WRITTEN BY DERON LITTLE | PHOTOGRAPHY BY BEN GIBSON
Besides sunbathing on the beach and long, relaxing vacations, nothing else completes the long summer days like great food! From slow-smoked, fatty brisket and sweet fried plantain chips with guacamole to ice cream and apple pie. If it’s summer outside, it should be summer on your plate. So let other people relegate summer cooking to weekend picnics and road trips. We are going to bring summer to the table every day, all day.
Here are some summertime options–a fat red tomato eaten alfresco with a sprinkle of salt, the perfect lunch, or chopped tomato bruschetta. You may have eaten corn on the cob for the Fourth of July, but now is the time to get your fill. One of my favorite ways to eat it: on the cob, absolutely, with good butter and salt. But try it, too, with lime juice, salt and hot chili powder or slathered with fruity olive oil or basil pesto. Sauté off-the-cob kernels with chopped jalapeño and stir them into the batter for cornbread or muffins. Or add mushrooms to the corn in the pan, along with a dab of crème fraîche. Zucchini is another summertime favorite. If you have a vegetable garden, you know the drill. Yesterday’s tiny squash has grown to medium size seemingly overnight. I must say, there is nothing like an unblemished, shiny, just-picked zucchini, marinated with Italian dressing and grilled
to perfection.
At Seasons restaurant, we focus on the emotional experience that each season brings. Every plate is a symphony of flavors that work perfectly together, creating a satisfying meal. Our current summer menu represents this focus.
One of our featured items on our menu is our:
Summer Tomato Salad with Truffle Ricotta
Vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes layered with truffle ricotta cheese, baby field greens, crisp fried red onions and white balsamic vinaigrette with a pesto drizzle.
This is a very light dish that highlights the beautiful flavors of fresh, vine-ripened tomatoes. The key to this dish is the ricotta cheese spread. Below is the recipe for this very special and versatile cheese blend.
This is a very light dish that highlights the beautiful flavors of fresh, vine-ripened tomatoes. The key to this dish is the ricotta cheese spread. Below is the recipe for this very special and versatile cheese blend.
Truffle Ricotta Cheese
Ingredients:
6 oz sheep’s milk ricotta cheese
4 oz chevre goat cheese
1/2 tbs fine diced black truffle
1/2 tbs truffle oil
2 oz honey
2 oz sunflower seeds (salted)
2 sprigs chopped fresh thyme (leaves only)
Procedure:
Combine all ingredients together in a bowl. Mix well. Make sure to break up the goat cheese really well.
We hope you have a fantastic summer with your family and friends.
“The seasons are what a symphony ought to be: four perfect movements in harmony with each other.”
– Arthur Rubinstein