Summer Patty Melts

By Andrew Hunter
For The Family Table, a blog for busy families

Food and baseball are two of our favorite things. Last night, Marilyn and Nick were at a birthday party, which left Ben and me to our own devices. The first-place Dodgers were playing the Reds at 6 p.m. So Ben and I joined forces to prepare dinner in 30 minutes. After all, we needed to be watching in time to see the lineup!

We decided on patty melts and grapes. Ben spread mustard on the bread, grated the cheese, washed the grapes, and stirred the onions while they were caramelizing in the cast iron skillet. I sliced the onions, made the artichoke mayo, and formed and seasoned the patties. There was no need to set the table because we would be eating on the patio in time to hear the words, “It’s time for Dodger Baseball.”

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It’s a Porchetta Party!

Not too long ago, I received an intriguing email from my friend and Special Fork food editor, Linda Anusasananan, the former recipe editor of Sunset magazine.

“I've been fantasizing about the porchetta sandwiches I saw last week sold from the Roli Roti truck at the Ferry Plaza,” she wrote. “The line was about two blocks long – far too long to wait, so I never got to taste them.

“That weekend I saw porchetta turning on the spit at the Burlingame farmers' market. I asked if I could buy some and the vendor said someone had special-ordered the whole roast. He said I could do the same thing and pick the porchetta up at one of the farmers’ markets.”

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