Reading · EDIBLE LIVING by Sarah Copeland

Good Morning—happy summer!

For many of you, summer began many weeks ago when your kids were let out of school. Others of you began officially at the solstice, last weekend.

For me, summer starts today, when school (finally!) ends at 11:05 PM, and six fifth-grade boys flood my yard for a water-balloon fight, stacks of grilled cheeses, bowls of mac and cheese, lemonade, and a platter of sticky-sweet strawberry popsicles (wish me luck!).

I have fought hard for this day to arrive! Still, there have been glimpses of summer already—the 90-degree days in late May, slow Saturday mornings gleaning the garden for treasures, and the tender mercies of the picnic blanket, sprawled out on the lawn under the branches of our ancient, arching crab apple tree on repeat the last few weeks.

This isn’t just any picnic blanket. When I was 21 (and a fresh college grad), I took a dream trip to Indonesia with one of my dearest college pals to visit her extended family. We spent two weeks in Jakarta and Bali, and I managed to come home with a suitcase packed with treasures, including a giant, padded batik blanket that I’ve kept with me through nine New York City apartments and fifteen years of parenthood in our home upstate.

It’s my sporty-mom-stadium blanket, my the-more-kids-the-merrier blanket, my outdoor movie blanket, my we’re-not-going-to-fuss-or-set-the-table blanket. It’s soft, worn, and (thanks to the patterning) immune to spills and stains from watermelon and muddy toes.

This season, it’s been out on several occasions, beginning with my birthday, on June 13. We started the day on the blanket with yogurt, berries, and frothy cappuccinos, piles of pillows, and our heads/arms/legs touching the next person’s toes….and we ended up right back there at the end of a long, full day with mole-stuffed tamales wrapped in foil, drizzled with drippy, just-spicy-enough cilantro sauce. We pulled it out again for the last soccer game (pizza and watermelon), a last day of sophmore year (for Greta) snack date with popcorn and chocolate donuts, for a Friday night burgers and French-fry date with my boys (while Greta put in hours as the ballet studio) and again for Father’s Day French toast with piles of cherries and berries and hefty Ball-jars of milky cold brew.

The picnic blanket, for me, represents an ease that I have waited all school year to return to. We have prettier blankets—newer ones, brightly colored and crisp, from Portugal and Mexico —but this is the one that makes me feel 21 again, the singular blanket that signals to my kids that mom is relaxed, the rules no longer apply.

Below, I’m giving you my 20 most summer foods to get you started on summer. Not all of them belong on only a picnic blanket (though I’ve served oysters and champagne on a picnic blanket in Central Park—I believe any food is made better sitting barefoot, criss-cross apple sauce on the earth). Most of these can also be dressed up for a summer date night, should you be lucky enough to have a patio cafe table for two (charming!!)—or a dinner party, potluck, block party, or summer reunion.

Bookmark this list for your summer cheat sheet. As the kids say, it’s time to lock in. This is your time.

Sarah

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