Cooking from the Summer Pantry: Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes, Corn & Pesto

I have been a bit bummed about my lack of attention to my blog…for some time now if I’m honest…but especially in recent months.  Over the past few years I have reduced the number of posts simply because I just don’t have the time to invest in it like I once did.  But during the pandemic I haven’t really had much in the way of new cooking/recipes to post.  The cooking I do for private dinners and new classes has been radically reduced (for a while it disappeared entirely).  The cooking I do for myself has been mostly cooking tried and true items (many of which I have already posted!).  My pandemic year (going on two, now…) has been spent cooking a lot of never-to-be-duplicated meals which are made up of leftovers from online classes (since I don’t serve tastings for those classes) and cooking from my pantry in an effort to minimize time spent out and about.  So the meals have been what some might consider boring (not blog-worthy?).  

Despite this feeling that the things I have made might not be interesting enough for my blog, I have never felt deprived by these meals:  they have been delicious!  And I have realized that in many respects the kind of cooking I have done for myself during this time is exactly the kind of skill I have always wanted to impart in my classes and on my blog.  It is, in fact, really cooking.  It is a cuisine of daily inspiration from what you have on hand—made possible from a lifetime of cooking that has produced an abundance of taste memory and a set of well-honed kitchen skills.  

Unfortunately this kind of skill can’t be acquired through a class, food TV, or a blog… unless you are engaging in the activity itself after you watch or read.  But—in the hope that people are cooking—I will continue (when I can!) to do on my blog what I have always done:  teach skills (see my catalog of basic techniques…as well as the incidental skills included in almost every single post) and describe as best as I am able how I arrived at a certain result (which I try to do in most of my posts and recipes). 

Today’s post is in the spirit of this kind of daily cooking.  It is not new…or exciting.  It is just my predictable favorite: pasta.  But it made a satisfying summer meal.  And it came together quickly and easily because it was just a matter of pulling together a bunch of stuff I had in my pantry… and applying techniques I use in the kitchen all the time.    

As I scanned my pantry Saturday there was a lot to choose from.  (The truth is that if you cook regularly, you will almost always have the means at your disposal to make some kind of a meal.)  Much of what I had required more cooking than I was in the mood for.  But my eyes fell on the last of some pesto that I had made for a quick meal for a client (it was carrot top pesto…but any green “herb” pesto—basil, arugula, kale—would have been good) and some corn that I had “roasted” while I had the grill on to make a pizza a few days ago.  

Early in my career I started keeping a spiral bound notebook to jot down things I cooked or baked at home (I had other notebooks for the professional kitchens in which I worked).  This is a great practice when you are learning to cook.  Record your successes and your failures…along with a note or two about why it was a success or failure. (Make notes in your cookbooks too.)  All of this knowledge will come in handy and help hone your skills.  I have referred back to mine many times over the years.  It has been a while since I made an entry.  I probably should have been keeping notes in it during this past year.  (I actually have kept notes…knowing that many of the meals will be turned into recipes for my classes and clients.  Unfortunately they are on random pieces of paper that I will have to hunt for when I want them.)  Anyway, the pesto and roasted corn reminded me of a pasta that I was pretty sure I had jotted down in that notebook.  

When I looked, I found that I had. What I made wasn’t an exact duplicate of the original (I think I sautéed the corn in the original…and I’m certain I didn’t use carrot top pesto)…but having my notes filled out the rest of the flavors of the dish:  cherry tomatoes (always on my counter in the summer)…as well as standard pantry items (garlic, olive oil, vinegar, herbs and Parmesan/Pecorino). 

The method I used to prepare/warm the cherry tomatoes is from a long ago favorite from the book Chez Panisse Pasta, Pizza & Calzone by Alice Waters.  Cherry tomatoes are halved and warmed gently (they should hold their shape) in a generous quantity of olive oil, finished with vinegar, tossed with long thin pasta and topped with a shower of toasted breadcrumbs.  If you have an abundance of beautiful, tiny cherry tomatoes, Waters’ pasta is a great dish to make. 

For my pasta I started with Waters’ method for the tomatoes...then added a tiny clove of chopped garlic and my roasted corn...and warmed everything through.  I let it sit off the heat while I cooked the pasta so that the ingredients would have a chance to get to know one another.  When the pasta was done I combined this “sauce” with the pasta, pesto, pasta water, and a handful of arugula (chopped).  I topped it all with a finely grated mix of Parmesan and Pecorino. 

I will make it again.  I hope others will give it a try too.  But mostly, I hope people will be inspired to get into the kitchen and cook—even if it’s just something simple and “boring.” 

Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes, Corn & Pesto 

For 1 portion (multiplies easily for more):

1 1/2 to 2 T. olive oil
1/2 c. (75 to 85 g.) small cherry tomatoes, halved
A very small clove of garlic, minced
1 t. sherry vinegar (red or white wine vinegar will work, too)
1/2 c. (75 g.) cooked (roasted…grilled….) corn kernels
90 g. gemelli, gigli, fusilli (long or short cut), or strozzapreti—any noodle with some nice nooks and crannies will work
2 T. pesto
2 to 3 T. chopped arugula (or basil)
Parmesan and/or Pecorino, finely grated

Place the oil, tomatoes, garlic and a generous sprinkling of salt in a sauté pan large enough to hold the pasta and vegetables.  Gently warm until the tomatoes have begun to soften slightly (but aren’t losing their shape.  Add the corn along with several grindings of pepper and heat through.  Add the vinegar and toss to combine.  Taste and correct the seasoning.  Remove from the heat and let sit while the pasta cooks. 

Cook the pasta in a large pot of well salted water until al dente.  When the pasta is cooked, scoop out some of the pasta water and set aside.  Drain the pasta and add to the pan of vegetables along with the pesto, a tablespoon or two of the pasta water and the chopped arugula.  Toss until the pasta and vegetables are coated in a light, fluid, pesto-y sauce. Transfer to a serving plate and top with Parmesan and/or Pecorino.

Note:  If you don’t have a sauté pan large enough to hold the vegetables and pasta, you can toss the pasta with the sauce/vegetables in the pot in which you cooked the pasta.  Just drain the pasta (not forgetting to save some of the water) and return it with the sauce to the pot.

Printable Version

Raw Zucchini Salad

One of the things I love about my new home is my kitchen.  It will come as no surprise to hear that during my home search one of my “must haves” was a good kitchen.  It didn’t have to be state of the art—but it had to be highly functional.  The kitchen I got exceeded my wildest expectations.  I love it…and have enjoyed getting to know it over the past year or so.

But of course, nothing is ever perfect.  During the past two summers I have discovered one thing that I really miss about my old kitchen:  its location in the house.   My old kitchen was just off a large great room that had a two story vaulted ceiling.  The house thermostat was located on the opposite side of the great room.  Without even thinking about it—even on the hottest days of summer—I was in the habit of firing up my oven for tasks hot and large (pizza) as well as things small and moderate (toasting a handful of nuts to top pasta or a salad).  The heat from the oven just wafted out of the kitchen and rose up into the heights of the great room ceiling, never making it as far as the thermostat. The kitchen never got overly hot…and the A/C never had to work any harder to make up for the heat being pumped out of my oven.  In my blissful ignorance I baked and roasted my ways through the long hot summers, always a bit mystified when people in classes commented that they loved my summer pizzas, but they had no intention of turning their oven up to that kind of temperature in the summer.

Fast forward to my new home and kitchen….with its nice powerful convection oven and poorly placed house thermostat (in a small hall area right off the kitchen).   Even though the layout of the house is open, the ceilings are of a standard height.  That, coupled with a smaller space in general, makes it so the temperature in the house can quickly become overwhelmed by my nice powerful oven.  If I turn it on—even for a few minutes—the temperature in a good portion of the house begins to climb…and the A/C begins to run non-stop.  

I don’t share any of this to complain.  Rather, I mention it because it has forced me to become a bit more creative and efficient—which is always a good thing.  The worst issues were solved with a few strategically placed fans (at least turning on the oven doesn’t make the thermostat go up even when the A/C is running!).  I also plan now about when and how I will use my oven.  And as often as possible I double and triple up on tasks:  If the oven is on to make coffeecake (a non-negotiable essential), I toast nuts (in larger batches)…or roast a couple of ears of corn…or bake a bunch of beets.  This way, later in the week, when I want nuts or corn (or beets) for a cold salad, the oven doesn’t even come into play.  

Another change has been in the things I eat—choosing to eat something in its raw state rather than cooked.  Today’s salad is a case in point.  I have always added zucchini to pastas, salads, quiche…quesadillas…all summer long—almost always in its cooked form (roasted, broiled, sautéed, etc.).  When I have chosen to eat it raw I have always felt it necessary to shave it in long ribbons or thin and wide cross sections.  It’s delicious this way, but not always appropriate.

Recently I saw a salad of thick-ish batonnets of raw zucchini on the NY Times Instagram feed.  It included nuts…and herbs…and cheese…and a tangy dressing—but they were just garnish.  It was basically an all out raw zucchini experience.  I was intrigued…and a bit dubious…but I made a mental note to try it sometime.

Later in the week I was making a BLT for dinner and needed a quick side dish.  I had recently come into an abundance of zucchini.  I thought of that salad.  The vinaigrette for the salad was more involved than I wanted—and the salad included toasted almonds (I had raw…)—so I made a few changes.  I had some of the vinaigrette left that I always use on raw late spring/early summer vegetable salads and I thought it would do nicely.  And I used some toasted and salted sunflower seeds that I had on hand and wouldn’t require the oven.  It was delicious.  I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the soft crunch of the zucchini.  To be honest, I think the additional hard crunch of almonds would have been a bit much, so I was glad I had had to use the sunflower seeds instead.

In the days that have followed I have made this style of zucchini the base of my lunch time salad on several occasions.  I almost always add roasted corn (I keep it in a container in the fridge) and cherry tomatoes.  My nut of choice is walnuts (toasted in quantity, salted & oiled, and kept in my pantry), but occasionally I will use sunflower seeds.  Sometimes I use the shaved Pecorino called for in the recipe, but more often than not I opt for big crumbles of Feta.  Arugula makes a great addition…as does mint.  But if you don’t have either of these on hand, it is delicious without.  I’m guessing basil or parsley leaves would be good, too.  And that dressing I had on hand that first time?  It has become the standard.  I have since made a big batch.

It should be obvious that this is a highly adaptable salad. The main thing to keep in mind is the seasoning.  In looking at the recipe and in thinking of my own experience with raw vegetables in general—and zucchini in particular—it seemed to me that salt and acid are the keys to the success of the salad.  So a salty cheese, a tangy vinaigrette, and careful salting are a must.  If you don't have a salty cheese, some olives would be a good addition.  Other than that, feel free to improvise with ingredients—using a nice balance of crunchy, soft, and juicy ingredients.   As for quantities, the ones I’m giving in the recipe are just a guide.  I never weigh when I make this salad—I just add larger and smaller handfuls of the ingredients.  And that’s what you should do too.  The only reason there are weights and measures in my recipe is to give you a place to start.  The last time I made it, I weighed everything as I put it into the bowl for the purpose of posting a recipe.

I realize of course that most of the rest of the world has been having to make these summer cooking adjustments all along—that I was truly spoiled.  But that’s ok.  I have no desire to trade my new kitchen for my old.  I’ll just keep adjusting.  My next operation keep-the-house-cool project will be making friends with my neglected Weber.  Grilled pizza, here I come. 

Raw Zucchini Salad

With Roasted Corn, Cherry Tomatoes & Feta

For one lunch-sized salad (recipe multiplies easily):

1 small zucchini/summer squash (about 2 1/2 oz), cut into quarter-inch batonnets
1/2 c. (about 2 1/2 oz.) roasted corn kernels
1/2 c./2 oz. cherry tomatoes, quartered (or halved of very small)
A small handful/1/2 oz. arugula
20 g./3 T. toasted, oiled & salted walnuts, coarsely crumbled or 1 1/2 T. oiled and salted sunflower seeds
1 oz. crumbled Feta (used a good quality Feta packed in brine) or shaved Pecorino
Salt & Pepper
1 1/2 to 2 T. Basic Tangy Vinaigrette (below)

Place the first six ingredients in a bowl.  

Season with salt and pepper.  Drizzle with the vinaigrette, toss to combine. Taste and correct the seasoning…adding more vinaigrette if you like.  Mound on a plate and serve!

Notes: 

• Quantities should be to taste.  I have given amounts only as a starting point.  You should alter to suit your preferences and your palate.
• Salad is delicious with a handful of fresh mint leaves.

Basic Tangy Vinaigrette:
1 T. finely minced shallot
1 small clove of garlic, minced
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
1 T. Dijon mustard
3/4 c. oil—olive oil, or half olive oil and half vegetable oil
1 T. finely minced parsley

Place the shallot, garlic, vinegar, pepper and a half teaspoon of kosher salt in the cup of an immersion blender...or regular blender.  Let sit for five minutes.  Add the mustard. With the blender running, add the oil in a thin stream to form a thick, emulsified dressing.  Add the parsley and process briefly...or simply stir in.  Taste and correct the seasoning.  Makes 1 cup vinaigrette.

The dressing keeps at least two weeks in the refrigerator.  If all olive oil is used, it will solidify under refrigeration and you will need to bring to room temperature before using.  When made with half vegetable oil it will still be pourable when cold.

Note: You may add the parsley with the Dijon...just be aware that your vinaigrette will have a pale green cast to it.

(Vinaigrette recipe from Cooking with the Seasons by Monique Jamet Hooker)


Printable Version

Bulgur topped with a Medley of Marinated Cherry Tomatoes, Chickpeas, Fennel & Feta

Last Sunday I finally got around to looking through some of my summer food magazines.  I don’t get to them as often as I like, but they always provide inspiration when I do. This time, among other things, I noticed a pasta salad in the July/August issue of Martha Stewart Living, filled with things I love:  Cherry Tomatoes, Fresh Fennel, Chickpeas & Capers.  Since I had fresh fennel and cherry tomatoes on hand…and I’m always in the mood for pasta…I decided I would try it this week.

I finally got to it on Friday evening.  I had every intention of making the pasta exactly as written, but when dinner time rolled around, I wasn’t really in the mood for pasta (shocking… I know…).   I decided that what I really wanted was a grain salad…and that bulgur would be delicious with all the flavors of the “sauce” from the original recipe.

Then, as I was preparing the medley of marinated vegetables, I decided that they were so beautiful…and so tasty on their own…that I really didn’t want to fold them into the bulgur.  Instead, I decided to use the bulgur as a bed for a big pile of the marinated vegetables…sort of like a streamlined grain bowl.  It was delicious.  And just what I was hungry for.

Bulgur with a Medley of Marinated Cherry Tomatoes,

 Chickpeas, Fennel & Feta

Bulgur:

2 T. olive oil

1 small red onion (4 to 5 oz.), finely diced (you will have about 1 c. diced onion)

kosher salt

1 fat clove garlic, minced

1 t. fennel seed, crushed with a mortar & pestle

2 t. dried oregano

1 c. (6 oz.) medium bulgur, rinsed and drained

1 1/4 c. boiling water

Marinated Vegetables:

1 pint (2/3 lb.) cherry tomatoes, quartered (halved, if small)

3 T. capers

1/2 c. pitted Kalamata olives (about 24), halved
2 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/4 c. olive oil

1/2 c. flat leaf parsley leaves, coarsely chopped

1 can (15 oz.) chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 medium fennel bulb, trimmed, halved, cored & thinly sliced/shaved crosswise using a mandolin

4 oz. Feta, drained and cut into scant 1/2-inch cubes

Warm 2 T. olive oil in a medium saucepan with a tight fitting lid over moderate heat.  Add the onions along with a pinch of salt and sweat until tender and translucent.  Add the garlic, fennel & oregano and cook until fragrant—about a minute.  Increase the heat to medium high and add the drained bulgur along with a generous pinch of salt.  Continue to cook for a minute.  Add the water and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to low and cook, covered until the bulgur is tender—12 to 15 minutes.  Remove from the heat and let stand (covered) for 5 minutes.  Scrape the finished bulgur onto a baking sheet and let cool to room temperature.

While the bulgur cooks and cools, make the medley of marinated vegetables.  Place all the ingredients in a bowl and fold together.  Season to taste with salt & pepper. 

To serve, spoon the room temperature bulgur onto a platter or individual plates, spreading out a bit and making a small divot in the center to hold the vegetables.  Mount the vegetables on top of the bulgur, making sure to get all of the liquid.  Drizzle with more olive oil, if you like.  Serves 4 as a light entrée.   

Notes & Suggestions:

• If you like, you may of course just combine the vegetables and bulgur and serve as a bulgur salad. The bulgur will absorb the juices, making a delicious grain salad.
• Even though I wasn’t in the mood for pasta when I made this, I’m sure that the vegetable mixture would be delicious on pasta for a pasta salad. Use 1 pound of gemelli, fusilli or cavatappi, cooked al dente and spread on a sheet pan to cool (rather than rinsing).

Printable Version

For those who might be preparing this for a household of one or two…and who only want to make half of a recipe (which is what I did), let me suggest a fantastic use for your remaining half can of chickpeas from Ottolenghi’s Simple: Chickpeas and Swiss Chard with Yogurt. If you like Mediterranean food and you shop at the farmer’s market or are a member of a CSA, it is likely you already have everything you need. I served it with Basmati Rice and warm flatbread. It was delicious. If you have the book, it’s on page 100. If not, the Guardian posted the recipe last year.

Farro with Corn, Cherry Tomatoes, Mint & Walnuts

The official start of autumn is this coming week.  But other than the changing of the light, there has been little indication from the elements that we are approaching fall.  September has, for the most part, been unusually warm.  Even during the week of rain we had earlier this month, it was a warm rain…it didn’t have the chilly feel that a spate of September rain usually brings.  And although I love fall, I’m not complaining.  I love summer too.  

I mostly point all this out to say that the foods of fall have snuck up on me. The market is beginning to fill with pumpkins, hard winter squash, apples, pears and cool season root vegetables (ready for harvest because of the waning of the light I would imagine…).  But I am still hungry for the foods of late summer:  fresh tomatoes, corn, summer squash, green beans, etc.  And thanks to the warm weather they are still in good supply.  So in the spirit of this moment, today I am offering a cool, late summer farro salad…filled with corn and tomatoes.  The calendar may soon say “fall,” but I anticipate being hungry for this salad for as long as the corn and tomatoes keep coming into the market (easily for another couple of weeks…).

The dish is a loose adaptation of a recipe in a recent addition to my cookbook library: the insightfully named Six Seasons (by Joshua McFadden).  The premise of the book is that summer—at least as far as food is concerned—is really three seasons.  Early summer includes tender young root vegetables and the tail end of the spring crops.  Midsummer is the season of melons, cucumbers, summer squash, several brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, etc), and green beans.  Late summer brings the full flush of tomatoes, peppers of all kinds, eggplant, sweet corn and shell beans.   Depending on where you live, his breakdown of the harvest will be slightly different from yours (in the Midwest, for example, I can get delicious local sweet corn all summer long), but in general, I love the idea behind his book.  I have always felt like “summer” was too vague a definition of the harvest.  Almost since I began teaching, my summer roster has included farmers’ market classes designated “Early,” “High,” and “Late” Summer.  Not only are the crops different, but each mini-season has a particular feel to it.  He captures and explains all of this very well.  Needless to say, I’m really enjoying this book.

I altered his farro and corn salad to suit my pantry.  He includes scallions, which I don’t tend to keep on hand.  But I always have red onion in my pantry…and I love it thinly shaved in salads.  The recipe calls for handfuls of basil and mint.  Unfortunately my basil had succumbed to a fungus the week before I ran across this recipe.  But I happened to have some lovely arugula—which is my usual stand in for basil during the spring and early summer months.  I thought it worked very well in this salad.  Finally, McFadden adds torn croutons (similar to those that I prepared for my BLAT salad a few posts back) to give some texture.  I didn’t have any of the right kind of bread thawed (and I was rushing to get dinner on the table), so I achieved a bit of crunch with a few lightly toasted and crumbled walnuts. They were just the thing.  And finally, I gilded the salad with a shower of crumbled Feta—whose salty, tangy presence makes one of the best summer salad garnishes imaginable.  I’m sure the original salad was good…but I loved my version.

This salad was not just delicious...  Like all good food, it was right for the moment.  It was filled with the vegetable fruits of the current season:  the last of the sweet corn, the final abundant flush of cherry tomatoes, and fresh mint from my garden (newly invigorated from a recent week of rain).  And it came together quickly on a day when I was short on time and much more in the mood to be out of doors enjoying the tail end of the warm summer weather than in a hot kitchen cooking.  I guess I'd have to say it was just about perfect food for the tail end of summer.  If you have the ingredients on hand...and you are still experiencing a spell of warm summer weather...you should definitely give it a try.    

 

Late Summer Farro Salad with Corn, Cherry Tomatoes, Mint & Walnuts

I have given measured amounts of all of the components of this salad because I know a lot of people like exact amounts, but this is definitely a “to taste” kind of salad.  Please view the measurements as guidelines and adjust to suit your taste…  More or less onion…  More or less mint…  Etc….

3 T. olive oil

2 cloves peeled garlic, lightly crushed

1/4 t. hot pepper flakes

1 c. pearled or semi-pearled farro, rinsed

4 c. water

1 t. kosher salt

3 or 4 ears of sweet corn, roasted in the husk or raw, as you prefer

1/2 of a small red onion (about 2 oz.)

1 pint (10 to 12 oz) cherry tomatoes (mixed colors, if available), halved

1/2 c. (2 oz.) walnuts, toasted and coarsely crumbled

a large handful of arugula (1 oz.)

a handful of mint leaves (10 to 12 grams…or about 2/3 cup)…to taste…

1/4 c. red wine vinegar

1/4 t. hot pepper flakes

1/2 t. kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1/3 c. (or so) olive oil

2 to 3 oz. coarsely crumbled Feta

In a wide saucepan with a tight fitting lid, warm the olive oil over moderate heat.  Add the garlic cloves and pepper flakes and gently cook for a few moments until the garlic starts to acquire a light golden color.  

Add the farro and stir to coat in the oil.  Continue to cook for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring pretty much constantly.  The farro will begin to darken and give off a toast-y aroma. 

Add the water and salt and bring to a boil.  Cover and reduce the heat to low.  Cook until the farro is tender, but still has texture—anywhere from 20 to 35 minutes, depending on the type of farro you are using.  Let the farro sit off the heat for 5 minutes.  Drain well and spread on a sheet pan to cool.  If you’re in a hurry, place the sheet pan in the fridge.

If you are roasting the corn, you may do so while the farro cooks.  Place the corn in the husk directly on the rack of a 375° oven.  Roast for 20 minutes.  Remove the corn from the oven and using towels to grab the corn, peel the husks back and allow the corn to cool on a rack.  When cool enough to handle, remove the silks.  If using raw corn, simply remove the husks and silks.  Cut the kernels away from the cobs and use the back of your knife to scrape the cobs clean of the milky pulp still embedded in the cob.  You should have about 3 cups of kernels.

While the farro cooks and the corn roasts, cut the core out of the onion and slice very thinly lengthwise (preferably with a mandolin slicer).  You should have 1/3 to 1/2 cup loosely packed sliced red onion.  Place the onion in a bowl and cover with ice water.  Let sit for about 15 minutes.  Drain well and blot dry with paper towels.

When all the components are ready, place all of the ingredients except the olive oil and Feta in a large bowl.  Toss to combine.   Taste and adjust the seasonings so that the salad is vibrant.  Drizzle in the olive oil and toss.  Taste and adjust again.  Serve chilled or at a cool room temperature.  When ready to serve, mound on individual plates or a serving platter and scatter the Feta over all.   Serves 4 to 5.

Printable Version

Marinated Summer Squash…with Cherry Tomatoes, Olives, and Capers

Earlier this summer I had an unfortunate experience with a recipe for marinated summer squash.  I wasn’t really paying attention to what was going on during the cooking process…I think I was distracted...and I was just blindly following a recipe in an attempt to get dinner on the table quickly.  (It happens to us all!)  The result was mushy…and oily…and kind of awful.  Because this was early in the summer, I’ve had the whole growing season to be sort of peripherally obsessed with marinated summer squash.  I’ve noticed it whenever a recipe for it crossed my path (which—surprisingly—happened with some frequency), and I’ve made several variations now.

Early on I happened across a great basic recipe from The Canal House.  I love recipes like this—no-frills, “method” recipes that enhance your understanding of a process and can then be used as a foundation for all kinds of variations.  Once you have the method recipe for something in your repertoire, you then begin to see it being used within more elaborate recipes all the time…and even when the more elaborate recipe is poorly or obscurely written, if you like the dish that recipe is trying to convey, you can then use your knowledge of the basic method…and the idea presented in the new recipe…and produce something delicious to eat. 

The basic method for marinated squash is to cook large pieces of squash 

(grill, broil, roast, sauté in a skillet, etc.) until golden brown and just tender (should still have a bit of resistance in the center) 

and then dress it with a tangy, garlicky, herby dressing while still warm. 

Then, all you have to do is let the squash sit and marinate until it has cooled to room temperature.  At that point you can enjoy it right away…or the next day (or later).  It is good chilled, at room temperature, or reheated.  The trick for success is choosing small, tender squash

...and then being careful not to overcook it (no matter what size you end up with).

I have run across variations on this basic method ranging from simple to complex.  Bon Appétit had a recipe in June with hazelnuts and mint (served on a bed of ricotta).  Joshua McFadden in his book Six Seasons includes a recipe with cherry tomatoes and a complex vinaigrette made with capers, raisins, anchovies and loads of parsley.  For subtle crunch, he tops the whole dish with a shower of toasted breadcrumbs.  



Michael Solomonov (Zahav) spoons his marinated squash over a “charred zucchini baba ganoush” and tops it with feta and hazelnuts. In her book Fresh from the Farmers’ Market, Janet Fletcher makes her vinaigrette with tomato concassé, niçoise olives, and capers.

Marinated squash can be served as a side dish (it’s especially nice with fish, chicken and lamb), but that’s just the beginning.  As demonstrated by the Bon Appétit and Solomonov versions, it is perfect for serving on top of a smear of ricotta, hummus…or other favorite spread.  If you add a loaf of crusty bread…or some warm flatbread…you have dinner.   At my table, I have served this squash for dinner on top of a big mound of fresh corn polenta…and as a side to halibut and toasted pine nut couscous.  

And I have enjoyed it for lunch with a custardy, soft cooked egg and a mound of warm freekeh.  

My favorite version is a hybrid of several of the recipes mentioned above (and it’s the one I’m including in my post).  Once you make it, I imagine you will come up with your own variations…and find a myriad of ways in which to serve it.

Marinated Summer Squash with Cherry Tomatoes, Olives, & Capers

1 lb. firm small summer squash (a mix of shapes and colors, if possible)

1 T. olive oil

Salt & pepper

2 T. red wine vinegar

1 large clove of garlic, peeled

1/2 lb. cherry tomatoes, halved (mixed colors, if available)

1 1/2 T. capers, rinsed and coarsely chopped

1/3 c. Kalamata (or other favorite brine-cured olive), halved

1/3 c. olive oil

10 to 12 large fresh basil leaves, cut in a medium chiffonnade

1/4 c. toasted breadcrumbs or toasted walnuts

Trim the squash.  For cylindrical squash, halve each squash lengthwise.  If the squash are on the large size (larger than 4 or 5 oz.), cut each in half again lengthwise.  Your goal is long slabs that are about 1/2-to 3/4-inch thick.  For patty pan-style squash, cut in half horizontally through the equator.  Again, if they are on the large side, you may want to cut these slices in half (to make semi-circles) or if the squash is extra tall, you may just want to cut it in 3 thick slices horizontally.  As with the zucchini, your goal is slabs that are 1/2- to 3/4-inch thick. 

Heat your grill or broiler to high.  Place the squash in a bowl and toss with a tablespoon of olive oil.  If you are broiling the squash, spread it on a baking sheet.  Slide the pan under the broiler or, alternatively, arrange the squash on the grill.  Grill or broil, turning occasionally, until both sides of the squash are lightly browned and just tender, but not mushy—there will still be a small amount of resistance in the center of the squash.  (Alternatively, you can simply brown the squash in a skillet on the stove top.  Film the pan with oil and cook over medium to medium-high heat, starting with a cut surface and then turning as the squash brown.)

While the squash cooks, place the vinegar in a large bowl.  Using a microplaner, grate the garlic into the bowl.  Add the tomatoes, olives, capers and olive oil.  Season generously with salt & pepper and toss to combine.

When the squash is tender, transfer to a wide, shallow dish and season with salt.  (If any of the squash is longer than 4 inches, then cut those in half first.) Pour the tomato salad over the squash and add the basil.  Gently toss everything together using a rubber spatula.  Taste and adjust the seasoning.  

Let the squash sit for at least half an hour before serving, gently tossing the ingredients a time or two as they sit.  The squash may be gently warmed or served at room temperature.  To serve, transfer to a serving platter and shower with toasted bread crumbs or walnuts.  Serves 4.

Toasted Breadcrumbs:  Remove the crusts from a day old baguette or a few slices of artisanal style white bread.  Place in the food processor and process until bread is reduced a mixture of crumbs ranging from fine to pieces that are about the size of a pea.  Spread the crumbs in a small baking pan or pie plate and drizzle with a small amount of olive oil.  Toss to distribute the olive oil and moisten all of the crumbs.  Transfer to a 350° to 375° oven and bake, stirring at five minute intervals, until the crumbs are golden brown and crisp.  Let cool.  Toasted breadcrumbs may be stored for a few days at room temperature in an airtight container.   Freeze for longer storage.

Toasted Walnuts:  Spread the walnuts in a small baking dish and place in a 350° oven until golden and fragrant…about 5 minutes.  When cool enough to handle, crumble the walnuts with your hands.  Drizzle sparingly with olive oil and season with salt.

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