Simplicity

I love the simplicity of summer, when you don't need to try very hard to eat well, look cute, or have fun.



Rainier cherries are a must when in season.



Catch as many sunsets as possible.



The perfect ice cream stache.



And gorgeous roses in bloom all over the place.

Our wonton gluttony recipe of the day follows this vein of summer thinking. It is almost, though not quite, as simple as boiling corn and just as delicious in its pure flavor.

Grilled Fruit with Herbs

Ripe stone fruit such as nectarines, peaches, plums*
Fresh herbs such as rosemary, thyme, tarragon, sage

Preheat oven (I use my toaster oven to keep it simple) to 350F. Cut the fruit in half (don't worry about peeling it) and take out the stone. Put a slip of your favorite herb in the space left by the stone and roast face down either on the grill or in the oven.



Roast about 10 minutes or until the fruit can be easily pierced by the tip of a knife. Don't worry if the skin is somewhat burnt. Once you take it out of the oven, you can easily peel the skin off and you are left with luscious, jewel-like pieces of fruit. Serve warm with some vanilla bean ice cream.** The roasting concentrates the aroma and flavor of the fruit and the herbs impart a lovely complexity to it.



* You can also use figs, and instead of using ice cream, substitute some soft goat cheese.
** To really guild the lily, add a few drops of St. Germain on the fruit. The smell is amazing.

And to finish off, a haiku by Issa:

Just simply alive,
Both of us, I
And the poppy.