The summer weather has been coming and going with dismaying regularity, but we had at least one really nice day last week. We had gone out to Well Fed Farms to pick up our final batch of chickens for the season, then took the opportunity to swing by Skagit’s Own Fish Market on the way back. I found myself enamored of a tray of fresh rainbow trout, neatly butterflied and glistening in the case. They were far cheaper than any of the salmon options and looked wonderful; we brought home two.

It was too nice out not to grill, so I followed the fishmonger’s advice and stuffed the trout with lemon slices, then laid them carefully over moderate coals. When the skin on one side was crispy and golden, we carefully turned them to do the other side without flinging lemons into the fire.

The result was gorgeous. Apart from a bunch of tiny bones that had escaped the cleaning process in my trout, they were easy to eat, and the delicate meat was scented with lemon. I made coleslaw with a buttermilk-horseradish dressing from Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, then opened a bottle of very dry and light French rose.

Even the scent of citronella candles couldn’t hurt this meal.