It's Friday!
That means it's time to get ready for the WEEKEND!
Helloooooo, and happy Friday! August is flying by, and I’m conflicted about it.
On one hand, I am always counting the days til sweater weather. On the other hand, I love the languidity of summer.
I have a handful of recipes I like to make sure to cook every summer, and one of them is the summer tomato gratin from America’s Test Kitchen. I like to think of it as a slightly less indulgent pizza situation, and it’s lovely with canned tomatoes any time of year, but it’s a great way to celebrate peak tomato season. (You could even go wild and toss some of your favorite pizza toppings in there, too!)
A dish I came across just a couple of weeks ago is Deb Perelman’s phenomenal corn butter farro, which is everything I want in a summer corn dish. It’s risotto-y and bright and fresh and delicious, and farro makes everhything better!
What’s your favorite summertime reccipe? Tell us!!!
I also have some of Bon Appetit’s anytime oatmeal chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven AS I TYPE, which are perhaps my way of hinting that I’m ready for some cooler weather.
Three new books you should know about
Three books came out this week that you might be intrigued by:
Time’s Agent by Brenda Peynado, because Macmillan calls it a “multiverse story of love, loss, time travel, and final-stage capitalism.”
How to Leave the House by Nathan Newman, a charming story that embraces the indignities of being human beautifully.
Men Have Called Her Crazy by Anna Marie Tendler, a memoir that I can’t wait to dive into.
A book club update!
As you know, this month we’re reading The God of the Woods, a book I imagine many of you staying up late to finish because it’s so difficult to put down. I’d love to host a zoom hang with GRETAGRAM readers to discuss it! By popular demand, y’all chose Sunday, September 1 at noon CT for our discussion. We’ll chat for about an hour, and you can bring your own snacks! If you want to come, just send me an email to RSVP and I’ll email you a zoom link.
Deeeelight!!!
This week’s delight is from Lauren, and it’s multi-layered in the best possible way:
“Last night, I started reading Cameron Russell's How to Make Herself Agreeable to Everyone. Talk about some free therapy (in addition to my actual therapy appointment earlier that day)! Coincidentally, I have been rewatching old seasons of America's Next Top Model on Hulu. Along with this sometimes-delighted and sometimes-deeply-pained rewatch, I have been soaking up the reframing of so many early 2000s pop culture moments and figures over the past couple of years. Reframing the stories of Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears, Aaliyah, etc. has been deeply healing to my Millennial heart.”
LAUREN, you are DOING THE WORK! I recently had a similar experience rewatching what used to be one of my favorite movies, High FIdelity, which I don’t think I’ve seen since college. Rob Gordon is kind of a terrible dude!!!!! But the sountrack will always have my heart. It’s complicated, and that’s okay.
I’d love to hear what’s delighting you these days, too! Just send me an email.
Talk to you next week!
P.S. Do you like this email?! Spread the delight and forward it to a friend! (Or spam an enemy, lol!)
Those cookies look amazing! I can’t bring myself to turn the oven on in the summer hahaha! I’m definitely ready for autumn and crockpot stews!
High Fidelity has always been one of my all time favorite movies. I still know every word but rewatched it last month and….was pretty horrified by Rob! I still love it but phew is it complicated. Laura deserved better.