Tomato salad

It's way past to tomato season in the northeast, and I miss fresh tomato salad. Literally, tomato salad is my favorite taste of summer. This past season, I was lucky enough to eat tomatoes from several local farmer's markets, my co-worker's garden, and my father's backyard.  

When choosing tomatoes for salad, I prefer varieties on the drier side and with fewer seeds. But really, any tomato will do, and locally grown are usually the best.  My father grows a little bit of everything, from heirloom brandywine and Cherokee purples, to San Marzano and other elongated (plum) varieties. He also grows oxhhearts, which are amazingly sweet and meaty, and very good for salad. 

Making the prefect salad is really quite easy. Choose tomatoes (of any variety) that are not too ripe, not too green.  Orangey-red might be the best way to describe them (unless they are a purple, brown, orange or yellow variety, in which case, use your judgement). Just cut them up in a bowl, add minced garlic and sliced red onion, add plenty of torn basil, drizzle with plenty of olive oil, add some salt, mix it all up. If you like, add some ground black pepper, and/or slivers of green chile pepper. This salad does not need vinegar.  Do not substitute oregano for fresh basil, unless it's an emergency. Be prepared with good bread to soak up the "juice."  Literally, it's irresistble.

Green beans!

These are the real thing. The actual variety is a mystery to me. All I know is that my father has been growing the vines in his backyard garden for years, allowing just enough pods to ripen on the plant for seed harvesting. They are not string beans. The pods are more like those of roman or pinto beans.  But, they are very tender and without tough strings. In taste, they are by far superior to any string bean or flat bean from the supermarket. I like them best steamed and served simply with a little salt, garlic and olive oil. They are also perfect for hardy vegetable soups like minestra. Served cold, they are great alone with a little seasoning, or as added to tomato and/or sliced potato salad. 

What to do with a giant zucchini

Garden zucchini can grow big fast, especially during hot, wet summers. The ones you see at the supermarket are babies - they were picked when young and tender. The larger zucchini with a harder rind have begun to mature. They are not too old... they are still quite edible, not to mention delicious. 

Big zucchini are probably better suited for this very simple soup recipe, than the small ones. This soup tastes super fresh and summery, hot or cold.  It's creamy, too, even though its dairy-free. In fact, this soup is fit for vegans.

- 1 medium red or sweet white onion, chopped

- 3 or 4 garlic cloves, chopped

- 1 big zucchini, diced into half-inch cubes

- 2 cups of water

- Salt

- Black pepper, ground

- Basil, fresh and plenty

In a large saucepan, sauté the onion and garlic with a little salt until tender (3 minutes).  Then, add the zucchini and a little more salt and some black pepper; stir occasionally until zucchini starts to soften (5 minutes).  Add water and bring to boil; keep a high simmer for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.  

Transfer half the soup to a blender. Add a handful of basil leaves. Purée or liquefy, then transfer to a container. Repeat. Serve it hot or let it cool down for the fridge. (I suppose using a hand-held blender would be most convenient.)

Zucchini on the side

A guy at work has a big garden in central New Jersey. The garden produces a lot more than his household can consume.  So, starting in late June/early July, he starts delivering a "crop" for sale to the office kitchen once or twice a week.  Zucchini, cucumbers, basil early on.  Tomatoes, eggplant, peppers and other good stuff come a little later. Today, for $3.25, I brought home two big beautiful zucchini (each one a foot long and dark green), a bunch of hearty basil, and four unwaxed cucumbers. 

An easy recipe for the zucchini and basil:  

1. Slice a big zucchini in thin rounds. 

2. Add to a large sauté pan with just enough olive oil to coat the surface of the pan entirely; heat it up to medium-high. 

3. Add the sliced zucchini to the pan with a little salt and a generous amount of basil; the basil makes all the difference.

4.  Cook up the slices until they are kinda translucent and floppy (yes that's a technical description). Use a spatula to keep things from sticking; use a cover to speed the cooking. 

5.  When done, transfer the zucchini to a serving dish or storage container. 

I would eat this right away - alone as is, as a side dish, or in a pita sandwich.  This is also an excellent base for a frittata. 

Cicciari e patate

I'm back (!) with another one of my favorite one-pot meals. It's kinda like beans and macaroni, but substitute chickpeas for the beans and potatoes for the macaroni. Cicciari is what Calabrese call chickpeas. Italians call them ceci.  I've changed up the family recipe to "celebrate" the Mediterranean by adding lemon rind and cumin (my father: Lemon?! What's cumin?!).  Trust me, this is good:

1. In a medium sauce pan, saute a small red (or yellow) onion in olive oil for a few minutes.

2. Add a 16 oz. undrained can of chickpeas along with about a can full of water, making sure all the good stuff that's settled at the bottom is added to the pot.

3. Add a good-sized, heaping tablespoon of tomato paste, or about half of what's in those little cans. You can use tomato sauce instead, but paste is a better thickener.

4. Add some fresh basil, salt, ground black pepper, and a whole dried red hot pepper with the stem pulled of or with a slit in its side.

5. This is where it gets crazy: add a good pinch of ground cumin and a long, wide strip of lemon rind. 

6. Let it boil for a few minutes.  Then, add two diced medium-sized potatoes.

Cook until the potatoes are tender.  Don't be afraid of over-cooking, as over-cooked potatoes will only thicken the soup.  Serve in bowl, topped with olive oil. Do not add grated cheese!

basic red sauce (good for everything)

What you need:

• 2 -16 oz cans of whole peeled tomatoes.
• 4 good-sized cloves of garlic
• some basil
• good olive oil
• one dried red chili pepper, or crushed red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper

1. suate sliced garlic in olive oil in a medium sauce pan, don't let it get too browned.

2. pour in tomatoes, with juice

3. bring to boil at medium heat

4. turn down heat and let simmer til tomatoes start to fall apart (abt 30 mins)

5. add 10 to 12 leaves of basil, or just put in 3 to 4 stems with leaves and all.6. salt and pepper and crushed red pepper for taste.7. simmer til tomatoes are completely fallen apart (you can help this by crushing tomatoes with a fork on the side of the pot.

Note: Sometimes I add some tomato paste (from a can or tube) to thicken it up.  

For the love of legumes

Ilove legumes, I love pasta, I love one-pot meals. Hands down, beans and macaroni, or pasta e fagioli as the foodistas call it, is my favorite food. Its cheap, its healthy, its versatile and its fast. Its even vegan! Growing up, we ate it two or three times a week. I still make this soup at least once a week. Here's what I do:1. In a medium sauce pan, saute a small yellow onion in olive oil for a few minutes.

2. Add a 16 oz. undrained can of Roman beans (sometimes I use red kidney beans) along with about two canfuls of water, making sure all the good stuff that's settled at the bottom is added to the pot.

3. Add a good-sized, heaping tablespoon of tomato paste, or about a third of whats in those little cans. You can use tomato sauce instead, but paste is a better thickener.

4. Add fresh basil or oregano. When there's fresh basil around, I always perfer it over oregano.

5. Add salt, pepper and a small whole dried hot pepper either with the stem pulled off or punctured through the middle with a knife.

6. Boil long enough for the foam to thin out and darken (you'll know what I mean).

7. Add short-cut pasta such canneroni, ditali or small shells, or break linguine into 1-1/2-inch pieces.

Its done with the pasta is done. Don't over cook it! Let it sit for a few minutes before serving. A little grated pecorino romano cheese makes this dish perfect - vegans beware!

You can add all kinds of vegetables to the soup. I like to add broccoli, cauliflower, escarole or broccoli rabe. Just add the vegetable (better to stick to just one) before or after the pasta, depending on whether its fresh or already cooked. When using cannellini or some other white beans, I saute carrots along with the onions, omit the tomato paste and substitute a couple of bay leaves for the basil or oregano.