Summer Food by Judith Olney

The subtitle to Summer Food is "A unique collection of recipes for warm summer days and nights." And this book is just that. Originally published in 1978, it's almost shocking how contemporary these recipes feel. And that's because Judith Olney knew what was up, and dutifully reported the food of southern France, which is still so much what we all want to eat today. The best way to describe the recipes in this book is to imagine an ideal picnic, like the kind you'd see in a lifestyle magazine and roll your eyes at because no one really picnics like that. So imagine that picnic. There is green olive tapenade and thin toast. There is asparagus quiche. There is caramelized onion tart. There's grilled zucchini salad with thyme and oregano flowers, and tomatoes with pesto, and cold chicken legs with aïoli, and peach pudding for dessert. And someone's brought a cooler full of white wine and "Balm in Gilead" by Nina Simone is playing and suddenly you're living in a lifestyle magazine. It's th