Smoked Prime Rib on the Grill, Roasted Tomatoes with Pesto and Tortini of Zucchini

       With Canada Day tomorrow (Ohhhh Canada!!!) and the 4^th of July soon afterwards, here’s a menu that celebrates those holidays with a beautiful roast of beef, some incredibly flavorful tomatoes and a zucchini recipe that turns every plate into a piece of art. 

       Regular readers of Chewing the Fat have heard that I do not run outdoors on the first decent day and fire up the grill.  I have the grill pans to prove it.  As a matter of fact, it sometimes takes me a little while to bring the grill up to the deck from its winter storage place in the garage.  This is fundamentally because I do not feel in complete control of the Weber.  And to me, gas is out of the question because if you’re going to use a grill, surely half of the desired result is some smoky flavor to announce where whatever you’ve cooked has come from. But not too long ago, we were having quite a big group for dinner and I wanted to serve Prime Rib. 

Gingered Strawberry Rhubarb Pie adapted from Molly Birnbaum

        As you can see, our farm stands are brimming with all kinds of beautiful fresh fruits and vegetables.  It’s a delight just to look at everything.  And, as Andrew pointed out, there’s a window of opportunity to combine two fantastic local ingredients into one very special pie.  They are our local rhubarb and our beautiful local strawberries.