Zucchini and Basil Soup

The heat of the summer has been wearing me down. My skin is sticky, lips are parched. I find myself feeling dehydrated, no matter how much water I drink. You may be wondering why then, I have decided to make soup. When we think of soup, we think of warm, comforting goodness. A bowl that heats us from the inside out while nourishing us from within. Lucky for us, there is a whole other world of soup possibilities out there, especially in these dog days of summer.

Cold soups are a godsend when you can’t eat another salad- even for veggie-loving me, that can happen, but you need something hydrating, something that does just the opposite of those rich winter stews- that cools you from the inside out. This cool soup was loosely inspired by cucumber dill soups I had eaten a few times growing up in sweltering North Carolina. We’re in zucchini season, so my fridge is loaded with them. Basil is my essential summer herb; I always need to have a little bit on hand, just in case I stumble upon a perfect tomato or need a little something to make a summer dish really sing. And sing this soup does.

Many cold soups begin with raw ingredients and end with raw ingredients, only getting a quick puress in a blender- tomato gazapcho, for instance- but I found that a quick cook of the vegetables makes for a softer flavor that allows the lemony basil and earthy avocado to standout rather than play second fiddle to pungent onion, sharp garlic, and grassy zucchini. This makes one serving, two if you're serving it as a starter, made more filing by avocado and edamame. It's perfect for when you come home, hot, ravenous, with no one to feed but yourself. It can be eaten warm, cool, or cold, but I find the flavors are most robust when just cool. It is easily doubled or tripled, so it’s the perfect way to make use of that zucchini surplus.

Zucchini and Basil Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
¼ cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ cup frozen edamame or canned chickpeas
1 pound zucchini, chopped
¼ cup water
1 lemon, juiced and ½ zested
generous handful fresh basil leaves
½ avocado, divided
1 tablespoon chopped toasted walnuts, optional
salt and pepper to taste

Heat 2 teaspoons olive oil over medium heat in a medium pot. Add onion, and saute 3-5 minutes or until soft. Add garlic, edamame (or chickpeas), zucchini, ¼ cup water, and a generous pinch of salt. Bring to boil and reduce heat to simmer and cook for 7 minutes or until zucchini is tender. Remove from heat and allow to cool 5 minutes.

Transfer mixture to blender and add lemon zest and juice, basil, ¼ avocado, and remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil. Blend until smooth, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. If mixture is to thick to your liking, add water, 1 tablespoon at a time. If you would like to cool the mixture down and reduce thickness, add 1-3 ice cubes and blend. Cool in refrigerator prior to enjoying or eat warm. Garnish with remaining ¼ avocado, chopped, walnuts, and basil chiffonade. Enjoy! Serves 1 for main course, 2 for starter.

Barley and Quinoa Herbed Summer Salad with Cucumbers and Tomatoes

I take my tomatoes seriously. I will wait from late summer to late spring- what feels like an eternity- for their return to the farmers' markets. I resist buying the tomatoes from the grocery store from some place far away. And when I taste that first one in late June, I am reminded that the wait was worth it. Summer cherry tomatoes, still slightly warm from the sun, are too irresistible to not just pop right into my mouth, completely unaltered. But they can also bring a welcome acidity to so many summer salads, especially to those loaded with herbs.

I originally made this recipe as a dish to carry to a family potluck. I had grains and lentils stored in the fridge that I had cooked a few days prior and a new bounty of the first summer tomatoes, cucumbers, and herbs from the local farmers' market. The dish was so delicious, I made another batch when I got home. It is a delicious salad served alongside grilled foods or even with a hard-boiled egg. It may seem daunting to make two grains for a salad, but the texture you get from the chewy barley and nutty, almost crunchy quinoa combination is pretty awesome.

Barley and Quinoa Herb Summer Salad with Cucumbers and Tomatoes

1/3 cup cooked beluga lentils*
2/3 cup cooked pearl barley**
2/3 cup cooked quinoa***
2 English cucumbers, sliced lengthwise and then thinly sliced cross-wise in half-moon shapes
1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
1/2 cup crumbled feta (I used goat milk feta which I highly recommend)

Herbed Arugula Dressing
1 cup loosely packed arugula
1/2 cup loosely packed basil leaves
1/4 cup loosely packed mint leaves
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 garlic clove, peeled
1/2 teaspoon of salt, plus more to taste
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Combine barley, quinoa, lentils, cucumbers, and tomatoes in a large bowl.

Make the herb dressing: Add all dressing ingredients to a mini food processor and blitz until mostly smooth.

Pour the dressing over the ingredients in the bowl and stir gently to combine. Sprinkle with pine nuts and crumbed feta. Stir until mixed. Taste and adjust salt. Enjoy! Serves 4-6. 

* To cook beluga lentils: Use the ratio 1 part beluga lentils to 4 cups water. Rinse the lentils under running water and drain. Add lentils and fresh water to pot and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes, checking the texture around 15 minutes. You want a firm but not crunchy lentil. When lentils reach desired doneness, drain lentils, and set aside. 1 cup uncooked lentils yields about 2 cups cooked lentils.
** To cook pearl barley: Use the ratio of 1 part pearl barley to 3 parts water. Bring the water and barley to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and allow to cook for 30-35 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and allow to rest for 10 minutes before removing the lid. 1 cup of uncooked pearl barley yields about 3 cups of cooked pearly barley.
*** To cook quinoa: Use the ratio 1 part quinoa to 1.5 parts water. Bring the water to a boil over high heat. Add the quinoa, stir, and cover pot. Reduce heat to low, and allow to cook for 25 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and set aside for 10 minutes before removing the lid. 1 cup of uncooked quinoa yields about 3 cups cooked quinoa.

Balsamic Roasted Strawberry and Mozzarella Pizza

It may seem like a waste to take juicy, perfectly ripe sweet strawberries and roast them, but I promise you, the result is worth it. In fact, you can even use those less-than-perfect strawberries and roasting them will turn them into something sweet and special. Syrupy balsamic vinegar and strawberries is a classic combination. When the strawberries are roasted, their sweetness is even more enhanced and the vinegar brightens it all up.

These roasted strawberries could really be put to use on anything- served atop crostini with ricotta or brie or goat's milk cheese, swirled into yogurt, or mixed with whipped cream or coconut whipped cream. These strawberries spooned over a scoop of vanilla ice cream even sounds dreamy right now. This recipe was loosely inspired by Heidi Swanson's Roasted Strawberry recipe in her book, Super Natural Every Day. Heidi uses a hefty dose of maple syrup and some port wine to flavor her strawberries, but I enjoy the combination of honey and strawberries here.

I took the savory route and tossed them atop a simple white pizza with fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, and toasted pine nuts. Think of these strawberries replacing the tomatoes on a margarita pizza. The burst of sweetness you get with them combined with the salty cheese is addicting. I use a favorite crust of mine that I make at home, but your favorite pizza dough should work. I combine whole wheat flour, semolina flour, and cornmeal with water, yeast, honey, olive oil and salt in the food processor, blitz until a dough ball forms and allow the dough to rise before dividing it into smaller pieces. I am hoping to share that recipe on the blog soon, but in the meanwhile, just use your favorite pizza crust.

Balsamic Roasted Strawberry and Mozzarella Pizza

Balsamic Roasted Strawberries
8 ounces strawberries, washed and hulled and halved (quartered if large strawberries)
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon honey, preferably local
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon good quality balsamic vinegar

Pizza
8 ounces (1/2 pound) of your favorite pizza dough
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons grated Parmigiano Reggiano
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, torn roughly into pieces
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
1/4 cup roughly torn fresh basil leaves
salt and black pepper, to taste

Prepare roasted strawberries. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss the strawberries with the olive oil, honey, and salt. Arrange in a single layer and bake for 40 minutes or until soft and the liquid is bubbling around them. Remove from the oven, drizzle with balsamic vinegar and toss to combine. Set aside.

Prepare the pizza. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. If using a pizza stone, place it in the oven on the bottom rack as the oven heats. Line a rimless baking sheet with parchment paper. Sprinkle with cornmeal or flour and place dough in the center. Roll the dough out to about 1 centimeter thick, adding more cornmeal or flour to prevent the dough from sticking.

Drizzle the crust with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons Parmigiano-reggiano. Scatter fresh mozzarella over top, and sprinkle with roasted strawberries, drizzling pizza with any remaining syrup that has collected in the pan of strawberries. Place the pizza in the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes or until crust is crispy and cheese is bubbly and just beginning to turn golden in spots. Remove from oven, sprinkle with pine nuts, basil, and salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy! Makes 1 pizza or enough to serve 2-4 people.

Mango and Coconut Rice Salad

Yotam Ottolenghi does some magical things with food. He celebrates herbs, spices, vegetables, grains and has a way with making dishes almost too beautiful to eat. Almost. That is because after once bite, you are hooked and going in for another spoonful, forkful, what have you. When we were in London a few summers ago, I made it a mission to visit his eponymous cafe and was blown away with everything that I tasted. It exceeded expectations, and I told my boyfriend that it would be okay if he traveled to Paris, Antwerp, and Amsterdam alone while I parked myself at Ottolenghi for the rest of the vacation. We also got a chance to try Nopi, another one of his resturants that we just so happened to stumble upon during one of wanderings, and only had the most complex Shakshuka I had ever tasted. I dream about living steps away from his cafe.

Until then, cooking from his cookbooks will just have to do. I have more recipes in Plenty marked to try at some point than unmarked. And my sister "borrowed" my Plenty More several months ago. She keeps raving about all of the recipes she has made from it, forgetting that one day, she will have to give it back, or just hoping that I will forget that it was mine to begin with. The recipes in Plenty are heavy with vegetables and herbs. He has recipes for all seasons.

Since we have loads of mangoes to eat, I decided to try out Ottolenghi's Mango and Coconut Rice Salad, or at least a close approximation of it. You can find the original recipe in Plenty or here. I made several modifications, but the essence is the same. Two types of rice for texture and flavor, herbs, mango, citrus, coconut, and peanuts. I made the changes based on what I had on hand and my preferences, and we could not be happier with the results. I used brown basmati rice and Lundberg's Black Japonica Rice for its nutty flavor, but if you substitute other rice or grain types, I would be sure to use about 5 cups cooked rice or 5 cups cooked grain in total. This would make a fabulous salad for a make-ahead lunch or an outdoor gathering. It is a real stunner.

Mango and Coconut Rice Salad

2/3 cup brown basmati rice
scant 1 1/3 cup water
pinch of salt
1 cup loosely packed fresh basil, divided
1 cup Black Japonica rice
scant 2 cups water
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 cup mint leaves, roughly chopped
2/3 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1/2 fresh serrano chile, seeded and finely chopped
grated zest of 1 lime
juice of 2 limes
1/2 cup roasted salted peanuts, roughly chopped
1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, toasted
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt, to taste
1 large mango, cut into 1-2 cm dice

Cook the two types of rice. In a small saucepan, combine the brown basmati rice, scant 1 1/3 cup water, and 1/2 cup a basil leaves. Sprinkle with salt, bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and allow to cook for 40 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to sit, covered, for 10 minutes. Remove basil leaves and discard.

For the black rice, combine the black rice, the scant 2 cups of water, and sprinkle of salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and allow to cook for 40 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to sit, covered, for 10 minutes. Allow both rice types to cool at least to room temperature before proceeding so as not to wilt the herbs.

Meanwhile, prepare the rest of the ingredients. Add the pepper, herbs, scallions, chile, lime zest and juice to a bowl. Add the cooled rice, the peanuts, and olive oil. Stir to combine and adjust salt to taste. Sprinkle in the toasted coconut, and carefully add in the mango and toss gently so as not to mush the pieces of mango. Enjoy! Serves 4.    

Quinoa and Edamame Salad with Basil, Mint, and Lemon

I am pretty sure this salad would shout, "Hello, spring!" if it could talk. It is so, so vibrant in color and in taste. It is a lot of green with just a little pink from the pickled onions, and zingy from the red onions, fresh herbs, the lemon juice and the lemon zest. It is a wonderful make-ahead salad, especially if you be sure to slice the avocado either right before serving, or drizzle with a little lemon juice so it does not oxidize. While the avocado provides a wonderful creamy texture and a little extra filling, healthy fat, feel free to leave it out if you are unable to find ripe ones or if you are allergic, like an unlucky friend of mine. It will still be delicious and bright.

I chose quinoa for this for a few reasons. I often have it on hand, it cooks fairly quickly, and it provides a powerful nutrient boost. It is loaded with protein, amino acids, and vitamins and minerals such as B vitamins, calcium, and magnesium which are important for nerve and muscle function and bone strength. I love the crunch of the sunflower seeds in this, and they give a boost of Vitamin E, an important antioxidant. Sunflower seeds also remind me of sunny days, evoking more of the warm weather to come.

When you think of edamame, you may think of the little green pods sprinkled with coarse salt and served at so many Japanese restaurants. Luckily, you do not have to shell each pod individually to get to the soybeans nestled inside. You can now find already shelled edamame in the freezer section of many supermarkets, which makes things incredibly convenient for recipes like this. They have a more substantial toothsome quality compared to peas and a clean green flavor that is most welcome here. Their mild flavor also allows the basil, mint, and lemon to really shine through.

Quinoa and Edamame Salad with Basil, Mint, and Lemon

1 c. quinoa
1 1/2 c. water
1 c. frozen shelled edamame
1/4 c. finely chopped pickled red onions, look here for the recipe
1 lemon, zested and juiced
3 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1 t. Dijon mustard
3/4 t. salt
1/2 cucumber, washed, unpeeled and diced into 1-cm cubes
1 c. loosely packed fresh basil in chiffonade
1/2 c. finely chopped fresh mint
3 T. sunflower seeds, raw or already roasted and salted
1/2 avocado, peeled, pitted, and sliced

Prepare the quinoa. Combine 1 cup quinoa and 1 1/2 cups water in a pot. Bring to boil, reduce the heat to low, and cover. Cook for 25 minutes on low. Allow to rest, covered for 10 minutes.

In the meantime, cook the edamame. Combine the frozen edamame and enough water to cover by an inch in a small pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer and cook edamame for 5 minutes or until just tender. Drain  and set aside.

Prepare the rest of the ingredients. If you are using raw sunflower seeds, toast the sunflower seeds. Heat 1/2 teaspoon olive oil or coconut oil in a skillet over medium heat and add the sunflower seeds. Toast for 5-7 minutes, stirring often or until sunflower seeds are toasted. Remove and allow to cool on a paper towel. Sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon of salt while still warm. 

When the quinoa has finished, add the quinoa to a large bowl. Add the edamame, pickled onions, lemon juice, lemon zest, extra-virgin olive oil, Dijon mustard, and salt. Mix to combine. Toss in the basil and mint. To serve, sprinkle each serving with the toasted sunflower seeds and sliced avocado. Enjoy! Serves 3-4 as a main dish or 6-8 as a side dish.