By Isaac + Heydon

A little over a year ago, we made a celebratory trip to explore, imbibe, and devour our way through some of the larger port cities peppered around the Mediterranean Sea. Seems like a far-flung fantasy these days; however, we sashayed our way through a week of European euphoria and found ourselves in Rome’s Trastevere neighborhood on the final day of our adventure. We were sipping prosecco in the late afternoon sun when a plate of sliced and grilled artichokes served with lemon, olive oil, and parmesan slid in front of us and changed all three of our lives forever (pictured below). How could something so simple and straightforward be so delicious? I was in a daze for the rest of the afternoon as a result and am in a daze now just reliving it in my memories. This experience of pure and blissful epicurean simplicity was Isaac’s inspiration for the following recipe which is a showstopping and absolutely delightful way to use all the late summer okra and squash. Enjoy and happy September!

Yum.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 squash
• Bag of okra
• 2 pieces of thickly cut bacon (we LOVE Kiolbassa Bacon from San Antonio)

SAUCE INGREDIENTS

• 3 green onions, chopped thinly
• 1 clove of garlic, finely minced
• Half to ¾ of a lemon, juiced
• 4 pinches of salt
• A healthy pour of olive oil (probably half a cup)
• 1 ½ tablespoon of red pepper flakes

TOPPERS

• Small chopped bits of bacon
• Lemon zest
• A light grate of parmesan cheese

Grill the okra and squash and put a little bit of melted butter over them to encourage some flame, scorching them every few minutes. The okra only needs about 8-10 minutes on the grill, and the squash needs a bit more time. Push on them every once in a while, if they feel a little wilted and soft, they are ready to go. After you pull them off the grill add 3 or 4 grinds of salt and pepper on the vegetables. If you are including the bacon in this recipe, prepare this ingredient simultaneous of the grilling process, and make sure it is crispy. Prepare the sauce ingredients all together in a bowl.

Chop up the squash and plate it with the grilled okra. Drizzle the sauce over the veggies, and top the dish with chopped pieces of bacon, lemon zest, and grated parmesan cheese. Eat!

The artichokes that started it all.