Hello, Summer. And Thank You, Portuguese Bringer of the Fava Beans!

I'm finally sitting down after a good five hours spent in the kitchen, and wow. It was such spontaneous joy.

It all started with a little Portuguese woman. I don't know who she is, only that my co-worker Todd knows her, and that every year around this time, she brings him garbage bags full of fava beans. And he never has the heart to tell her that actually, he just isn't quite up to growing callouses on his thumbs to shell & peel them, and so he brings them to work & implores that we take them off his hands. And that is how I find myself, once a year, with my own callouses after having shelled & peeled a big old mess of them like I did tonight, so they could enjoy a starring role in tonight's amazing impromptu summer bounty bachelor dinner!

That's right! No pizza or mac & cheese for this gal tonight. Tonight was all about those fava beans...


and shaved zucchini from our garden...



... and lots of other garden goodies too, like sweet as can be cherry tomatoes, cool and crunchy cucumbers that I can hardly believe I finally managed to grow, preserved lemon from our bountiful tree, and freshly cut parsley & marjoram (and shallots from the farmers market!).



It all would have been perfect just like that, but then there were fresh eggs from Riverdog Farm that I couldn't resist poaching in homemade vegetable broth, because I had just made it using all the ends of the vegetables from the week, so why not enjoy it right away?

All this chopping and slicing and poaching and shucking and shelling served as the perfect way to pass the time for hours while a big batch of granola slowly baked to perfection. Lots of dear friends & loved ones have birthdays or other occasions they're celebrating right about now, and I bet you can guess what they'll be getting from me! Yes, all my love and some of my granola. The gift that tastes good *and* keeps you regular!



But, I digress a little. There's no recipe really, nor much of a point to all my rambling tonight. I just had to stop & share my pure joy & gratitude for the fact that summer is here, and for all the sweet, crunchy, tender, vibrant gifts that come with it. Thank you, summer, and thank you, Todd, and most of all, thank you, little Portuguese woman of mystery for helping me to complete this warm & breezy summer night!