Summer, Served
Cook with intention. Dance with abandon. All the juicy, herby, refreshing recipes to make this season.
In today’s post: summer as a time of embodiment, what reiki has in common with cooking, morning poems, and my top summer recipes to get you through the season, all in one place.
Hello my loves,
Summer is a bodily time. Less layers, more skin, peach juice on the chin, hot concrete underfoot, hands picking tomatoes, knees scraped, brow sweating. More than any other time of my life, I feel summer in my body this year. Or, maybe it’s just that, more than any other time of my life, I feel less in my mind, where I have a tendency to get stuck.
Maybe reiki has something to do with it.
The first full day I was in Ireland last month, standing barefoot in a natural well with cold water bubbling around my calves, held on all sides by women I barely knew, something in me remembered. It’s hard to describe exactly what it was I remembered, because it wasn’t a remembrance of my mind. Rather, it was in my body—my hands became alive, my feet grew roots, my throat opened and sounds emerged. A veil dripped off, and with it, a download in my cells—I needed to study reiki.
What?
Before the trip I hardly even knew what reiki was. But the signs kept coming, and in the most synchronistic set of events, I met a reiki master within days of returning home who felt like a sister, and I dived in heart-first. I’ve been studying this ancient system of healing for the past four weeks now, currently working on level two certification. While I’ve had my doubts (what the heck is this all for?), it’s also felt like freedom. What I mean, is that it’s overwhelmingly felt like me.
What I didn’t expect was that reiki speaks the same language we do here. Intention is an essential part of the practice. As a practitioner, your job is to be a vessel for the energy to flow. Without intention (to heal, to bring harmony, to calm, to ground, etc), the energy has no direction or focus.
And isn’t that exactly what we’ve been doing here this whole time? Intention, as you know, is one of my favorite topics and is the foundation of my new book. Just like in reiki, intentions in the kitchen focus our energy. Taking a moment to set an intention before cooking can shift us closer to how we want to feel (which, is freedom). They transform our everyday activities into opportunities for real connection, care, comfort and pleasure.
For instance, if we enter the kitchen stressed, a simple intention to soften can help us release the tension we’ve been holding, breathing deeply as we chop the garlic, easing our shoulders as we stir the soup. An intention to look for beauty opens us up to the wonder all around us, even if it’s just in the curl of steam rising from a pot. An intention to feel grounded taps us into our senses, feeling gravity underfoot and the sensation of our body carrying us from sink to stove.
Reiki isn’t something only energy masters can access. It’s available to anyone. It’s simply about being open to the energy—being the vessel for it to flow. We can all be energy masters in our own kitchens, weaving spells with our intentions in order make meals that nourish more than just our bodies. We can direct our focus with intention in order to shift our state of being, moving us closer to where we want to be.
Reiki is a felt practice, not a mental one. This journey over these past couple of weeks has loosened the grip of my mind, teaching me how to trust my body in new ways. But you don’t need reiki to do this. It can start at the sink, feeling watermelon juice streaming down your arms. It can be in slicing a tomato, watching the red slick of juice slide onto the cutting board. It can be in the melt of frozen yogurt on your tongue, fully embodying every bite.
Last week I was at my eleven-year-old’s soccer game, and there was a young girl playing in the grass. She was primal, twirling, plopping in the grass, a flower crown sliding over her forehead—laughing free. That’s how I want my summer to feel. I don’t know about you, but sometimes I need the reminder: we do this in our bodies, not in our minds.
I’ve gathered below my favorite summer meals—all the juicy, refreshing, herby, and grilled dishes I can’t wait to make, in one place. I hope they bring you into your body this season, not just in the eating, but in the making. Bring your intention to the cooking process, letting it focus your energy towards how you want to feel. Then weave a spell, dance in your kitchen, and cook something delicious. Play in your body!
Related posts:
Morning poems
One summer a few years back I started writing morning poems out on my front porch. It was just a practice of presence really, as the poems weren’t about perfectionism (no editing! no rules!), but rather about observation—sometimes about nature, oftentimes about food, always about the simple felt experience of being alive. I recently found that journal buried in my office, then read this wonderful piece by Elizabeth Pizzinato, and I’m newly inspired. Anybody else want to play with poetry this summer?
This week’s podcast
I loved this week’s conversation with Nikki Hill and Claire Wadsworth, the owners of La Copine restaurant and authors of the new cookbook by the same name. We talk food, of course, but also love, intuition, magic, desert vortexes, and so much more.
Seasonal Table Live Replay
On Friday I went live with Steve Sabicer as part of our Seasonal Table series, where I made whipped labneh with pistachio dukkah and Steve shared his secrets to the best tapenade, both of which will elevate nearly any summer meal. We also dived into the rituals, foods and traditions that help us fully embody the season. Watch the replay here.
Summer Recipe Index
From cold soups, to mains, to all the desserts (I couldn’t stop), here's your summer recipe bucket list, in one place (and all gluten-free). Make the dishes with intention; eat them with abandon.
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APPETIZERS
COLD SOUPS
MAIN DISH SALADS
MAIN DISHES ON THE GRILL
QUICK (MOSTLY NO-COOK) MEALS
SZHUZH-ED UP SUMMER SIDES
DESSERTS
If you have thoughts about today’s post or questions about anything, please let me know in the comments. Also, don’t forget to click the heart and let me know you’re here. ❤️
Wishing you a wonderful week, and remember to nourish yourself with intention and love.
xo, Nicki
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Such important reflections on intentions, Nicki--your words always remind me we need to breathe in the kitchen. I also loved reading about your discovery of reiki...it seems like a practice that's perfectly suited to your ethos.
And thanks so much for linking to my post; I am so glad it serendipitously inspired your love of poetry to be reignited 💕
Loved reading about your reiki journey!!! I'm sure you will be incredible at it. xx