Summer Travels

Zoë and Bud have June birthdays a day apart so we often celebrate with an excursion. This year we went farther afield than usual, heading to Silver City in southern New Mexico. I love a road trip especially driving through some favorite Colorado and New Mexico territory. We took I25 south and stopped for lunch at the new state park – Fisher’s Peak – where we had a picnic and short walk.

We spent the night in Santa Fe and were lucky to have an invitation from Rodney and Renee Carswell for dinner. They made a wonderful New Mexican meal of chicken enchiladas with all the fixings. We talked and talked, always finding another subject to discuss. What great old friends.

We wanted to visit the Bosque del Apache on our way to Silver City, do some bird watching and have our picnic lunch. We hadn’t planned for the very hot weather we encountered so we had an abbreviated visit to this wonderful bird paradise. Then west over the mountains to Silver City. We had stayed at the Bear Mountain Lodge years ago when it was a Nature Conservancy inn and were excited to return. Our four days were busy with trips to the Gila Cliff Dwellings, the Catwalk, City of Rocks and the fabulous Mimbres pot collection at the university museum. It was very hot and few places had air-conditioning but we hiked and saw new things.

One of the best parts of travel is coming home. Fritillary butterflies welcomed us as they flitted about the lavender blooming along the front steps.

I’ve been making simple meals, mostly salads. A favorite pairs watermelon chunks, lettuce and spicy greens like arugula and radicchio, feta crumbles, and a simple olive oil and lemon dressing.

I was out of lettuce so I made a chopped salad from the bits of veggies in the fridge. A few stalks of asparagus, some snap peas from the garden, cherry tomatoes, avocado, radicchio, feta.

Every summer I make apricot jam. Zoë has followed my example and makes and shares various kinds of jam and fruit butters – peach, strawberry, raspberry and rhubarb. We have a plethora of jam. I remember my friend Maggie who also made this annual treat. I teased her when she was reluctant to smash the seed to get the kernel that gives the jam its particular flavor.

Our diet has changed and except for a peanut butter and jam sandwich or toast and jam to accompany scrambled eggs we eat very little of the delectable spread. I love home made apricot jam, redolent of the tart fruit – the scent and taste of summer so I’ve been looking for ways to use it in other ways. I remembered a recipe in one of my Italian cookbooks for a jam tart. I made one and we enjoyed it but it was a bit sweet for my taste. These bars are made with a shortbread crust and a thinner layer of jam. Just right!

Jam Bars

Preheat the oven to 350°.

Line an 8 – 9 inch square pan with parchment in each direction leaving an overhang for easy removal of the bars. Butter the parchment. Using a Cuisinart, mixer or a wooden spoon combine one cup (two sticks) room temperature unsalted butter and 1/2 cup plus two tablespoons sugar. Add a large egg, ½ teaspoon vanilla, and one teaspoon kosher salt. Stir in 2 ½ cups unbleached flour to make a soft dough. Put one cup aside for the topping then spread the remainder in an even layer in the prepared pan. Bake at 350° for thirty minutes until lightly brown along the edges, about 30 minutes. Let cool slightly then spread 3/4 – 1 cup of your favorite jam over the crust. Add the zest of a lemon. Top with crumbles of the remaining dough and sprinkle with two tablespoons sliced almonds. Bake for an additional 35 minutes. Let cool completely. Slice into four strips then into 6 long bars. Makes 24.