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Berries with Geranium Cream

Check your local farmers market or Chef's Garden (800-289-4644) for the geranium leaves or experiment with other leaves such as fresh basil or mint.

Summer Tomatoes

Whether you use heirloom, beefsteak, or cherry, this simple dish is all about the tomatoes. Be sure to use the ripest ones you can find for the best results.

Southwestern Succotash

This colorful side dish gets a hint of heat from roasted poblano chiles. Its bold flavors make it a great accompaniment to grilled meats.

Farmers Market Greens

Nothing can beat greens from the farmers market — they're so beautiful, delicate, and fresh, you simply can't help buying some.

Herb-Tossed Corn

If you want to eat this entire menu with your fingers, the corn can be served hot on the cob, brushed with the butter mixture and sprinkled with cilantro. To save space on your stovetop, you can boil the corn first, then boil the crabs in the corn-cooking water.

Bilbao-Style Red Snapper

Annuska Angulo Rivero of Mexico City, Mexico, writes: "This recipe was originally for besugo, a fish popular in Bilbao but not easily found in Mexico. I use red snapper instead. Be sure to eat this with lots of good bread to mop up the sauce. Using a fruity olive oil makes this dish incredibly flavorful.

Grilled Spice-Rubbed Pork with Tomato Garlic Sauce

If you get a package containing two tenderloins of uneven size, you may have to cook the larger one a little longer than the smaller one. Prepare all the sauce ingredients before grilling the pork, then cook it while the pork stands.

Grilled Zucchini Pizza

We tested this recipe using a charcoal grill and a gas grill and found that grilling the dough over charcoal required both direct and indirect heat, a process too involved for Quick Kitchen. We prefer supermarket mozzarella rather than fresh for this pizza because fresh mozzarella exudes too much liquid when cooked. If your pizza dough is frozen, allow 2 to 3 hours to let it thaw.

Steamed Blue Crabs with Black Ginger Dipping Sauce

Blue crabs take a little more work to eat than larger crabs like Dungeness, but their sweet flavor is worth the extra effort. Blue crabs are commercially harvested from New York to Florida — including, most famously, Chesapeake Bay — and the Gulf Coast states. The best are available from late summer to early fall. If you're landlocked or on the West Coast, you can order live blue crabs from The Crab Place (877-328-2722; crabplace.com).

Chilled Zucchini Soup

This creamy chilled soup will make you hope for an abundance of zucchini in your garden this year. Thin-sliced zucchini blossoms, available at produce markets and specialty foods shops, add a beautiful hint of color while lending texture to the soup's smoothness.

Mother Pepa's Garlic Shrimp

Gambas al Ajillo Mamá Pepa I received an e-mail from María Jesús Davis, who resides in Washington, D.C., but is inordinately proud to be a native of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalucía. Writing in charming Andalusian colloquial Spanish, she says, "I am Jerezana to the bone, and I hope you like my mother's recipe, which is very simple to understand — because I get bored when cooking gets complicated." Gambas al ajillo, a staple in most tapas bars, takes on a new twist and a haunting flavor with the addition of medium-dry amontillado sherry, which also comes from María Jesús's hometown. She advises, "Be sure to provide plenty of bread to sop of the sauce. It's to die for!"

Blueberry Hill Cupcakes

Freezing the berries before adding them to the batter prevents them from sinking to the bottom and from discoloring the cupcakes. Maple sugar can be found at some supermarkets and natural foods stores.

Sweet Potato Noodle Stir-Fry with Choy Sum and Shiitake Mushrooms

"What really makes this Korean- inspired dish delightful is the contrast between the crisp vegetables and the soft, chewy sweet potato noodles," says Mai Pham. Look for the noodles at Asian markets; cellophane noodles (sold in the Asian foods section of many supermarkets) also work here. For best results, choose a thicker noodle, about the size of spaghettini. Serve this dish at room temperature as a side or main.
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