Recipes with Julie Van Rosendaal: Dinner when it's too hot to cook

When the temperature hits 30 degrees, cooking dinner might not be high on your list of things you want to do — besides ordering takeout or resorting to deli chickens.

I often just assemble grazing platters, and cobble together ingredients from the fridge and pantry to snack on — perhaps some hummus, pitas, cucumbers, feta and olives— or eat a bowl of granola, yogurt and berries for dinner like I often do at breakfast.

• Bookmark cbc.ca/juliesrecipes to keep up with all of Julie Van Rosendaal's dishes

If you're looking for options that require minimal heat and don't need to be served hot, here are a few ideas to help you through what experts say may be a particularly hot summer. 

Pappa al Pomodoro (Tomato + Bread Soup)

Pappa al Pomodoro makes use of stale bread or bread heels by softening it in tomato soup until it has a porridge-like consistency.

Like porridge, you can adjust the texture as you like it. Toast the bread for more flavour and structure, or simmer the bread in the soup to break it down even further.

If it's chilly outside, I like to sprinkle it with cheese and run it under the broiler to melt — it turns into something reminiscent of lasagna you can eat with a spoon. This would also make a fantastic vehicle for a ball of burrata.

Ingredients:

• olive or vegetable oil
• 1 shallot or half a small onion, chopped
• 1-2 garlic cloves, crushed
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 28 oz (796 oz) can tomatoes, in any form (diced, whole, puréed)
• 2-3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• a handful of fresh basil
• 2-3 slices good but stale bread, torn or cubed
• grated Parmesan, for serving

Directions:

Heat a generous pour of oil in a large saucepan set over medium-high heat and cook the shallot and garlic for a few minutes, sprinkling with salt, until soft.

Add the tomatoes and stock, a few torn basil leaves and a big grind of pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes, until the tomatoes are very soft. If you like, blitz with a hand-held immersion blender, right in the pot, until it's partially or fully pureed, however you like it.

If your bread is very sturdy, or you'd like it to break down a lot, add it and simmer a bit to soften the bread, which will also thicken the soup.

Alternatively, put the bread into shallow bowls and pour the soup overtop.

Serve topped with Parmesan cheese, a drizzle of olive oil, if you like, and more fresh basil.

Serves: About 4. 

Tostadas

I adore tostadas. They can be made with any number of ingredients (it's a great way to use leftovers!) piled onto a crisp fried corn tortilla.

You can have all the ingredients on hand in the fridge, and cook as many tortillas as you need. Let everyone load theirs up and sit outside in the grass and don't worry about making a mess.

Note: Everything doesn't have to be hot, either. It's all just fine at room temp. 

Ingredients:

• canola oil, for cooking
• fresh corn tortillas
• black beans (optional)
• finely chopped onion (white, green, purple or even shallot)
• grated or crumbled Cotija cheese, cheddar, feta or goat cheese
• anything else you like on your tostada: leftover roasted chicken, cooked shrimp, scrambled or fried egg, crumbled sausage
• chopped fresh radish, tomato, peppers, corn or other veggies, or leftover roasted squash or other veg
• hot sauce, guacamole, salsa or other accompaniments
• Cilantro-lime sauce:
• ½ bunch cilantro
• ½-1 very ripe avocado (optional)
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1/3 cup mayonnaise, sour cream, plain yogurt or a combination

Directions:

Set a heavy skillet over medium-high heat and add about half an inch of canola oil.

When the oil is hot — the edge of a tortilla should sizzle when dipped in — fry the tortillas for 1-2 minutes. Turn with tongs or a slotted spoon as needed, until golden and crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. 

In a blender, pulse the cilantro, lime juice, jalapeño, garlic, mayonnaise and a pinch of salt until smooth.

To assemble the tostadas, spoon some beans, cheese and other toppings onto each tortilla, and drizzle with cilantro sauce.  

Wild Rice Salad

When it's hot, I like to cook up a batch of grains in the morning and keep them in the fridge: barley, farro, quinoa, wheat berries, wild rice.

All are good sources of protein and will keep for several days, and are great for building salads that can hang out in the fridge all week, without wilting.

I like to consider flavours and textures when adding things to it: sweet, tangy, briny, acidic, soft, chewy, crunchy, crisp. Go through your fridge and pantry and use what you have.

I used Lakeland Wild Rice, which is grown in Alberta, around a few lakes in Athabasca. I bought it at Moonstone Creation in Inglewood.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup wild rice
• 1-2 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 green onions, chopped
• small handful fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
• 1 pint strawberries, hulled and halved
• ½ cup crumbled feta or soft goat cheese
• small handful toasted pecans or walnuts, chopped (optional)
• Dressing:
• ½ cup canola or olive oil
• 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp grainy mustard
• freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Bring 3½ cups of water to a boil, add the rice and cook for 40-45 minutes, until tender.

Drain any excess liquid and transfer to a bowl to cool. Once cooled, add the celery, green onions and parsley and toss to combine.

Add the berries, feta and pecans or walnuts and toss gently.

In a small jar or bowl, mix or shake up the dressing ingredients; pour overtop and toss gently to combine.

Serves: 6.

• Check out Julie Van Rosendaal's full interview on the Calgary Eyeopener below: