Grown-Up Franks & Beans

Well there is no question about it, summer is here.

All I want to do is drink these. Go here. And make/eat food that doesn’t require the use of heat-producing appliances.

The other night I whipped up what I’ll call “Grown-Up Franks & Beans”. The franks are actually Smart Dogs which were kind of meh, in my opinion. I warmed them up on my grill pan (love, love, LOVE that thing) and served ketchup alongside. They were a bit too smoky tasting for me but I’ll give them another shot. Using one whole organic zucchini I made zucchini fries, recipe here. I used whole wheat panko on mine which resulted in an uneven coating. They were still very tasty though.

I made a quick dip for them: 1 container Greek yogurt, 1/2 Italian style diced tomatoes and lots of fresh basil from my basil plant which is amazingly still alive.

The real stunner here though? This incredibly simple bean “salad”. I don’t even know if salad is an appropriate term because it’s really just beans.

{Cannellini Bean and Basil Salad}

• 1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• ~20 basil leaves, cut into strips
• 1 t olive oil
• juice from 1/4-1/2 medium sized lemon
• salt and pepper, to taste

Combine cannellini beans, olive oil and lemon juice. Toss until well combined. Add basil leaves and gently toss until evenly distributed. Garnish with salt and pepper to desired taste. Serves ~4 as a small side.

All The Colors

Summer is finally here, well at least that’s what the calendar says. It seems like the weather hasn’t quite decided yet but hopefully soon warm weather will be here to stay. With that said, I did take advantage of the warm weather earlier this week to make a delicious “summer themed” dinner.

First up, a delicious fruit salsa.

I used:

• 1/2 c mango chunks
• 1/2 c pineapple tidbits
• 1/4 c red pepper, diced
• 1/4 c red onion, diced
• 1 T lime juice
• 1/4 c Boston Olive Oil Company coconut balsamic vinegar, reduced over heat to 1/8 c

I mixed all of the ingredients and chilled salsa for about 30 minutes before serving.

On the side, I made a Chili-Lime Corn and Heirloom Tomato Salad.

I used:

• 2 c corn kernals
• 1 c baby heirloom tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 t cayenne pepper
• 1 T LeRoux Kitchen butter flavored olive oil
• 1 T lime juice

In a grill pan, I heated up the olive oil and then cooked the corn until it started to brown. I added cayenne and lime juice and finally the heirloom tomatoes.

I grilled up a few chicken tenders in my grill pan and then served the chilled fruit salsa on top and the corn and heirloom tomato salad on the side. It was not only quick to prepare, but it was full of delicious summer flavors.

Happy Summer!