We're just about ready to head into September so it’s time to share a roundup of Favorite Easy Summer Recipes that you can use once summer rolls around again! Michele Di Pietro and I talked about all our favorite easy summer recipes in this week's podcast episode 24. What we look for in a summer recipe is something quick, with minimal time in the kitchen and recipes that use all of summer's fabulous produce.
Pesto is always a star of summer and it can range from the classic pesto Genovese that uses basil and toasted pine-nuts, or one of Michele‘s favorites, a pesto trapanese: tomatoes, almonds and basil. But really the sky is the limit where pesto is concerned so almost any combination of nuts and greens will yield a fabulous dressing for pasta or a topping for bruschetta.
Zucchini is a classic garden vegetable and abundant at markets. This summer one of my favorite new dishes was Zucchini Parmesan, with a white sauce, mozzarella, Parmesan cheese and sliced prosciutto.
And of course don’t forget about zucchini flowers that you can stuff and deep fry for a wonderful appetizer.
Michele likes to grate zucchini, salt and drain it, and then squeeze dry. Then you can mix it with some wonderful olive oil and anything else you like and use it as a bruschetta topping, or for pasta.
Michele‘s favorite green beans are Romano, or pole, beans and the classic recipe her family has always used is giambotto.
I use sliced zucchini in this delicious 'Nduja Pasta dish.
Changes in the culinary landscape mean that some vegetables and fruits that were uncommon, or just not used, in Italy or the United States have now become part of the local cuisine.
Avocados are becoming a favorite in Italy and are now grown in Sicily, a great climate for them to thrive and prosper.
I like to slice an avocado in half, drizzle it with a balsamic vinaigrette and then top with caviar for a delicious appetizer. And who doesn’t love a simple avocado toast, or a tomato and avocado toast?
Michele developed an avocado carbonara pasta dish for a client some years back and the silky creamy texture of the avocado lends itself perfectly to this classic Italian dish.
Pasta carbonara is a classic and historical Italian dish and should stay that way! But why not invent a completely new dish, as Michele did, that combines the two?
Corn has always been grown in Italy but up until not too many years ago it was mostly used as feed for livestock. That’s changed now and it’s quite common to find delicious ears of corn at Italian markets and supermarkets. It’s great to make a corn soup or just to eat as corn on the cob.
Summer has some amazing fruit that is great eaten on its own, like fresh berries and figs. Lots you can do with figs other than plucking them off the tree and plopping them in your mouth!
Try slicing figs in half, topping with a dollop of Gorgonzola cheese and a walnut half and grilling. Figs are also great as a topping for a Pavlova.
You’ll find lemon trees all over Italy and the classic use for them is limoncello. Use lemons to drizzle on fish, meats and veggies, and to make preserved lemons, lemon pasta or lemon ravioli.
They are also wonderful in this summer lemon pie: whisk zest and juice from two lemons with 200 g fresh cream. Once the lemons begin to curdle the cream and it thickens stir in 200 g of sweetened condensed milk. Pour the filling into a cookie or gram-cracker crust and chill: easy and scrumptious!
One of my favorites is Lemon Lavender Cake.
Tune in to the podcast episode "Roundup of Favorite Easy Summer Recipes - episode 24" for more recipes and ideas!
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