The Seasonal Healthy Summer Vegetables

It’s the middle of summer and the farmers markets are overflowing with fresh vegetables. To be honest, I sometimes get overwhelmed with the possibilities of what to cook; it can be downright frustrating to have a refrigerator full of produce and not know where to start.

What to do?

Sometimes I’ll take the “easy” way out and just sauté several different vegetables, making a mélange that can be served in a variety of manners.For example, the latest lunch that I cooked for myself consisted of yellow squash, purple kale, string beans, parsley and basil, all from my local farmers markets. In addition, I had some whole grain bread and some goat cheese in my refrigerator. What did I do?

After chopping the vegetables and herbs into bite-size pieces, I heated some olive oil in a sauté pan. I then added the yellow squash and string beans and cooked until they started to soften (about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally). The kale cooks quickly, so I added that and cooked for about 20 seconds, stirring constantly. I turned off the heat and added the parsley and basil. There was enough residual heat in the pan to cause the fresh herbs to wilt slightly, releasing flavor and nutrition. I then seasoned the mixture with sea salt and fresh ground pepper.

But I wasn’t done.

I put a slice of whole grain bread on the bottom of a bowl, and placed a chunk of goat cheese on top of the bread. I then spooned the hot veggies on top of the bread and cheese. As I waited for the veggies to cool, their heat melted the cheese and warmed the bread.

Use any vegetable that you have available, and alternatively think of employing whole grains or whole wheat pasta as your base.