It’s summer and every meal must be eaten outdoors!  Okay, not every meal (sometimes something really good is on TV!), but as many as possible.  Mainly to escape the heat of our house, but also because sitting at an actual table without our distraction, surrounded by natural light and the lovely sounds of summer — aka, the kids next door setting off fireworks, but also birds chirping and a slight sweet breeze through the trees — is the epitome of happiness.

Simple Flaky Crab Cakes + Roasted Carrots and Red Leaf Lettuce Salad with Buttermilk Herb Dressing

Two recipe repeats that I had been dying to make again since last spring!  They were every bit as delicious as I remembered them being.  Get that good crab from Slidell, LA and maybe put some of that buttermilk dressing on the crab cakes too then let that wave of euphoria wash right over you.  Because Katie Lee is my food spirit animal, she is a trusted salad recipe resource!

BBQ Chicken Burgers

I’ve had these burgers pinned for SO LONG and we just finally made them.  What a mistake that was!  I should have made them so so long ago and I could have been enjoying them for so much longer.  DO NOT MAKE THIS LIFE MISTAKE.  They could not have been fatter or juicier or more BBQ flavor-packed.  We loved them SO MUCH!

Sesame Soba Noodles + Ginger-Miso Grilled Asparagus 

I’ve made about 50 iterations of sesame soba noodles in my life but I really and truly loved this version!  The ingredient list was short and I had it all on hand, plus the noodles were perfectly coated.  Also, soba noodles only need to cook for something like 3 minutes, which is key if you’ve yet to install your window A/C unit and are looking for things that minimally heat your kitchen.  All sesame soba noodles aside, THESE ASPARAGUS!  I love a ginger-miso situation and I’d never grilled asparagus before so it felt life-changing.

Summer Bliss Bowls with Sweet Potato Falafel

I’ll be upfront and tell you this recipe does not provide clear falafel frying instructions.  Is it a pan-fry?  A deep-fry?  How hot does the oil need to be??  Ahh!  But relax, because I’m here to guide you to sweet potato falafel success.  Put a 1/2″ of vegetable oil in your cast iron skillet, turn that heat HIGH, then fry each falafel for 3-4 minutes, flip to the other side and repeat.  But these babies are just half the fun because jalapeño ranch, grilled corn, goat cheese, heirloom tomatoes and a sprinkle of fresh dill = a bowl of pure summer… uh bliss.  Okay, this recipe is aptly named!

Curried Grilled Chicken Thighs + Curried Cauliflower Salad with Yogurt

Remember when I came home from a weekend facial and Joey was in the kitchen, making yellow curry paste from scratch and I was like “who are you and what have you done with my husband?!”  This is where that curry paste went and HOLY MOLY so worth making from scratch and so very delicious.  Chicken thighs for president!  It’s maybe not cauliflower season but whatever because these two recipes went together so well.  We were both so delighted by this dinner.

In conclusion, Summer ’17 is off to a delicious start.  Where can we go from here?!