In-Season Recipes

In-Season Recipes By Sarah Heffron As always, the theme of summer is keep it simple, leave the oven off, enjoy abundant salads and make friends with your grill or smoker! These are a few tried-and-true favorite recipes. Blueberry Basil Vodka Tonic I love a great seasonal cocktail. This is one of my favorites, though I personally prefer club soda! Yield: Serves 8 2 cups sugar 2/3 cup blueberries, plus extra for garnish 1/3 cup basil, preferably purple, plus extra for garnish Several strips of lime peel 1/4 cup lime juice 12 ounces vodka 12 ounces tonic Combine sugar, blueberries, basil, lime peel and 2 cups water in saucepan. Bring to boil and simmer 3 minutes. Cool, strain and stir in lime juice. Stir vodka into blueberry mixture. Put ice in tall glasses and divide blueberry vodka mixture. Fill glasses with tonic and garnish with blueberries and basil. Local ingredients: blueberries, basil. ____ Spicy Dry Rub & BBQ Sauce Get ready for summer by making a big batch of dry rub and barbecue sauce and keeping it until you need it. These are the recipes I have on hand. They work well with chicken, rib and beef. Spicy Dry Rub This is easiest to make with a scale. If you are an avid baker, you can buy one for about $20 and speed through all your measuring! 40 grams ground black pepper 6 grams cayenne 64 grams New Mexican chili powder 64 grams coriander seeds, freshly ground 52 grams dark brown sugar 8 grams dried oregano 128 grams paprika 160 grams kosher salt 40 grams ground white pepper Combine all and mix well. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. The day before you plan to smoke the meat, generously coat it in dry rub. Leave it uncovered in your fridge overnight. Barbecue Sauce Yield: About 10 cups 1 cup sugar 1 cup cider vinegar 3 tablespoons vegetable oil 1-1/2 cups coarsely chopped onions 2 tablespoons minced garlic 2/3 cup New Mexican chili powder 4 cups diced tomatoes, fresh or canned 1/3 cup lemon juice 1/4 cup Dijon mustard 3 tablespoons maple syrup 1 tablespoon paprika 2 tablespoons kosher salt 1 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 tablespoon tomato paste 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce Make caramel by heating sugar with ½ cup water in a saucepan over medium heat until it turns a rich amber (make sure you do not burn). Off heat, add vinegar and stir until dissolved. In a separate saucepan, sauté onions in oil until soft, approximately 5 minutes. Add garlic, cook for 2 minutes, but do not brown. Add chili powder, mix thoroughly and cook for 1 more minute. Add the caramel mixture and the remaining ingredients, and simmer for 20 minutes. Puree with an immersion blender or in a conventional blender. Adjust salt and add up to 1 more cup of water to reach desired consistency. Freeze in 1- or 2-cup units. Local ingredients: onion, garlic, cider vinegar, tomatoes, maple syrup. — Watermelon with Tomato, Feta, Pickled Onion Salad with Mint and Aleppo Pepper You can put this together in minutes, and it tastes just like summer! Yield: About 9 cups, serves 12 or more as a side salad. 4 cups cubed watermelon 3 cups halved cherry tomatoes 1 cup red wine vinegar 1 cup granulated sugar 1 cup finely chopped red onion 1/2 cup mint 1/4 cup high-quality olive oil Sea salt Black pepper 1 teaspoon Aleppo pepper (or a lesser amount of red pepper flakes) 2 cups feta cubes 1 cup halved kalamata olives (optional) Put watermelon and cherry tomatoes in a strainer until ready to mix. Combine vinegar and sugar over medium heat. Once it boils, pour over red onion and allow to cool. Move watermelon and tomatoes to a bowl, then add pickled onion, mint, olive oil, a generous sprinkling of sea salt, a good grinding of pepper, and Aleppo pepper. Mix, taste, adjust seasoning and serve within a few hours. Local ingredients: watermelon, tomato, feta, onion, mint