Sunday Dinner

Sundays are FUNDAYS around here.

It is a law that the lobstermen cannot fish on Sundays in June, July and August.

It is a conservation effort, a measure put in place by the lobstermen and the Maine Lobster Association and enforced by the state to protect the industry.

I think it was put in place by a group of wives who decided they needed their men home one day a week to work on the Honey-Do list.

Well, today was Honey's first Sunday off, and he never touched the -Do list.

And so the list grows. Next week he'll have twice as much to do.

And I did this:

Oh, sweet merciful heaven. See that cheese in the 7 o'clock position? Oh yes, that IS the imported parm that I've had hidden in the fridge for over a month. I can't believe he never stumbled across it. The Big Guy was blown away when he saw it!

This is the first time in 6 years I've made scaddola and beans without Ralph's hot peppers.

I thought about him while I cooked this. The Big Guy mentioned him as soon as he saw the dish.

We toasted Ralph before we ate. I think he was here with us in spirit.

Pepperoni bread. The Things love this. In fact, everybody loved it tonight.

I sent the Things out to the patio with each dish. Instead, they set it all upon the kitchen table, and dove in! They hadn't even brought everything out yet! 

This is our favorite Sunday tradition, giant antipasto with all the trimmings. And fresh home baked bread. Fresh basil. Fresh tomato salad with buffalo mozzarella.

Heaven on a platter.

I got 2 thumbs up from Thing One. Thing Two just grabbed food.

He goes right for the meat. Carnivore, like his father. They are both fools for sopressata. Fools, I tell you.

That's one jealous feline, right there.

Meat, cheese, and crab. All my favorite food groups...

Ma was right beside me in the kitchen today, while I fried the peppers. 

She yelled at me when I put the hot oil in the pan. She may have even slapped my hand when I shook the bottle over them the second time.

But she was jammin' to the Dean Martin and Louie Prima playing in the background. 

(Ma was my grandmother, who passed away in 2003 at the ripe age of 97, when Thing Two was 5 months old. But she visits my kitchen regularly. She was a master in the kitchen. A master, I tell you.)

I think I had Ma and Ralph here today. Cool.

Because we certainly needed the help making all this good stuff disappear.

We did pretty good, the Things, The Big Guy, Jay2, The Finns, and I.

Nobody left hungry, I can tell you that.

And Michele has made friends for life: she made a strawberry -rhubarb pie each for Jay2 and The Big Guy. They were both moaning over it.

The Big Guy ate half of it before I could even snap a picture. His favorite. I don't know how he had room for it, but he managed!