31 Recipes You Should Be Cooking This August

“Basil vinaigrette is the recipe I turn to no matter what I’m making,” says cookbook author Gaby Dalkin. “It’s great on grilled steak and amps up any other kind of protein, pasta, vegetables, salad, crostini—everything except dessert! It’s easy to double, and it freezes. (I use silicone ice cube trays.)”

This sweet and gently spicy spread from Avery Ruzicka of Manresa Bread in Los Gatos, California is also excellent in a sandwich with sharp cheddar cheese or beef.

Get in on the frozen rosé trend with a twist by adding blended melon to your ice cube tray. Then purée them with a bottle of vino whenever the mood strikes.

Harissa, a lively North African chili paste, varies widely in heat and flavor depending on the brand (find it at well-stocked grocery stores and online). Taste the finished sauce and add more vinegar if you like, plus salt and cayenne. Also, it tends to thicken as it sits, so you may need to add more water if you’ve made it ahead of time. This recipe was given to us by Charles Bililies, owner of Souvla, the spit-roasted meat restaurant in San Francisco.

This refreshing drink has all the makings of a signature party cocktail. It can be adjusted to taste (using light rum instead of the gin will tilt it toward a mojito). And the pitcher-size format means more time with guests rather than shaking drinks.

With exceptional jam, breakfast can be simple. Food blogger and jam-maker Amisha Gurbani (thejamlab.co) steeps fruit with sugar to bring out intense flavor—and adds minimal pectin for a flowing texture.

This recipe pairs perfectly with a creamed spinach or as a base for mac n cheese—because bacon makes everything better.

Varagheh means “layers,” which perfectly describes this stacked eggplant and tomato dish that’s full of summer flavors. Showered with fresh herbs as a garnish, it’s terrific for brunch or even dinner.

As this soft, fruit-laden coffee cake bakes, the pistachio streusel sinks a bit, or “buckles” leaving you with a pastry filled with fruit and flavor.

The combination of a vibrant Italian-style sauce and three robust kinds of cheese makes these scrambled eggs nothing short of spectacular. The recipe comes from chef-owners Gayle Pirie and John Clark of Foreign Cinema in San Francisco.

This showstopping breakfast “pancake” will amply reward you for making the trip to Laurette Feit’s cafe. Or make it at home. Either way, you’ll be amazed at the treat’s puff.

This salad tastes great at any temperature. Eat the veggies straight off the grill or use them in a sandwich the next day for an easy lunch.

You can’t go wrong with bruschetta in the summer; combine heirlooms, early girls, and cherry tomatoes for a juicy base. All they need is a bit of olive oil and fresh basil before becoming an ideal topping for crostini.

Serve this salad with turkey meatballs for added protein. The greens are made up of mint, basil, dill, parsley, and cilantro and topped with a spicy lime dressing. This salad also makes a great side for any kind of grilled meat or stuffed inside of a banh mi.

Chef Seizan Dreux Ellis of Cafe Gratitude shares an out-of-the-box answer to the question, “How do you make poke without actual fish?” by transforming a ripe watermelon into this poke bowl.

This is the official version of a sandwich made from the eggplant and tomato salad above. Sunset reader Rebecca Jansen of Snohomish, Washington, won us over with this Mediterranean-inspired vegetable sandwich that cooks entirely on the grill.

Brandon Jew, chef-owner of Mr. Jiu’s in San Francisco’s Chinatown, is known for his inventive spins on fried rice. In this version, he takes cues from the cooking of the American south (chicken skin, okra) and works them into the Chinese takeout favorite.

A metal cooling rack set in a rimmed baking sheet makes bi-level cooking possible—squash below, chicken above—so the meat’s glaze stays nicely charred, while the juices drip into and moisten the squash.

Layers of creamy cheese and roasted vegetables in a pastry make this pie a home run. For a vegetarian version, swap the lamb for more onions and bell peppers.

Chef and Ayurvedic expert Radhi Devlukia-Shetty says of this dish, “If spring were to take the form of a soup, I genuinely believe it would taste like this. I’ve made this with and without the pistachios, I’ve made it with and without the fennel. It’s a very versatile soup, and you can experiment with whatever veggies you happen to have in your fridge.”

For maximum flavor and chewy-soft texture, the mushrooms are roasted and then simmered in broth. Save a bit of pasta water to moisten each bowl before serving.

Crab is in season and can be found at most retailers this time of year. Mix it up with some fresh herbs and serve it in a hollowed tomato for an eye-catching and edible presentation.

We couldn’t resist loading up on multiple kinds of seeds—plus nuts and coconut—to create this crunchy, addictive streusel. For the filling, Flavor King pluots, which ripen in late summer, are one of our favorites, rich, floral, and musky. To keep the juicy filling from spilling into the oven as it bubbles and thickens, set a baking sheet on the rack below (not directly underneath the crisp, or it won’t bake evenly).

When Ruth Reichl was 22—long before she became famous as a restaurant critic, magazine editor, and author—she taught cooking at a glassblowing workshop in the forests north of Seattle. The final week she was there, the wild blackberries ripened all at once, “soft, rich, and juicy,” Reichl says. She picked until her pail overflowed. Then she baked into the night. In the morning, these flaky turnovers were her parting gift to the glassblowers.

Our butter cake meets classic lemon meringue pie. We used a loaf pan to change the shape of the cake—a simple twist that dramatically alters the presentation.

Though it may seem like an unusual ingredient, olive oil gives this dark chocolate sauce, from Salt & Straw’s Tyler Malek, an incredible depth of flavor. And the sauce takes only 10 minutes to make.

Bake a batch of these cute fruit-filled buttons to add a little variety to your cookie tray while taking advantage of delicious stone fruits.