Hitting Pan: August 2023

Last month's empties

Hello fellow processors! Welcome to another monthly installment of Things I Used Up and Look Forward to Purchasing Again. In a surprise to literally no one, I waited until the end of September to write about my August loves. I crammed in a bunch of high-summer musts: BLTs were had, beers were consumed, birthdays were celebrated. Relive them with me!

RUNAWAY READ

Did you ever want to reread a book the minute you finished it?

I started and finished The Guest in less than 24 hours and felt like my teenage self, staying up till three in the morning reading a book I couldn’t put down. I was expecting a fun summer read and got an extremely unhinged, anxiety-producing spellbinder, a giant banana split of anxiety. The ending was very controversial—without giving it away, just say yea or nay so we know where we all stand.

LIKE A ROLLING STONE (FRUIT)

The peaches on the east coast were excellent this year: juicy, creamy, ideal sour/sweet balance. Yellow > white forever and always. I ate most of mine out of hand, dripping all over the place as desired. But one day I got fancy and paired a perfect specimen with spicy capicola, a gorgeous plum, some fresh mozzarella, olive oil, Aleppo pepper, and salt. Extreme delish.

This is fruit salad.

BEYAH HEYAHH

I also love Fanta!

I bought this Flora Fonta beer at Guido’s one thousand percent because of the can design, but was also sold by the word “paloma.” How cute is it!?! I’m getting 1970s tennis energy from those colors. (I’ll buy books, makeup, wine, and chocolate based on the label; the whole “cool beer can” movement is marketing genius.) I’m a grapefruit lover—Fresca! Squirt!—and thought this would taste like a shandy. It did—but was more sophisticated, more sour/tart, more quenching. Guzzled it while grilling, 10/10 would drink again.

ABCDBLT

Feeling extremely grounded by this ingredient ratio.

I had one BLT this summer. ONE. And here she is.

LEO SEASON

My video crew surprised me with a unique and scrumptious “bouncy cheesecake” from Keki to celebrate my birthday on set. How sweet are they!?!! The best. (Cosmo diverted me by asking me to help him with his laundry, and I totally fell for it.) I had never had a Japanese cheesecake like this: it was spongy but firm but also jiggly—truly bouncy. Inside there was a strawberry layer and a plain layer, with fresh strawberries suspended in the middle. Next time you’re in NYC, go check Keki out! Thank you again to Omega, Cybelle, Alivia, Eliza, Meg, and Tim. You all rule.