I’m writing to you today from a semi-horizontal position on the sofa, fan on max, buried beneath a ridiculous number of cushions. My laptop is balanced on my right knee, and one hand is bent at a medically inadvisable angle as I type. I usually write this newsletter like a normal human - at a desk. Not today, and no, I’m not sick - I am in the clutches of an ambivalent feeling that arrives at this point every year. I call this the summer blues.
As a child, summers seemed to be endless and wonderfully carefree. But what about now? Gosh, a two-month vacation with no adult responsibilities sounds rather nice. Since that is not going to happen, I need to prioritize ease when it comes to meals. After all, cooking is my therapy, and I don’t want it to become associated with dread.
I thought some of you might be in the same boat, which is why I’m sharing a collection of summer recipes that favor pleasure over process, which will definitely get me out of my funk.
These are meals, snacks and treats made for eating in the garden, casually thrown together when friends appear, or when you just can’t be bothered to prepare anything more elaborate. I’ve also included a selection of bakes and sweet recipe projects for those of you who feel like getting creative or need an activity to entertain the kids for a few hours.
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Back in February, I published a 3-night, 30-minute menu. The selection was Smoky-Sweet Chicken Wraps, Spicy Peanut Miso Tofu Noodles, and Salmon Miso & Honey Skewers with Coconut, Lime & Herby Rice. Although the recipes were published mid-winter when England was grey and cold, now that warmer weather has arrived, why not utilize the glut of seasonal produce to adapt the recipes for summer?! They are all easy to whip up, but I’d definitely recommend the chicken wraps if you’re planning a family BBQ.
If you’ve only ever eaten ribs in a restaurant, the thought of making them yourself might seem intimidating, but the prep is actually very easy. The hard part is having the patience to wait for them to cook. As for the flavor of these peach bourbon bbq ribs, the peaches cook down until they’re jammy and bronzed, the bourbon brings a lovely smokiness, and the cucumber, dill and pickled onion slaw cuts through it all with the perfect crunchy tang. I serve the ribs with flatbreads or garlic bread.
This recipe leans fully into al fresco cooking — steak with a French-leaning chimichurri-style sauce, or what I’m pretentiously calling a bistro-style verde (sounds fancy huh?). Think somewhere between salsa verde and chimichurri, with a tarragon and Dijon edge. The steak is served alongside an addictive, tangy white bean salad, together with the most outrageous cheesy roasted garlic baguette. Basically, my version of the perfect summer lunch.
In the “What to Cook and Eat in July” seasonal newsletter edition, I wrote about eggplant and tomato. They are the old married couple of the summer kitchen, and still the best. Using these key ingredients, with a few readily available additions, I often make a very simple pasta: soft eggplant, sweet tomatoes, plenty of olive oil, and whatever herbs I have lying around.
It is barely a recipe, really, which is exactly why it is so useful. If you have people coming over and no idea what to make, this is dinner. A bowl of pasta, a little Parmesan, and a salad, if you can be bothered - everyone is happy.
Not everyone has an ice cream machine, and that’s okay because you simply don’t need one! My no-churn peach cobbler ice cream has been made on repeat this summer. It has soft, buttery peaches cooked until their juices turn to bourbon-scented caramel, generous rubble-like pieces of sweet and salty pecan crumble and a vanilla ice cream base that requires no custard, no machine and no unnecessary fiddling
Looking for a guaranteed crowd-pleaser for your next dinner party? Look no further than the humble chocolate chip cookie. I can hear the skepticism - baking in the height of summer? But here’s the secret: you can prepare the dough weeks, even months, in advance and keep it frozen. With just 12-14 minutes in the oven, you have fresh, warm cookies ready to serve. I recently took a batch of my malted chocolate chip cookies to my nan’s 92nd birthday celebration; they were an instant hit, vanishing from the table before any other dessert.
For the June edition of “What to Eat and Cook,” I featured a peach and blueberry butter cake. It is a ridiculously easy, “dump everything in a bowl” kind of recipe. Served alongside chilled custard or whipped cream, it is the perfect summer dessert, and it tastes just as amazing when eaten cold, straight from the fridge.
Brown butter and lemon cupcakes are just as good as they sound. A cupcake is low-stakes in the best possible way — no towering layers to assemble, so no structural anxiety — and anyone lingering in the kitchen, particularly those under four feet tall, can be put to work on the decoration. Cupcakes also happen to be an excellent make-ahead dessert if you’re planning a barbecue.
What are you cooking right now and do you have any summer cooking tips? As usual I love to hear from you all, so feel free to leave a comment.
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