recipe: fried squash

Hello there, squash. So nice to eat you. 

I picked the first squash from my garden this week, and Tony and I ate it as a side dish with our Fourth of July dinner. In true American fashion, I took this completely healthy vegetable ... and fried it. 

Fried Squash

• 1 medium yellow squash
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup cornmeal 
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil for frying

Slice squash to desired thickness, around 1/4-inch to 1/8-inch. Whisk egg in bowl, and dip squash into egg wash. In separate bowl, mix cornmeal, salt and pepper, and coat squash with cornmeal.  

Heat olive oil in large frying pan over medium heat, and fry squash until golden brown, a few minutes per side. Remove from frying pan and set on paper towels to drain excess oil. One medium squash will make enough for 2 to 3 people as a side dish.  

There's the finished product, accompanying burgers and potato salad.

<3

Tony and I took advantage of the mid-week holiday to catch up on Season 4 of True Blood on DVD. Then we made the best of the hot weather by going for a swim at Camille and Matt's place. Where we were greeted by Gibbs, who is a patriot indeed. 

After dinner, Tony and I walked over to Lincoln Park, where folks were setting off very large firecrackers right in the park, which was slightly alarming but also cool. We also had a pretty decent view of the Capitol building and the National Mall fireworks show. You can see both shows in this photo:   

Happy Fourth of July!

life: picnic at lincoln park

I mentioned last week that I have a bounty of lettuce in my garden right now. Tony and I put some of it to use Saturday afternoon. We made big salads, grabbed a blanket, and headed down the street to Lincoln Park for a picnic. I always say that May in D.C. has the perfect weather, and that perfect weather carried over to early June.

Lincoln Park was the site of a hospital during the Civil War. After the war, the hospital was torn down, and the park was selected to be the site for a monument to President Lincoln. The statue was purchased by freed slaves and put up in 1876, and it always makes me think that the Civil War really wasn't that long ago. Today, Lincoln Park is a nice community gathering spot, full of dogs and their owners, children on the playground, and young people laying in the sun.

I keep an old blanket in the trunk of our car for just the occasion. It's dedicated to outdoor use, like picnics and fireworks, so I don't worry about it getting a little dirty, and it never comes into the house.

Tony caught a nap while I caught up with People magazine and painted my nails a fun purple. Here we are, post-nap:

P.S. I'm loving this Southwestern t-shirt, which I got at Target for $14.99. It goes perfectly with some of the Indian jewelry I picked up when we lived in Arizona.