strawberries, mascarpone and whole wheat bread

This could also be titled, "what you should be eating right now."

Whole wheat bread (lightly toasted), spread with creamy mascarpone cheese, and layered with ruby strawberries. For breakfast, for snack, for a quick tea sandwich.

It is just so lovely. I wish I could say I came up with this on my own.

Leopold (Hugh Jackman) made this for breakfast for Kate (Meg Ryan) in the movie Kate and Leopold. The thoughtful gesture moves her to tears and it is my favorite moment of the movie. (But I do get a bit obsessed with food ideas from movies. Do you have a favorite food/movie moment? I'd love to hear about it.)

I love the simple perfection of summer food.

mascarpone, lemon curd & cookies

I have been noticing mascarpone showing up in recipes lately. It is an Italian cheese that is kind of sweet, but mostly just marvelously creamy. It has a consistency similar to cream cheese, but is so much lovelier.
This is one of my favorite little sweet snacks: creamy mascarpone spread on a waffle cookie with a dab of lemony lemon curd.
I like to keep all the components on hand to share with friends. It is effortless, simple and just enough different to be interesting.

Of course Trader Joes makes the best mascarpone, lemon curd and waffle cookies. However, these treats can also be found at other specialty food stores. They are worth the extra trip.