4th of July Recap and the Culinary Smackdown Is Back!

Fourth of July weekend at the river was a mellow time, in part because it was just too hot and humid out to do much.

Cindie’s menu planning also wisely stuck to the KISS (keep it simple, stupid) philosophy, with dishes like the fruit salad of watermelon, blueberries, peaches, and strawberries at the top of this post. Between the two of us, we also put together grilled sausages and green beans with blue cheese and bacon Saturday night, ribs, mac and cheese, and cole slaw Sunday night, and cottage ham, green beans, and potatoes for Sunday night, all of which went unphotographed. Per the usual request of Cindie’s husband, I made breakfast burritos Sunday morning.

Cindie pronounced these in the top 10 of the breakfast burritos I’ve made at her house (yes, I’ve made a lot of them). But one of the highlights for me was Cindie’s peach and blueberry pie with streusel topping, even if her new stove proved a bit tricky in the baking arena (she’s exchanging it for an upgraded model).

Another highlight of the weekend for me was seeing the Moscow, Ohio fireworks, which, surprisingly, I’d never seen in the 20+ years Cindie has lived there. Quite impressive for such a small town, and they drew so many spectators from the surrounding area, we were happy that rather than fighting the car traffic, we could toddle over to an excellent viewing spot in the golf cart Cindie usually uses to take Oscar to the park or for a swim in the river.

Monday afternoon’s weather was actually pleasant enough we could enjoy some time on the deck overlooking the river, although we did most of our hanging out indoors in the air-conditioning.

And fine hanging out time it was. For a while, we played on the computer exploring the possibility of going to South Dakota together this September (alas, that’s not going to happen). And of course we talked about food, and dishes we’d like to make this summer. We had such a rainy spring that crops are way behind – not much local corn or tomatoes available, as would normally be the case by the 4th of July. We also talked about how much fun we had last year cooking together for the Culinary Smackdowns. As luck would have it, I got a message from Grumpy Granny this week also asking about them. So on the theory that three is a trend, let’s revive the “original” Culinary Smackdown!

Despite the fierceness of the CS badge, this is actually a friendly (ahem) online cooking competition with a different theme each month. I’ve always thought of it as a good kick in the pants to research new recipes, get creative with old favorites, and gain culinary inspiration from others. As La Diva would say, this is a great opportunity to stretch yourself.

The Culinary Smackdown is a round-robin affair, where each month’s winner becomes the following month’s host, judge, and “theme picker.” I actually won in June 2010, with able assistance from Cindie. (If you click through the Smackdown badge on my sidebar and the photos beneath, you’ll find my entries from last year.) A few months later the Smackdown passed into the hands of bloggers I didn’t know, and our day jobs and other pressing realities caused Cindie and me to plum lose track of it.

Thankfully, some of those ding-dang realities have calmed down. So I’m hosting a July 2011 Culinary Smackdown and donating my blog namesake as the theme ingredient:)

Battle Eggplant!

Here’s how it works:

1. Prepare a dish that includes eggplant and as many other ingredients and fresh veggies as you choose. If you’re inspired to make more than three dishes, please self-select which you wish to enter.

2. Post at least one photo and as much description as care to on your blog, then come back and leave a comment here letting everyone know you’re “up.” If you don’t have a blog, email me, post on facebook, or something – I’ll do my best to include you.

3. Recipes are helpful but not required. If you base your dish on a recipe you found elsewhere, please do the right thing and credit/link to the source. If you wing it (as the “Intuitive Eggplant” often does), that’s fine too. But it would be swell if you gave us a clue as to your ingredients/methods even without measurements.

4. Deadline is July 31. Cindie and I will concoct our own dish(es), but will not be contenders. She and I will no doubt consult, but I will have the final say as to the winner to whom the Culinary Smackdown torch will be passed, and I will post the results the following week.

Also, please let me know if anyone is game to create a new Culinary Smackdown badge for 2011.

And if you’re not inclined to cook but would like to participate in some other way, let your creativity run wild. Garlands, a vodka fountain, and anything else you wish to contribute to the mix are welcome.

Let the games – and par-tay planning – begin!

P.S. After an oops yesterday, more photos from the Badlands and Devil's Tower are actually up now on my eggy facebook page to accompany my last post. They should be viewable via that link even if you don't do facebook.