This quick and simple dinner, which showcased many of the veggies from this week’s share, also turned out to be more delicious and satisfying than expected.

The pesto chicken cutlets were a twist on the standard way of preparing a fried chicken cutlet. I followed the same steps of dredging chicken breasts in 1) flour, 2) egg (beaten), then 3) breadcrumbs, but only after whisking one or two spoonfuls of leftover pesto into the egg. I also used panko breadcrumbs, which fry up lighter and crispier than the bland and grainy breadcrumbs usually found in grocery stores.

The lettuce mix from our CSA share formed the base for the garden salad. I added sliced cucumbers and grated carrots – also from the CSA – and tossed everything in a balsamic vinaigrette. The freshness of the vegetables really shone through in the salad, and reminded me of how fortunate we are to have regular access to local organic produce.

I first tried beer bread this summer, when my friend made it for a potluck. One bite of the crisp, buttery crust and the soft, yeasty inner crumb had me sold, and I knew I had to make it myself. This recipe, which originates from another mutual friend of ours, is surprisingly simple, and makes for a hearty addition to a weeknight dinner.

Beer Bread

recipe courtesy of Sarah M. (and Wendy C.) – thanks, guys!

3 Tbsp butter, plus more for greasing pan
3 cups self-rising flour
½ cup sugar (some prefer adding a couple tablespoons more, for a sweeter taste)
12 oz bottle beer (this determines the flavor of the bread)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a 9″x5″ loaf pan.

Melt butter; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour and sugar. Add beer, and mix until just combined. Pour batter into prepared pan, then pour melted butter on top of batter. (Allow the butter to sit on top of the batter; do not mix it in.)

Bake for 45-50 minutes, until golden.

As I mentioned in my last post, the Banana Peppers (i.e. the parents of the Señor) gave us a wonderful stash of home-grown cherry tomatoes and green beans, plus an enormous zucchini to boot.

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I simply couldn’t let these beauties meet any ordinary fate. (The zucchini had already found its own in the form of muffins, and also a stir-fry.) Here’s what became of the tomatoes and green beans – and, might I add, it was a delicious way for them to go.

1½ lbs slender green beans, trimmed, cut into 2-inch pieces
â…“ c extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp dried onion flakes (gentler on the breath than fresh onion!)
1 tsp dried oregano
¼ c chopped fresh Italian parsley
1½-2 c halved cherry tomatoes
salt and pepper, to taste
Parmesan cheese

Cook beans in large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Drain. Transfer to bowl of ice water and cool. Drain well. Place in large bowl.

Mix olive oil, vinegar, garlic, onion flakes, and oregano in a small bowl; stir into beans. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with parsley and cherry tomatoes.

Allow at least 1 hour for salad to marinate in dressing. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese just before serving.

My mom can cook. I suppose almost everyone thinks their mom’s food is the best they’ve ever had, but seriously, aside from the occasional burnt toast or overcooked bacon, my mom can cook. (So can my dad, for that matter.)

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Señor Habanero and I got to taste the fruit of her talents last weekend, at a dinner celebrating Dad being Dad. Mom – a.k.a. Mama Cherry Pepper – displayed her usual impeccable taste in fashioning the evening’s menu: rigatoni with caprese lobster salad, followed by raspberry sorbet garnished with a freshly baked brown-edged honey wafer cookie. The clean, fresh flavors and simplicity of the ingredients were a gentle nod to summer’s arrival.

The salad, which consisted of chopped fresh tomatoes, basil, mozarella bocconcini, extra virgin olive oil, and freshly cooked lobster, was prepared hours in advance, allowing the flavors to coalesce. Shortly before dinner was to be served, Mama Cherry Pepper cooked up the rigatoni in the leftover lobster water – something which did wonders for otherwise mundane pasta – then finished cooking it in olive oil that had been seasoned with garlic. The result? A subtly decadent yet unpretentious dinner that satisfied all Peppers present. (It would have been even more wonderful paired with a prosecco, but alas, there was none to be had.)

The rigatoni with caprese lobster salad recipe was Fortunato Nicotra’s 2007 response to Pamela Sherrid’s summer pasta salad (1996). Nicotra, who is executive chef at Felidia and a true Italian, was “horrified by the idea of such a dish” – but once his horror subsided, he went ahead and created his own updated spin on the recipe, most notably bringing the salad and the pasta together just before it’s served.

As for the brown-edged honey wafer cookie… that’s Mama Cherry Pepper’s secret recipe.

Do you have a favorite summertime recipe? Share it with us!