Summer is a time when many of us eat at least some of our meals outside, which means that the search for clear and delicious dishes that retain the hardships of driving.
Those trips can come in the form of rolling out to a cookout or neighborhood meeting, but warm and sunny weather and children who are at home from school also inspires spontaneous picnics and travel to the swimming pool, also or perhaps the beach or mountains, if you’re lucky.
Here is a pitch of someone who spends hours (and hours) on the road every month to make weekend trips to North Virginia: Homemade Eats are almost always cheaper and healthier than you get from a fast food or fast-casual restaurant.
Packing a picnic basket or cooler with scratch salads, sandwiches and desserts that you can reach for when you get the munchies on route is also faster for those among us who like to go where they go in the shortest possible time.
These recipes are easy to make in a short time, with even limited culinary skills. And more importantly, they travel well.
These filling sammies are laminated with a sturdy mix of Italian meat, roasted red peppers, pesto, arugula and fresh mozzarella and then pressed under a weight (I used stones wrapped with foil) until they are flat. A homemade olive tapenade adds a fresh, pure taste.
These sandwiches can best be made with a bread or mini -ciabatta, but any long and wide, crispy white bread will also work. I used salami, prosciutto and soppressata, but you can easily individualize them with Mortadella, Ham, Coppa or other favorite meat.
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Pressed in Italian sandwiches
Ingredients
1 Loaf Ciabatta or other long/wide crispy white bread, lengthwise length cut with a serrated knife
4 tablespoons pesto, homemade or yard
4 tablespoons of olive tapenade, homemade or yard
4 us salami, thinly cut
4 us prosciutto, thinly cut
4 our spicy suppressed
8 us mozzarella, cut
1/2 cup of roasted red peppers from a pot, leaked well and minced meat
1/2 cup of pepperoncini rings, well emptied
2 large handful of arugula
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Instructions
Spread one side of the split Ciabatta with pesto and the other with the olive tapenade.
Place the three meat along the length of half of Ciabatta. Cover the meat evenly with the roasted red peppers and pepperoncini.
Add mozzarella cheese in an even layer and season lightly with salt. Place arugula in a bowl, sprinkle with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar and season with a pinch of more salt.
Place dressed arugula on top of cheese and place the other half of ciabatta on top and press down firmly.
Wrap the bread tightly in plastic and place on a plate shape. Put another plate pan upside down and weigh it with slightly swords, such as a cast iron frying pan. (I used bricks wrapped in aluminum foil.)
Leave the sandwich to press and cool in the fridge for a night. Even cut pieces in 6 and serve. To start a picnic, wrap every sandwich in parchment and tie with a cake from rope.
Serves 6.
-Gretchen McKay, post-gazette
Nothing is easier to throw together quickly (and cheaply) than a large bowl of pasta salad. Because it is summer, this iteration is dressed with fresh vegetables that are easy to find on every market in July – cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, greens and Italian garden herbs. The fact that even picky children will eat pasta salad – especially if it includes mozzarella – it makes it even more a winner.
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Easy pasta salad
Ingredients
For pasta
3 cups of uncooked tube or curly pasta
Extra virgin olive oil
2 large handful of cherry tomatoes
2 Persian cucumbers
2 cups of arugula or baby spinach
1 cup of fresh basil leaves, torn
1/2 cup of chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup of chopped fresh mint leaves
4 Our fresh mozzarella, torn in bite -sized pieces
1 ounce parmigiano reggiano, grated
1/4 cup of roasted pine nuts, optional
For dressing
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for sprinkling
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
1 small clove garlic, minced meat
Pinching dried oregano
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Instructions
Cook pasta in a large pot with salted boiling water. When al dente, let it throw away and throw with a little olive oil so that it doesn’t stay together. Set aside to cool down while preparing vegetables.
Cut cherry tomatoes in two and come in half moons. Add bowl with arugula or spinach, basil, parsley and mint.
Beat ingredients in a small bowl or pot together. Season with salt and pepper.
Add pasta to the bowl with the vegetables, add mozzarella balls and parmigiano reggiano, sprinkle on the dressing and throw well to combine.
Serves 6.
-Gretchen McKay, post-gazette
#recipes #summer #trips