Welcome August: Slower Days, Simple Meals

August always feels like the softest chapter of summer.

There are still beach days, picnics, berry picking, and last summer vacations to savor, but there’s also the quiet rhythm of preparing for what’s ahead - thinking about back-to-school lunches, easy weeknight meals, and the first signs of a new season just around the corner. While apples begin to appear and the whispers of fall grow a little louder, the farmers market is still overflowing with tomatoes, melons, basil, stone fruit, berries, and summer squash. It’s a month that invites us to slow down and enjoy it all.

This month at Flour Craft, we’re celebrating peak produce in every form, with recipes that let summer’s best ingredients shine. Think poppyseed cake with local, organic stone fruit, jammy blueberry crumble bars, chocolate chip zucchini cake with luscious chocolate frosting, and tomatoes in EVERY form.

At GoodLife, we’re highlighting cookbooks that offer ideas for easy weeknight meals and lunchbox inspiration as routines begin to return.

On the Road- please join Heather for a wine country lunch and book signing at Bennett Lane Winery in Calistoga on Sunday August 16th from 1130a-130p. It should be a delicious afternoon filled with beautiful food and wine in their stunning garden.

Tickets are available HERE.

To kick this month off, we’re sharing a composed salad that captures everything I love about late summer. Sweet watermelon, juicy tomatoes, ripe stone fruit, fresh mint, and punchy feta come together in a dish that feels both effortless and special.

Truthfully, this is the kind of ‘girl dinner’ I crave all summer long. It’s refreshing, endlessly adaptable, and substantial enough for a light lunch, while also pairing beautifully with grilled fish or shrimp for dinner.

It’s the kind of meal I find myself making when the produce is this good and the weather is too warm to spend much time in the kitchen.

Happy August!

Heather

Serves 4

Active Prep Time: 10 minutes

For the Dressing

1 TB champagne or white wine vinegar

2 TB olive oil

½ tsp fine kosher salt

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 TB honey

For the Salad

2 cups seedless watermelon, sliced into ¼-inch-thick planks

2 stone fruits of choice, pits removed and cut into wedges. I used nectarines here, but peaches, pluots, apriums, and plums would all be excellent.

½ English or Persian cucumber, seeds removed and diced into ½-inch pieces

2 heirloom tomatoes, sliced into ¼-inch-thick slabs

2 sprigs fresh mint, thinly sliced

1 ounce sheep’s-milk feta, crumbled

Method

1. Make the dressing: In a medium bowl, whisk together all the dressing ingredients until well combined.

2. Arrange the watermelon on a serving platter. Tuck in the sliced tomatoes and wedges of stone fruit. Sprinkle the diced cucumber and crumbled feta over the top. Spoon over the dressing and finish with the thinly sliced mint

   

   .