The best BLT (and my first peach pie!)

Beyond the occasional Dottie G from Cardona’s, I’m not much of a sandwich person. Most days, I’d rather avoid the carbs from the bread and just have a salad. But, during the height of tomato season, the siren call of a blt is undeniable.

I must have one.

This beautiful specimen may be the epitome of summer eating at its finest – freshly baked no-knead bread, tomatoes less than 24 hours from the vine, Oscar’s (iykyk) smoked Canadian bacon, crunchy lettuce and, the coup de gras, homemade mayonnaise.

Simply delicious.

Dessert was equally luscious – freshly baked peach pie with Stewart’s Philly Vanilla. The pie was based on this recipe with the addition of a dash of both ginger and cinnamon and about 1/2 the sugar the recipe advised. My peaches were as fresh as can be (I picked them myself at Dubois Farms* in Highland) and were ridiculously juicy, making for a filling that was a tad soupy. Next time, I’ll trust my judgement and add another tablespoon or two of flour to thicken the juices a tad.

Runny filling be damned – my pie was fantastic.

As the days yield earlier and earlier to the night, this peak of local produce will shift to heartier crops of colorful squashes and root vegetables. This is the time to indulge in all the good stuff that is truly at its best for mere weeks of the year. Get picking!

*There were many reminders at this extensive farm with regard to sampling the produce prior to weighing and purchasing. Despite this often repeated, both verbally and in print, request, I was appalled by how many people broke that rule. Perhaps if there were less eating of the farm’s fruit the price would be lower than the current $4.99 lb.