At the farmers market, July and August feel like the big game, the Oscars, the proud wave from the gold medal podium—the moment when the spotlight shines brightest. There are more varieties of squash and shades of tomato than you thought possible and enough bounty to ensure your tote bags are overflowing. That’s where we come in. What follows are five-ingredient recipes (beyond the basic pantry staples, like salt and pepper) strategically designed to bring out the best in your produce with the least amount of effort. They’re simple and uncomplicated on purpose; when you’ve got berries this sweet and peaches this juicy, you don’t need to overthink things. Plus, we’re sharing our best tips for embracing abundance and preventing food waste for those times when you bought just a little too much (it happens). So go big and go home—we’ll show how to make the most of your haul.
What’s in your bag?
Zucchini
Also known as courgette (French for “little squash”), zucchini can be green or yellow, big or small. But whatever market you visit, there’s bound to be a lot of it. We’re turning ours into dinner with a garlicky, dilly sour cream.
Raspberries
These tiny jewels—covered in tiny hairs, have you noticed?—can become a whole lot more than dessert. Go savory with juicy pork chops, doused in a red chile chimichurri.
And for the extras: Place raspberries in a jar and cover with your booze of choice. Seal and let sit for one week. Strain and store berries in the fridge, and reserve booze at room temperature. Combine ½ cup spiked berries and 1 shot infused booze in a collins glass filled with ice and top with seltzer.
Plums
And for the extras: We love chef and cookbook author Abra Berens’s preserves. Scrub, quarter, and pit plums. Cover them with salt in a glass jar. Tightly close the jar and shake each day for about a week (a brine will form). Keep chilled up to 1 month. To serve, rinse then thinly slice the plums.
Peaches
A ripe peach should be so juicy, you have to stand over the kitchen sink to take a bite. Or, you could save your shirt and make a vibrant salsa instead, to heap over charred chicken.
Tomatoes
Is there any market stand more popular than the tomato stand? We think not. This fruit (yes, it’s a fruit) needs little more than salt to soar, but a few more ingredients will get you to a knockout steak that you’ll look forward to each year.
Strawberries
Blueberries
Petite in size and powerful in flavor, blueberries are beloved for their unabashed tartness. That’s what makes them so stellar for desserts, like a cheekily named fool (ours has toasted coconut for good measure).
Credits
- Lead Editors: Emma Laperruque, Antara Sinha, Kelsey Youngman
- Food Editors: Rachel Gurjar, Zaynab Issa
- Creative Director: Caroline Newton
- Visuals: Jose Ginarte, Marc Williams, Isa Zapata
- Contributors: Zoe Denenberg, Sarra Sedghi, Sam Stone, Maddy Sweitzer-Lamme, Ella Quittner, Carly Westerfield
- Production Editor: Alma Avalle
- Recipe Editor: Liesel Davis
- Social: Esra Erol, Olivia Quintana, Urmila Ramakrishnan
- Research: Ryan Harrington
- Copy: Brian Carroll, Greg Robertson
- Special Thanks: Sonia Chopra, Serena Dai, Sasha Levine