Heat and Ice.

As many of you likely know, I had to cut my cookbook tour short due to a knee injury. It was really disappointing, and I still am not sure what’s wrong. I’ve had x-rays, seen an orthopedic specialist, and am scheduled for an MRI on Sunday. So fingers crossed, they’ll figure out what’s going on.

In the meantime, I’m icing it, have a brace to wear, and am hobbling around on crutches. Not ideal. Also, very boring. I’m not used to sitting around!! But it’s been so hot (in the 90s with heat indices over 100), I would likely not be doing much anyway.

Chickens have a very hard time cooling down, so making sure they have cool water, shade, and some healthy treats when it’s hot out is really important. Watermelon is a favorite, as are leafy greens, blueberries and celery.

Thank goodness for Kindles! I love to read, so I’m finding solace in books while I recuperate. I am about halfway done with Yesteryear, which is arguably THE book of the summer. I’m finding it kind of slow-moving, so I’ve picked it up and put it down a few times already.

Because it’s a slower read, during one break I whipped through The Divorce by Freida McFadden (who also wrote The Housemaid which was recently adapted for the screen). Her books are always a fun, quick read.

And next up in my TBR pile is Choke Point by Brad Thor. My husband and I both enjoy his books. I’m sure this one will be no different.

Unfortunately, if we don’t want to starve, I still have to cook, but between the heat and my knee, I was sort of phoning it in this week. However, that doesn’t mean we didn’t still eat good! This maple harissa salmon over ginger lime rice with avocado, red onion, sesame seeds, and chives is as easy as it gets.

There’s really no recipe, but here goes:

Cook your rice with grated ginger, lime zest and juice.

Drizzle or brush the salmon with maple syrup and coat with harissa. Cook the salmon while the rice is cooking (remove the skin if desired - both our corgis and the chickens LOVE crispy salmon skin!).

Spoon the rice into bowls, top with the salmon, sliced avocado, chopped red onion, sesame seeds, and chives. Serve with soy sauce and Sriracha mayo on the side.

Here’s the full recipe with a printable recipe card, if you’re interested.

In case you were wondering, yup, it was a planned conspiracy. According to this NY Times article, “A group of major egg producers accused of price fixing for nearly three years will pay $3.3 million as part of a proposed settlement of an antitrust lawsuit brought against them by the federal government and 17 states, according to court documents.”

(And no, you probably won’t get a refund on all those $6 eggs you bought.)

Also spotted, my blueberry pie recipe in the current issue of the CherryBombe magazine! I love print magazines, so this was really exciting!

This is my least favorite time of year. We moved to Maine to escape the heat and humidity in Virginia and there’s always a week when we feel like we’re right back in the south! I can do without temperatures in the 90s. Especially since we no longer have central air like we did at our old house. We’re old-school now with fans, a porch, and windows that we can open and close. LOL! But not complaining (well, actually I am…), we still are so grateful to live here.