In the Summer, dinner in a hurry is the name of the game. So is using the best and freshest in season ingredients. It’s amazing how delicious most Summer produce is with only the slightest bit of encouragement. While the root vegetables of Winter require baking, roasting and braising, Summer vegetables and fruit often can be eaten out of hand, or very gently cooked to bring out their peak flavor.

Tomatoes are one of the best Summer fruit, that tastes more like a vegetable. Here are three classic and easy ways to use tomatoes–with pasta, soup and salad. Each are vegetarian, healthy and are prepared in a jiffy. Two don’t require any cooking at all!

First up, fresh tomatoes and basil get tossed with just a minimum of seasonings. The result is dinner in under under 20 minutes. Recipe courtesy of Chef Lorenzo Boni and Barilla.

Penne with Fresh Cherry Tomatoes and Basil
Serve 4-6

1 box Barilla Whole Grain Penne (13.25 ounces)
5 Tbs. Extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 clove garlic
1 pint (3 cups) cherry tomatoes, halved
Sea salt and black pepper, to taste
4 basil leaves
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, heat half of olive oil in medium-sized skillet. Using the side of a knife, gently press and peel garlic clove and saut in skillet for 1 minute. Add cherry tomatoes, season with salt and pepper and saut for additional 3 minutes. Remove garlic from skillet. Drain pasta, add to skillet. Toss with remaining olive oil, basil and cheese before serving.

This twist on soup that’s a salad uses fresh corn in addition to tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers.

Summer Sweet Gazpacho
Serves 4

1 cup tomato juice
2 Tablespoons chopped red onion
1/4 cup diced red bell pepper
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 cup barely cooked fresh corn kernels
1/4 diced cucumber
4 tomatoes, diced
Salt and pepper to taste

In a blender, combine the tomato juice, onion, bell pepper and garlic. Blend on high until pureed. Pour the contents of the blender into a glass bowl and stir in the remaining ingredients. Cover tightly and chill at least 4 hours. Serve chilled.

The traditional Salad Caprese is very simple–just tomatoes, basil, mozzarella and extra virgin olive oil. Buy the best quality mozzarella you can find, packed in water.

Caprese Salad
Serves 4

1/2 pound fresh mozzarella, sliced 1/4-inch thick
2 large ripe tomatoes, sliced 1/4-inch thick
1 cup fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Alternate fresh mozzarella slices on a large platter with sliced tomatoes, and basil leaves, overlapping each. Just before serving, drizzle on some excellent extra-virgin olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

——-Amy Sherman

Technorati Tags: tomatoes, summer, salad, pasta, soup, whole grains, vegetarian

I stumbled upon this amazing recipe last year while browsing one of my favorite eye-candy/foodie websites - Jaden’s Steamy Kitchen - and it was one of those moments when you wish you could just pull something right out of the screen and dig in right then and there! “Lobster” and “Mac and Cheese” in the same title…can you blame me?!

If you share the same sentiment, I can tell you that the whole screen thing won’t take you too far…so here is the next best thing: the recipe!

Lobster Mac ‘n Cheese
{via Steamy Kitchen}

Ingredients:

Pasta
1/2 cup butter + more for ramekin
1/2 cup flour
2 cups half and half
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cayenne
pinch of ground black pepper
3 cups sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
2 cups gruyere cheese, shredded
1 lb dried elbow pasta

Lobster
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 lb uncooked lobster meat, chopped (see notes)
3 tbs grated parmesan

***

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F.

1. Boil pasta in a large pot of salted water until 1 minute shy of done. Drain well.

2. In meantime, with medium saucepan on medium-low heat, melt butter and add flour a little at a time, whisking constantly for 3 minutes to make a roux. Add half and half, a little at time, whisking to combine. Cook 3 minutes until sauce has thickened. Turn off heat. Add cheddar and gruyere, salt, nutmeg, cayenne and pepper. Stir until cheese is melted. Taste and adjust seasonings. Add cooked pasta to pan, stir to combine.

3. Butter 8 small ramekins or a large baking dish. Spoon pasta/cheese mixture into dish, up to 2/3 full. Bake in oven for 30 minutes.

4. While pasta is baking, melt 2 tbs butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Once butter melts, turn off heat and add lobster meat, parmesan and panko bread crumbs. Toss to combine.

5. When pasta is done baking, remove from oven. Top pasta with a spoonful of lobster mixture. Set your oven rack to top 1/3 of oven, turn to broil and return ramekins to oven for 6-8 minutes. Lobster should be cooked through and a nice cheeesy crunchy crust will form.

Jennifer Sbranti
www.hostesswiththemostess.com

Technorati Tags: comfort food, pasta, lobster recipes, seafood recipes, gourmet comfort food

Everyone I know seems to be looking for ways to save money. Bringing your lunch to work, even a few days a week can really save you a bundle. Here are five super tips to add some pizazz to your bag lunch.

These tips are adapted from The City Cook “The ultimate guide for pathetically busy, space-compromised urban dwellers who prefer to cook at home.” The City Cook web site has great ideas each and every week, and you don’t just have to be a city dweller to take advantage of them. Thanks to editor Kate McDonough for sharing her timely ideas. Check out The City Cook site, and sign up for the newsletter for more great ideas, recipes, interviews and articles each week.

1. Leftovers live again! This is the easiest way to make your lunch: just make extra dinner the night before. Nearly every office has a microwave oven and you will be happy to have a bowl of last night’s beef stew, which will probably taste even better than it did right from the oven. Other leftovers don’t even need to be re-heated, such as poached salmon or a piece of cold chicken.

2. Assemble a sturdy salad. Salads made from ingredients that can sit for a few hours and travel unrefrigerated without spoiling. One of my favorites is sliced cherry tomatoes tossed with artichoke hearts and little balls of fresh mozzarella, often called bocconcini. Assemble the salad in the morning, adding a pinch of salt and drizzle of olive oil, and the salted tomatoes will throw off enough acidic juice to make a perfect dressing. Variations on this theme include cubes of cheese and salami, ham or turkey; sliced raw peppers, mushrooms and tuna fish (olive oil packed but drained); sliced raw fennel, sardines, and curls of parmesan cheese.

3. Pack a pita sandwich. If you’re a sandwich fan, sandwiches made with whole wheat pita bread, sliced ham or turkey, a slice of cheese and spears of romaine lettuce travel well and can be made using the mini-pita loaves that are easy to find in our grocery stores. The trick for sandwiches for a lunch that you’ll eat hours later is to either make ones without wet ingredients like egg salad or wet condiments like mayonnaise, or else bring the elements of a sandwich and assemble it just before you eat it.

4. Skip the chips but pack the dip. Raw vegetables with hummus dip is a perfect example. Hummus is full of protein as it’s made from chickpeas and tahini. Add a pita bread half and it can be a very satisfying lunch. This is a meal that can be purchased at most supermarkets or delis, but you’ll save more than half the cost if you wash and trim your own vegetables and make your own hummus.

5. Don’t forget dessert! Many of us like something sweet either right after a meal or a little while afterwards. Fresh fruit is always a great choice but if you want something different, consider dried fruits, like apricots or pineapple rings, or a mix of dried cranberries and almonds. Just remember that dried fruits have the same calories as fresh ones so keep that in mind when grabbing a handful of dried apricot halves.

——-Amy Sherman

Technorati Tags: budget, lunch, dessert, sandwich, salad, snack

A few years ago I discovered how refreshingly delicious frozen grapes are. Just wash them, then pop them in a plastic bag and place them in the freezer. They make a great juicy snack! They also make a great a cocktail.

image copyright 2008 frankenyimages.com

The Frost Bite is featured at Seasons Bar and Lounge at Four Seasons Hotel 757 Market Street in San Francisco. It’s just one of many Cocktails for a Cause.

Frost Bite

2 oz. Ciroc Vodka
1 1/2 oz. White Cranberry Juice
3/4 oz. Inniskillin Ice Wine

Shake and strain into sugar rimmed glass
Sink 1/2 oz of Creme de Cassis

Serve with a side of frozen grapes

Cocktails for a Cause reflects Four Seasons Hotel San Francisco’s commitment to supporting local and nationally recognized nonprofit organizations. The funds raised will help Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in its mission to advance access to care and finding a cure for breast cancer. Every Monday between 5:30pm and 7:30pm through the end of the summer have a cocktail and enjoy a weekly-changing “taste” from Seasons Restaurant and support the cause!

At the Seasons Restaurant Cocktailian Sierra Zimei has created a line-up of delectable cocktails to tantalize taste buds including the Sake 75, an innovative take on the French 75, made with Magellan Gin, Fresh Lemon Juice and Hou Hou Shou Sparkling Sake; the Gauvarita, a tropical Margarita, made with Patron Silver, Fresh Guava Puree, Cointreau and Fresh Fruit Juices, among many others.——–Amy Sherman

[tags]cocktail, breast cancer, avon,

It’s stone fruit season! Peaches, plums, nectarines, apricots and cherries. Stone fruit are wonderful eaten out of hand but you can also make cobblers or jam out of them. Another way to use stone fruit is with savory dishes. You can make chutney, salsa or a simple fruit relish.

Thanks to Nona Lim of Cook! for sharing this beautiful recipe which would be great for a romantic dinner for two. It uses plums, but experiment with other stone fruit if you like.

Cook! delivers fresh prepped ready-to-cook meal kits in the San Francisco Bay Area. Cook!s mantra is that the ingredients must stay fresh for up to three days and that the recipes can be prepared from start to finish in 20 minutes. Whenever possible, they use local and organic ingredients and recyclable or reusable packaging. Everything comes with the kits so even if your kitchen is bare, you can have dinner on the table in minutes.

Grilled Pork Chops with Plum Relish
Serves 2

2 pork chops - 7-8 oz each, bone-in
2 teaspoons olive oil

Brine
3 cups water
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons kosher salt

Plum Relish
(You can also substitute with nectarines when in season)

teaspoon sea salt
teaspoon pepper
red onion
2 Tablespoons pine nuts
2 plums - the plums should be ripe but still slightly firm to the touch.
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Tablespoon honey
2 Tablespoon fresh basil

Preparation Instructions
Brine Pork Chops - Mix brine in bowl and submerge pork chops; cover and refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

Prepare Relish
1. Toast pine nuts on baking sheet in 350 oven for 5-10 minutes; do not burn.
2. Dice onions and shred basil.
3. Heat heavy frying pan over medium heat
4. Slice plums in half and remove pit. Brush plums with 1 tsp. olive oil and place cut side down in hot pan to grill until browned, about 3 minutes. Turn and grill until charred and softened, about 2 minutes longer. When pan cools, wipe out any excess oil or plum with paper towel.
5. When plums cool, into tiny cubes. Put them in a bowl and gently mix in the vinegar and honey. Add the onion, basil, pine nuts and season with salt and pepper and mix thoroughly. Set aside.

Grilling the Pork Chops
1. Heat 1 tsp. olive oil in heavy frying pan over high heat.
2. Remove chops from brine, rinse and pat dry lightly using paper towel.
3. Add chops to pan and cook for 2 minutes on 1 side.
4. Turn over and cook for 1 minute.
5. Reduce heat to medium (chops should continue to sizzle). Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side.
6. If you have an instant read thermometer, you will know chops are cooked when the thermometer reads between 145 to 155.
7. Remove pork chops to serving dish and top with relish.

——-Amy Sherman

Technorati Tags: pork chop, grill, plum, relish, summer, recipe