Time For Those Bumper Crops

It's getting close to late August and we all know what that means - bumper crop! We'll be inundated with extra tomatoes, zucchinis  and peppers thanks s to our gardens or ones that belong to neighbors friends and family.  What to do with them? There are dozens of recipes that can be used.

New York Times Food writer Julia Moskin had an excellent idea for vegetables gratins in her column in Wednesday's New York Times Food section. Fresh grown veggies are their tastiest  in this layered dish. It's similar to the winter dish potatoes au gratin in the sense it's layers cooked in a skillet. The summer one has a base layer of onions and peppers.A second layer has zucchini and squash along with Parmesan cheese and pieces of fresh  French or Italian bread.(stale just won't  do). Also cook the veggies either by grilling or broiling before hand  otherwise you'll ind up with a watery half cooked pan of veggies. Another great idea is getting a spiralizer if you don't have one already . You can turn all those zucchini into healthy "green" pasta, whether making it with a pomodoro sauce or a healthier version of pad Thai. The zucchini noodles are just good sauteed with only garlic, olive oil and some butter or margarine. Stuffed zucchini is another great meal and treat. These can be filled with chopped meat, a mix of bread crumbs and tomatoes or a spiced rice mixture. Another idea that's sure to be a classic is zucchini crust pizza. This is when shredded zucchini is mixed with egg or egg whites to create a kind of crispy omelet and a base for tomato sauce and cheese.

Tomatoes are also abounding right now. What to do when the farmer in your life drops off  more than a few? Think sauces for the fall and winter. You can make it for anything , from pizza to pasta. Cooking the sauce is probably the most labor intensive which usually takes anywhere from half an hour to ninety minutes.Keep in mind that the shorter the cooking time the thinner the sauce but with a fresher tomato flavor.The longer the cooking time, the thicker the sauce and the flavor is more of a cooked taste. Tomatoes can be served in an easy crudo sauce for now. It just cutting up tomatoes, letting them marinate in olive oil and garlic as the pasta is being cooked. Orange zest, capers and hot pepper flakes can be added too for extra flavor. Extra tomatoes and peppers can also be turned in a fresh salsa, perfect for pool parties and barbecues. Toss in some chopped jalapenos for fire  or if you want a milder one, add some pineapple chunks or a dollop of honey. Those extra peppers can also be stuffed too with beef, chicken or even turkey.Mix the meat with wild rice  and herbs for extra flavor. Peppers can be charred and served with an anchovy or bagna calda sauce for a Piedmontese summer favorite.

Don't freak out at getting a bumper crop of fresh veggies. There's a million good recipes out there that can be made with them. Enjoy the bounty and the good food that comes from them.

Vegan For The Summer

One of the best aspects of summer is that you can nix the meats and live off the land - literally. This is a great time to take that long promised stab at vegetarianism, thanks to all the harvests right now. It's time to discover all these hot weather veggies and the dishes that go with them.

Squash is always popular and is in full harvest right now. Many home farmers have an abundance of them, thanks to their hardiness and ability to thrive. They are versatile from their delicate flowers to the mature vegetable. Squash flowers, those fragile yet delicious blooms, are best made into a kind of fritter. This Provencale and Piedmontese recipe is easy,The flowers do have to be picked early morning before they close for the day. They're then washed and patted dry , ready for battering. The batter is a simple mix of  one cup each of flour and water. One egg and one tablespoon oil are also added for body. The flowers can be fried in margarine,oil, or the preferred French way, butter until crisp. Mature squash is another great versatile veggie.It can be turned into a green version of spaghetti, thanks to a neat little gadget called Veggetti. This hourglass shaped spiralizer turns any squash into a tasty pile of noodles. They can be made with sauce but a better and healthier way is sauteing them in olive oil, tempered with margarine and minced garlic. The spiralizer can also be used to make a tasty cucumber slaw too. Serve with an apple cider based vinaigrette for a nice cool salad.

Of course it's the season of the tomatoes. These bright red gems are the stars of any summer harvest and rightly so. They can be made into any type of dish., from starters to even dessert (technically they classified as fruit). Try them as bruschetta, piled on top of toasted crunchy rounds of Italian bread or as a flavorful salsa. The last can also highlight other summer stars green peppers and onions. This is the time to make homemade sauces for those fall and winter pasta dinners. Fresh ones are great in a pasta crudo where  they 're mixed raw with just cooked spaghetti or angel hair pasta. One of the best way to have them is in a sandwich.Toast your favorite bread, slather on mayo and them layer on the tomato slices Tomaotes can even be turned into a sorbet for an unusual but flavor packed dessert..Another use for them along with eggplants and onions are the French classic ratatouille.Novice home chefs may be put off by the name's fanciness but it's really easy to make.It's basically sauteing sliced the veggies in a garlic and oregano spiced olive oil.They're then cooked down until tender. It's usually served with crusty baguette slices to sop up the juices however it can also be served with rice too. Green and red peppers can be added along with zucchini to mix it up a bit.

Anyone can go vegan on a summer diet thanks to all these abundant harvests. Take advantage of them of them and cook healthy. It's a great boost to your health and to your taste buds!

Your Fun Low Fat Summer Diet

Low fat does not have to be boring. In fact, it can be fun, thanks to some innovative gadgets and recipes.This makes for  some exciting eating while losing weight and gaining important nutrients.

Since it is summer, take advantage of melons - any kind. Cantaloupes are big right now and these are perfect for any meal. Start off a sweltering day with a cool slice of one along with an iced coffee or tea. Another idea is filling the middle with vanilla flavored Greek yogurt. Add berries such as strawberries or blueberries for some color and a good shot of antioxidants . You can also turn it into a refreshing drink Take half of the melon and blend with a cup of low fat milk, soy or almond milk for a nice way to start the morning - or end the day,Watermelon is all over the place right now and we're going to see more of it as the season progresses. Try watermelon infused drinks  such as agua fresca. Puree chunks of it and add that along with lime juice to seltzer as an alternative to soda and iced tea. A melon salad is also a nice start to dinner or dessert. Shred some mint leaves on top for a shot of coolness. Peaches are also in season, They make great snacks  if you're craving something sweet. A decadent dessert is layering fresh peach slices with low fat whipped cream for a  not all that bad for you treat. You can also layer them along with the berries of the season with Greek yogurt and almonds for yummy low cal parfaits.Another fun treat is layering the fruit with  banana ice cream made with only frozen bananas.

This is the start of squash season too. Zucchini is always the star of the season, thanks to its' abundance in farmers markets and gardens.One cup of it is only thirty-six calories, so it's the perfect food for summer dieters.It's a hot veggie right now, thanks to the zuchetti maker or spiralizer. I highly recommend adding this gadget to any kitchen. It's an hourglass shaped grater that produces long spaghetti like spirals or strands called zoodles. You can make low calorie  zuchetti that has only sixty calories a plate and that includes the sauce .These squash noodles can even be turned into fries by batter dipping them in a low calorie batter and then baking them. Zoodles can also be used in stir fries too.  If you get zoodled out then chunk them up to be  roasted alongside other summer vegetables such as bell peppers and onions, for a healthier take on barbecue.These can be first cut up into chunks and marinated in olive oil and lemon. They can be grilled on their own or with chicken or lean cuts of beef. Add tomatoes and they can be part of a salsa crudo with the zoodles or whole wheat pasta. Tomatoes will soon be all over the place as we progress into July and August. They're great  in homemade salsas and also fresh sauces. Chop plum tomatoes and let them soak in some chopped garlic and olive oil  as you also boil pasta.Pour the cooked spaghetti or angel hair over them, The heat will cook up the tomatoes. You can also add capers and olives for more flavor.

Summer dieting is easy. There's a wide range of fruits vegetables and meats to choose from to help lose the weight and gain the nutrients. Best of all , they can be made in a variety of fun and exciting ways.

The Best Grain Free Recipe Book

Grain free living doesn't have to have the limitations that normally go with restricted diets.Thanks to a new and innovative cookbook,those with gluten and grain allergies can not only have delicious meals but mouth watering snacks too. It's packed with advice, info and best of all those yummy recipes.

Laura Fuentes, creator of the Momables Meal plan where parents can get recipes and ideas delivered to their inboxes has written a cookbook similar to them. The Best Grain-Free Family Meals On The Planet (Quanto Publishing Group USA) is based on her experiences dealing with her own gluten allergies as well as her children's,They all needed healthier eating for a better life and that required less processed food and more natural.What is most helpful is the section, called Real Life and Food that  addresses picky eaters and what to do at social functions.She recommends bringing all the dishes out on he table and letting the kids choose what looks good to them.As for social functions it's best to bring a lunchbox or thermos. That way the hosts don't have the worry about guests reacting to certain dishes.Ms. Fuentes also has a list of essentials for a complete grain free pantry and how home chefs can clean out theirs. There is a section about where to get ingredients from , growing them to hitting farmers' markets to becoming a member of shopping clubs CostCo and Sam's Club  offer a trove of fresh produce  along with healthy oils and spices. She also recommends shopping online too. She writes about what tools to use and recommends getting a spiralizer, that fun kitchen tool, that turns zucchini into zuccheti along with the usual hand mixers and slow cookers.

The recipes are divided into sections, from breakfasts to lunchbox favorites. There are also  extensive chapters on family meals and snacks and treats. Kids won't have to sacrifice their favorite dishes , thanks to this cookbook. Breakfast recipes are silver dollar pancakes with coconut flour and blueberry maple breakfast sausages.There are also sorts of muffins ,from a peaches and cream one to a chocolate chip. Ms. Fuentes even has breakfast cookies and the exotic Middle Eastern egg and tomato dish shakshura. The lunchbox recipes are great for both school and those vacation days spent at home.Try the recipe for veggie falafels, made not with chickpeas, but with onion, cauliflower and zucchini.,bound together with almond flower.For a healthy lunch or snack make the seven layer Greek cups, loaded with feta, hummus and kalamata olives. Dinner recipes are equally fun . Kids and parents will love the quick mu shu pork and the shrimp scampi with spaghetti squash. There are recipes for zoodles or zucchetti.Ms. Fuentes even makes a ramen soup with them! Snacks and treats are many , each as tasty as the next. There are plantain and beet chips that will surely replace the bought potato ones. There are flourless bites made with raisins as the binder. These come in yummy flavors like cherry chocolate and apple pie along with coconut brownie. A homemade version of Nutella along with ice cream are also included as are grain free cupcakes with rich fudgy frosting.

The Best Grain-Free Family Meals On The Planet is a kitchen must have for those families with gluten allergies. The recipes are easy and tasty, sure to be family classics .Buy it today and start creating these grain free dishes!

A Barbecue With Sauce

It's the start of the barbecue season and that means the usual fare - burgers- dogs  and salads. The problem is that they can be boring. It's time to liven up the Q and change up those traditional recipes. Replace the ho-hum with something exciting.

Hamburgers are standard grill fare. Most home chefs usually buy the premade patties then slap them on the grill to cook up. Instead a more interesting option is buying ground beef and adding to it. Try the classic hamburger recipe that mixes ground chuck with beaten egg, breadcrumbs and Worcester sauce. This not only makes for a more flavorful bite  but a thicker burger. Bacon  makes anything taste better so think about creating a burger with a bacon center (get the already cooked bacon for this or make your own). It's the same with cheese. You can make cheddar burgers with the surprise of the sharp Vermont kind or pizza burgers with a mozzarella center. Serve the last with tomato sauce. Jalapeno burgers are always a crowd pleaser too. Add four chopped and seeded peppers to a pound of ground meat. Homemade burgers usually made with chickpeas can get an exotic spicing up with everything from cumin to turmeric. Hot dogs are a little more difficult to change up yet they can be amped up with cheese or any kind of filling. Before cooking ,slit the hot dogs lengthwise so they'll cook up with a gash. Fill the gash with melted cheddar or better yet pulled pork.Vegetarians can have their soy dogs filled with ratatouille or a hot onion chutney.

One of the most predictable barbecue dishes is salad, namely macaroni. It's usually the elbow kind mixed with Hellman's, Sometimes celery is added for color but that's it. Try tricolore rotelli instead of the traditional.and for a healthier spin olive oil instead of the mayo. Sun dried tomatoes and artichoke hearts round it out. For a real eye opener make a spaghetti salad.It will create both memories and smiles. Add some chopped salami and ham, along with peppers and tomatoes in an Italian dressing to a bowl of cold pasta. Make a veggie salad fun by using a spiralizer. These are great gadgets that turn veggies into long strands or "noodles". Think of making a cucumber noodle salad with sour cream and fresh dill. Sub in Greek yogurt for a healthier dish. Chickpeas and their liquid can have double use at a cookout. Use the first along with parsley and chopped onions in a Mediterranean style salad with za'atar dressing. Za'atar is a mix of sumac , oregano, marjoram along with toasted sesame seeds and thyme. Sea salt rounds this easy to make spice. The accompanying liquid has the same composition as egg whites and can be transformed into a vegan mayonnaise, along with adding lemon juice, Worcester sauce, dry mustard and a pinch of sugar. This can also be used as a condiment too.

Don;t have a boring barbecue. Liven it up with unique homemade burgers and fancily filled dogs along with some wild salads. It'll be not only tasty but fun - exactly what a cook out should be.