perfect summer day: amanda hesser
Aug 9, 2010 Every week this summer, someone I love or know or admire (or all of the above) will share their idea of a perfect summer day, real or imagined. Here’s New York Times food contributor Amanda Hesser:
My idea of a perfect summer day is to be out in Wainscott, Long Island, with my husband's family. We go there every August. I'd get up early (again, this is allowed to be my fantasy right?), do yoga with my husband, and eat breakfast out on the porch with our kids, looking out over a pond and the ocean. We'd go to the farmstand and fish shop, then bake a tart with my kids while the sun is at its hottest and it's better to be inside (just like the rabbits on the property do during the day).
Later, we'd ride bikes down the lane to the beach. There, we'd read, play in the sand with our twins, brave the ocean, maybe. We'd come back from the beach just when the sun is beginning to cast long shadows across the lawn, and here we'd play soccer with our kids and their cousins and grandfather. Then we'd shower for dinner, and have drinks on the porch. We'd read to our kids, have dinner with the family (12 or so!) around the 100-year-old table. After washing the dishes, we'd watch the night match of the US Open on television, with the family crowded into the sitting room. Then we'd be in bed by 11, just when you can start hearing the ocean waves in the humid night air.
view from the front porch, photo by Mary FrenchAmanda has been a food columnist and editor at the New York Times for more than a decade, and now writes “Recipe Redux” for the Sunday Magazine. Her writing is so lovely and evocative that I want to make every single thing she writes about. Here’s one of my favorites, from a Recipe Redux article about “Heavenly Hots:”
"Although heavenly hots sound like a late-night cable offering, they’re nothing more salacious than pancakes. Once you make them, you’ll understand the name. They are so feathery, creamy, tangy — so heavenly — that you may find yourself unable to let them cool off before devouring them…
The only problem with heavenly hots is that your first batch is likely to be a wash. The batter is very loose, and it produces pancakes — some might call them blini — that are about as sturdy as wet tissue paper. You need to take deep breaths when it’s time for flipping, and you also need to let the hots know who’s boss. Timid jabs with a spatula will not end well."
Amanda has written two award-winning books, and she played herself in the movie “Julie & Julia.” She is co-founder of the cooking site food52.com.
Reader Comments (2)
Oh, I love Amanda and her writing in the NYT. Lovely to hear a slice of her life.
I remember that recipe for Heavenly Hots. I never attempted it, but might now. And I want to watch that movie just to see her!