Summertime favorites with a twist

Spruce up corn on the cob with Parmesan cheese and herbs.Tammy Douglass/ The Chronicle

Summertime brings back lots of fond memories from my childhood in Indiana when my dad had a garden in our backyard. It was so much fun to go out and help pick what was ready and bring it in the house for our meals. To this day, I have never had a tomato as good as what I remember my dad growing.

Living in Florida, we are very fortunate to have a great assortment of fresh fruits and vegetables year-round. So, this month, I thought I would share a few of my favorite ideas to change up the way you enjoy your produce.

The first fruit that I think about during summer is melon. Watermelon is my favorite, but honeydew and cantaloupe are also good. Of course, just a chunk of melon is wonderful by itself, especially when it’s so juicy that it gets all over you. Have you ever tried grilled watermelon? It’s quite delicious. I make it in a grill pan indoors by brushing a little bit of olive oil on a slice (at least 1 inch thick) and cooking it over a medium high heat for about two minutes per side, or until you can see the grill marks. Serve it on a bed of greens — spring mix, arugula or spinach — top with some crumbled goat cheese and drizzle with balsamic glaze and a little bit of salt. I promise it’s amazing.

My next thought of summer produce is corn on the cob. I thoroughly love the fact that our local grocery stores let you de-husk it when you buy it. Growing up, my mom always boiled the cobs, but then this new invention came out called the microwave. Holy cow! In about two minutes per cob, you have fresh corn on the cob with a nice crunch, ready to be buttered up and eaten. Another way to cook it is on the grill. While you can most certainly grill it in the husks, you need to make sure that they are soaked well so they do not catch on fire. An easier way to grill is to season up the cobs with either a little butter or flavored olive oil and wrap each cob in foil and grill for 15 to 20 minutes, turning occasionally. When the cobs are done, you can most certainly do the traditional salt and pepper, but why not kick it up a notch as Emeril says and sprinkle on some Parmesan cheese and fresh herbs? For an even more aMAIZEing (get it?!) idea, mix butter, chili powder and lime juice together and spread on the corn before grilling. When it’s done, sprinkle on Cotija cheese — feta will also work if you can’t find it.

When it comes to strawberries, the go-to at our house is strawberry shortcake with whipped cream and milk poured in the bowl as well. Don’t knock it until you try it. And don’t be trying to sneak those nasty spongy cups into my house. The shortcakes need to be homemade or at least be from a baking mix such as Bisquick or Jiffy. I cook them in cupcake tins so they are sized perfectly for everyone. What I do differently with the strawberries is in addition to tossing them with a little sugar — or stevia — to make some juice. I also sprinkle in some dark chocolate balsamic vinegar and refrigerate them for a couple hours before serving. Another alternative is regular balsamic vinegar and fresh cracked black pepper along with the sugar. Trust me, once you try it, you’ll do it again.

Now let’s chat about zucchini. You can slice it and eat it with your favorite veggie dip. You can roast it or sauté it with some olive oil and herbs or spices. You can make zucchini bread, which is a great trick to getting your kids to eat vegetables. But have you tried shredding it to make faux pasta? Being a carboholic, it’s not a substitute for sure, but it’s still very tasty and a very healthy alternative. There are several gadgets out there that will do the trick. I’ve just been using a tool that looks like a potato peeler but the head is shaped a little differently. You can eat them raw or you can boil/microwave/sauté them to make them more similar to cooked pasta. Add your favorite sauce and voila! Carb-free pasta look alike.

When a peach is perfectly ripe, it’s one of my favorite fruits. There’s generally about a two-day window when they have gone from hard and no taste to mushy and rotten. But when you get that window, and the peach juice runs down your arm when you eat it, can you be any happier? My youngest son requests peach pie. One of the tastiest ways I think to enjoy a peach is to grill or roast it with a little brown sugar and cinnamon and perhaps also brushing it with alcohol (bourbon, brandy, amaretto and dark rum work wonderfully). When they are warmed and or have grill marks, place a dollop of ricotta cheese on it and top it off with a drizzle of honey and some crushed pistachios. My mouth is watering as I type this. I’m pretty sure I need to buy some peaches this week

While pears are probably more of a fall item, I thought I’d add them in this article as well. They are great sliced thinly or diced and put in salads or also tasty when cooking oatmeal. But have you poached them or baked them? If you core and halve them, place some raspberry jam in the hollowed out portion, add some blue cheese crumbles and chopped walnuts and bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. It’s a simple but elegant dessert to serve any time of the year.

I’d love to hear about the ways you enjoy your favorite produce! Please post a note on my Facebook page www.facebook.com/goodfoodforeverymood and share with fellow foodies!

Use your noodle!

As I’ve mentioned in several columns, I’m admittedly a carboholic. My favorite carb by far is pasta. I don’t limit my love to just the common noodles, though. You know, spaghetti, macaroni, ziti, lasagna, etc. There are a lot of ways to tempt your palate by shopping in the Asian aisle at the grocery store, too.

So when it comes to dinner, don’t give up when you’re overwhelmed with the thought of prepping a roast or slaving over a casserole. Use that noodle and look to our carby comrads in the pasta aisle. Here are few suggestions of things you can whip up in a zippy using noodles, and your noodle.

Ramen noodles: I would wager to say that almost everyone reading this column has eaten Ramen noodles before. Come on, admit it. You know you really like them, too. My kids used to eat them for breakfast! Don’t judge me. They weren’t big breakfast eaters growing up, and I insisted that they eat something before going to school. Are they healthy? Well, not really, and they are probably one of the highest sodium-count foods around, especially if you use that magical flavoring packet. What if you toss the packet and just eat them raw? No, I don’t mean eat the brick of Ramen, but use the raw noodles in a recipe. Mix together a 12-ounce bag of broccoli slaw mix (I know Publix has it), two packages of crushed Ramen noodles without seasoning, four sliced green onions, half a cup of roasted sunflower seeds and half a cup of sliced or slivered almonds. Toss with about a cup of Asian toasted sesame salad dressing (I prefer light) to coat and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Chow mein noodles: Is there more you can do with these crunchy morsels other than toss them into a salad or into your egg drop soup? Of course there is! My mom actually made both of these when I was growing up, and I found the recipe cards. That’s a whole other story, but wow, it was like finding buried treasure looking through her recipe cards. The first one is a casserole. My dad did not eat spaghetti — if you can believe it — but he liked this. Brown 1 pound of ground beef with half a cup of chopped celery and onion. Add one can of tomato soup, 1 cup of water and one large can of chow mein noodles. Put into a casserole dish and bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes until the noodles are soft. If you buy two cans of noodles, you can <FZ,1,0,8>also make dessert. Melt 1 cup of chocolate chips and 1 cup of butterscotch chips together — microwave works great. Add 2 cups of chow mein noodles, a pinch of salt and half a cup of your favorite chopped nuts. Drop by tablespoonful onto wax paper and let cool.

Soba noodles: These noodles are made from buckwheat flour, are about the same thickness as regular spaghetti and have a bit of a nutty flavor. Once they are cooked, they can be served hot or cold. Don’t get these noodles confused with instant noodles at the grocery store, such as yakisoba. One of my favorite things to do with soba noodles is to make a cold, Thai-style salad with peanut dressing. You can find ready-made dressing at the grocery store now if you don’t want to make your own. Toss in some julienned carrots, cucumber and chopped cilantro. A little bit of fresh jalapeno will punch up the flavor a few notches as well.

Rice noodles: They are also called vermicelli noodles and are a great alternative for people with gluten allergies. Traditionally, they are used in Pad Thai. I use them when making two of my favorite Vietnamese recipes — summer rolls and pho. Summer rolls are filled with cooked shrimp, rice noodles and plenty of fresh herbs and bean sprouts, lettuce and shredded carrots and served with a peanut sauce. Pho is a soup that has a broth with hints of anise — if it’s beef based — rice noodles, your choice of meat and finished off with bean sprouts, Thai basil, cilantro, jalapeno and hot sauce. I prefer thin slice round that cooks in the broth or meatballs. Oh my, I want some now! I will actually be making these two dishes at my cooking club this month.

Udon noodles: They are made from wheat and are thick, soft, chewy and somewhat dense. Udon noodles are pretty much flavorless, so they’re great to use in dishes in which you want to highlight the flavors of everything else. They are good to use in soups as well as curried stir fry dishes.

Shirataki noodles: These noodles are also gluten-free, almost carb-free and close to calorie-free. What!? You find them in the refrigerated or produce section of the grocery store, although, I haven’t seen them at all of our local chains. There are tofu-based noodles as well as yam-based noodles. You’ll want to rinse them several times as well as heat them slightly before adding to your recipe as there is a slight fishy smell to them. A few things I’ve used these noodles for are in lieu of pasta with your favorite sauce, stir fry, lo mein, and I have also added them into soups.

So, get out of your traditional noodle rut and experiment with some of these alternatives. Be sure to share your ideas on my Facebook page, www.facebook.com.goodfoodforeverymood.

Egg white and bacon

Egg white, spinach, mushroom, bacon, tomato and zucchini omelet. Served with melon.

Breakfast tostada

Breakfast tostada with a corn tortilla that was crisped up in a non stick pan and topped with egg whites cooked with zucchini & shallots and finished off with diced tomatoes.

Cilantro chicken with fruit salsa

Pan grilled cilantro chicken breast over Spring greens and topped with leftover fruit salsa from last night. Served with green beans.

Scrambled eggs with kale & lox

Scrambled eggs with kale, green onions and lox. Served with fresh pineapple, kiwi and blackberries. 

Ham and veggie egg beater omelet

Back on track today after all the Christmas food and goodies. Egg beaters, ham, peppers, onion and zucchini served with melon.