WHAT IS…

your favorite summertime food memory?

Kezia Bacon, Contributing Editor: Back when I could still eat dairy, I made the most delicious ice cream with the berries that grew in my backyard. Just milk, cream, sugar, vanilla, and freshly-picked red raspberries. Yum!

Mike Gioscia: Summer food? One word: CORN! From running through the rows behind my house to eating the sweet kernels from the stand down the road, summer meant mowing through ear after ear.

Betsy Haase: There is nothing like the cold and creamy lick of ice cream on a hot summer’s day. As a rivulet of sticky sweetness travels through your fingers and down your arm, you are immediately transported back to being a kid.

Alexandra Hallowell: One of the blessings of growing up along the coast is the access to fresh seafood. Whether it’s freshly dug steamers or lobsters pulled in by a friend, half the fun in eating it is having caught it yourself.

Kate Levin: I am a notoriously picky eater. In 2011 I attended a farm-to-table dinner committed to trying EVERYTHING. From my first oyster (a briny, sweet Cuttyhunk) to the amazing desserts by Artisan Kitchen, it was an unforgettable delight and sparked my commitment to local and seasonal eating.

Paula Marcoux: The summer after eighth grade, I became obsessed with gathering and cooking wild edibles, surely trying the patience of everyone who crossed my path. My victims tolerated cattail, milkweed, day lily, elderberry, and sassafras; but even I couldn’t swallow (heck, couldn’t even chew) braised Moon Snail.

Brooke McDonough: In summertime I wait for the tomatoes. When they come, I take two slices of white bread, spread a little mayo, and add a sliced tomato, and sprinkle salt. It has to be white bread, because it is spongier and absorbs the juices. It takes seconds to make, but I usually have more than one.

Lauren Mosher: One summer my brown-thumbed family planted a garden. Basil was the only item that we managed to grow. My father taught me how to properly collect the leaves, wash them, and slice them before sprinkling them over sliced tomato. The dish is still a summer staple.

Julia Powers: Making ice cream with my grandfather on the 4th of July using an old hand crank ice cream maker. Forty years later, I still remember the pure vanilla deliciousness of that ice cream!

Todd Sandstrum: As a child we would have a big clam bake around July 4th with my grandmothers, great-uncles, and aunts. Nothing was better then the smell of burgers and seafood with 20 to 30 family members.

S. Terry Vandewater: My favorite summertime food memory is a close friend’s wedding reception where all the foods were grilled. The aromas from different marinades used on meat, fish, and vegetables filled the air and made our stomachs rumble in anticipation. Everything tasted amazing!

Elle Maynard: Popsicles! Growing up, the jingle of the Good Humor truck often cut dinner short and provided a sweet treat and extra playtime with neighborhood friends. Although we now call them ice-pops, these treats continue to provide summer memories and are part of every family gathering. We have annual photos of three and four generations sitting on the porch steps, drippy ice-pops in hand, as we smile for the camera.

A few from our Facebook Fans:

Beth Gilbert Gallo: When the kids were little, we would pack a picnic and blankets into the station wagon and head for the beach. Hatch open, backed right up to the ocean, dessert was always rasperries [and] blueberries with homemade whipped cream.

Leah Schwartz MacLeod: When I was a child we grew fresh blueberries and strawberries. My dad and I would collect them. I was only little so my amount would be small. He would switch baskets with me right before we came in and let me present mom with the “big” basket.

Sharon Phillips: My mother used to make different sandwiches, then cut [them] into triangles and pile up on a platter. We and the neighborhood kids would dig in. Hanging out in our cellar near the pool.