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The vegetables are perfect, but who wants to cook?

Summer's bounty of perfect fruits and vegetables arrives - at bargain prices - just at the moment when you would rather be at the beach than behind the stove. The desire to fire up the grill is greatly reduced with each 90-plus-degree day.

Fruits and vegetables are at peak flavor now, but they can be preserved for later.
Fruits and vegetables are at peak flavor now, but they can be preserved for later.Read moreCLEM MURRAY / Staff Photographer

Summer's bounty of perfect fruits and vegetables arrives - at bargain prices - just at the moment when you would rather be at the beach than behind the stove. The desire to fire up the grill is greatly reduced with each 90-plus-degree day.

This is the moment to exact maximum flavor from ripe, locally grown produce with minimal time in the kitchen. This is the time when a little bit of salt, olive oil, and herbs can transform a basket of fresh-picked beauties into a scrumptious meal in minutes.

With a few more ingredients and simple techniques, you can feast now, put up some flavorful foods for later, and hardly break a sweat.

Tomatoes are everywhere and can be eaten at every meal for these few weeks when they are at their peak. Sliced on a buttered bagel for breakfast, chopped coarsely to top pasta or vegetable side dishes, or pureed for cold soup or sauce - this is the time to revel in these multicolored orbs.

Yellow and blush tomatoes tend to be a little less acidic and may need a bit of balsamic or sherry vinaigrette to bring out their best in a salad. Ripe red tomatoes bring their own tartness and can be dressed simply with olive oil, salt and, pepper - with perhaps a sprinkle of fresh basil – for an ideal summer salad.

Extra plum tomatoes can be rinsed, frozen on a cookie sheet, and packed into a container or well-sealed plastic bag to pull out in the fall as needed for sauces, stews, and soups. A large handful of cherry tomatoes can be charred in a hot cast-iron skillet or sheet pan in the oven to add a colorful blast of tangy sweetness to noodles, grains, or greens. These charred tomatoes also freeze well.

As it has been too hot to cook outside on my wood-fired grill, I have taken to oven roasting or poaching various summer vegetables early in the day and eating them at room temperature later.

Eggplant takes especially well to high heat, the smoky char adding complexity to the vegetable's creamy meatiness. Oven roasting exposes all the surface areas of the cut vegetables to heat, so the resulting flavors become concentrated. Moist vegetables, like summer squash, peppers, and leeks, all gain great flavor from oven browning.

Even fruit takes well to roasting. Thick slices of juicy peaches barely dotted with butter and brown sugar transform into glorious glazed goodness for dessert. They can be layered with whipped cream, used as a topping for ice cream, or paired with crunchy caramel almonds and berries. Try adding herbs such as basil, lemon verbena, or mint.

Peaches, figs, or plums roasted with no added sugar can be glazed with good balsamic vinegar and served alongside roasted chicken or sausage or in a mixed vegetable salad. The sweet softness of roasted fruit is especially nice with aged cheese or smoked meats.

Poaching vegetables in a flavorful olive oil, lemon, and white wine broth highlights other characteristics of summer vegetables. The myriad colors of carrots, potatoes, and beans are perfect for slow simmering and gentle seasoning. Cooked ahead, served warm or cool, a presentation of a glistening rainbow-hued platter of savory vegetables is an easy centerpiece to a summer meal.

Need a simple solution to garden or CSA basket excess? Learn to pickle. It is one of the easiest and least energy-intensive preservation methods to master. Follow the guidance of fermentation guru Sandor Katz (wildfermentation.com) to discover lacto-fermentation. This is as simple as cutting or shredding vegetables and adding salt and garlic to them in a jar or crock. Natural micro-organisms transform the vegetables and help them last many months. I lacto-ferment quarts of cabbage, carrots, and beets and dozens of fresh cucumbers throughout the summer for sauerkraut and pickles.

Alternatively, try the less mysterious brined "vinegar pickles." Flavorful acidic poaching liquid - which can be easily made from leftover vegetable poaching stock (by adding a splash of white wine vinegar and salt) - can be used to barely cook small pieces of any assorted extra vegetables, such as peppers, eggplants, celery, squash, carrots, cauliflower, and onions. This is my take on giardiniera (an Italian American pickled vegetable relish) that is as easy as it is excellent. Once the vegetables are softened, put them in clean pint-size canning jars and top with a mixture of poaching liquid and additional olive oil. Place clean lids on top, and refrigerate for up to three months. Pull these out in October and marvel at your forethought.

Charred Eggplant with Toasted Walnuts, Tomatoes, and Herbed Yogurt

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Makes 4 appetizer or 2 entree servings

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1/4 cup olive oil

Salt and pepper

1 eggplant, split in half lengthwise

1 small summer squash, sliced into rounds or small cubes

11/2 cups plain thick yogurt (such as Greek or labne)

2/3 cup chopped fresh herbs (any mixture of chives, mint, tarragon, parsley)

1 small clove of garlic, peeled and minced

1 large tomato, cored and cubed (reserve juices)

1/4 cup walnut halves or pieces, toasted

Sprigs of parsley or mint, optional

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1. Heat oven to 500 degrees. Pour olive oil onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle liberally with salt and fresh-ground pepper. Lightly score eggplant with overlapping diagonal slices just through the surface of the cut side (criss-crossing). Place eggplant cut side down onto oiled surface. Place in the middle of the hot oven and cook for 12 to 20 minutes (depending on size), until eggplant is quite soft to the touch. Add the squash pieces to the hot oiled pan for the last 5 to 6 minutes of cooking. Remove pan from oven. Turn squash pieces over to brown second side slightly with residual heat. Leave eggplant to cool without moving.

2. Mix the yogurt with the chopped herbs and minced garlic and season well with salt and pepper.

3. To serve, spread yogurt mixture on a platter. Place eggplant skin side down. Scatter the chopped tomatoes, walnuts, and squash atop the yogurt. Pour residual tomato juices onto the eggplant. Garnish with parsley or mint sprigs or leaves, if desired.

- From Anna Herman

Per serving (based on 4): 270 calories, 10 grams protein, 18 grams carbohydrates, 12 grams sugar, 19 grams fat, 6 milligrams cholesterol, 148 milligrams sodium, 6 grams dietary fiber.

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White Wine and Olive Oil Poached Summer Vegetables

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Makes 4 to 6 servings

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1/2 cup good white wine

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup fruity olive oil

Zest and juice of 1/2 lemon, divided use

2 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled

1 bay leaf

Several sprigs fresh thyme

Several threads of saffron or dried calendula petals

Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

2 to 3 small leeks, well washed and trimmed, halved if large, with enough root to hold it together as it cooks

8 small carrots, scrubbed, trimmed, cut to equal width

8 small new potatoes, well washed and halved if large

8 to 20 fresh beans (wax, green, Romano)

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1. Add the wine, water, olive oil, lemon zest, garlic, bay and thyme and saffron/calendula, salt, and pepper to a high-sided sauté pan. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Add the leeks and carrots. Add a bit more water or olive oil to make sure the poaching liquid just covers the vegetables.

2. Simmer, covered, for 5 to 7 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook until they are just soft. Add the beans for an additional 3 minutes. Let cool slightly.

3. Remove vegetables to a platter, spoon some of the poaching liquid on top. Serve warm or at room temperature with a bit of the poaching liquid mixed with lemon juice. Save remaining liquid to poach fish, chicken, or more vegetables.

- From Anna Herman

Per serving (based on 6): 273 calories, 3 grams protein, 27 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams sugar, 17 grams fat, no cholesterol, 107 milligrams sodium, 5 grams dietary fiber.EndText

Roasted Peaches with Basil, Raspberries, and Caramelized Almonds

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Makes 4 to 5 servings

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For the peaches:

3 tablespoons butter

4 peaches, peeled and sliced into thick pieces

2 tablespoons brown sugar

Several basil leaves, sliced thin

1/2 pint raspberries

For the Caramel Almonds:

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1 tablespoon butter or 1 tablespoon heavy cream

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1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Use 1 tablespoon of the butter to grease a baking dish or sheet pan. Place the peaches on baking sheet, dot with butter, and sprinkle a bit of the brown sugar onto each slice. Roast in hot oven till bubbly and browning. Remove from oven and cool.

2. Line a plate or baking sheet with a piece of parchment.

3. Add the brown sugar to a heavy-bottomed pan and turn the heat to medium. Let brown sugar begin to melt. Add the almonds but do not stir. When the brown sugar is almost completely melted, stir gently. As soon as the nuts seem to be browning, add the butter or cream, stir, and pour onto the parchment. Spread with a heat-proof spatula into a disc. When cooled, break disc into at least four pieces.

4. To serve. Toss the roasted peaches with the minced basil. Divide the peaches into four serving dishes. Tuck a piece or two of caramel almond alongside or on top. Sprinkle with fresh raspberries. Serve as-is, or with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

- From Anna Herman

Per serving (based on 5): 252 calories, 3 grams protein, 31 grams carbohydrates, 26 grams sugar, 14 grams fat, 24 milligrams cholesterol, 71 milligrams sodium, 4 grams dietary fiber.EndText