July 13

It was Friday the 13th, and the storm was a-comin'. That morning I received my weekly "Griller's Chronicle" via e-mail with a recipe for Grilled Portabello(a) with Arugula and Parmagiano Reggiano (sp?) and I think something in the dusty, eery air got me in the mood to not treat that e-mail with my usual inactiveness of, "hm, that sounds nice, I'll file it for later." Instead, I thought, "If I don't make this recipe tonight, I'll probably never make it!" As the afternoon carried on, we watched as the dust blew in from off the bluff at work with reports of extremely low visibility. I started to think I was just never meant to use my Griller's Chronicle recipes. How can you BBQ in weather like this?

The answer is George Foreman, bless his lean, mean, fat-reducing grilling machine soul. Sure, the G.F. Grill doesn't provide that crispiness you'd get from ashed-over coals, the faint taste of lighter fluid, or the feeling of summertime, but when you walk out of Safeway with all of your thoughtfully picked ingredients into a torrential downpour, you thank heaven he's around.

And it actually worked out well. The rain and wind provided a natural air conditioning opportunity for my apartment, the dark clouds made for a perfect excuse for Chris and I to eat by candlelight (mini-heaters, according to chris) (and by the way, if you've never eaten watermelon by candlelight, you should try it -- it is truly magical), and the portabella were delicious with the pepperiness of the arugula and the saltiness of the cheese. I wish this wasn't so blurry. It was so yummy. There's some focaccia bread in there somewhere, too. Mmmmmm.