Summer

Last Saturday a friend and I spent some time traveling the bike trail between Hackensack and Nisswa. Just before we reached Backus, we came upon a bike parked along the side of the trail. I noticed a man picking something from the ditch. As we continued on, I spotted some wild blackberries growing right along side the trail.

My biking partner and I stopped to pick a few, popping the sweet plump berries right into our mouths. We decided to backtrack a bit to visit with the man we had seen picking. His big plastic ice cream bucket was half filled with berries. As we visited, another male voice came from the other side of the trail. He was also busy picking, with a big bowl almost full of berries. Both men said they would be making some jam with the berries, saving some to crown big scoops of vanilla ice cream.

Risotto scared me at first. My son Franklin brought a box home from a trip to Italy and it sat in the pantry for years. I had the same fear of risotto I had about cooking a duck. Both seemed to require a skill set that was beyond me.

After much hesitation, I finally took the plunge and you know what I discovered, making risotto is easy, requiring only a little more skill than making pasta.

In fact, think of risotto and pasta as two sisters. The key to both is what goes on top.

Just about everything you like with pasta will work with risotto. Most vegetables, meat, poultry, seafood, and fresh herbs if sauteed first can be added to risotto just the way you'd add them to cooked pasta. And both like a bit of freshly grated cheese on top.

Do you know what happens when you buy a quart size container of fresh apricots? You get about 14 apricots that ripen at the same time (and about 2 that don't). As much as I love fresh apricots, eating 14 of them within a day or two isn't practical or appealing. Apricot muffins, however, are enormously appealing.

Apricot season runs from May-August, so now is the time to buy them. Unlike hardier peaches or nectarines, apricots are finicky. They like mild temperatures and dislike intense heat, which is why they grow so well in California. When selecting fresh apricots look for somewhat firm (not hard) fruit that is brightly colored (they range from light yellow to a deeper orange-yellow). The skin should be velvety smooth without wrinkles or blemishes, and they should yield slightly when squeezed. If you're still in doubt, then take a good whiff – a ripe apricot emits a sweet fragrance. After all, it is a member of the rose family.

"Not only did I know that August is National Picnic Month, that's exactly how I celebrate every year. By having a month long picnic on a small patch of grass, by the lake, in my favorite neighborhood park. Each August 1, I pack the SUV with 31 day supplies of chicken wings, macaroni salad, bottled water, colorful napkins - and don't return home until just before Labor Day." - Alan Zweibel

Pack up your picnic and enjoy an afternoon in the beautiful gardens at Anne Hathaway's Cottage in the heart of England, Stratford upon Avon home to the Bard himself, Shakespeare.

Here you can enjoy free entertainment and activities for all the family, and it is a perfect excuse to venture outside and enjoy the gardens at their very best. There are competitions for the best dressed teddy, fairy dressing up, story-telling and children’s gardening tips from the team of expert gardeners plus races and craft activities.

Foods to enjoy are scones with fresh cream and homemade strawberry jam made from locally grown strawberries…the little ones not the puffed up GMO varieties! Lots of white and brown bread sandwiches filled with delicate fillings of cucumber and egg salad and crème cheese all locally sourced and of course lots of dainty fairy cakes and delicious home baked tartlets…yummy! - Carolan Nathan

As a child, I would go boating with my family in the Stockholm archipelago. We had a small boat which barely slept the four of us and in it we and would skip from island to island for a few weeks. My brother and I would hop ashore first and explore until we found the perfect spot for a picnic. As the sun started to set – which it does late up in these parts – we would sit on the rocks that were still warm from the days sun.

These days, I go with my wife and daughter to the beach in Wainscott where we have a modest house in the middle of a field. Listening to the sea we munch on halibut salad, cheese and crackers from Loaves and Fishes in Sagaponack. - Fredrik Carlström