Bon Appetite: Favorite Summer Meal

My idea of a perfect summer meal is something that can be assembled in minutes and includes garden fresh produce with lots of color and flavor. Jenn is hosting a recipe exchange today and since I just enjoyed this favorite Summer dish with my family this weekend, I thought it was just perfect timing! I've shared this one before, but I can't help but always go back to it. This Summer pasta dish makes me feel all kinds of happiness inside and it just tastes better when its eaten at my parents' house. (especially when the pasta is homemade)


Juicy garden tomatoes, freshly picked basil and sauted garlic tossed with good olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper tossed on a bed of linguine or paparadelle pasta. You all know how I feel about the tomato basil marriage. This is also the kind of recipe that is impossible to mess up. It really is a perfect summer meal. 

Pasta with Tomatoes & Basil

1 lb. linguine or paparadelle pasta
Several ripe tomatoes, diced into medium sized pieces
1/2 cup fresh basil, chiffonade
Fresh garlic cloves (minced)- I use several, around 4-5, but adjust this to your taste
Good olive oil
Splash of red wine vinegar
Salt & pepper
Romano cheese, for serving


Dice tomatoes into medium sized pieces, and place in a large bowl. In a heavy bottom sauce pan, saute garlic and olive oil (a few swirls of the pan) until soft and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Pour warm oil & garlic mixture over tomatoes. Add basil, salt, pepper and a splash of red wine vinegar. Let this sit and marinate for at least 30 minutes.


Cook pasta according to the instructions on the package. Drain and toss with tomatoes and basil. Serve with freshly grated Romano cheese. Red pepper flakes kicks it up a notch, too!


Click on over to Jenn's blog hop to find others' favorite summer recipes or share one of your own!

Roasted Eggplant and Tomatoes + Lemon Basil Pesto

Just look at the goodness on this plate. After discovering this eggplant recipe that was repinned on Pinterest over 100,000 times, my sister Natalie and I were inspired to make an eggplant and tomato creation of our own. We roasted the eggplant, sliced up some juicy tomatoes and with the fresh basil from my mom's garden, we made a quick lemon basil pesto to brush on each layer. 

Simple and fresh. Just like summertime food should be.

Roasted Eggplant and Tomatoes + Lemon Basil Pesto

1 eggplant, sliced

2 large tomatoes, sliced

1 cup basil leaves

1 clove garlic

Juice of one lemon

1/8 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling and brushing

Salt and pepper, to season

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Slice eggplant and line on a baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and let the slices sit for at least 15 minutes. You will see tiny water droplets form on the slices- this removes the bitterness from the eggplant. Pat dry with a paper towel.

Brush each slice with olive oil on either side and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 20-25 minutes.

To make the pesto, place basil, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a food processor and pulse until smooth. Adjust taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice, and consistency with more olive oil.

Slice tomatoes, and arrange on a platter, alternating with slices of eggplant. Top each eggplant slice with a teaspoon of pesto. Finish with fresh cracked pepper and a drizzle of olive oil over the entire platter.

Bloody Mary Tomato Salad

As I have mentioned before, I like taking well known flavors out of their usual form, to make it into something else. I realize that Bloody Mary's are of the love/hate category for most but hear me out when I say that my not-so-much-of-a-bloody-mary-fan husband bonded so well with these flavors, that he went back for seconds. I put a whole new twist on something he thought he wasn't crazy about and I just may have made him a believer.

Bloody Mary's aren't just for for curing a hangover from a fun night out. They also aren't just for sipping leisurely each morning on a Pawley's Island bachelorette beach weekend. On New Year's Eve, I turned them into soup shots (recipe coming next week) and this past week, I turned the beloved savory cocktail into a salad.

Fresh, tiny tomatoes mixed with salty olives, crunchy celery and pickled onions all swimming in a dressing made with horseradish, champagne vinegar and Worcestershire sauce. Don't leave out the celery seed. I believe it's the finishing touch that rounds out all of the flavors. This Bloody Mary Tomato salad was the star of the night on a plate with grilled steak and roasted asparagus bundles.

Bloody Mary Tomato Salad

recipe adapted from Epicurious

1 cup finely chopped red onion

3 Tbsp. champagne vinegar, divided

1 lb. cherry tomatoes, halved

1 lb. grape tomatoes, halved

1 cup chopped celery hearts

1/2 cup chopped green olives

2 Tbsp. olive brine/juice

2 Tbsp. prepared horseradish

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp. hot pepper sauce

1/2 tsp. celery seeds

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt & freshly cracked black pepper

Mix 1 Tbsp. of champagne vinegar and the chopped onion. Set aside for 10 minutes, tossing often.

Add tomato, celery and olives.

Whisk remaining 2 Tbsp. vinegar, olive juice, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce and horseradish in a medium bowl. Slowly whisk in olive oil. Add dressing to bowl with tomato mixture and add salt and pepper to season. Cover and chill for at least one hour prior to serving.

Bacon, Arugula & Tomato Stuffed Chicken

It's always fun to take beloved flavor combinations and give them new life (ie: Israeli Cous Cous that tastes like Thanksgiving or a Sweet Dip that tastes like Pumpkin Pie). Most of my recipes come from inspiration I see on the Food Network or on other blogs or food magazines and of course my parents' cooking but I try, at least once a week, to make up a recipe of my own. This system is working out quite well and I'm building a long index of recipes that I can call my own. WIN.

Last night's dinner was inspired by the classic BLT. We love stuffed chicken breast around here and everyone should know by now that bacon makes everything taste better. Add fresh tomatoes and sauteed arugula for a peppery bite and you have a gourmet weeknight dinner in less than an hour.

Bacon, Arugula & Tomato Stuffed Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

2 cups fresh arugula

2 roma tomatoes, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 pint Baby Bella mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup red wine (whatever you have opened in your kitchen)

salt & pepper to taste

Olive oil for drizzling

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook bacon and after done and removed from the pan, reserve some of the bacon grease. Using the same pan, saute garlic until fragrant then add the arugula until it starts to wilt. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in tomatoes and crumbled bacon. With all of your chicken breasts laying flat, top each with the filling. Roll up and in a baking dish, cook with the rolled side down so that the filling stays contained. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Cook for 25 minutes or until done.

While the chicken is cooking, slice the Baby Bellas and place in a heavy bottomed pan with a drizzle of olive oil on medium heat. Saute for 10 minutes or so and when the mushrooms are nice and browned, add about 1/4 cup red wine to add flavor and pick up any brown bits from the pan. Serve mushrooms over chicken.

NOTE: If you don't want to roll the chicken, you can use thicker breasts and cut a pocket in them to stuff. Just secure with a toothpick to hold it shut.

Pure Summer Love

Summer is officially here, although I feel as though it's been with us for the past two months. Besides bright toenail polish, Carolina coast vacations and summer dresses galore, summer brings with it a whole lot of fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs that make their way into the kitchen and onto the breakfast, lunch and dinner plates. Farmer's markets are popping up everywhere and the produce in the grocery store looks extra juicy. Healthy cooking is truly at its best when Summer arrives.

I tossed together my favorite summer pasta recipe last week- it's pure happiness in a pasta bowl. This recipe was posted back in 2009 and is a Nido family staple. It never goes out of style. There is nothing better than fresh tomatoes, basil and garlic tossed with fresh paparadelle or linguine, otherwise known as the holy trinity.

Happy Summer!