(500) days of summer

The weather this weekend was lovely - sunny and warm enough for a t-shirt, with a cool breeze and a hint of fall in the air. (This is what winter in Bangladesh feels like, my parents said.) Can I tell you how much I love autumn? Apple picking and warm spiced apple cider. Layering clothes. The colors of fall foliage. A new season of must see TV. The crunch of leaves underfoot. Little kids (not pets, Megan :)) in costumes. The smell of baked goods, cinnamon, damp leaves, toasted marshmallows.

As the last days of summer wind down (fingers crossed that the temperature doesn't hit 90 any time soon), I thought I'd have one last go at summer and enjoy the blessings it has to offer:

Lexington Legends v. Hickory Crawdads, Applebee's Park, Lexington, KY. 8/28/09.

Yes, that is Big Boy holding my ticket to the Lexington Legends game. The great thing about single-A baseball is that you get teams with names like Hickory CRAWDADS. Amazing. Also great: you can see a game for about $5 and sit practically on the field and the players are so accessible.

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes. 8/29/09.

I spent a lot of time in the kitchen on Saturday, which is a little bit ironic since it is also the month of Ramadan. I love a cold glass of lemonade on a hot summer day, so when I found this recipe for pink lemonade cupcakes, I knew I had to make them. I used the cream cheese frosting that was leftover from a carrot cake I had made (you didn't know I made a carrot cake, did you?) instead of the lemonade buttercream the recipe calls for, but they were still very good. Mine didn't turn out as fluffy as I like cupcakes to be, but they were moist and I liked the slight tartness of the lemonade.

Gazpacho. 8/29/09.

To me, it's not summer unless I've had a good bowl of gazpacho. My mom and I used to go to this lovely little local tearoom at the beginning of every summer, but it was sadly sold to an overpriced bland Mediterranean restaurant a few years back. Early this summer (summer meaning after classes had ended), when I still lived in New York City, I had had some gazpacho with my friend Brando. But it was still too cold to really enjoy the soup, which was too vinegar-y besides. Mine was better. :) I'm not tootin' my own horn; I'm tootin' Ina's (this recipe came from her The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook). I used tomatoes and bell peppers fresh from the garden and added a bit of jalapeno for a kick. It was simply divine. Loved!

Ah, summer, I shall miss you, but I am so ready for fall!