The veggie season is underway in farmers’ markets, produce departments at our neighborhood stores, and in backyard gardens. Let’s enjoy the bounty as long as the season lasts.

Italians can be thanked (or blamed) for developing the zucchini, although it actually started thousands of years earlier with squash in Central and South America. When the zucchini is cooked, it tends to turn too mushy, so I avoid that happening. We could make zucchini bread or a casserole, but who wants to heat up the kitchen with the oven or to slave away with a grinder and a steaming canner to make relish on a hot summer day?

So, I just start with some diced zucchini, or perhaps summer squash, in a skillet with a little olive oil and add thin slices of fresh ginger root from Jack’s Market, and some diced garlic and onion, a small amount of curry powder and a splash of hot sauce. Near the end of the cooking, which doesn’t take long, I like to melt a little cheese on top.

Adapted from a recipe in Bob Wiseman’s “Healthy Southwestern Cooking,” I also found an easy idea for sweet and sour zucchini. It calls for sautéing strips of zucchini in oil and soy sauce for just a minute or two, then adding vinegar, sugar, onion powder and salt, and cooking for another couple of minutes. After cooling, let it sit in the fridge for a few hours. Simple and great on the side with barbecue.

No one in hot summer weather wants the robust kinds of soup we love in winter. Instead we can do a cold Mexican gazpacho in a blender by churning together some raw tomatoes, bell pepper, cucumber, onion, garlic, a tiny bit of jalapeno or hot pepper sauce, Worcestershire, lime juice, and just a bit of cold water to get the desired, smooth consistency.

Chinese soups are good in summer, because they are so light. I start with chicken broth or bouillon and throw in leftover bits of chicken, dried or fresh herbs, and some rice or noodles. Near the end of the cooking, add a few mung bean sprouts, and some veggies such as fresh snow peas, some leaves of chard, spinach, or whatever from the garden or farmers’ market.

If you don’t like soy sauce for flavor, try a dash of Worcestershire or Texas hot sauce instead. Otherwise, most of my ideas for Chinese cooking come from a little cookbook I bought years and years ago. It was compiled by some nuns who were living in Japan after they had been kicked out of China during the Chinese Communist Revolution. 

Another problem, I’m not fond of canned bamboo shoots, but sliced water chestnuts and bean sprouts work. I often have some sprouts sprouting in a jar on my kitchen counter to use in soups, omelets, and salads, summer or winter. We can buy dried mung beans at Valley Food Co-op or on the Internet to sprout our own.

Speaking of foods from foreign lands, we have many veterans here who have served overseas in the military and people who have traveled as tourists in exotic places and developed a taste for the local foods, such as those in the Middle East. One of their favorites is eggplant. I bought a pretty little purple eggplant at City Market the other day, but then I didn’t feel like making a casserole in a hot oven or a dip like those in my cookbook called “Arab Foods.” 

So, I dealt with the eggplant the easiest way, which was by peeling it and cutting it crosswise into slices about a half inch thick. I soaked the slices in a bowl of salted water for a few minutes to get rid of its bitter taste. After draining the slices well, I dredged them in seasoned crumbs out of a can from Safeway’s shelf and sprinkled on a little extra cumin and garlic salt. Then I fried the slices in a skillet with olive oil until they were cooked and browned. Quite easy and I thought delicious.

I’m so grateful for our abundant, nourishing, fresh summertime foods. Cheers!