The seasonal calendar: Summer

Light, quick and refreshing. These are the key words for this season’s recipes. Whether they are cold dishes or fruit salads, fresh creams or blended drinks, the important thing is that the ingredients that make them up do not require long cooking or heavy sauces. Therefore, anything that is laborious is banned and fresh vegetables and fruit that are rich in water and vitamins are welcome: naturally using the best of the season’s harvest to ensure that we have fresh, safe and nutritious foods. Try to buy them in the markets directly from the producers; the important thing is to store them well in separate shelves at controlled temperatures such as those of the KitchenAid Vertigo refrigerators, thanks to which fruit and vegetables stay fresh for much longer. You will find below a list of the season’s ingredients.

Fruit: Cherries, Strawberries, Figs, Apricots, Loquats, Plums, Watermelon, Berries, Melon, Lemons, Peaches and Tomatoes

Vegetables: Radishes, Rocket, Cucumbers, Beets, Capsicum, Courgettes and Corn

Here are four recipes to experiment with:

Gazpacho

Gazpacho is a traditional Spanish cold soup. Specifically, from hot Andalusia where in the past it was eaten by the peasants who spent many hours in the fields under the sun. Therefore, it is a refreshing dish that is perfect for your summer; nutritious and very easy to prepare and accompanied by bread and raw vegetables. We offer you a very easy recipe for two people: take 4 tomatoes, cut them into quarters and put them into a bowl (remove the skin first if you want), together with a cucumber, half an onion, a capsicum and a clove of garlic. Add about half a glass of water, a spoonful of olive oil, another of wine vinegar and salt to taste (which you can adjust according to the density and the taste you prefer) and blend it all until you reach a homogeneous consistency. This is child’s play if you have a new KitchenAid Power Plus blender. Serve it cool straight from the fridge garnished with fresh basil, diced vegetables and croutons. 

Mozzarella with melon and anchovies  

Another fanciful and different entree which will leave your guests speechless. You only need 4 balls of mozzarella, the same number of anchovies (salted or in oil), 1 melon and 1 red Tropea red onion. Blend the anchovies with some parsley, some basil, chilli and oil until it becomes a creamy sauce. Peel the melons, take care to remove the seeds and cut the flesh into small, even sized cubes. 

Garnish with the freshly prepared sauce. Now comes the part that is a little more difficult but more fun: cut the upper cap of the mozzarella balls and remove the interior, dice the removed section, mix it with the melon and then fill the balls. Peel the onion, dice it and use it to flavour the melon salad arranged inside the mozzarella balls. A drizzle of extra virgin olive oil will complete the dish.

Cold cous cous with tuna and pistachios

This is an excellent alternative to cold rice or pasta and cous cous is even easier and quicker to prepare. Remember to add a touch of lemon juice and some rocket leaves to give the dish more character. Take 400 grams of cous cous, better if fast cooking, but normal can be used with some adjustments. Once cooked put it into a pan with two spoonfuls of oil and 4 of hot vegetable broth and wait 3 minutes so it rests and absorbs all the liquid. Every so often mix it with a fork so it does not form balls, cook it for another 3 minutes and then let it cool. Mix this together with tuna in oil, the rocket, 10 caper berries, the grated zest of half a lemon and 20 grams of shelled and chopped pistachios. Finally garnish it with 2 or 3 spoonfuls of oil, another of lemon juice and a touch of pepper.

Soft apricot and peach tart

As a snack or as a dessert after dinner on the terrace, this tart is served warm, cut into squares and. Make the dough with 200 grams of butter, 350 grams of “00” flour, a touch of salt and cinnamon, 1 egg and 200 grams of sugar. Wrap it in a dish cloth or transparent plastic film and let it rest for about half an hour in the refrigerator. Roll out two thirds of the dough evenly onto a rectangular baking sheet. Then peel some peaches and cut them into cubes. 

Mix them with the apricot jam (here is some advice for making it at home) and spread the mix on the dough. Crumble the remaining dough and sprinkle it over the fruit. The only secret to perfect cooking is the right oven.  Once cooked let it cool to room temperature. Finally sprinkle some icing sugar and chopped pistachios over it.