Crickets; watermelon salad

Not ONE comment or reaction to "the pillow." I'm in hysterics, y'all. Does everyone hate it? Methinks so. Hah!

Ok, have you made this salad yet? It is just too fabulous. I literally eat bowls of this daily. Arugula from my garden, newfound gem of a feta from the farmers market, melon, best quality oil and aged Balsamic, mint, salt and pep. You need to have this in your life!

Mint-pistachio pesto, another of The Nut

Dealing With Mint Overgrow

Friends, if you have not pot-bound your mint crop, you may be struggling with a mighty forest of this wonderful, pungent herb. Or, even if you have cordoned off your mint, you may still be in a state of overwhelm. Perhaps you've not done either of these things but nonetheless love mint and want to take it in a new direction.

All of these quandaries can be happily addressed with the following solution: Mint-Pistachio Pesto. You might recall that this recipe won Food 52's Your Best Mint contest, an honor of which I remain very proud. This pesto never disappoints and is very flexible- great on steaks, slathered on bread, atop grilled chicken, with grilled or roasted peaches, on pasta ...

Tonight I tossed it with steamed potatoes which prompted even anti-potato Oliver to try them. His response was fairly "meh," but he did try both the Yukon Gold and red-skinned potatoes, so I'll call that a success.

I also oven-roasted some salmon with a maple-Dijon sauce and topped with tiny spring onions from our yard. We pushed The Nut off the table and settled in.

The Nut Hunts

Favorite summer salad, plum-basil jam

Y'all, this salad is my go-to, cat's meow right now. I have at least one bowl every day! Have you made or are you already obsessed with watermelon- and feta-based salads? I like them with mint and aged balsamic; with a serrano-lime vinaigrette a la Hugh Acheson; with pistachios, mint, olive oil and Maldon salt; with tomatoes and arugula; and so on. Watermelon and feta are such a natural, winning pair. They love each other and make a terrifically sweet-salty foundation for many extras that float your boat.

Before digging in to one of those today, I made a batch of my plum-basil jam. I love this recipe. Just three ingredients meld magically over heat and what results is a beautiful coalescence that's at once sweet, tart and herbaceous. Beautiful!