Have A Summer Dinner Party

August 15, 2008 | By | COMMENTS

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The weekend is here and you’re finally free to relax, to read, to toast yourself in the sun. But here’s what I think you should do: on Saturday? Go to a farmer’s market. If you don’t have one in your town, ok, you’re off the hook; but if you do, head over there and buy a bunch of fruits and vegetables. Buy zucchini and make Clotilde’s carpaccio (as you see above); buy beets and shred them in your food processor for Mark Bittman’s raw beet salad; buy carrots too and shred them before the beets, actually, so they don’t turn red and make David Lebovitz’s carottes râpée. Invite friends over and if that’s not enough to feed you and your guests, make Luisa’s focaccia di patate which I’ve made before and can’t get enough of…

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Or, for a true summer treat, buy two boxes of heirloom tomatoes from Eckerton farms (from the Union Square farmer’s market), wash them, slice them in half or in quarters and toss them with thinly sliced red onion, lots of shredded basil, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper and LOOK how pretty:

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And if you’re really keen to impress, you could make Suzanne Goin’s roasted pork loin with mustard breadcrumbs, which I made for my designers last year and again recently for a special guest:

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However far you go, this is the time to have people over, to toast glasses of chilled rosé, to play Astrud Gilberto albums, and to enjoy all the goodness that summer has to offer. Soon, you’ll be wearing your winter jacket, dispirited, unwilling to walk out the door to buy a carton of milk and cereal. Seize the summer and have a summer dinner party before it’s too late!

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  • Janice

    This morning I was sitting here wondering what to make for dinner tonight. Thanks for the reminder to take advantage of the remaining summer days and enjoying the available vegetables. I’m inspired!!

  • janice

    Thanks for the reminder to take advantage of the remaining summer days and fresh vegetables. I’m so inpsired now!!!

  • http://thefoodmonsterblog.blogspot.com The Food Monster

    We started a tradition in College called Family dinner, me and the roommates would invite a few friends over and make something once a week. I yearn for that frequency, as now it is about once a month. Thanks for the encouragement.

    -The Food Monster

    http://thefoodmonsterblog.blogspot.com

  • http://ayankeeinasouthernkitchen.com ayankeeinasouthernkitchen

    Wow, what a fresh summer dinner you made. I can see why you can’t get enough of Luisa’s focaccio!

  • http://www.miriamleigh.com Miriam

    What a feast you prepared! I don’t eat pork but–can this be?–my mouth watered at the sight of the pork loin.

  • Jessica

    Amazing! I just had friends over for an impromptu dinner party last week after I had gone to the farmers’ market that morning – and made fried zucchini rounds, a tomato salad much like yours, and grilled corn to round it out. But, two such similar dishes. Clearly we are brilliant people.