Sweet Potatoes with Chiles and Lemon & A Creamy Green Bean Grape Slaw
sweet potatoes, corn & beans + embracing summer's end ✨
All around me, people are talking of cooler mornings and chilly nights, of making soup for lunch and hot porridge for breakfast, of trading short sleeves for long ones and open sandals for closed-toe shoes. That's right, it's still technically summer for another three weeks or so but, no matter how much one might try to avoid it, the onset of fall seems to beckon at every turn. Here, in southern Norway, the return of nighttime offers the most salient of reminders (what a joy to see the stars again!).
That being said, it's still very much summer (albeit the end of it), and late summer often brings it with an abundance of produce. So, before all the tomatoes are jarred, the peppers dried, the cucumbers pickled and the corn canned, I invite you to make the most of all that's still exciting and fresh.
This is easier said than done if you only have access to a supermarket or big name grocery store — the seasonal gems are usually easier to find at farmers' markets, small greengrocers', or at farm shops and roadside stands. That's why I've included a section on what to cook in late summer (give or take, I know we don't all live in the same geographical area), as well as a number of recipes, both old and new, as a sort of guide or inspiration for the end of the season.
This newsletter is all about making the most of these last 22 days or so, appreciating every moment as it comes. So consider this my encouragement to eat handfuls of blackberries, whole bunches of grapes, plums of all shapes, varieties and size, all with great zeal and without any self-reproach. Buy those figs, taste those melons, cook that okra, savour those tomatillos! They'll all soon be gone again.
Below you'll find a recipe for sweet potatoes with chiles and lemon, as well as one for a creamy green bean and grape salad, plus some quick meal ideas and some of the newest and most seasonally-appropriate recipes from the site.
Here's wishing you a fruitful end of summer (and a happy transition into the next season of 2022),
👋simone
it's late summer:
what to cook?
🌽🍅🍈
The nice thing about fresh produce being so abundant all throughout summer is that there really isn't much cooking required to churn out a fantastic meal. Most of the time, all you have to do is dress an ingredient that's barely been cooked (if at all) in a medley of herbs, oils and vinegars — perhaps with a sprinkling of seeds, a mincing of alliums and/or a zesting of citrus if you're feeling industrious — and you're good to go.
Be that as it may, here are some ideas for cooking slightly more elaborate (yet still very simple) meals to celebrate and make the most of end-of-summer produce:
tomatoes 🍅 excellent in sandwiches and salads, you'll want to salt these generously to bring out maximum flavour. have extra time on your hands? roast them slow or chop them up raw and make them the star of your next risotto. pair well with: corn, basil, peaches, fresh cheeses, whole grains.
corn 🌽 raw corn is fantastic in salads, but also in soups. boil it on the cob and rub it in butter, or grill it until charred and grace it with a squeeze of lime. for something special, why not try your hand at making corn fritters? pairs well with: chili peppers, beans, cilantro, lime, seafood.
figs, grapes, blackberries 🍇 perfect for topping your morning yogurt/muesli/porridge — and an obvious snack for a countryside drive or saturday picnic. these bake beautifully into crumbles or cakes, and are a natural accompaniment to charcuterie boards and cheese platters. pair well with: almonds, woody herbs, cured meats, strong cheeses.
stone fruit 🍑 similar to the fruit above, these are fantastic enjoyed as is. consider slow-roasting or adding raw to salads. from cherries to pluots, nectarines to peaches, each comes in a wide variety of colours, shapes and sizes so try to find and enjoy as many as you can. pair well with: tender herbs, olive oil, poultry, tomatoes, custards.
melons 🍈 a great snack, a great addition to salads, and an excellent way to stay refreshed and hydrated. feeling patient? melons of all kinds make for excellent granitas and sorbets. pair well with: mint, salty cheeses, cucumber, balsamic vinegar.
peppers 🌶️ although peppers are delightfully light and crunchy when enjoyed raw, their potential seems to be truly unlocked when processed in some way: pickled, dried, infused into oil, cooked down slowly or charred quickly until soft and sweet — the possibilities are as numerous as they are delicious. pair well with: corn, olives, onions, creamy cheeses, roasted meats.
summer squash 🥒 while dark green zucchini is what usually comes to mind (and is most easy to find) when it comes to summer squash, one mustn't forget others like pattypan squash, yellow squash, and round varieties. wonderfully delicate when thinly sliced and raw, these are also fantastic grilled, stuffed, confited, marinated or baked into a cake. don't forget the edible flowers! pair well with: garlic, pine nuts, corn, tomatoes, peppers, chocolate.
eggplant 🍆 a fantastically low-maintenance ingredient in the kitchen, eggplant packs a punch no matter how you prepare it: creamy and soft as a dip, hearty and flavoursome when breaded and fried schnitzel-style, and deeply savoury when stewed into a caponata, ratatouille or cheesy gratin. pairs well with: tomato sauce, peppers, soy sauce, chickpeas, pasta.
recipes from the site
(+ some ideas from insta)
💥
Speaking of corn, peppers, stone fruit and melons, here are some of the newest and most seasonally-appropriate recipes from the site (plus a few fresh ideas from Instagram):
halloumi peach plate 🍑
a toasted almond plum cake
This toasted almond cake doesn't have to be made with plums. Seemingly any fruit lends itself well to this unreasonably tasty almond dessert.
summer fruit pavlova 🍒
spicy, herby corn fritters
Tired of eating corn raw or boiled on the cob? Try something new with these spicy, herby — and easy — corn fritters!
cherry cucumber salad 🥒
sweet potatoes with chiles & lemon
🍋
Sweet potatoes usually start being harvested in September, so preparing them in this way feels like a pleasantly light and refreshing way to enjoy them at the start of their season, right as summer gives way to autumn.
•••
SWEET POTATOES WITH CHILES & LEMON
serves four as an appetiser or side dish
INGREDIENTS
FOR ROASTING THE POTATOES
• 3 medium-sized sweet potatoes
• extra virgin olive oil
• vegetable oil
• sea salt
FOR THE DRESSING / GARNISH
• 2 fresh green chiles (like anaheim, jalapeño, or serrano)
• ⅓ yellow bell pepper
• ½ lemon for its juice and its rind
• ⅓ tsp smoked paprika
• ⅛ tsp cinnamon
• sesame seeds
• sea salt
note: your sweet potatoes are unlikely to be the same size as mine were, so use the measurements more as a guide than a rule — observe, taste, adapt and adjust! this will give you a better result than even the most precise of recipes
METHOD
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C fan / 220°C / 428°F.
2. Slice three medium sweet potatoes in half lengthwise, then place them on a sheet pan. Drizzle on a bit of extra virgin olive oil and vegetable oil (about 50:50), just enough to coat the potatoes on all sides by rubbing the oil onto them with your hands. Evenly space out the sweet potatoes and place them cut-side up, then season the tops with a light sprinkle of sea salt.
3. Cover the sheet pan with aluminium foil, then place it in the oven and leave the sweet potatoes to steam-roast for ~25 minutes, before removing the foil and letting them roast uncovered ~25 minutes more (keep an eye on them for colour). Before they finish, start on the garnish/dressing (once the sweet potatoes are done (i.e. tender all the way through and nicely caramelised on top), turn off the oven and leave them in there until you're ready to dress them).
4. Thinly slice the 2 green chiles into rings, then de-seed them. Slice the bottom third of the yellow bell pepper into rings as thin as the chiles, then cut each ring again into a half-crescent. Next, peel thick-but-narrow strips off ½ a lemon. Add all of these ingredients into a bowl, then squeeze the juice of the half lemon over the top.
5. Season generously with sea salt, then add in about ⅓ of a teaspoon of smoked paprika and ⅛ of a teaspoon of cinnamon. Stir everything and let sit for at least 5 minutes.
6. Plate the still-hot sweet potatoes cut-side up, then drizzle the chile-lemon mixture over top. Sprinkle on some sesame seeds and enjoy!
creamy green bean + grape salad
🍇
If you look up the word "unassuming" in the dictionary, you might very well come upon a picture of this salad (just kidding, but wouldn't that be something?). It doesn't sound exciting, it doesn't look exciting, but boy oh boy does it taste exciting. That's why, despite not having written down the most precise of measurements, I simply had to share a how-to for it in this month's newsletter.
•••
CREAMY GREEN BEAN AND GRAPE SALAD
serves about two as a meal, or four as part of a meal
INGREDIENTS
FOR THE DRESSING
• ½ a banana shallot
• 1 Tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 small bundle of fresh chives about 2 tsp's worth once chopped
• 2 small stalks of fresh parsley we'll only use the leaves
• 2 small stalks of fresh dill we'll only use the fronds
• ½ a lime for its juice
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt
• freshly cracked black pepper
FOR THE SALAD
• a fistful of green beans or green sugar snap peas if you can find them
• a fistful of purple beans or purple sugar snap peas if you can find them
• a mini cucumber or a few slices of a regularly sliced cucumber
• a small bunch of black grapes around 10
• one or two handfuls of roasted salted peanuts
note: I have to admit that I made this salad earlier in the month when the very last of the sugar snap peas from the farm shop were starting to go wrinkly in my fridge — at this point in the year, I think I'd recommend going with green beans instead
METHOD
1. Start by making the dressing: thinly slice half a shallot into rings, then add it to a bowl along with one heaped tablespoon of mayonnaise, a small bundle of freshly chopped chives, and a small handful each of fresh parsley leaves and dill fronds. Squeeze the juice of half a lime over top, sprinkle on half a teaspoon of garlic powder, drizzle in about two teaspoons's worth of olive oil, then season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine and set aside.
2. Prepare the green and purple beans (or peas) by cleaning them and trimming off any ends you wouldn't want to serve or eat. Cut them in half lengthwise or keep them whole, it's up to you! At this point, you can choose to either keep the beans raw, or to blanch them quickly.
If you want them cooked, pop them into a pot of salted boiling water for about 30 seconds or so (until bright in colour and tender-crisp in texture), then plunge them into ice cold water to cool before straining them to dry.
3. Thinly slice your cucumber and halve your grapes.
4. Add the beans and half the peanuts to the dressing and toss until everything is well coated, then top with the cucumber and grapes. At this point, you can leave the salad in the fridge for up to 30 minutes before serving.
5. To serve, plate up the salad onto each person's dish before topping with more of the peanuts, plus a bit more salt and pepper. Best enjoyed cold!
That's all from me this month!
Happy cooking & happy eating 💛
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