hot. summer. dishes.

dishes to make when it is simply too hot to cook

summer is hot. summer is sweaty. summer is sticky. adding heat is just no fun. here are a few of my favorite summer recipes. they not only require little indoor cooking but also will give you an excuse to get to the farmers market and spoil yourself with some beautiful summer produce. enjoy!

strozzapreti with raw tomato sugo

serves 4 people

I love this dish because the flavor of the tomato sauce actually intensifies from a hot moment in the sun. It feels special & sustainable that a cooking method can use a natural resource like the sun. The rustic, imperfect twirled ribbons of strozzapreti provide plenty of crevices to hold together little bits of tomato, garlic, and basil. Feel free to use any shape that you have on hand though.

for strozzapreti:

for the dough: see my recipe for cavatelli.

to shape them: using a pasta roller (or a mattarello if your fancy like that), roll each quarter of the pasta dough to a bit thicker of a width than you would fettuccine. Then, cut the rolled dough into flat strips about a 1/2 inch thick. Using your hands, gently roll each strip onto itself so you get a twirled ribbon that cinches and breaks off from the rest of the strip at about two inches. Repeat with remaining dough.

for the raw tomato sugo:

• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters

• 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

• a handful of basil, sliced into thin ribbons

• a large pinch of kosher salt

• mozzarella di buffala, torn in bite-sized chunks

make the sauce: add all ingredients, except for mozzarella, to a large bowl and set in the sun for 30 minutes to an hour. Toss warm, cooked pasta into the tomato bowl and top with mozzarella.

lamb chops with salsa verde and baba ghanoush

Juicy lamb chops with a herby/vinegary sauce is pure joy. Especially when cooked over a wood fire. I used a green egg to make both the lamb chops and the baba ghanoush which I find really adds to the smokey flavor in both dishes. A grill with be perfectly sufficient, though. I served these items alongside grilled zucchini and charred sourdough slices.

for the lamb chops with salsa verde:

• lamb chops, patted dry then salted

• capers, 2 tsp rinsed

• dijon mustard, 2 tsp

• handful basil

• handful parsley

• handful mint

• juice from 1/2 a lemon

• salt, to taste

• pepper, to taste

• a few glugs of good olive oil

place lamb chops fat side down on a very hot pre-heated grill. grill for about 3-5 minutes on each side until they reach desired internal temperature and outside is slightly charred. pulse all ingredients for salsa verde, aside from olive oil, in food processor until smooth. slowly add olive oil into the food processor while the motor is running. adjust seasoning to taste.

for baba ghanoush:

• 3 eggplants

• ~1/4 cup tahini

• juice of 1 lemon

• ~1/4 cup of olive oil

char eggplants over a hot flame, turning to make sure eggplants are blackened all over (this should take 20-30 minutes). carefully remove skins from eggplants then drain the insides over a mesh sieve, pressing to release as much liquid as possible. add to a food processor with tahini and lemon juice, pulsing until smooth. with the motor running, add a steady stream of olive oil. taste to adjust seasoning.

pineapple upside down cake

There is nothing more fitting for a pool party than a pineapple upside down cake. She is camp. She is boozy. She is photo-worthy. & she is delicious. This cake was super fun to make too. I followed Alison Roman’s recipe exactly and highly recommend you do the same :)

That is all for now. Enjoy the summer!