Quick Summer Meals

On the hottest of days a raw and refreshing Caprese Salad - an arrangement of ripe tomato slices, fresh mozzarella, and basil drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt - can seriously fit the bill. Make big portions, add some bread, and dinner is done.

Cold soups are perfect for beating the heat. Many cold soups require cooking and cooling – perfect for making in the cool of the morning enjoying at dinnertime, but not a 10-minute-total situation. Not this creamy smooth Chilled Avocado Soup. Scoop, whirl, taste, and serve. It's seriously that simple.

(Hint: Another make-and-serve cold soup is Cold Cucumber Soup.)

Okay, you'd have to be amazingly speedy in the kitchen to get this Fattoush Salad pulled together in ten minutes, but it is possible. The prep time for this salad all depends on your chopping skills. A second pair of hands to chop or mix the dressing will make ultra-quick work of this satisfying yet cooling salad. The toasted pita chips and feta cheese give it enough substance for a light meal.

The same goes for this crunchy and flavorful Corn Avocado Salad, which is lovely served on a bed of lettuce or arugula for a light summer supper.

The chickpeas (a.k.a. garbanzo beans) in this Tomato Chickpea Salad give it enough body to make a light meal, especially on those hot days when much more effort—not to mention food—is just too much.

Grilling concentrates the oceanic flavor in each pair of mussel shells when you make Grilled Mussels. Plus, it's quick and doesn't heat up your kitchen. Pan-roasted and even steamed mussels are also speedy, light dinners.

It's true, you don't cook this No-Cook Tomato Sauce at all (although cooking the pasta itself is, of course, suggested). Cook the pasta while you make the sauce. Mix it up by giving this Caprese Pasta a try, too.

This traditional tapas dish, Pan con Tomate, from Spain makes the most of few ingredients. Who knew a bit of bread, garlic, olive oil, and tomato could be so crazy delicious? A few raw veggies to nibble on the side, a bit of cheese, or some slices of prosciutto or other cured meat, and your no-cook dinner is done.

Quick and delicious, a plate of these Prosciutto Arugula Salad Rolls with some crusty bread or even a few crackers make a casual summer dinner.

Zucchini blossoms are amazingly tender and lovely. If you work quickly and start heating the pan before you chop the blossoms, you can definitely get this Zucchini Blossom Omelet on a plate in 10 minutes! You may need a few extra minutes to get this Green Garlic Omelet done, but it's pretty quick too.

This Zucchini Mint Pesto comes together quickly. Use it on pasta that you cooked while you made it or simply slather it on thick slices of lightly toasted bread for a simple, seasonal, tasty meal.