Even though it’s summer, we’re missing some of our favorite cozy comfort foods from fall and winter. While most of those hearty dishes are too rich for this time of year, these recipes show you some clever ways to make them warm-weather ready.
Summer Vegetable Cassoulet with Crispy Gruyère
Keep things light, airy, and a little bit crunchy with this summer dish from Bon Appétit! This recipe skips the heavy meats and seriously packs in the seasonal vegetables. The best part of this recipe? The baked-until-crispy pieces of Gruyère crumbled over the top!
“Naked” Chile Rellenos
These chile rellenos get their name because they’re roasted and stuffed before baking in a smoky tomato sauce. No breading, no frying. The result is a lightened-up spin on one of our favorite Mexican dishes, in which the chiles really get to shine.
No-Cook Summer Tomato Sauce
We love this bright, fresh take on spaghetti with tomato sauce. When cherry and sungold tomatoes are bursting with flavor, slice them and let sit with olive oil and a touch of vinegar. The sweet juices seep out and make an incredible sauce. This is better the longer you can let it sit, but in a pinch, you can marinate the tomatoes while you boil the water and cook the pasta.
Meatloaf Kebabs with Grilled Potato Salad
We love a comforting meatloaf dinner during the colder months, but this recipe from the Food Network just made it a summertime favorite! The meatloaf mix is shaped into kebabs and grilled, while being basted with a sticky-sweet ketchup glaze. And instead of mashed potatoes, these spuds are dressed and then grilled for a lightened-up side.
No-Bake Lasagna
Yes, you read that right—you don’t even need to turn on your oven for this lasagna! This deconstructed version of the classic Italian bake from Martha Stewart is light yet substantial and super simple to prepare.
Chicken Pot Pie
If you’ve made a classic chicken pot pie, you’ll be able to make this summery version from How Sweet Eats, no problem! This no-fuss Summer Chicken Pot Pie Crostata with Herbed Crust utilizes a rustic piecrust base and is equally tasty served at room temperature.
Grilled Eggplant Parm Boats
Eggplant is at its peak in the summer, and our test kitchen crafted this recipe that has all of the flavors of classic eggplant Parmesan, but in a lightened-up, weeknight-friendly package perfect for grilling season.
Slow-Cooker Summer Beef Stew
Keep your kitchen cool and make an effortless beef stew in a slow cooker with this recipe from Running to the Kitchen! The trick to keeping it light and summery is to add the vegetables during the last 30 minutes of cooking; otherwise, they’ll end up like mush.
Vegetable Chili
Beef chili is always a go-to recipe for fall and winter, so why not add this vegetable version to your spring and summer lineup too? Healthy and packed with tons of in-season vegs, this dinner idea from Nourish and Fete is super customizable to whatever ingredients you already have on hand. Plus, you can make it on a stovetop or in an Instapot!
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