Grilled veggie and chicken panzanella with charred lemon Caesar vinaigrette

Hi, friends.

One of my favorite things about cooking seasonally is that, for a few short months, my shopping list barely changes.

Every week, I come home with another basket of tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, herbs, and whatever else looked especially good at the market. To some, it might sound repetitive. But to me, it’s a blank canvas.

Maybe the zucchini gets sautéed and folded into pasta one night, grilled alongside steak the next, or piled onto a platter with fish and a big spoonful of homemade tzatziki. The ingredients stay familiar, but dinner is always exciting.

I think that’s one of the joys of summer cooking. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel — you just need a fresh way of looking at what’s already in your produce drawer.

Currently On My Counter

• I can’t stop listening to The Calamity Club and always have my AirPods nearby so I can pick up where I left off while I’m doing the dishes or filming a recipe.

• Was recently gifted this soft serve machine from Green Pan and we’ve been having wayyyyy too much fun with it. First, vanilla soft serve, next, frozen margs.

• This splattered baking sheet will be my new go-to for assembling big aperitivo boards and baking cookies.

• I will alwayssss be a cold crispy white wine gal.

This week, we’re taking some of my favorite summer staples — zucchini, bell peppers, tomatoes, and chicken — and turning them into a dinner party-worthy panzanella salad.

The vegetables and chicken get lightly charred on the grill before being tossed with crunchy homemade croutons, sungold tomatoes, creamy mozzarella, and Castelvetrano olives.

And the dressing!! Ohhhh, the dressing. We’re going to char up some lemon for that, and blend it — peel, pith, and all (trust me) — into a super bright Caesar vinagirette.

It's fresh, it’s satisfying, and it’s exactly the kind of dinner I want to eat outside with a cold glass of crisp white wine.

Let’s make it.

And coming next week…

A rustic but elegant tomato, tuna, and crispy chickpea salad that is peak summer.

Grilled Veggie and Chicken Panzanella With Charred Lemon Caesar Vinaigrette

Ready in: About 50 minutes