It's hot! Summer recipes, beach things, 4th of July eats, and more
It's hot! Summer recipes, beach things, 4th of July eats, and more
In This Digest: Summer recipes (corn! black beans!), beach goods, a new way to use an old Brita, 4th of July recipes, arugula microgreens, and musings on time
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* Note: Our Newsletter name will soon change from Quantum Microgreens to The Outside Inside.
I can’t fathom time.
I’m not talking about regular time, like punctuality. I’m talking about the concept of time. And no—I’m not having a mid-life crisis!
It all started with a library book, The Wild Trees by Richard Preston. A captivating story about the pioneers of tree canopy science, the dangers of climbing the world’s tallest trees and the utter majesty of the West Coast’s ancient redwood forests. Redwoods can live up to 3,000 years (or so scientists believe) and soar up to 400 feet. Ancient redwood canopies are teeming with life, so many species still undiscovered. And they aren’t even the oldest trees. The oldest trees are estimated at 5, 000 years old; that’s before the pyramids were built. A single living organism living 5,000 years!
Scroll to to the bottom to read the rest...
Small Bites
Home Decor Color Hack: I just learned this great decor hack which I want to apply to every room in my house. Here it is: your color palette can be sliced into three using the 60-30-10 Rule: 60% of the space is a dominant color, 30% a secondary and complimentary color, and 10% an accent color. -K
Beach Accessories We've Bookmarked: A beach-backpack chair set of 2 (or this fun pink eighties-inspired set), a 4-pack of cabana stripe towels, SPF 30 sunscreen that smells like "the scent of summer" (with clean ingredients.)
Oysters for $12 every Friday at Whole Foods: Freshly shucked oysters are cool, decadent, luxurious, and are the perfect summer hors d'oeuvre. Just add lemon. I'm pretty obsessed with barbecued oysters. The butter that's added to the oyster shells as they cook on the grill makes them less than completely guiltless, but so incredibly delicious with deep umami flavor. You could omit the butter completely and just use sauce to lighten the recipe up a bit, or try olive oil if you'd like. -K
Microgreens Spotlight—Arugula Microgreens: Micro Arugula was a favorite at the farmer's market and for good reason. Arugula microgreens are one of the more intense varieties. Peppery and sharp flavored, they pair well with hearty foods (think meaty sandwiches) and also great with mild pastas for that flavor kick. Micro arugula lacks some of the bitterness of mature arugula. High in vitamin C (4 times more than mature arugula) and loaded with phytonutrients, arugula microgreens are a go-to! I wrote a whole post about arugula microgreens here. -M
My Self Watering Planter
Do you have an old Brita pitcher stashed in the back cupboard? Make a self watering planter! I put some decorative rocks in the lower chamber so my planter would have a lower center of gravity and be less likely to tip over.
Then I placed a square of old t-shirt (anything that allows water through but stops all the dirt from coming out the bottom will work) over the grate at the bottom of the cylinder. Filled the top chamber with soil and potted a few lettuce seedlings.
Then a watered a bit on the top of the soil to get it going and filled the bottom chamber with water. The water level has to be fairly high because it must be filled a few inches above the cylinder.
That was it. All I had to do was maintain the water level above the cylinder.
The Best Black Bean and Corn Salad (No Cook)
When sweet, fresh, corn on the cob is in season (now!), make this refreshing Black Bean and Corn Salad loaded with milky corn kernels, black beans, and sweet cherry tomatoes.
Healthy-ish 4th of July Recipes To Make All Summer
Heading to a party this 4th of July and need the perfect easy recipe? These are artificial color free: no red or blue dye here.
Story Continued...
If you ask a physicist about time, you might get a lecture about Quantum Gravity, Imaginary Time, or the Theory of Relativity. Some philosophers might tell you that time isn’t even real.
All you can do is marvel at those trees. Maybe time is a human construct or a scientific dimension; a minute can last an eternity and a decade can feel like a day. We might wait years for a tree to produce fruit to nourish our lives or few days for microgreens to do the same.
We all have the power to slow down our own time. To pause, to take a moment, to slow down the beat of our hearts, to let the present moments elongate. Our own time-space continuum.
Enough with all that philosophical gibberish. Let’s not dwell on something so obtuse. Let’s do what we can to enjoy ourselves right now, like eating delicious seasonal food.
Since sweet corn on the cob will only be around during the hot summer months, be sure to grab a few more stalks. Maybe try my favorite corn and black bean salad (scroll up for recipe). It is a quintessential summer salad that is made more delicious if you add microgreens. Fast, easy, and great as left overs. Make a big batch and enjoy it all week.
- Melisssa
Flora & Fauna
Flora of the week: I went walking in the forest this morning with my mom and my dog Comet, and we discovered what we think are baby blackberries or black raspberries growing wild. Do you know? Leave a comment please :)
Fauna of the week: Here's Comet the dog being a dog. She's been shedding so much with the heat wave we had last week in Connecticut.
Thanks for reading! Melissa & Kelly
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