A collection of recipes to make cooking easy-peasy
by Mary Bailey
A collection of recipes to make cooking easy and delicious this summer—versatile dips and sauces to enhance whatever you are grilling, main course salads and a few cooked vegetable dishes using what’s in season in your CSA haul or at the markets, local berries and beautiful BC stone fruit. Plus, one bravura apricot dessert.
Summer Dips and Sauces
Savoury dips and dressings turn snacks into an occasion and simple meals into an event. And that anchovy sauce from Julius Roberts? Spectacular.
Chef Andrew Fung’s Cilantro Chimichurri
“Serve with sashimi, raw beef or lamb tataki.” –Chef Andrew Fung, Nineteen and Juu.Ku.
| 2 c | soda water |
| 2 T | kosher salt |
| 2 c | chopped cilantro |
| 1 c | extra virgin olive oil |
| 4-6 T | rice vinegar |
| 1 | fresh red chili pepper, chopped with seed |
| 3 T | roasted garlic |
Mix all ingredients.
Makes about 2 cups.
Basil Chimichuuri
Chimichurri doesn’t emulsify as well as most oil/vinegar preparations. You may have some separation, just whisk with a fork before serving.
| ¼ c | red wine vinegar |
| 1 clove | garlic, minced |
| 2 T | red pepper flakes or 1 Red Bird chili, finely chopped (depending on how much heat you desire) |
| ½ | jalapeño, chopped (optional) |
| ¼ t | large flake sea salt |
| ½ c | basil leaves, chopped |
| ¼ c | flat leaf parsley, chopped |
| 1 t | oregano, chopped |
| ½ c | extra virgin olive oil |
| ⅛ t | fresh-cracked pepper |
Combine vinegar, garlic, red pepper flakes, and ¼ teaspoon salt in a small bowl. Add the fresh herbs, then whisk in the oil. Season to taste. Best made same day as serving.
Makes about 1 cup.
Anchovy Crema
The intense flavour and luxurious texture of this sauce is intoxicating. It brings major umami, lighting up anything you pair it with, beef or lamb, even chicken from the grill. Add a slick to a sandwich or incorporate into a salad dressing. Keeps for about two weeks in the fridge, but it won’t last that long. Adapted from a recipe by British chef Julius Roberts.
| 2 | eggs |
| 40 g | fresh sourdough, crusts removed and torn into small chunks |
| juice of 1 lemon | |
| salt to taste | |
| 1 jar | salted anchovies (about 10) |
| 1 clove | garlic |
| ½ T | Dijon mustard |
| 200 ml | neutral oil |
| 60 ml | cold water |
Soft boil the eggs, then immerse in ice water to stop cooking. When cool enough to handle, peel and put in a high-speed blender. Add the bread chunks, ½ the lemon juice, anchovies, garlic, mustard and a pinch salt. Pulse to a smooth paste and with the motor running, add the oil very slowly in a thin stream. (Add cold water, ½ teaspoon or so at a time, if you notice it’s not emulsifying.) Continue to add the water until the sauce is at the consistency you desire, not too runny, not too stiff. It should look a bit like a good mayonnaise at this point. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt or lemon juice as needed.
Romesco
A delicious smoky red pepper and almond dip, ideal with crudité or with fried potatoes.
| 2 lg | red peppers |
| ¼ c | blanched almonds |
| 2 cloves | garlic |
| 1 | tomato, roughly chopped |
| 1 T | red wine vinegar |
| ½ t | smoked paprika |
| ¼ | extra virgin olive oil |
| kosher salt and fresh-cracked black pepper to taste | |
| fresh parsley or basil for garnish (optional) |
Preheat oven to 425°F.
Place the red peppers on a baking tray and roast for 20-25 minutes, turning occasionally, until the skins are black and blistered. Remove from the oven, place them in a bowl, cover with a plate or plastic wrap, or put in a paper bag, and let them steam for 10 minutes. Once cooled, peel the skins off and remove the seeds, reserving the flesh only.
While the peppers are roasting, toast the almonds. In a dry pan over medium heat, toast for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently until golden brown. Set aside to cool slightly.
Combine the roasted red peppers, toasted almonds, garlic, chopped tomato and red wine vinegar in a food processor. Pulse a few times to break everything down, then add the smoked paprika to the mixture and blend. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil with the motor running until the sauce is smooth but still a bit chunky. Check seasoning, adding more salt or pepper if necessary. Transfer the Romesco sauce to a bowl and garnish with fresh parsley or basil if desired.
Makes about 1 cup.
Green Goddess Dressing
This flavour-packed sauce works as a dressing for greens, a drizzle on fresh tomatoes, a marinade for chicken. Use as a dip or slather on a steak sandwich. Keeps for about a week in the fridge. Regarding anchovies: they provide a savoury umami boost rather than a fishy taste to the dressing. If still in doubt, use just one.
| 1 c | parsley with stems, rough chopped |
| 1 c | packed spinach leaves, stemmed |
| 2 T | tarragon leaves, or fresh basil, torn |
| pinch | fresh thyme |
| pinch | fresh marjoram (if available) |
| 3 T | minced chives |
| 1 clove | garlic, rough chopped |
| 2 | anchovy fillets, rinsed |
| 3 T | fresh lemon juice |
| 1 T + 1 t | Champagne vinegar or apple cider vinegar |
| ½ c | extra virgin olive oil, preferably Sicilian |
| ½ c | yogurt or buttermilk |
| ½ c | mayonnaise, homemade if you can |
| kosher salt and fresh-ground black pepper |
Combine all the herbs, garlic, anchovy, lemon juice, oil, vinegar and seasoning in a food processor or blender. Pulse, then blend until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Add the mayo and yogurt or buttermilk and blend again until smooth. Check seasoning and adjust if necessary.
Makes about 1½ cups.
Summer Vegetables
From chilled soup to tomato gratin, the best summer veg dishes are the kind that don’t need a lot of last-minute fussing. They taste delicious next to chicken or fish from the grill and make for great leftovers too.
Andrés Family Gazpacho
There are dozens of recipes for gazpacho, but we like the simplicity and flavours of this one. Another reason we love it? It’s a recipe from José Andrés’ wife Patricia, and we love anything Andrés. The charity José founded, World Central Kitchen (WCK), was in Saskatchewan and Manitoba in June feeding firefighters and folk displaced by the wildfires.
| 2 lb | (about 10), ripe Romas, or any kind of plum tomato, cut into chunks |
| 1 lg | cucumber peeled and cut into chunks |
| ½ med | green pepper, in large pieces |
| 1 clove | garlic |
| 1 T | sherry vinegar |
| Spanish extra virgin olive oil | |
| kosher salt |
In a blender, combine the tomatoes, cucumber, green pepper, garlic and vinegar and blend until the mixture becomes a thick liquid. Taste for acidity; this will vary with the sweetness of the tomatoes. If it’s not balanced enough, add a little more vinegar. Add the olive oil, season and blend again. Taste for seasoning and acidity, then strain the gazpacho into a pitcher and refrigerate for at least half an hour.
Croutons
| 1 slice | sourdough |
| 2 T | Spanish extra virgin olive oil |
While the soup is chilling, heat the olive oil in a small pan over moderately-high heat and fry the bread until golden, about 2 minutes. Break into small pieces to form 12-16 croutons and set aside.
Garnishes
Have ready to finish the soup.
| 1 T | Spanish extra virgin olive oil |
| 6 | plum tomatoes, with the seeds, prepared as fillets (12) |
| 8 | cherry tomatoes, halved |
| 1 | cucumber, peeled and cut into cubes (12) |
| 4 | pearl onions, pulled apart into segments (12) |
| 1 T | Sherry vinegar |
| sea salt | |
| 4 | chives, chopped |
To serve, pour the chilled gazpacho into 4 bowls. Place 3-4 croutons, 2 fillets of tomato, 4 cherry tomato halves, 3 cucumber cubes and 3 onion segments into each bowl. Add a few drops of olive oil to each onion segment and drizzle a little more around each bowl. Sprinkle a few drops of vinegar to cucumber cubes and add a little more to each bowl. Scatter sea salt on the tomatoes and add chopped chives to garnish.
Serves 4-6.
Turkish Green Beans
Similar to the Greek fasolakia; green beans are braised in oil to become positively unctuous. Adapted from a recipe by Anya von Bremzen. Don’t want to have a pot on the stove in the heat of the day? Make early in the morning and serve either cold or heat up for a few minutes before serving. It just gets more delicious from the sitting.
| 2 lb | green beans, ends trimmed, cut into 2-3-in. lengths |
| 1 c | extra virgin olive oil, plus more for serving |
| 2 t | kosher salt |
| ½ t | sugar |
| 3 cloves | garlic, thinly sliced |
| 1 lg | Roma (plum) tomato, peeled and rough chopped |
| 1 med | onion, thinly sliced |
| ½ c | water |
Put all the ingredients in a large pot. Cover and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn the heat to medium-low and simmer until the beans are soft and the tomatoes have broken down, about 45 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool in the pot. Serve warm or chilled, drizzled with more oil to taste.
Serves 4-6.
Tomato, Spinach and Anchovy Gratin
This is especially good in late August, when the evenings are getting nippy, the spinach is becoming leathery and the tomatoes are spilling into the markets in all their glorious splendour. It needs a bit of planning and oven time but comes together very quickly.
| 800 g | (about 5 large) tomatoes |
| 5 T | extra virgin olive oil |
| 800 g | spinach, torn |
| 4 T | butter |
| 2 lg | yellow onion, chopped |
| 2 T | flour or potato starch or GF flour |
| 1/3 c | dry white wine |
| 2 c | whole milk |
| 2-3 | whole nutmeg or ½ t ground nutmeg |
| 10 | anchovies |
| ¾ c | (or so) coarse breadcrumbs |
Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Place the tomatoes in a baking dish in a single layer. Drizzle with the oil and season well. Roast for an hour to concentrate flavours and cook out some of the liquid.
Meanwhile, heat 2 T oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Wash the spinach well, shake off and add to the pan (a little water is fine). Cook, stirring until wilted, you may need to do this in batches, and reserve the cooked spinach.
In the same pan, add the butter. When melted, add the onions, season and cook for about 15 minutes until soft but not too brown. Add the flour, stir, turn the heat down and cook the flour for a few minutes, constantly stirring. Add the wine and whisk in the milk a bit at a time to incorporate the flour to make a roux.
Grate in the nutmeg, if using, and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Well-seasoned with no floury taste is what you are looking for.
Take the tomatoes out of the oven, give the spinach a squeeze to remove any excess water, then nestle among the roasted tomatoes. Pour over the bechamel, working it into the tomato spinach mixture. Lay the anchovies on top in an attractive pattern, scatter with breadcrumbs and drizzle with the remaining oil.
Put back in the oven and cook until the top is golden and the sauce is bubbling, about 30 minutes. You could put under the broiler for a minute or two if you prefer a darker colour on top. Remove from the heat and let sit for at least 10 minutes before serving. Eat warm or cold.
Serves 4-6.
Summer Salads
It’s salad season! Robust flavours and sturdy enough to serve for lunch or light dinner. Cheeses, lentils or freekeh and chickpeas provide the protein.
Nectarines, Tomatoes, Burrata with Hot Honey Dressing
Local company Lessig Ferments makes the Strawberry Basil Bomb Hot Sauce which is killer in this recipe.
| 2 T | extra virgin olive oil |
| 2 T | hot sauce |
| 2 T | unseasoned rice vinegar |
| 2 t | honey |
| kosher salt | |
| 3 | ripe nectarines or peaches cut into wedges |
| 2 lg | ripe tomatoes or 1 lb. mixed tomatoes, sliced |
| 8 oz | ball burrata or fresh mozzarella, torn into large pieces |
| tarragon sprigs or basil | |
| flaky sea salt (like Maldon) | |
| 2 c | lettuce, washed and dried, torn into bite-sized pieces |
Whisk the oil, hot sauce, vinegar and honey in a small bowl until the honey is dissolved, season with kosher salt. Toss the fruit and half of the dressing in a medium bowl; let sit 5 minutes. Cover a serving platter with the torn lettuce, then spoon over the fruit salad. Top with the burrata and drizzle with remaining dressing. Scatter tarragon sprigs and some large flake sea salt over.
Serves 4-6.
Summer Squash with Fennel and Goat Cheese
An easy and delicious dish to bring to a barbecue. You could also grill the squash first for a different taste and texture.
| 4 sm | yellow summer squash, thinly sliced into rounds |
| 1 sm | fennel bulb, halved, cored, and thinly sliced lengthwise |
| 2 T | chopped fresh dill |
| 2 T | extra virgin olive oil, for dressing |
| 2 t | fresh lemon juice |
| kosher salt and freshly-cracked black pepper | |
| ½ c | fresh goat cheese, crumbled |
Combine all ingredients except for the cheese and toss to combine. Season to taste. Add the goat cheese, toss gently and serve.
Serves 4-6 depending on the menu.
Pecorino, Peaches and Haskaps with Hazelnuts
The salty cheese provides a tasty contrast to the sweet fruit.
| 2 c | salad greens |
| 1 c | fresh haskaps |
| 1 lg | ripe peach, sliced |
| ½ c | hazelnuts or walnuts, toasted |
| ¾ c | shaved pecorino (or ricotta salata) |
Dressing
| ¼ c | extra virgin olive oil |
| 1 T | lemon juice |
| sea salt and fresh-cracked pepper |
Whisk together the dressing in a large bowl. Add all the other ingredients except the cheese and toss gently. Turn out onto a platter or 4 individual plates and scatter cheese shavings over.
Serves 4-6.
Mixed Bean and Chickpea with Bufala Mozzarella
| handful | green beans, trimmed |
| handful | Romano beans, trimmed (or yellow string beans) |
| handful | sugar snap peas |
| kosher salt and fresh-cracked pepper | |
| 1 T | extra virgin olive oil |
| 1 can | chickpeas, drained, rinsed (or one cup cooked chickpeas) |
| 1 c | cherry tomatoes, halved |
| ½ c | bufala mozzarella, torn (or burrata) |
| 2 c | salad greens washed and dried |
Preheat a lightly greased pan over high heat. Toss beans, sugar snap peas and oil together in a bowl. season to taste. Chargrill the beans and peas in batches, turning often, until tender and charred (4-6 minutes). Set aside.
Dressing
| handful | (about ½ c) marinated, mixed pitted olives, sliced |
| 1 | long red chilli, seeds removed, finely chopped |
| ¼ c | lemon juice |
| 1 T | chopped oregano |
| 1 T | chopped flat leaf parsley |
| 1 t | fennel seeds, crushed |
Combine the olives, chili, lemon juice, herbs and fennel seeds in a large bowl. Season to taste and set aside.
Add the hot beans to the dressing and gently toss to combine. Set aside for 5 minutes for flavours to be absorbed, then add the torn bits of cheese. Arrange over the lettuce and serve.
Serve 4-6.
Beet and Lentil Salad with Feta
A delicious take on the beet and goat cheese classic with feta and lentils instead.
| 2 | beets, peeled and cut into wedges |
| 1 T | extra virgin olive oil |
| 1 c | vegetable or chicken stock |
| 2 T | red wine vinegar |
| 1 T | vincotto (optional) |
| ¼ c | extra virgin olive oil |
| 2 c | cooked Puy lentils (you could use freekeh if not a lentil fan) |
| 2 | shallots, thinly sliced |
| lg handful | flat leaf parsley, torn |
| handful | mixed seeds, sunflower seeds and pepitas |
| 100 gm | soft feta, cut into large cubes |
Add the beets and oil to a saucepan over medium-high heat and stir to coat. Add stock, season to taste, cover with a lid and simmer until tender (14-15 minutes).
Transfer beetroot to a bowl with a slotted spoon, add vinegar, vincotto, extra virgin olive oil and half the lentils, season to taste and toss to combine. Place remaining lentils in a serving bowl, top with beetroot mixture, shallot, parsley, seeds and feta, and toss lightly to serve.
Dessert
Apricots have a short season when they are at their absolute prime. Often though, even in that window, they will be hard and a little unripe, rather than the most opulent fruit ever. What to do? Apply some heat. Cooking apricots heightens their sweet/sour depth of flavour and luscious texture.
Apricot Tarte Tatin
A tarte tatin (an upside-down dessert) is a terrific choice for us non-bakers: you make a caramel in a cast iron (or heavy oven-proof dish or skillet) arrange the fruit attractively across it (this fall, make with apples or pears), and cover with a sheet of pastry. If you don’t make your own puff pastry you can buy it frozen—an acceptable alternative. The flipping can be daunting: if this is your first time making a tarte tatin, practise flipping with a plate and a cold skillet until you feel confident in your moves.
| 6-9 | apricots (as many as you need to cover the bottom of the skillet in one layer) cores removed and sliced in half |
| ½ c | sugar |
| 4 T | butter |
| 1 sheet | puff pastry, rolled out to make a 9-inch circle |
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Melt the butter in a 9- or 10-inch cast iron skillet on medium-high. Once melted, sprinkle the sugar over and let it warm until dissolved. Watch closely, once the sugar has turned an amber color, and is all dissolved, remove the skillet from the heat. Arrange the apricot halves in a circular pattern on top of the caramel in the skillet, cut side up. Place the pastry on top of the fruit and, using a rubber spatula, tuck in the edges of the pastry. Gently prick a handful of spots in the pastry with a fork.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown, puffy and crisp. Remove from the oven and get ready to flip it on to a plate. Check the edges of the pastry, if any look stuck to the skillet, loosen with a spatula. Protecting your hands from the heat, place a serving plate on top of the skillet, holding the skillet handle securely in one hand. With your other hand on the top of the plate, flip. The plate is now on the bottom. If there is any fruit or caramel stuck to the skillet, scoop it up and add to the fruit (which is now the top) in an attractive manner. Let cool for 30 minutes. Serve with crème fraiche, ice cream or whipped cream.
Serves 6-8.