Simply Summer

The original inspiration for dinner was summer.  What's not to love about summer?  The fruits, the vegetables, the picnics, the fireworks, the weather, the beach; it's all beyond great.

This meal was our nod to summer: light, meatless, refreshing, and under the stars.

Appetizers:

Mozzarella & Pesto Stuffed Tomotoes
1 ½ cups diced mozzarella ¾ cup pesto 2 lbs. (aprox. 20) Campari tomatoes Salt Core the tomatoes with a small melon baller or fruit corer. Rinse out the seeds and sprinkle salt into the tomatoes. Turn upside down onto a paper towel, and refrigerate until filling is ready. This gives them time to drain and the salt helps eliminate excess moisture. Mix the pesto with the mozzarella, and use a baby spoon to fill the tomatoes. Serve immediately or refrigerate beforehand.

Watermelon & Kiwi with Strawberry Cream
Seedless watermelon
Kiwi

1/4 cup Greek yogurt
1/4 cup Low fat cream cheese
1 Tablespoon Strawberry puree

Cube watermelon and kiwi. Place fruit on toothpicks.  The cream recipe is estimated and I honestly don't remember what I did. Combine the ingredients to make a nice consistency. Refrigerate until you are ready to eat!

Salad

Summer Corn Salad

2 ears fresh corn, husks removed
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 red onion, roughly chopped
1/2 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
4 roma tomatoes
Basil sprigs for garnish

Light up your grill or preheat a cast-iron grill pan over medium-high heat.
In a large pot of boiling unsalted water, parboil the corn for 2 minutes. Drain. Brush lightly with olive oil and cook on hot grill, turning occasionally, until lightly charred in spots, about 5-10 minutes. Transfer to a platter.
Once corn is cool enough to handle, cut kernels from the cob and place in a large mixing bowl. Stir in onion, balsamic and olive oil. Toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Cut tomatoes into 1/2″ thick slices. Arrange on six salad plates, and top with a small mound of corn mixture. Garnish with a sprig of basil.

Mediteranean Orzo Salad with Grilled Vegetables

Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup of olive oil

2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 clove of garlic, minced
Dash of dried oregano
Salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste

Combine all of the ingredients together in a small bowl and whisk well. Set aside.

1 tbsp olive oil
1 zucchini, cut into spears
1 yellow squash, cut into spears
1/2 red onion, sliced into rings
1 baby yellow bell pepper, sliced
1 baby red bell pepper, sliced
1 baby orange bell pepper, sliced
Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste
Dash of oregano, to taste
1 cup of orzo, cooked per instructions
1 1/2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
2 tbsp of crumbled feta

Coat a large grill pan with cooking spray over medium high heat. Slice the vegetables then drizzle the olive oil over them and season them with oregano, sea salt, and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Toss to coat evenly. Place into the hot grill pan and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side until tender. The onion and bell peppers may take longer than the zucchini and squash. Set the vegetables aside to cool before dicing.

Cook the orzo in salted water per instructions then drain well. Pour the cooked orzo into a large bowl. Add the diced grilled vegetables, fresh parsley, and feta cheese. Drizzle the vinaigrette onto the mixture then toss to coat evenly (you may not need all of the vinaigrette). Taste and re-season if needed. Serve immediately and enjoy.

Strawberry, Basil, and Goat Cheese Panini

Panini

2 slices of whole wheat levain bread, thinly sliced

1.5 ounces goat cheese

3 to 4 strawberries

a few basil leaves, whole or roughly chopped

black pepper, freshly ground

1 tablespoon butter, or less

Balsamic Honey Sauce

2/3 cup balsamic vinegar

1/3 cup honey

Instructions

1. Spread a layer of goat cheese over both slices of bread. Slice your strawberries relatively thinly by cutting off slices from the outside of the strawberries, leaving the center behind. Spread strawberries over one slice of bread, and basil on the other. Sprinkle both sides with black pepper, and lay the basil slice face down on top of the strawberry slice.
2. Heat a small to medium skillet (cast iron is best) over medium heat. Melt one to two teaspoons of butter in the skillet, then add the sandwich. Cover it with a plate or appropriately sized dish and weigh it down with something heavy, like canned beans or a cast iron skillet. Cook until the bottom of the bread is lightly browned, about two to three minutes, then lift the sandwich from the pan, add another pat of butter, let it melt, and return the sandwich to repeat on the other side. Slice each sandwich in half and serve warm.
3. To make the balsamic honey sauce, combine the balsamic vinegar and honey in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Simmer, stirring constantly, until the liquid is reduced by about half (15 minutes or more). Pour the liquid into a small bowl to cool.

Notes

• Panini adapted from The Food Matters Cookbook by Mark Bittman. Balsamic honey sauce from Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts by Alice Medrich.
• I recommend making the balsamic honey sauce first. Save leftovers for drizzling over Greek yogurt, vanilla ice cream, pizza, peaches and berries.
• If you’d like to make multiple sandwiches at once, you might try Bittman’s other cooking method: preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and butter your slices of bread on one side. Place the bread, butter side down, on a baking sheet and spread the topsides with goat cheese. Add fillings as directed below, and top with another slice of bread, spread with goat cheese on the underside and butter on the topside. Cover the sandwiches with another baking sheet and weigh the sheet down with something heavy, like a cast-iron skillet or canned goods, and let it sit for 5 minutes. Remove the weight and the top baking sheet and bake the sandwiches until the bottom of the bread is lightly browned, about 5 minutes, and then repeat on the other side.

Dessert

Dole Whip Ice Cream

1 quart 100% Dole Pineapple Juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 cups heavy whipping cream
3 cups sugar

Mix the pinapple juice and sugar, amking sure that the sugar is dissolved, then add the cream and vanilla.
Pour the whole mixture into your ice cream maker.  Follow the ice cream maker instructions.

Mixed Berry Sorbet

3 cups fresh or frozen mixed berries of your choice
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
zest and juice of one lemon

In a medium saucepan set over medium high heat, place the berries and the rest of the ingredients in a large pot and bring to a quick boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Puree until smooth in a blender or food processor and then strain through a fine mesh chinois (strainer). Process in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
5 Tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder
2/3 cup sugar
2 cups raspberries (you can use fresh or frozen)

Add the heavy cream, cocoa powder and sugar to a medium saucepan and whisk to combine. Set the pan over medium heat and, whisking frequently, bring the mixture to a full, rolling boil. Turn off the heat under the pan, then add the raspberries. Cover the pan and set aside for 10 minutes.

Puree the mixture in a blender (immersion blender works too, that's what I did!) or food processor. If desired, you can strain the mixture to remove the raspberry seeds.

Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled (overnight is good). The mixture will be thick - almost like pudding - once chilled. Freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to airtight container and store in your freezer.

Liquids

We love the idea of flavored water.