Your new go-to summer dinner has just arrived. Filled with sweet corn, zucchini, basil, and plenty of rich, cheesy ricotta, these stuffed shells are bursting with seasonal flavor. This pasta dish is everything you love about summertime—bright flavors, seasonal produce, and tons of comfort.
Whipped ricotta is one of our favorite appetizer’s, but this might be our new go-to way to serve it in the summer. Serving it as a dip means you get to skip piping it over bread and just let everyone grab their own bite. To make it extra-summery, we added charred sweet corn and thyme, then topped it off with an irresistible hot honey drizzle for a little sweet heat.
When we need an easy side that screams summer, I always make this couscous salad. The summer produce really shines here, making every bite taste so refreshing (especially paired with cookout favorites like burgers or grilled chicken). The only cooking required is bringing a pot of water to a boil, which is arguably not cooking at all.
We’ve never been so excited for a herbaceous green bean salad.The combination of parsley, cilantro, and oregano with olive oil, sharp red wine vinegar, and fresh lemon is the perfect balance to crispy green beans, sweet corn, and tangy feta—it’s my go-to side all summer long.
Packed with fresh fruits, cooling cucumber, and juicy tomatoes, this vibrant summer salad works as a colorful centerpiece to lunch or dinner, or as an accompaniment to fish or grilled meat. The combination of juicy peaches, tart blackberries, fresh herbs, and toasted walnuts piled over zesty honeyed ricotta packs an incredible punch.
Once the weather begins to warm up, we start counting down the days until we can make this creamy corn pasta. In our book, it’s the epitome of a fresh summer dinner, which makes it our go-to for special occasions, outdoor BBQs, and everything in between.
Garlic Parmesan Summer Squash Pasta
These noodles are coated in plenty of Parmesan and a buttery garlic sauce, and tossed with sautéed summer squash and zucchini. Whether you’re looking for a new way to enjoy peak zucchini season or need a star main for your dinner party, this light and fresh dinner will please anyone you serve it to.
A panzanella salad is easily the most underrated summer side. It’s a great way to repurpose leftovers, is easy to assemble, and best of all, doesn’t have to be limited to just tomatoes. We developed this stone fruit-forward version to be a dish you can make on a blazing hot summer night without breaking a sweat and still feel full and satisfied.
Fresh and simple sides are always a go-to in the summer, and this bruschetta pasta salad checks off every box. Complete with multi-colored cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, and tangy balsamic vinegar, this pasta salad is just like the classic appetizer: it goes with basically anything.
Grilling gnocchi? We promise you, grilled gnocchi is a thing, and it’s a glory of modern Italian-American cuisine. We paired it with charred summer produce and two kinds of cheese (!!), and the combination is something you’ve just got to try this summer.
If summer could be captured in one flavor, we think it’d be in the form of this delicious pesto corn flatbread. With fresh basil, pesto, grilled corn, heirloom tomatoes, and creamy burrata, this flatbread is sure to hit every note on your tastebuds. Plus, this recipe uses store-bought flatbread and pesto, so it can easily be thrown together in 30 minutes.
Grilled Zucchini With Ricotta & Walnuts
Grilled zucchini is already plenty delicious on its own, but adding a few dollops of herby whipped ricotta and crunchy toasted walnuts will transform how you look at the humble squash. Instead of leaving the zucchini in their traditional slices, we threaded them onto skewers to lessen the amount of direct contact the zucchini had with the grill and to create contrasting textures.
Put squash, hummus, and pickled shallots in front of me, and I will make one mean taco. These vegetarian tacos have layers of tender summer squash (imagine them picked right from the garden), whipped garlicky hummus, smoky tahini sauce, and za’atar pickled shallots layered in warm corn tortillas.
Take a flavorful trip to the Mediterranean with this easy oven-roasted stew that brings to mind cozy (yes, cozy) summer days. Zucchini, summer squash, cherry tomatoes, and onions create a tender and jammy medley, complemented by the subtly tart and slightly sweet Aleppo pepper. The oven-roasting method makes it more hands-off, resulting in a soft, stewy blend with minimal effort.
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