Versatile Summery Meals + Have a Great Summer Weekend!


Tomato Salad with greek olives, capers, spring onion, fresh parsley and virgin olive oil. {The nicest capers to use for this dish are the small ones, which are not too aggressively vinegary.}
I love salads and eat them almost every day. I cannot think of any vegetables that I don't like. I like almost all veggies, eggplant, white beans, green beans, broccoli, potatoes, whatever! But my favourite summer vegetables would definitely...
be tomatoes . (Tomatoes are not vegetables but fruit, but I consider them vegetables. Just because.)

Note: Tomatoes deserve better treatment than the salad drawer of the fridge, which knocks the life out of their flavour. This is because tomatoes originate from South America and are essentially hot-blooded. Keep them at room temperature instead and they will continue to ripen on or off the vine.

For those of us with little inclination and even less time to spend in the kitchen, here are a few meals that are fresh, quick and easy, require less or no cooking, and are the perfect way to enjoy summer vegetables at their peak of flavour.
ABOVE Caesar's Salad. Chicken grilled strips mixed with fresh lettuce, rocket, corn, croutons, Parmesan shavings and hard cheese mix, covered with Vinaigrette sauce.

LEFT Crunchy Green Salad. Crispy bacon, Blue cheese and Pear and mixed greens, covered with a mustard and red wine dressing.

Note: The pear in it makes all the difference.

RIGHT Simple Avocado Salad. Crisp, mixed salad leaves, sliced avocado, radish, covered with lemon dressing.

Guacamole (Avocado dip) and Tortilla chips. I can't get enough of this! Really.

Guacamole

Ingredients

3 ripe avocados
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 green chilies, finely chopped
2 tbsps of roughly chopped cilantro (coriander leaves)
Juice of half a lime
Sea salt

Avocados can help make salads more colourful, tasty and engaging. I love their rich texture.
Tuna and Caper Sauce.

A delicious, healthy and easy sauce which is ready in less than 10 minutes. Tuna really makes a meaty-tasting sauce recipe that can be used on any pasta.

Tuna and Caper Sauce

Ingredients

1 Can Tuna (chunks or solid in water), drained.
1 Tablespoon capers, drained
1 Garlic clove, finely chopped
1/2 Cup fresh cream or skim milk
1/2 Cup extra virgin olive oil
Fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped, optional
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Heat olive oil in a frying pan. Add garlic and cook until softened.
Add tuna chunks and fresh cream. Remove from heat.
Add hot pasta, flat-leaf parsley and freshly ground black pepper.
Toss to combine.

Good, fresh ingredients, simply and quickly prepared, can make a remarkably satisfying and visually appealing meal (As my Grandmother used to say).

What are your favourite vegetables?

Since today is the first day of summer, I'd like to wish you all a great summer. May your sun be smiling at you! Hope you have a great weekend. xx

76 comments:

Tamara Camera said...

Your photos look good enough to eat. I am visiting here anyway (cause I always do) but you should link up to our blog share link party today! The theme is summer recipes, travel tips, etc. This is perfect!

chica said...

Ótimas ideias para o verão.,Lindos pratos! Bom verão pra ti, aqui, invernos!! beijos,chica

Lynn said...

Favorite vegetables - I'd say tomatoes, asparagus, red bell peppers. I like them all though. :)

I like to put raw pieces of asparagus on a bed of spring greens (favorite oil and vinegar dressing), with a soft boiled egg on top. A simple meal - like your grandmother said.

Lisa Gordon said...

Wonderful ideas for this first day of summer.
Thank you for sharing, Betty!
Have a great weekend!

MadSnapper said...

we had tuna salad made with elbow macaroni, hubbies favorite, i will try the spagetti thing. these all look good to me. thanks for the ideas

rainfield61 said...

I love these red tomatoes.

TexWisGirl said...

i do not eat a lot of salads at home, and i don't like raw tomatoes, but the tuna spaghetti looks good!

i eat a ton of fresh fruit and berries, though. :)

Unknown said...

Sounds and looks delicious to me! I do love salads and particularly the tomatoes! Hope you have a great and delicious weekend, Betty!!

Rawknrobyn.blogspot.com said...

Mmm, those tomatoes are deliciously red. Thanks for the tip, too, Betty.

Hugs to you.
xoRobyn

Anonymous said...

Dear Betty,
if I tell you all vegetables I like, that will be a long list. It's easier to tell that I hate chiefly!!!
Your food photos are so yummy,yummy,yummi....now I hurry up into my kitchen and prepare a fresh salad! ;-)
Wish you a nice weekend,
hugs - moni

Thanks for visit my blog
http://www.reflexionblog.de

Felicity Grace Terry said...

Yum, my mouth is watering as I sit here typing. Though I don't eat meat I do sometimes eat a bit of fish and tuna with spaghetti is one of my favourites.

California Girl said...

Hungry!

Our Neck of the Woods said...

Yummy! I love vegetables, which is a good thing because I'm a vegetarian! haha. Tomatoes are one of my favorites as well. They are so yummy in the summertime straight from my garden. We've been harvesting a lot of our lettuce lately so we've been eating tons of salad!

ΑΘΗΝΑ said...

I like tomato salad!I eat tomato salad every season!Have a nice summer!

Margaret Birding For Pleasure said...

Hi All you recipes look lovely. I love vegs and fruit. It is hard to say what my favorite is because there are not I dislike but I never have a salad without tomatoes. Margaret

eileeninmd said...

I love tomatoes too! And salads are great to have on a hot summer day! Thanks for sharing the recipes! Happy summer and have a great weekend!

Bob Bushell said...

Salad is my favourite food, it is yummy.

Mari-Pi-R said...

Todos unos platos muy apetitosos en este verano que vamos a empezar.
Feliz fin de semana

Leovi said...

Wonderful tomatoes, lovely colors in these photos!

Nancy said...

Big fan of tomatoes. All of these salads look delish. Have a lovely weekend Betty. xo

Pat Tillett said...

I love everything you posted! Especially summer salads...
Great photos Betty!

Ξανθή said...

Εκπληκτικές φωτογραφίες αλλά και προτάσεις!!
Καλό Σαββατοκύριακο.

Anonymous said...

Tomatoes are a staple at our house and never ever chilled.
We too enjoy a salad everyday.

FilipBlog said...

Love the tomatoes.

Greetings,
Filip

Giga said...

A ja zamiast pietruszki do sałatki z pomidorami, dodaję listki bazyli. Lubię bardzo warzywa i często je jadam. Pozdrawiam.
I instead of parsley for salad with tomatoes, I add basil leaves. I really like vegetables and eat them often. Yours.

ritsa said...

Love red tomatoes. These look delicious!:-)

Ms. A said...

I love avocados and I'm good with just slicing them in half and eating them!

ritsa said...

As always, great pictures Betty.

Have a good weekend!:-)

Magia da Inês said...

╮✿ °•.¸

Que post delicioso!...
Bom fim de semana!
°º✿♫ Beijinhos.
°º✿
º° ✿♥ ♫° ·.

Marijke said...

Your photo's of the tomatoes are so sharp and wonderful. It reminds me of the wonderful time we had in Greece on they Isle Zakynthos at the end of april.
Have a wonderful weekend
Rosehugs Marijke

Theresa Mahoney said...

I love all veggies too, however, I have never tried eggplant. I need to add that to my shopping list sometime and take the plunge.

Betty Manousos said...

lynn, mmm...this sounds yummy!

Hilary said...

I want to eat at your house! That all looks so yummy. I love all veggies and almost all herbs (not cilantro, though). Those photos are simply delicious.

Alice said...

I am currently looking into making my own perfect Caesar salad for the summer, yum!

Debbie said...

what a GREAT entry betty, i love summer salads and veggies!!

i only eat raw vegtables, never cooked, i just don't like the taste. if i HAVE to prepare a vegtable for a hot meal, i cook greens beans or squash, but only for a few minutes, so they still have a little crunch!!

have a wonderful weekend!!

ps, the pasta with tuna sounds interesting and super easy. i think i'm going to try that!!

diane b said...

Well it is hard for me to have a wonderful summer weekend as we are in winter but hey I hope you have a great summer weekend. I can't wait to get back to summer salads and these ideas are refreshing. We actually have a lovely sunny day today and it is 65°F.

Randy said...

Your photos are tasty! I hope your first day of Summer was a good one.

Genie -- Paris and Beyond said...

Our summer solstice brought a meal of fresh Silver Queen corn, homegrown tomatoes (so juicy they drip down your elbows), fresh basil, goat cheese and greens...

I wish that the tomato season lasted year-round. Love your salads and photos!

Bises,
Genie

LE CHEMIN DES GRANDS JARDINS said...

Très jolies photos au service d'un blog vraiment intéressant. Bravo

Roger

Lowell said...

Delicious! Fortunately, my beloved makes a salad every day with lettuce, olives, cukes, onion, etc. And I credit those salads with my continued good health! :)

Thanks for your very nice comments!

EG CameraGirl said...

Salads are soooo good! I love fresh tomatoes!

Michelle said...

I can't believe this is my first time at your blog! Your food photography is amazing. I love photography and photography blogs. That tomato salad looks delicious...I love summer tomatoes!

Fernando Santos (Chana) said...

Olá Betty; belo post...Espectacular....
Cumprimentos

Anonymous said...

testing ..sorry

Kelly said...

Tomatoes rank right up there at the top for me, too. Between all your tomato photos and that guacamole, I am absolutely drooling! Yum!!!

Riot Kitty said...

I can't believe you aren't doing this for a living. NOM! I, too, love veggies, and tomatoes, and I think I need to go make some guacamole now...

Riot Kitty said...

Oh, and I meant photography. These are great!

Marie said...

Your photos make me hungry! We had pork chop sandwiches for dinner. :)

Anonymous said...

Mmmm.... .truly delicious shots!

Liz Mays said...

Beautiful photos! I love tomatoes cooked, but not that much, raw.

Unknown said...

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Blog url
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Bloglovin'
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Google+
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ANRAFERA said...

Rico,rico,rico!
Feliz Semana Betty. Un abrazo.
Ramón

Ramakant Pradhan said...

Guacamole dip is one of my favourites. I always order one whenever at a Mexican restaurant. I too love tomatoes and can have any dish having tomatoes in them :)

DIMI said...

Υπέροχες οι φωτογραφίες σου Μπέττη μου!!Μού άνοιξαν τήν όρεξη!!!Μού αρέσουν πολύ οι σαλάτες καί ιδίως τό καλοκαίρι!!!Καλή εβδομάδα!!!Νά περνάς φανταστικά!!!Φιλάκια!!!

Leovi said...

Yes, precious pictures, I love that tomato torn! Abrazos.

shirley said...

Summer is a great time for salads and the fresh produce! You've listed wonderful ideas and beautiful photos. I wish you a great rest of your week!

Diane AZ said...

Your food pictures are always so beautiful, I am hungry for guacamole now!

Anonymous said...

Looks yummy indeed! :-)

Sara @ Domestically Challenged said...

Perfect for our humid weather! Nice and cool looking!

Unknown said...

Looks great, very interesting, thank you for sharing :))

Joan said...

Ha I consider them vegetables too.

Unknown said...

This sounds so good! Capers are an acquired taste and I just happen to love them! I'm a big fan of tomatoes too (especially cherry and grape ones)! I am constantly making tomato and fresh mozzarella or feta cheese salads. I spritz it with this amazing oil and balsamic vinegar my mom brought me home from Italy :o) It's delish!

- croppedstories@gmail.com

imac said...

Yummy.

Georgia said...

Yum! Yum!
Hugs.

LONDONLULU said...

This makes me long for a lovely tomato salad! Beautiful pictures and so scrumptious too! (Thanks for dropping in, so happy it led me here - sorry it took a while to visit, was away for a spell.)

Rune Eide said...

A very versatile vegetable - and very photogenic too!

ritsa said...

Looks great!
Truly delish pictures!

Kim Cunningham said...

I agree! I love a good summer tomato. I have a small garden with heirlooms, grape, and a small round variety that I can't remember. They larger ones are just turning red. So excited.

michael said...

Love salads too, especially tomato salads. So refreshing!:D

Leigh Powell Hines said...

This looks great!!!!!

I love tomatoes.

Angel Corrochano said...

Fotografías como nadie los alimentos, las recetas y los platos preparados ... ummmmh!!!! si es que dan ganas de comer.
Buen trabajo Betty
Cordiales saludos
:-))

orchid0324 said...

Dearest Betty,
Nice to meet you and thank you very much for stopping by. So sorry that I couldn't comment you earlier.
Wow, your pictures are SO wonderful and you must be professional♡♡♡
I love tomato salad and yours look so yummy♬♬♬

Love and hugs from Japan, xoxo Miyako*

Anonymous said...

Looks so scrumptious and easy to make..I love salad too, any kind, any time!

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

These all lo ok amazing! !

Unknown said...

..ciao Betty, che belle foto! Sembrano i pomodori del mio orto! Le tue fotografie sono straordinarie!! Abbraccio e bacio..buona settimana...

Georgia said...

I love these beautiful tomatoes.
:D