Seasonal Sundays (Week 31) The Best of Summer

Let's grab onto summer, shall we? This week's collection includes all the summer highlights, the dishes we make only in summer and maybe even just once. But somehow, such special summer recipes, well, they make summer summer.
Seasonal Sundays ♥ KitchenParade.com, a seasonal collection of recipes and life ideas in and out of the kitchen.

Welcome to Seasonal Sundays ...

Hey y'all ... glad you're here, thank you for inviting me into your kitchens. It means the world, truly.

I've decided to take August off, I've only had eight days off so far this year, which sounds like pretty many until you figure there've been 62 Saturdays/Sundays plus five holidays. I love what I do (and have new recipes scheduled to publish throughout the month) but ...

But I didn't want to leave you high and dry!

So let's call this week's giant collection of recipes "don't let summer pass by without making ... ". These are completely seasonal, just for summer. Even I make them just once a year, every year, but just once.

They're a mix of super simple and some complexity, summer classics and some of my most distinctive recipes. A fruit gazpacho? Amazing. A corn soup with shrimp? (Does it need a new name? Help me decide, please ...) Tomato soup made with fresh tomatoes?

See you in September ...




PICK ONE

Pick One is for those of us overwhelmed by life's unending choices. If that resonates, then check out this one recipe and then call it a day. It's one that I think could make the most difference, the one I hope will become a regular in your kitchen, as it is in mine.

Summer's Best Corn Chowder, a classic summer soup ♥ AVeggieVenture.com, packed with our favorite fresh and seasonal summer vegetables. Great for Meal Prep.

Compliments!

Raw Mexican Street Corn Salad with Cauliflower Rice, another summer salad ♥ AVeggieVenture.com. Weight Watchers Friendly. Low Carb.

Cook. Eat. Repeat.

Here's my appeal for mealtime minimalism, the idea that you don't have to think up a new breakfast or a new lunch every day. It's a way to think less about food rather than more. It's maintains that the ritual of healthy satisfying staples can fill you up in a way that the new and the novel cannot.

Quick Summer Squash & Tomato Sauté, another easy summer vegetable recipe ♥ AVeggieVenture.com

Back-Pocket Recipe

We all keep certain recipes in our virtual back pockets, right? We might not need them right this minute but recognize their usefulness in our recipe repertoires.

King Hill Farms Simple & Sublime Warm Beets with Butter ♥ AVeggieVenture.com. Prepare to swoon ...

Summer Easy: Less Cookin', More Livin'.

More than a decade ago, I started collecting a certain style of summer dishes that espouse my summer motto, Less Cookin', More Livin'. These are Kitchen Parade's most simple, most fresh, most memorable and most summery recipes, all in one place. I hope you love 'em all! See Easy Summer Recipes!

Mexican Scrambled Eggs (Huevos Revueltos a la Mexicana), another healthy summer breakfast ♥ A Veggie Venture and the most popular eggs in Mexico according to Diana Kennedy. Simple & Seasonal. Low Carb. High Protein. Very Weight Watchers Friendly. Gluten Free. Whole30 Friendly.

Warm Goat Cheese Appetizer with Mini Tomatoes & Capers, another easy summer appetizer ♥ KitchenParade.com, a big jumble of tangy goat cheese and tomatoes in a simple vinaigrette. Weeknight easy, worthy of an occasion. Fresh & Seasonal for casual summer entertaining.

Something New to You? A Challenge!

It's one thing to know what we like. It's another to get caught in a rut of repetition. Every so often, I may offer a challenge to try something that just might be new. The challenge is yours to accept – or y'know, not – but I hope to pique your palate!

Easy Apricot Jam with Rosemary ♥ KitchenParade.com, a small batch with just five ingredients, rustic and barely sweet. No canning required.

Can This Recipe Be Saved?

Help! This is one of my very favorite recipes on Kitchen Parade but whoah, nobody but nobody visits the page.

Would a name change help????

I've made two graphics. The first one uses the existing name, Sweet Corn Soup with Shrimp. The second one is a new name I'm considering, Corn Chowder with Shrimp.

Which one looks interesting enough to check it out???

Have a better idea for a name??? Please do chime in!


Sweet-Corn Soup with Shrimp ♥ KitchenParade.com, familiar ingredients combined into something unusual and surprising. Serve chilled in summer, warm in the spring. Fresh & Seasonal. High Protein.

Sweet-Corn Soup with Shrimp ♥ KitchenParade.com, familiar ingredients combined into something unusual and surprising. Serve chilled in summer, warm in the spring. Fresh & Seasonal. High Protein.

PS And thanks!

Summer Suppers

Baked Orzo Casserole with Eggplant, Olives, Goat Cheese & More, another flavor-packed make-ahead summer casserole ♥ A Veggie Venture

Easy Garlic-Herb Mediterranean Chicken ('Med Chicken') ♥ KitchenParade.com, marinated Middle-eastern chicken a real crowd pleaser.

Greek Chicken Dagwood Sandwiches ♥ KitchenParade.com, easy summer sandwiches with rotisserie chicken, a cucumber and feta tzatziki, roasted pepper, more feta, fresh arugula, summer tomato.

A BATTLE Sandwich, it's a BLT on Steroids ♥ KitchenParade.com. Fresh & Casual. A Summer Family Tradition. Easy to Make, Worth a Celebration.

Green Chile Burgers ♥ KitchenParade.com, authentic green chile burgers, a specialty from New Mexico.

Summer Veggies!

Summer Vegetable Stew ♥ AVeggieVenture.com, a soupy stew made with fresh vegetables, a great master recipe and a rainbow of summer vegetables, full of different flavors and colors and textures. Weight Watchers Friendly. Vegan. Gluten Free. Paleo.

Fattoush (Middle Eastern Salad with Romaine, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Fried Pita Chips and Lemon-Sumac Dressing), another creative summer salad ♥ AVeggieVenture.com

Best Ever New Potatoes & Green Beans, a classic summer combo ♥ AVeggieVenture.com. Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. Budget Friendly. Gluten Free. Rave Reviews.

Summer Fruit!

Summer's Best Melon Ball & Blueberry Salad, another Summer Easy recipe ♥ KitchenParade.com. Beautiful Color. Great for Potlucks & Light Weeknight Meals. Weight Watchers Friendly.

Familiar Ingredients, Unexpected Results

Roasted Eggplant Hummus ♥ AVeggieVenture.com, eggplant, chickpeas & Greek yogurt in an addictive, ultra smooth and creamy dip and spread. Low Carb. Weight Watchers friendly.

Easy-Easy Grilled Mushroom Appetizer ♥ KitchenParade.com, what an easy appetizer recipe! What a crowd pleaser! Just two ingredients and a few minutes on the grill. Easy clean-up too!

Summer's Tomato Soup ♥ KitchenParade.com, simple, light homemade tomato soup, made with fresh tomatoes. Beautiful color. Looks simple, tastes complex.

Afghan Eggplant & Tomato Casserole (Borani Banjan) ♥ AVeggieVenture.com, an explosion of tastes and textures and temperatures. Low Carb. Weight Watchers Friendly.

Fruity Gazpacho ♥ KitchenParade.com, an unusual savory-sweet, vegetable-fruit soup that's good as an appetizer, an entrée, even a dessert. Positively fresh and delicious.

Sweet Endings

First-Prize Peach Pie with Lattice Crust ♥ KitchenParade.com, this recipe won first prize in my town's peach pie contest! It uses a special technique to draw out the peach flavor. No blanching! No peeling!

Mini Blueberry Tarts ♥ KitchenParade.com, miniature cheesecake-like tarts baked in a mini muffin pan with a pop of fresh blueberry, a welcome colorful addition to a tray of mini desserts. The press-in crust is easy, so is the sour cream filling.

Finnish Strawberry Whipped Cream Cake ♥ KitchenParade.com, layers of sponge cake, fluffy whipped cream and strawberries, a real celebration cake.

What's New?!

Raw Mexican Street Corn Salad with Cauliflower Rice, another summer salad ♥ AVeggieVenture.com. Weight Watchers Friendly. Low Carb.

Zucchini Bread with Carrot & Candied Ginger ♥ KitchenParade.com, my go-to recipe, plenty of zucchini, carrot for color, ginger for zing, lots of spices. Stays fresh for days!

Just Updated!

Cold Cucumber Soup, the summer classic ♥ AVeggieVenture.com, light but flavorful after a recipe makeover. Budget Friendly. Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. Gluten Free.

Homemade Creamed Corn, a simple, healthy makeover ♥ AVeggieVenture.com. No cream! No can!

Zucchini Bread with Pumpkin, a season-crossing quick bread ♥ AVeggieVenture.com, part zucchini bread, part pumpkin bread, part spice cake. After a healthy makeover, Half the Calories. Great for Make-Ahead & Food Gifts.

Text Me Back!

I'd love to hear from you. Comment, send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com, dot-dash in Morse code, build a fire for smoke signals, launch a message in a bottle, send a Christmas letter, get the dog to yip, toss me a note wrapped in a rubberband, write a message in the sky, scratch a note in the sand, listen to a seashell, whatever.


Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.

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2020

Alanna Kellogg
Alanna Kellogg

A Veggie Venture is home of "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.

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