Tag: summer
Tomato Toasts with Ricotta and Anchovies
Warm bread, creamy ricotta, ripe tomatoes, and a quick garnish of anchovies and fennel seed is a quintessential summer dish.
It is not only beautiful and tasty but is literally perfect at any time of the day. It’s a great breakfast, a perfect quick lunch, or a great start to dinner.
This isn’t quite a “recipe” but more a list of items to put on bread. Make 1, make 10, and adjust accordingly.
It is highly recommended to eat this as many times as possible during tomato season.
Tomato Toasts with Ricotta and Anchovies
Ingredients
- Slices of crusty bread – highly recommend F&F Levain
- Bellweather Farms whole basket ricotta – sheep or cow
- Ripe tomatoes – cut into slices or chunks
- Ortiz anchovies
- Crushed whole fennel seeds
- Herbs, greens, or microgreens
- Olive oil
- Crunchy saly and fresh cracked pepper
Instructions
- Drizzle bread slices with olive oil and lightly toast in the oven or in a skillet.
- Spread with a thick layer of ricotta.
- Arrange tomatoes on top.
- Lay anchovies on top of the tomatoes.
- Sprinkle with fennel seeds, crunchy salt, and black pepper.
- Drizzle with olive oil.
- Garnish with greens and serve.
Bijou with Pickled Strawberries
Summer produce is a thing of magic. And pairing with cheese is even more magical.
Many versions of goat cheese are perfect options to pair with fruit, but Vermont Creamery’s Bijou is a great option. These cute little buttons are creamy, sweet, and a touch earthy. They can be kept whole or cut into quarters to plate and serve.
Quickling (a new verb sweeping the nation) the strawberries does not take away from their natural sweetness but adds some tangy depth that pairs perfectly with cheese.
Bijou with Pickled Strawberries
Ingredients
- ½ pint strawberries
- 1 Tbsp sherry vinegar
- Pinch of sugar
- Pinch of salt
- Fresh cracked pepper
- 1 container Vermont Creamery Bijou
- fresh chopped herbs or micro greens
Instructions
- Trim leaves off strawberries. Cut larger ones in half or quarters, leave smaller strawberries whole. Place in a small bowl.
- Add one tablespoon of sherry vinegar, a pinch of sugar and salt, and a few cracks of black pepper. Add a splash of water and toss to coat strawberries. Let quickle for 5-10 minutes.
- Arrange Bijou on a plate. Top with strawberries and top with herbs or micro greens. Drizzle with strawberry liquid.
Mortadella Pasta Salad
“Pasta salad: both pretty boring and the most popular dish at every outdoor gathering you go to, a true mystery of our time.”
Alison Roman
Thank you Alison for that oh-so-true food nugget.
While pasta salad has to be the most ubiquitous summer potluck item, there is much to be improved on the expected curly noodles, black olives, and bottle of Italian dressing pasta salad.
This recipe, brought to you by another great cookbook author Molly Baz, incorporates one of the most underrated meats in the Aperitivo case – mortadella.
You can sub any other thinly sliced cured meat from the case, but morty-d adds a beautiful creamy, fatty, and saltiness to the pasta salad.
This is a perfect salad to make a few days before, add the nuts and herbs before serving, and snack on it the entire day.
Mortadella Pasta Salad
Ingredients
For the salad:
- 1 lbs dried large short cut pasta – rigatoni, cavatappi, whatever the fun shape from the photo is called
- 1 lbs fresh mozz – cow or buffalo
- ½ lbs mortadella – thinly sliced
- ⅔ cup pistachios – chopped
- 1 cup basil leaves – torn
For the dressing:
- 1 ½ cup Castelvetrano olives – about one small container
- 2 lemons
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 ½ oz grated hard Italian cheese – Parm, Pecorino Romano, Toscano, Provolone
- ⅔ cup EVOO
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Boil noodles according to package directions in salted water. Drain and rinse under cold water to wash off the excess starch. Let cool.
Make the dressing:
- Pit the olives and tear the flesh in half. Add to a large bowl.
- Zest one whole lemon into the bowl. Cut both lemons in half and squeeze the juice over the olives.
- Grate the garlic into the bowl. Add the grated cheese.
- Pour in the EVOO, season with salt and pepper, and stir the dressing together.
Assemble the salad:
- Tear the fresh mozz and mortadella into bite-sized pieces and add to the bowl.
- Add the cooled pasta and gently stir to combine. Taste and season with salt and lots of pepper.
- Just before serving, add the chopped pistachios and torn basil leaves.
- Serve cold or room temp.
Razor Clam Spring Rolls
Break out of the sandwich and salad lunch rut with these fresh and crunchy spring rolls. Filled with cucumbers, lettuce, herbs, and a briney razor clam salad, these are a great way to use up random veggies that have lived too long in the crisper drawer.
While razor clams are a delicious option when it comes to tinned fish, their appearance might… eh… weird you out. Razor clam purists might shudder at the thought of chopping them up, but those people are most likely not your lunch guest. Razor clams are still just as delicious chopped in smaller pieces. And who can resist such a cute box?
If you haven’t worked with spring roll wrappers before, don’t get frustrated if the first one or two break on you. After spending 15 seconds in warm water, you’ll notice when the wrapper softens just a bit. At this point, carefully transfer it to a cutting board, trying not to let it fold over on itself. If it soaks too long, it will be hard to keep from tearing. It’s better to under-soak them JUST a bit, then blot them dry with a paper towel to redistribute the moisture throughout the wrapper. If wrapping in spring roll wrappers is too much work, toss all the ingredients together in a bowl and Ta Da!! A regular salad!
Once a jar of Divina Calabrian Chiles is open, it’s hard not to add them to every dish. But if the Italian/Asian fusion isn’t your thing, use Sriracha or Sambal Oelek instead to spice up the clam salad.
Feel free to swap out a different tinned fish and use other veggies in these spring rolls. Peppers, snap peas, kohlrabi, fennel, radishes would all work great.
Razor Clam Spring Rolls
Ingredients
Razor Clam Salad
- 1 tin razor clams
- 1 small radish
- 1 Divina Calabrian Pepper
- ¼ cup cilantro
- Zest and juice from half a lime
- salt, to taste
Spring Rolls
- ½ cucumber
- 4 pieces lettuce
- 4 basil leaves
- 4 spring roll wrappers
Dipping Sauce
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- Splash fish sauce
- Juice from the other half of the lime
- 1 tsp honey
Instructions
For the Razor Clam Salad
- Remove the clams from the tin and bring. Coarsely chop and add to a small mixing bowl.
- Finely chop the radish, Calabrian pepper, and cilantro. Add to the bowl with the clams.
- Add the lime juice, zest, and a pinch of salt. Stir to combine and taste. Add more salt or lime juice if needed.
For the Spring Rolls
- Remove the seeds from the cucumber and cut into 4-inch spears.
- Prepare a sheet tray or a shallow bowl with hot water. Working one at a time, dip the rice paper in the water until pliable, but not floopy, about 15 seconds. Transfer to a cutting board and blot with a paper towel.
- Arrange the lettuce and cucumbers on the bottom third of the wrapper. Spread out a quarter of the razor clam salad and top with basil leaves.
- Fold the left and right sides inward, then tightly roll the wrapper away from you. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling.
For the Dipping Sauce
- Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl. Taste and adjust with more honey or lime juice as needed.
- To serve, cut spring rolls in half and arrange on a plate. Serve with dipping sauce and enjoy.
Charred Corn Salad with Queso Fresco
We love it when our favorite creameries introduce new cheeses! Evergreen Lane, a quaint farm and dairy in Fennville, MI, is most known for their seasonal goat’s milk cheeses and jersey cow’s milk cheeses.
Queso Fresco is Evergreen Lane’s newest addition to our case. It is a fresh cow’s milk cheese, perfect for crumbling over salads, tacos, enchiladas, and this charred corn salad. Compared to traditional queso fresco, Evergreen Lane’s version isn’t as dry. So let it sit out, unwrapped, for a few minutes to dry out.
This corn salad is a perfect dish to take on a picnic, to a BBQ, or just eat alone in your house. Thanks to food goddess Alison Roman for the idea to add corn nuts to a corn salad. The extra crunch and saltiness takes the salad to the next level. If making this ahead, wait to stir in the corn nuts just before serving, so they stay nice and crunchy.
Charred Corn Salad with Queso Fresco
Ingredients
- 6 ears of corn
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 Divina Calabrian Chili pepper, finely chopped
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 tbsp EVOO
- 1 lime, juiced
- ½ tbsp Tajin or other brand of chile lime seasoning
- ½ cup corn nuts
- ½ piece Evergreen Lane Queso Fresco, crumbled
- Salt and pepper, as needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a dry cast iron skillet over medium-high heat, add the ears of corn. Cook and rotate corn until kernels begin to char, about 8 minutes. Remove from the skillet and place on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Set aside until cool enough to handle.*
- In a mixing, place an upside down glass or bowl that fits in the bottom part of the bowl. Trim the bottom end of one corn cob to sit even on the bottom of the glass. Slice the kernels off the cob and let them fall into the bowl. Repeat with remaining ears. Remove the glass and stir the kernels.
- Add the minced shallots, chopped calabrian pepper, chopped cilantro, EVOO, lime juice, and chile lime seasoning to the corn. Stir to combine. Taste and add more chile lime seasoning or salt and pepper as needed.
Notes
*You can also char the corn on an outdoor grill.
BCBLT – Blue Cheese Bacon Lettuce & Tomato Sandwich.
You’ve seen BLAT. You might have seen a PLT. Heck, you might have seen a SPLAT. But here, we present to you, the BCBLT – Blue Cheese Bacon Lettuce and Tomato sandwich.
We were inspired by our friend in cheese, Cheese Sex Death, and wanted to recreate her amazing idea of spreading funky, smokey and tangy blue cheese on an already almost perfect sandwich.
A general cooking rule of thumb, the fewer ingredients a recipe calls for, the higher quality those ingredients should be. And that holds true for a simple sandwich like a BLT. You will taste every component that goes into it, and the better they taste on their own, the better the sandwich will be.
Rogue River Smokey Blue is a GREAT cheese to use on a BLT. It almost has enough smoky richness that it could replace the bacon altogether. You shouldn’t. But you could. If this seems too strong for you, any creamy and mild (as opposed to sharp and acidic) blue cheese would work – Chiraboga, Gorgonzola, Bay Blue.
Look for a nice thick-cut smokey bacon. It is the main protein on the sandwich, so something with a nice chew and meatiness is best.
Choose your favorite crunchy and sturdy lettuce. Arugula, butter, iceberg, etc. Want to be fancier? Opt for pea shoots or sprouts. It’s your sandwich. You do you.
Arguably the most important component of the sandwich, the tomato. In season, use a juicy heirloom (the uglier the better.) Not in season, reach for a beefsteak. You should always salt the tomato while assembling the sandwich, but this is even more important when the tomato is a bit meh.
Mayonnaise brings some need creaminess to a traditional BLT. It is still necessary for a BCBLT, but don’t feel the need to slather it on thick. You’ll get some fatty creaminess from the blue cheese.
Making a quickle of radishes and red onions not only adds a nice crunchy texture to the sandwich but brings a fresh vinegary note to each bite. Thinly slice a few radishes and a quarter of red onion. Toss in a small bowl with your favorite vinegar and a pinch of sugar. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.
Last but not least, the bread. The unsung hero of the BLT. It doesn’t even get a letter in the name, but can make or break the sandwich. Something too crunchy and chewy will make the ingredients swish out and be too hard to bite into. But something too soft with soak up the tomato juice and get soggy. Bagels are a fun option, or a sturdy thick-sliced white or sourdough bread.
A sandwich recipe seems a little silly, so you are on your own here. But remember, there isn’t much better than a well-balanced and well-constructed sandwich. So stop and think about your components before you make a sandwich.
Mussels & Corn in a Spicy Tomato Broth
Though this recipe is titled “Mussels & Corn in a Spicy Tomato Broth,” it might as well be called “Liquid Gold I’d Like to Dip Everything In Sight In.”
The broth has a wonderful sweet and spiciness from the corn kernels and the Calabrian chilis, along with some bright acid from the wine and tomatoes and meaty richness from the pancetta. Everything blends together and begs, nay yearns for some crusty bread to dip into to.
And don’t feel limited to just mussels here. You can use clams, shrimp, any firm white fish – just gently poach until cooked through. Or don’t even feel limited to seafood for that matter. This sauce makes an awesome eggs-in-purgatory base the next morning – if there are any leftovers.
This recipe does lend itself to late summer produce – corn and tomatoes. But if you have a craving during the winter months, frozen corn kernels will work just fine. Just skip the roasting step. Cherry tomatoes are generally available all year round, but a few whole canned tomatoes would work as well.
If you haven’t picked up a jar of the Divina Calabrian Chili peppers yet, do yourself a favor and run now and get one. The Calabria region of Italy produces some of Aperitivo’s favorite things (wink wink, ‘nduja) and these peppers lend unmatchable spiciness with a tiny hint of sweetness to anything you add them to.
Langhe Arneis is a perfect wine, both to use and drink with, this dish. The Northern Italian bottle has notes of ripe pears and limestone. Any dry and acidic white wine can work in this dish, but get something that you still want to drink after you use what you need to in the recipe.
Because you already get the gist that “crusty bread for dipping” is a non-negotiable for this dish, high-quality butter for the bread is a close second. Pull it out of the fridge before you start cooking. That way it will be soft and spreadable by the time dinner is served. Trust us. High quality, high fat, room temperature butter takes your bite from, “this is delicious,” to “this is so freaking delicious I don’t know what to do with myself.” And that just sounds more fun, right?
Mussels & Corn in a Spicy Tomato Broth
Ingredients
- 3 ears fresh corn on the cob
- 1 Tbsp EVOO
- ¼ pound thick-sliced pancetta – diced into small cubes (about ¼ in.)
- 1 small red onion – diced
- 2 garlic cloves – chopped
- 1 – 3 Divina Calabrian Chili peppers – coarsely chopped
- 2 cups assorted tomatoes – heirloom, cherry, grape, etc.
- 1 cup dry white wine – try the Langhe Arneis
- 24 mussels – scrubbed
- 2 Tbsp butter – plus more for bread
- 1 Tbsp chives – chopped
- Crusty bread – for dipping
Instructions
- Roast corn cobs in a dry cast iron pan over medium-high heat, rotating around until some kernels begin to get charred, about 8 minutes. Once cool enough to handle, slice the kernels off the cob and set aside.
- Wipe out the pan and return to medium-low heat. (You may need to keep the pan off the heat for a few minutes to cool down.)
- Add EVOO, cubed pancetta, and diced red onion and cook over medium-low heat until the fat starts to render and the onions become translucent about 5 minutes.
- Add the chopped garlic and Calabrian peppers and cook for 2 minutes.
- Add in the tomatoes, chopping larger ones and cook until they start to burst and release their juices, an additional 4 minutes.
- Deglaze the pan with wine, scraping up the bits that are stuck to the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
- Before you add the mussels, discard any that won’t close. Gently add into the pan, along with two tablespoons of butter.
- Cover the pan and simmer until the mussels begin to open, about 5-7 minutes. Discard any mussels that don’t open. Pour corn kernels back into the pan and gently stir to combine.
- Serve out of the cast iron pan, or place a few mussels in a shallow bowl and spoon corn and broth over the top.Garnish with fresh chopped chives and serve with lots of crusty bread and butter.
Notes
*This recipe is very scalable, serving 2 – 4 as is. If you have more people, get more mussels. If you need to add more, bump up the wine by a half a cup. Or if you’d rather save the wine for drinking, add a half cup extra of water instead.
Tomato Ricotta Zucchini Rollatini
Late summer’s harvest can sometimes get a bit excessive. Having giant zucchinis and hundreds of juicy cherry tomatoes overflowing in bowls in your kitchen is a wonderful problem to have. But you still need to find a way to use the abundance of veggies before they pass their prime.
Combining sweet cherry tomatoes with fluffy ricotta cheese to make a rich and creamy sauce makes a delicious base for rolled zucchini slices.
If you have leftover Tomato Ricotta sauce, it is great tossed with pasta, spooned over roasted vegetables, or smeared cold over crusty bread.
Tomato Ricotta Zucchini Rollatini
Ingredients
Tomato Ricotta Sauce
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes
- ½ cup Parmigiano Reggiano freshly grated
- ½ cup ricotta cheese
- 2 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 Tbsp fresh basil leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
Zucchini Rollatini
- 1 large zucchini or 2 small
- salt and peper
- 12 slices La Quercia Prosciutto thinly sliced
- 1 ball fresh mozzarella sliced into 12 pieces
- ¼ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano plus more to finish
- Fresh basil leaves
- Cooking Spray
Instructions
- To make the sauce, process the tomatoes, cheeses, garlic, anchovy fillets, and olive oil in a food processor until smooth. Add the basil, and pulse until combined but with some green flecks, 7 to 8 times. Taste and add salt and pepper. Use right away for zucchini rollatini, or cover and refrigerate for up to one week.
- To make the rollatini, preheat a grill pan on medium-high heat. Using a mandoline, slice the zucchini lengthwise into thin strips until you have 12 full slices. Strips should be a little less than ¼ in. Season both sides of the zucchini slices.
- Spray grill pan with cooking spray. Grill zucchini slices 2 minutes on one side until slightly softened and grill marks appear. Gently flip over and grill for another 30 seconds. Remove from pan and set aside. Repeat with all zucchini slices.
- Preheat oven to 400℉. Spread 1/4 cup of the tomato ricotta sauce on the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish.
- On a cutting board, lay out a slice of zucchini. Take one slice of prosciutto and lay flat across zucchini. Place a piece of mozzarella on one side of the zucchini and roll up the slice. Place seam side down in the baking dish. Repeat until all 12 slices are complete.
- Spoon additional sauce on top of each zucchini rollatini and sprinkle on freshly grated Parmesan. Bake in the 400℉ oven for 15-20 minutes, until cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling.
- Top with torn basil leaves, more grated Parmesan cheese, and serve.
Grilled Zucchini with Halloumi and Mama Lil’s Peppers
Taking advantage of a bountiful summer farmer’s market harvest, these grilled zucchinis make a great vegetarian main course or a beautiful accompaniment with grilled fish.
Coming from Cyprus, Halloumi is a semi-firm sheep and goat’s milk cheese. (Find it near the fresh goat cheese in the Aperitivo case!) It is a salty and tangy cheese with a high melting point, meaning it will hold its shape when exposed to high heat. So it is the perfect cheese to grill!
There are a few staple ingredients in the Aperitivo “kitchen” and Mama Lil’s spicy pickled peppers are one of those. Grown in Washington’s Yakima Valley, these Hungarian goathorn peppers are made in a similar style to Italy’s Calabrian pickled peppers. They are sweet, spicy and totally addicting. Once the jar is empty, don’t toss that flavorful oil! Use it in vinaigrettes, toss it with fresh pasta or pour it in a bowl and dip some crusty bread in it.
Grilled Zucchini with Halloumi and Mama Lil’s Peppers
Serves 4 – Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit
- 1 medium shallot or small red onion – thinly sliced
- ½ cup sherry vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ¼ coarsely chopped Mama Lil’s peppers
- 2 pounds zucchini – halved lengthwise (or hotdog-style)
- 1 package Halloumi
- 3 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup torn basil
- Kosher salt and pepper
- Crunchy salt – Maldon, Jacobson, etc.
Heat a grill for medium heat. Mix sliced shallot or onion with sherry vinegar in a large bowl. Let sit for about 10 minutes. Sprinkle in the sugar, a pinch of salt and chopped Mama Lil’s. Set aside.
Toss halved zucchinis with 3 Tbsp vegetable oil on a large rimmed baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper and place on the grill. Grill on each side, until tender and charred, about 15 minutes total. Remove from the grill and let cool slightly. Once cool, tear or slice into bite-sized pieces and place in the bowl with shallots and Mama Lil’s.
Toss Halloumi in same olive oil from the zucchini and place on the grill. Grill a few minutes on each side, until crispy grill marks form, about 8 minutes total. Remove from grill, slice into bite-sized pieces and add to zucchini mixture.
Gently stir everything together, add additional ¼ cup olive oil and torn basil leaves. Transfer mixture with a slotted spoon onto large platter. Top with additional basil leaves and crunchy salt.
Need a wine pairing? Try this amazing Malagouzia from Greece.
Creamy Panzanella Salad
Fresh and bright, crunchy and packing a salty bite, Panzanella Salad is the perfect summer dish. Panzanella is a traditional Tuscan salad made up of tomatoes and stale bread. The Aperitivo version includes a creamy goat cheese for an added level of richness. Have a few tomatoes that aren’t going to win any beauty contests? Use them up here! Those tend to be the most flavorful!
CHEVOO is a brand of marinated goat cheese made by Aussies transplants in California. Any of their magical flavor combinations would work in this salad, but the Smoked Salt and Rosemary is our favorite!
This salad gets multiple of layers of saltiness from the anchovies, the marinated goat cheese, and the extra virgin olive oil from the CHEVOO jar. So be sure to taste before adding additional salt.
Creamy Panzanella Salad
Ingredients
- 1 pound assorted heirloom tomatoes – different colors will make the salad pop
- 1 medium-sized cucumber
- 1 medium pepper – any color
- 1 loaf bread – Our favorite is the Levain from field&fire
- Assorted fresh herbs – thyme, basil, chives
- 1 jar CHEVOO Smoked Salt and Rosemary marinated goat cheese – cheese and oil separated
- 2 fillets Ortiz Anchovies
- 1 tbsp Beaufor Whole Grain Mustard
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- Salt and pepper – to taste
Instructions
- Prepare the bread – Cut the loaf into bite-sized cubes, discarding some of the harder pieces of the outer crust. Toss with 2 tablespoons of the oil from the CHEVOO jar and toast in a 350℉ oven for about 10 minutes, until dry and golden. Place in a large mixing bowl.
- Prepare the vegetables – Peel the cucumber, slice in half and remove the seeds with a spoon. Chop into bite-sized pieces. Cut the tomatoes into chunks, discarding seeds if desired. Seed and chop the pepper into bite-sized pieces. Mix into the bowl with the bread and add the chopped fresh herbs, saving a few to garnish at the end.
- Mix the vinaigrette – Break up the anchovy fillets with your fingers and add to a small bowl. Whisk in the mustard, vinegar and 3 tablespoons of the oil from the CHEVOO jar until smooth. Add a few cracks of black pepper to taste. (You can also puree this in a blender to better break up the anchovies.)
- Pour the vinaigrette over the tomato and bread mixture, making sure to get the bread fully saturated. Break up the pieces of cheese with your fingers and drop onto the bowl and gently fold in. The cheese will melt into the salad, adding a creamy and salty bite. Season lightly with salt and pepper to taste.
- Let sit for a few minutes to let all the flavors meld together, then serve.