More fun, less drudgery. That’s my goal for the summer — and specifically for my summer cooking. In my dreams, I’m whisking together a vinaigrette in a seaside cottage with a big breezy kitchen and a farm stand down the road (think Diane Keaton’s place in “Something’s Gotta Give”).
While that’s not the reality for most of us — myself included — you can still welcome that relaxed sensibility in the recipes you cook and how you cook them (barefoot, good music playing, windows thrown open — or the air conditioning on full blast). We’ve rounded up some of our most delightful summer salads, desserts, easy dinners, grilling and no-cook recipes that will excite, not exhaust, you. The vast majority — with the exception of the desserts, which take about an hour — can be made in 30 minutes or less.
(No kidding!) Quite a few travel well and taste great at practically any temperature, making them perfect for picnics. But since summer can look a lot like the rest of the year, with more sweat and sunblock, all are the kinds of dishes you can throw together on a busy weeknight when the kids are worn out from day camp and the traffic was hellish. Harissa paste is a spicy North African condiment that is typically made from some combination of red chiles or peppers, garlic and a slew of fragrant spices, often including coriander and cumin.
Here the paste is used alongside a bit of honey and lemon as a quick marinade for grilled shrimp. Prepared harissa varies quite .
