Winston and I are back in Greensboro after a great week of vacation in Wrightsville Beach. And, I don’t think I’ve ever consumed so many potato chips. What flavor? We covered them all. But luckily we covered much of the beach on foot throughout the week so we didn’t have to roll home to Greensboro.

We cooked a number of great meals at the beach – Masha’s Russian delicacies, Larry’s homemade pizza and — hold the phone — Andy  made a shrimp boil (and it was delightful)! Yet, experimenting with recipes is not something I wanted to do in an unknown (and unstocked) kitchen so I relied on some MMoM favorites.

• Our first night in the last thing I wanted to do was head to the grocery store so I brought the ingredients for Summertime Pasta with Brie and Tomatoes. It was the perfect no-cook and late night meal.
• MMoM Tapenade made a great appetizer for our nightly happy hour on the porch. Andy says I could jar it and sell for $20 a pop – let me know if you’re interested.
• Sunday brunch before the beach we enjoyed Green Chile Eggs, Hashbrowns with Portuguese Chorizo and freshly picked cherries. It couldn’t have been an easier meal for 9 hungry folks ready to hit the beach.
• Our final night, we took advantage of the local shrimp and made Shrimp Pasta with Lemon.  A perfect ending to a great week and no leftovers!

My beach souvenir was Sarah Foster’s Fresh Everyday cookbook. After all the potato chips from the week, I’ll be cooking my way through the salad section during the next couple weeks. I’ll be sure to let you know how that goes!