Successful bbq last night to ring in the summer weather. Winter has finally ended.

With honorary chef Mark at the helm of the grill we fired up: burgers, dogs, veggie burgers and chicken with a veggie pouch.

Veggie Pouch:

-onion, garlic, zucchini, green beans and a roma tomato.

-Chopped veggies and threw them into a tinfoil pouch with lemon juice, olive oil salt and pepper.

-poked holes in the pouch and threw it on the grill.

Ultra fresh and yummy.

Holly, you need to share your excellent chicken recipe; thyme, lemon....?

Tomorrow is our first day at the beach! Can't wait to taste the yummy Sangria being whipped up by Mo and Holly.

I made pasta salad- with lots of... what else, fennel. I've been talking about fennel (anise? whatever.) all week, because, as I keep saying it is super cheap at Harvest right now. $1.50 a bulb, and they are big and white and crisp; not the $4 each droopy browning bulbs they often have. Fennel is my favorite- it reminds me of Sicily, because I ate it every day there and came to absolutely love it. This lady Lana, who was from Rome and lived in the house with us always made fennel this way, and it is truly delicious.

Roasted Fennel with Breadcrumbs and Parm

-Slice up fennel bulb (a good sized on goes pretty far- maybe 4 good serving) into slices , reming the tough core and separating apart

-spread the fennel out on the bottom of a casserole dish and drizzle olive oil on top

-dust with a good sized handful of parmesan, and then dust over with breadcrubs. A little salt and a lotta pepper

-bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes or until fennel is soft