The first really good BLT of the year. Mangalitsa bacon, fresh greenmarket tomatoes and lettuce, and avocado.

Potato salad (and the first really good BLTs of summer). This is the kind of food that fits perfectly with the heat wave that just came through NYC and the rest of the Northeast. This is also the kind of meal I would’ve had as a kid on a hot summer evening. I tried Kenji’s recipe over on Serious Eats because it was timely and met my potato salad requirements: plenty of mustard and vinegar flavor, fresh, crunchy celery and onion, and not too much mayo. Add a little more mustard, use apple cider vinegar, and leave out the pickles, and this is just right for my tastes.

A note on the mustard (which looks great in this photo): it’s Triple Crunch from Anton Kozliks, a blend of three varieties of mustard seed and Canadian Club. I had never heard of these people, but received this as a gift—a delicious gift. It’s worth trying to find more.

A tasty end of summer BLT. Toasted Italian Bread, mayo, Niman Ranch Applewood Smoked Bacon, fresh tomatoes, basil, and red leaf lettuce.