Summer eating, had me a blast!

Why, hello there.  Yes, it certainly has been awhile.  I would tell you about how busy I have been, but I don't think you even want to hear that since I haven't been working since mid-June.  I really thought with summer would come nap-time afternoons full of free time - time for reading, blogging, napping, etc.  Instead, I just finished the same book I had been reading since before school was out, I haven't blogged since the kids' birthdays, and I have not napped at all ok I have snuggled up a few times with Cooper for nap time.  But on the whole, I am amazed at how busy we have been and how the days have just flown by.  Today may be the first day all summer we do not have anything on the agenda (I can't shake this feeling that I am missing an appointment either...).

As a reintroduction to the blog, I thought I would share a few summer favorites for each meal.  Summer cooking/eating is oh so different around here.  Instead of planning out the meals for the whole week and going to the store on Sundays, I mosey to the store 2-3 times a week with the kids (and also try to hit up the farmer's market or local produce stands) to pick up whatever seems the most fresh around here.  Things aren't nearly as thought out as they are during the school year, but we still manage to have some pretty delicious tasting things.  And the best part is, I actually get to make/eat breakfast since I don't have to be out the door before 7 am.

My new favorite breakfast dish:  Avocado Arugula Toast

I realize this is really trendy right now and I do not claim to have made this up, but the important thing is, it's delicious!  The idea for this came from a combination of Williams-Sonoma IG posts (Do you follow them? You should!) and my July Birchbox (which included 12 challenges for improving yourself, one of which was to incorporate more vegetables into breakfast).  I just use a sourdough bread (or any bread, bagel, english muffin) and lightly toast.  I top with sliced avocados, arugula and finish with a little oil (I use a delicious truffle oil) and sea salt.  So easy and oh so tasty!

For lunch, we usually have leftovers from dinner the night before and I have been happily enjoying them (and keeping our refrigerator relatively clean).  One of my favorite dinner options, though, that doubles as a great lunch option is Chicken Salad with Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato.

I have been getting daily emails from allrecipes.com with recipe ideas and this was winner, winner, chicken dinner for us one night.  We have tried it more than once, using grilled chicken once and roasted chicken the other time, and it was delicious both times.  The grilled chicken does add a little bit more flavor (tip: While grilling something else for dinner the night before, throw the chicken on the grill; after it is cooked and cools, put it in the refrigerator and it is ready to go whenever you want it!), but is not necessary.  I have also made with real bacon and packaged bacon bits, and while the real bacon may be a bit tastier, it is not necessary (and so much easier to just use the prepackaged pieces!).  The key things for us on this is using a good butter lettuce as the base for the salad.  We also like to drizzle some truffle oil over the top as a finish.  I'm looking forward to making this again soon with fresh local tomatoes as they are starting to surface around here.

One of my all-time favorite summer dinner meals is Five-Herb Grilled Chicken with Green Aioli.  

I found this gem while browsing Food & Wine magazine last summer.  It appealed to me 1. because I love good, grilled chicken with the skin on (I always prefer thighs to a breast, quarters or whole chicken) and 2. because I always have most of the herbs needed on hand in the garden.  The most amazing part of this meal, though, is the grilled bread that goes on the side.  Trust me when I say, the chicken, bread and aioli will be a complete and satisfying meal together; no additional sides needed the only additional thing needed is a glass of crisp sauvignon blanc to go with it.  Sorry for the poor photo on this one but we usually aren't wasting any time once this meal comes off the grill.

Happy Monday, friends.  I hope these meals give some inspiration to your meal planning this week.  And my goal is to try to share at least one recipe per week going forward from here - feel free to hold me to it!