Official start of Summer is 2 days away. Here is a perfect summer lunch recipe for Thursday or Friday in case you need fresh ideas from Chicken & Egg 'A Memoir of Suburban Homesteading with 125 Recipes' by Janice Cole, Photographs by Alex Farnum (Chronicle Books, 2011).

Cucumber-Basil Egg Salad

The glories of summer are captured in this pale green egg salad redolent of fresh basil, green onions, and crunchy cucumbers. Serve it surrounded by greens or tucked into pita loaves or slices of crusty bread for a satisfying lunch. 

6 hard-cooked eggs, diced

3/4 cup seeded, diced cucumbers (about 1/2 cucumber)

1/4 cup minced shallots

1/2 cup sliced green onions (green part only)

3 tablespoons lightly packed chopped fresh basil

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 

Gently combine the eggs, cucumbers, shallots, green onions, and basil in a medium bowl. Stir in the mayonnaise, salt, and pepper.

Serves 6

In addition to Chicken and Egg, the memoir and cookbook, Chronicle Books is publishing this summer (August 2012) Chicken and Eggs, 10 Prints or 10 images from the book, ready to frame.

Providing inspiration to turn part of the lawn into an edible garden for Green Day # 228

(* Recipe from Chicken & Egg 'A Memoir of Suburban Homesteading with 125 Recipes' by Janice Cole, Photographs by Alex Farnum, Chronicle Books, 2011, reproduced with permission of publisher)