Summer Chopped Salad
Is it really August?
August is a bounty month. The ferocity of summer has a ticking clock now and every possible vegetable you love about summer is about to explode with availability. I saw an heirloom tomato recently that looked liked it was tie-dyed by a dead head (Grateful Dead super fan). Eggplants are in the market and bushels of sweet corn will be rupturing at their closures so soon. August, for New Yorkers, signifies the inevitable return of it’s residents. REAL New Yorkers stay in the city during the summer, I said what I said.
August promises the continuation of late sunsets and the slightly chilly mornings. There is another heat wave lurking sure to wallop everyone into exhaustion with the season everyone begged for after a wretched winter. Spring this year was a full on surprise with the thick cumulus dotting the sky and glorious temps. I could’ve lived in spring forever. I felt lucky I didn’t experience seasonal allergies as harsh as previous years. August though, there’s something about August.
I’m perpetually jealous of students going back to school in August. The butterfly feeling of not knowing what your teachers will be like. Seeing how your friends changed every summer. Inevitably, one person tanned exceptionally well while everyone else has either changed their hair or how they style themselves. That first day back to school was always a complete declaration of who you were going to be that year. As embarrassing and controlling as school can be, I kind of miss it.
Last year in August I participated in the Lions Gate Portal for manifestation. I have an emailed scheduled to be delivered to myself a year from the date I scheduled it. After I read it, depending on how it goes, I might even participate in doing a little manifestation email every year. Regardless of the portal, I’ve been thinking about August and it’s significance to focusing on whats of value.
August has always felt like summers “spring cleaning.” Time has been on my mind quite a bit lately. I used to leave my phone at home and I had a steady rule for social media which was “only post.” I wouldn’t scroll for hours, I would simply use it as the nasty little bitch she is and put ‘er down. I sincerely miss a version of me existing two-three years ago. Inquisitive, curious, regimented, structured, boundaried, creatively expressive, dare I say fun? What an opportune time to see what I’ve may or may not manifested for myself and do a full Scorpio clean sweep a.k.a. death and rebirth cycle to emerge a little more informed and ready for what the rest of the year brings.
Summer Chopped Salad
One of the joys in life is sitting down to a big chopped salad as dinner. When a meal is a full fledged salad with invigorating components, you have my full attention. I have been sleeping a bit on my market trips to secure the seasons gold. This is my attempt to reimagine the ways I use market produce in the canon of chopped salad. When I think about making this salad in retrospect, there was a beautiful and poetic moment with how few appliances I touched to procure a gorgeous feast. Most of the ingredients are manipulated by hand. If I play my cards right, dinner comes together before you can say “chop chop.”
Serves 2 as dinner, 4 as lunch
ingredients:
1 - 15.5 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
120 ml extra virgin olive oil, divided, plus more for drizzling
2-3 ripe and juicy heirloom tomatoes, of different varieties, stem trimmed and cut into abstract geometric pieces
