Minted Lemonade

Lemonade flavoured with homemade mint syrup makes a cooling, light summertime drink.

Ingredients:
For the syrup
2 cups of water
1 cup of sugar
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves

1 cup strained lemon juice
6 cups water
crushed ice or ice cubes
8 fresh mint sprigs for garnish

~ To make the syrup, in a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the water and sugar. Bring to a boil. stirring ti dissolve the sugar. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until a light syrup forms, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add mint leaves. Let stand for about 5 minutes, then discard the leaves. Let cool, then refrigerate for about 2 hours.
~ In a pitcher, combine the chilled syrup, lemon juice, and water and stir well. To serve, spoon ive onto tall glasses and pour in the lemonade. Garnish with mint leaves.

From: Williams-Sonoma Casual outdoor Dining

Baby Squash in Herb and Garlic Marinade

A mixture of colourful summer squash, imbued with the flavour and aroma of fresh herbs, makes a great first impression at an outdoor sit-down dinner.  If round squashes are unavailable, use all zucchini.

Ingredients:
4 baby green zucchini (courgettes)
4 baby gold (yellow) zucchini (courgettes)
4 baby pattypan squashes
4 other, baby, round summer squashes

For the Marinade:
1/2 cup olive oil
2 Tbs. red wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic, bruised
4 bay leaves
2 tsp. minced fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground pepper

4-8 Boston or red lettuce leaves
1/4 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper (capsicum)

~ Trim the ends of the squashes but leave whole. Place on a steamer rack over boiling water, cover the steamer, and steam until tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
~ To make the marinade, in a non aluminum bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper; mix well. Add the squashes and turn to coat with the marinade. Cover and let stand at room temperature for 6-8 hours.
~ To serve, garnish 4 individual plates with lettuce leaf or two and slices of bell pepper. Using a slotted spoon, remove the squashes from the marinade and divide them evenly among the plates. Serve at room temperature.

Three-Citrus Vinaigrette

This zesty dressing adds the perfect kick for a summer salad!

Ingredients:
1 lemon rind, grated
1 orange rind, grated (optional)
1 Tbs lime juice
3 Tbs lemon juice
2 Tbs red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbs sugar
1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup sour cream
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

In a bowl, combine the lemon rind, orange rind, lime juice, lemon juice, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, and sugar. Whisk. While whisking, slowly pour the oil in a stream the width of a pencil. Whisk in sour cream, and add salt and pepper.
This vinaigrette will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Italian Style Potato Salad

The garlic scapes add a nice green colour, but not too much of a garlicky taste.

Ingredients:
3 lbs. potatoes
4 Tbs parsley, chopped
6 Tbs. garlic scapes, chopped
4-6 Tbs olive oil
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste

Cut potatoes in half and boil in a large pot of water until tender; but not mushy. Drain. Transfer potatoes to a bowl. Cut into smaller chunks if necessary. Add parsley and garlic scapes to potatoes. Mix in olive oil. Stir well. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until flavours have melded.

Snappy Pea Salad

Lime juice mixed with a good olive oil can make anything taste good. Here they combine forces with peas, red onion, and nappa cabbage. Sumac powder, made from dried sumac berries, can be found in Middle Eastern markets (and no, it will not give you a skin rash as a poison sumac plant will). Sumac powder sports a bright magenta colour and has a terrific, tart flavour, for which lime juice can easily substitute.

Ingredients:
2 cups peas
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
2 cups thinly sliced nappa cabbage or bok choy
1 1/2 tsp sumac powder, or 1 Tbs lime juice
3 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil
3 Tbs lime juice (from about 1 1/2 limes)
1 tsp sugar, or more, to taste
1 small clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp salt
fresh ground black pepper to taste

1.  In a large bowl, combine the peas, red onion and nappa cabbage or bok choy. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the sumac olive oil, lime juice, sugar, and garlic.
2.  Pour the lime dressing over the vegetables, season with salt and pepper, and toss well. Let the flavours marry for 30 minutes, and serve. This salad keeps for 3 days, covered, in the refrigerator.

Bok Choy with Pork and Rice

This dish is very simple, but also very tasty. The Bok choy can be exchanged for another Asian vegetable of preferred choice.

Ingredients:
1 bunch bok choy
1 package pork sausages
1 1/2 cups rice
3 cups water

~Combine rice and water in a large sauce pan. Cook on high-heat until boiling, then turn down to low heat. Cook until all water has been absorbed.
~In a frying pan, place sausages and cook over medium-heat, until fully cooked. Remove sausages from pan. Set aside.
Wash bok choy and chop into large pieces. Put bok choy into pan that once held sausages, it should not be necessary to add any more oil, because of the fat from the sausage, but if you think otherwise, add some vegetable oil. Cook bok choy until tender, season with salt and pepper. Add sausages to pan to reheat them.
Serve with rice and (optional) soy sauce.

Turkey and Sugar Snap Peas with Orange-Mustard Sauce

Here is a particularly high-spirited dish, infused with the perfume of sweet oranges and French Dijon mustard.

Ingredients: 
Sauce
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1 tsp finely chopped orange zest
1 Tbs soy sauce
1 tsp finely chopped, peeled fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 tsp honey
1 tsp Dijon mustard

Marinade
1 egg white
1 Tbs mirin or sake
2 tsp soy sauce
1 Tbs cornstarch

1 lb boneless, skinless turkey breast meat, cut into 1 1/2 chunks (or tofu for a vegetarian version)
2 Tbs peanut or vegetable oil
1/4 lb sugar snap peas or snow peas
1 cup canned water chestnuts, rinsed, well drained and sliced

To make the sauce, combine the orange juice and zest, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, shallot, honey and mustard in a small bowl and stir to mix well. Set aside.
To make marinade, combine the egg white, mirin or sake, soy sauce and cornstarch and stir to dissolve the cornstarch. Add the turkey pieces and toss to coat evenly. Set aside.
In a wok or frying pan over high heat, warm 1 Tbs of the oil, swirling to coat the bottom and sides of the pan. When the oil is very hot but not quite smoking, add the peas and stir and toss every 15-20 seconds until just tender, 2-3 minutes. Add the water chestnuts and stir and toss for a minute longer. Transfer to a dish and set aside.
Reduce the heat to medium-high. Add the remaining 1 Tbs oil to the pan, again swirling to coat the pan. When oil is hot, add turkey pieces and stir and toss every 15-20 seconds until firm and no trace of pink remains, 4-5 minutes. Be sure to distribute the turkey evenly in the pan so it comes into maximum contact with the heat and cooks evenly.
Quickly stir the reserved sauce and add to the pan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and stir and toss until the sauce thickens slightly, 1-2 minutes. Return the peas and water chestnuts to the pan and toss to coat with sauce. Cook for 1 minute longer.
Taste and adjust the seasonings. Serve immediately.

Swiss chard with feta cheese

The feta cheese melts and adds a delightful savory-salty counterpart to the chard.

Ingredients:
2 Tbs pine nuts
2 Tbs peanut or vegetable oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 lb Swiss chard, carefully washed, stalks removed, and stalks torn into 2 inch pieces
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
salt and pepper

~In a dry wok or frying pan over medium heat, toast the pine nuts, stirring constantly until lightly browned, 1-2 minutes. Watch carefully so they do not burn. Transfer to bowl and set aside.
In the same pan over medium-high heat, warm oil swirling to coat the bottom and sides of the pan. When the oil is hot, add shallots and stir and toss every 10-15 seconds until they just begin to brown, 1-2 minutes. Add the Swiss chard, toss well to coat with oil, cover and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Uncover and turn up the heat to high and boil away any excess liquid.
When the liquid has boiled away, add the feta cheese, cover and cook until cheese just begins to melt, about 30 seconds longer. If more liquid is released, carefully drain the chard in a sieve, being careful not to drain away any of the cheese.
Spoon into a warmed serving bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper and top with toasted pine nuts. Serve immediately.  

From Williams-Sonama Stir-Fry