t remember
- fresh dill goat cheese (also from our Farmer’s Market bounty)
- sliced fresh Baguette (also from our Farmer’s Market bounty)
Everything about this was perfection. In keeping with our Meatless Mondays, I ate everything but the salami tonight, but to satisfy my MM-resistant husband, I added the salami in, because, salami. So many ways to combine these ingredients. It’s light, it’s filling, it’s beautiful. It’s totally kid-friendly. And you can change out 100% of these ingredients for your preferences. It’s simple, fast, fresh, and delicious.
We might eat some variation of this plate every night this summer. More posts coming this week!
