This is the first week of summer “vacation” meaning that I’m working from home with my two kids hanging around. Which is why the newsletter is coming out a day late!
As the weather gets warmer I can feel my dinner motivation downshifting. Over the weekend we had cheese, salami, crackers and olives for dinner one night and it was perfect. I hope to have more dinners like that this summer.
Especially over the summer (but any time of year, really) I’m a big believer in serving very simple veggies with dinner. Especially when you have little kids at the table.
Sliced cucumbers or carrots, raw snap peas and other raw veggies show up regularly on our dinner table. They’re perfect for nights when you don’t have the time or energy to toss a salad or cook vegetables.
I try to set the raw veggies out early, when the kids are hovering around the kitchen and asking when dinner will be ready.
If you’d like to make veggie sides that are more flavorful but don’t require a whole lot more work, I have two ideas for you.
Instant Pot Green Beans with Soy Sauce
Those are bits of shallot on top of the green beans, sautéed with sesame oil, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar and garlic. So good! You get big flavor with very little effort and these green beans are tasty served hot or cold.
You might also want to try Instant Pot collard greens .
Crispy Roasted Frozen Cauliflower
No mess, no chopping, just dump a bag of frozen cauliflower onto a sheet-pan. Add panko, olive oil and garlic powder and this frozen cauliflower is positively irresistible. The trick? Use the convection setting on your oven to get the crispy edges.
Dinner Last Week
I’m always curious about what other families are eating. Aren’t you? It was the last week of school around here, so we were busy with 5th grade graduation, the last day of 1st grade, plus a beach party and pool party.
Monday: White fish drizzled with butter and broiled, steamed potatoes and the first corn on the cob of the summer
Tuesday: Pancakes! I took the kids to our neighborhood swimming pool after school and by the time we got home they were famished. Trader Joe’s pancake mix to the rescue!
Wednesday: Easy and flavorful broiled tofu from Kitchenskip.com + rice + frozen egg rolls + broccoli
Thursday: Impossible ground “meat” sautéd with mushrooms and marinara, served over a sliced and lightly fried tube of polenta
Friday: Frozen Bao buns from Costco + rice with scrambled egg +frozen vegetables
Reading
Please note that book titles in this section are Bookshop.org affiliate links. Your cost for purchasing the book is the same, but a small portion of your purchase will come back to me and help support my work. When ordering from Bookshop.org you’ll also be supporting independent bookstores.
I’m between fiction books, but just about to start The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix Harrow.
Leave a comment and let me know your summer book recommendations!
That’s it, enjoy the rest of your week!
Jenny
P.S. All of my past newsletters with links to recipes can always be found in the archives.