By The first tomato. Cherokee Purple, dark as a bruise, green-shouldered, heavy in my hand — the kind of tomato that makes you understand why people garden. Not for the exercise or savings but for the moment you hold a tomato you grew and you made food from dirt and water and time. That's not gardening. That's magic.
Made a tomato sandwich immediately. Did not wait for supper. Did not wait for Connie. White bread, Duke's mayonnaise, thick slice, salt. Ate it over the sink because tomato sandwiches are eaten over the sink or not at all, juice running down my arm. The tomato was perfect — sweet and acid and meaty, something that was growing an hour ago.
Made Connie one when she got home. She ate it standing at the counter and closed her eyes and said mmm. Mmm is Connie's highest food compliment — involuntary, can't be planned. It means the food bypassed the brain and went straight to the soul.
The rest of the week was tomatoes — sliced with supper every night, tomato and cucumber salad Wednesday, BLTs Thursday. A BLT with a garden tomato is a fundamentally different food than with a store tomato. The difference is the tomato, and the tomato is the difference between January and July, between hope and harvest.
Travis sent a video of Earl Thomas at three months, lifting his head, looking around like he'd arrived at a party. Already curious. Already a person with preferences (ceiling fan) and dislikes (car seat). Watching a grandchild become a person is the opposite of watching a mine collapse — the most hopeful thing I have ever witnessed.
After a week of tomato sandwiches and BLTs, Connie asked what else we could put on good bread — something that could hold its own next to a Cherokee Purple without getting lost. Egg salad has always been in the rotation, but swapping the heavy mayo base for cottage cheese keeps it light enough that you can still taste the tomato, which is the whole point. This is the recipe I reached for on Friday, when the tomatoes were still coming and I wanted something that felt like summer without repeating Thursday.
Cottage Cheese Egg Salad
Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 12 min | Total Time: 22 min | Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 6 large eggs
- 1/2 cup full-fat cottage cheese
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 2 stalks celery, finely diced
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried)
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- White sandwich bread and thick-sliced garden tomato, for serving
Instructions
- Hard-boil the eggs. Place eggs in a single layer in a saucepan and cover with cold water by one inch. Bring to a full boil over medium-high heat, then cover, remove from heat, and let sit for 12 minutes.
- Cool and peel. Transfer eggs to an ice bath and let cool for at least 5 minutes. Peel and roughly chop into bite-sized pieces.
- Mix the base. In a medium bowl, stir together the cottage cheese, mustard, garlic powder, salt, and pepper until combined.
- Fold in the rest. Add the chopped eggs, celery, green onions, and dill. Fold gently — you want texture, not paste. Taste and adjust salt.
- Chill briefly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 10 minutes to let the flavors come together. Serve on white bread with a thick slice of garden tomato and a pinch of salt on the tomato.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 175 | Protein: 15g | Fat: 10g | Carbs: 4g | Fiber: 0g | Sodium: 340mg