With the fourth of July weekend in the rearview mirror, summer is officially in full swing. And as much as we may like to cook, there’s no shortage of diversions ready to lure us from the kitchen. These five recipes run the gamut, from quick cooking to outdoor cooking to no cooking at all. Gathered from the Blue Kitchen archives, they’ll help you get great summer meals on the table with minimal time and effort in the kitchen.
1. Tomato Basil Salsa Cruda with Pasta
Cooking doesn’t get much easier than this—salsa cruda is Italian for uncooked sauce. The only thing you cook for Tomato Basil Salsa Cruda with Pasta is the pasta itself. The hot pasta warms the salsa of raw, chopped tomatoes, basil, garlic and olive oil, filling the kitchen with a big, delicious fragrance. And the uncooked salsa slightly cools the pasta, making for a light summery meal.
2. Spicy Turkey Burgers
In the days before air conditioning, a separate summer kitchen was sometimes added to homes to keep the heat of cooking out of the house. Today, the ubiquitous grill serves that same function for many families. Chili powder, cumin, fresh jalapeño peppers and cilantro deliver some lively flavor and heat to these grilled Spicy Turkey Burgers without heating up the kitchen.
3. Chicken, Goat Cheese & Apricot Jam Sandwich
That’s right. I said apricot jam. On a chicken sandwich. It gives this sandwich a wonderful sweet/savory taste that’s perfect for summer. Light but satisfyingly filling. And with leftover or store bought roast chicken, there’s no cooking at all. And doesn’t that sound good? Go on. Give this Chicken, Goat Cheese & Apricot Jam Sandwich a try.
4. Curried Steaks with Black-eyed Pea Salsa
Fresh tomatoes, green pepper and chili powder liven up this black-eyed pea salsa, making it a perfect complement for curry-seasoned grilled steaks. The salsa is also tasty on grilled chicken. No long marinating required either, a mere 15 minutes—which means Curried Steaks with Black-eyed Pea Salsa can fit easily into busy summer schedules.
5. Pasta Shells with Italian Tuna and Artichokes
And finally, another salsa cruda. This one uses artichoke hearts, capers, parsley and lemon juice to give olive oil-packed canned Italian tuna a bright, summery taste. If you think the uncooked salsa smells great as you mix it,wait until the hot pasta hits it. Make Pasta Shells with Italian Tuna and Artichokes once and it’ll be a guaranteed summer go-to dish for you.
These look perfect for summer. They made me hungry so I’m eating my lunch now early.
Randi—Ha! As a food blogger constantly thinking, reading and talking about food, I’m almost always just very, very slightly hungry.
We didn’t know that you call the uncooked sauces “salsa cruda” – my mother just called it linguine with fresh tomatoes and basil. She also made pasta shells with the nicer canned albacore tuna in oil (we got the “mushy” variety for tuna salad sandwiches.) Instead of artichoke hearts and capers, she added fresh or frozen peas and finely chopped red onion. Sometimes some cherry tomatoes, too. And she was the only person I knew who loved apricot jam on sandwiches, quiche, almost any kind of meat. She would say that she needed a little “sweet” with her meal. My mother’s legacy, handed down through four generations, are her wonderful recipes and our memories of her in the kitchen. Thank you for inspiring my walk down memory lane.
dani—Thanks for the lovely comment! Sounds like your mom was a wonderful cook. Regarding the tuna with pasta shells, do try it with the Italian tuna—it’s quite good. Also, the other night, I whipped up a version of this adding a can of cannellini beans and leaving out the artichoke hearts [didn’t have any on hand]. Also substituted basil for parsley for the same reason. A nice variation on a theme, if I say so myself.
I love easy summer meals – these look wonderful!