On Saturday, we celebrated the one-year wedding anniversary of our daughter Shannon and her husband, Mike. My, what a frenzy it was last year at this time, with getting wedding favors ready, picking up flowers, hosting a bridesmaids’ luncheon, and the myriad of things that seem to go along with having a wedding. But a lovely wedding it was on a perfect August day, sunny and hot but dry.

In our family, we like to celebrate almost any occasion by cooking a special meal. Since it is August, and we were hoping the weather would cooperate so that we could grill food and eat on the patio, we planned our menu accordingly. We decided to go light on the appetizers, having learned that too many appetizers spoil the appetite for the main meal. We had tortilla chips and salsa, always a favorite with Mike, and our favorite retro clam dip along with regular chips.

Luckily, the weather did cooperate, and this Saturday was as fine as the wedding day itself. This meant we could have grilled bread, a course unto itself. Over the years, my husband, Clif, has developed quite the knack with grilled bread, and he stretches and pulls the uncooked dough like a pro. In fact, he has become so good at it that grilled bread is now the expected summer treat when family and friends come over, and if for some reason we don’t have it, then they are disappointed. All you need is good olive oil for dipping.

For the main meal, we all agreed that steak, corn on the cob, and garlic, basil mashed potatoes would be just the thing. Not only was it the main meal, but it was also a Maine meal. The steak came from Wholesome Holmstead in Winthrop, the corn from Jillson’s Farm in Sabattus, and the potatoes were Farmer Kev’s, also in Winthrop. Even the butter—Kate’s Butter—came from Maine.

Although my gardens are little frowsy this time of year, there is no sweeter place to be in the summer on a fine day than on our patio. The crickets sang their end-of-summer song as we toasted Shannon and Mike and worked our way through appetizers, grilled bread, and steak, potatoes, and corn. By the time we had finished, dusk had settled over the backyard, and with it the evening dew.

Inside we went, for cake, ice cream, and tea. The cake, as is the tradition, was the very top of the wedding cake, bagged and frozen for the past year. I did wonder what that cake would taste like, but truly it was pretty good. Not as fresh and as nice as it was on the wedding day but nonetheless still enjoyable a year later.

Naturally, a gift was in order, and we decided to get a food processor for two of our favorite foodies. I use mine a lot, and I know Shannon and Mike will use theirs a lot, too.

Happy anniversary, Shannon and Mike. May you have many, many more!

Addendum: Ali, of the blog Henbogle, asked for the clam dip recipe. Here it is, copied from one of my previous posts about clam dip and nostalgia.

Clam Dip
Adapted from the recipe on the can of Snow’s minced clams

1 (6.5 oz) minced clams, drained. Reserve the liquid.
¼ cup of sour cream
1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese, softened
1 clove garlic, dry roasted and finely chopped
¼ teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce

Note about the garlic: Raw garlic has a bite that often leads to indigestion. To mitigate this, heat a fry pan (do not add oil) and place the unpeeled garlic in the hot pan. Flip, stir, or toss the clove from time to time. What you want are a few brown spots on the skin, but not too many. In other words, don’t burn it. Let the garlic cool a bit. Peel and chop. You will have a lovely, mellow clove of garlic, still flavorful but without the overwhelming presence so often found in raw garlic.

Beat the cream cheese, sour cream, and enough of the clam liquid so that the mixture has a smoothness and texture that you like. I use 3 Tablespoons, but this is a matter of taste. If you like a thinner dip, just add more of the clam liquid. After you have a consistency that you like, blend the clams, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce into the cream cheese and sour cream mixture. Chill.Then, get a bag of ruffled chips. If you have orange or yellow bowls for the chips and dip, then use them. Put on Carole King or James Taylor or any other of the great singer/songwriters from the 1970s. Invite some old—I mean this literally—friends over.

Then, as you listen to King and Taylor, dip those ruffled chips. And wax nostalgic.