Bear with me while I sell you on zucchini and raspberries together – with chocolate. I know, you’re probably thinking I’ve lost it at this point. But remember, zucchini bread is tasty. And chocolate cakes with grated zucchini (or beets) are a thing, because the veggies add extra moisture. All I’ve really done is added berries to the mix and made muffins instead of cake!
These Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Zucchini & Raspberry Muffins are exceptionally moist and they keep well, so you can make them ahead for a brunch or picnic snack. And now you have one more thing to do with that languishing zuke in the fridge. I only hope you have an air-conditioned kitchen; I made these in my steamy kitchen the other day and wished I’d had enough sense to get up early in the morning to do my baking.
But if the heat keeps up, I’ve got a cooler suggestion for combining chocolate and raspberries (but no zucchini): Summer Berry and Vanilla Ice Cream Pie with Chocolate Sauce. Don’t you think it’s time to make this? You can make it with store-bought ice cream, or you can make our Summer Berry Ice Cream from scratch.
That takes care of dessert! Back to squash for a second. On my farm stand travels, I picked up some lovely patty pan squash at Morning Glory Farm and beautiful fennel and scallions from Beetlebung Farm. I’m thinking this lovely combo could go all together in a cold soup.
Though I might just slice the squash, grill them simply, and serve them with a “flavor bar” of toppings, from feta cheese and olives to infused olive oil and herbs.
Thinking about fennel and cold soups, I realized that this Leek, Fennel, and Carrot Soup with Ginger and Coriander recipe that I developed this winter is also delicious cold. And Beetlebung still has their lovely carrots. When making the soup to serve cold, add about ¾ cup more cooking liquid so that the pureed soup will be a bit thinner.
Of course fennel is delicious sliced thinly and added raw to salads, such as this Summer Fattoush Salad with Berries and Lemon Dressing we highlighted from the Vermont Farm Table cookbook a couple months ago. Little did we know then how devastated our Vermont farmer friends would be by the recent flooding. Some have lost all of their summer crops. (You can contribute to recovery efforts if you like.)
And now on to main dishes. It’s summertime on the Vineyard, so you’ve got to have shellfish on the menu. Since tomato season is here, too, you can now make one of our most popular Cook the Vineyard recipes: Seared Sea Scallops with Tomato “Butter.”
It’s always a good time to make Oven-Roasted Clams in a Garlicky Tomato Pan Sauce.
But if you want to get fancier for the weekend and have a few friends in, you can put this Flexible Vineyard Seafood Soup-Stew on the menu.
Did somebody drop bluefish off at your back door? Make Cathy Walther’s Maple-Dijon Grilled Bluefish.
Me? I’m thinking of throwing a Butterflied Spice-Rubbed Chicken on the grill or in to the oven this weekend.
And I hear a rumor that Morning Glory Farm corn is only days away…so maybe I’ll be able to put corn on the grill, too. This recipe for Corn Grilled in Foil with Herbs and Butter is my favorite method.
Holy raspberries and zucchini - it's almost August! But I'll see you right here on July 26 and on Instagram at @cookthevineyard. Be sure to follow us if you haven't already.
If you're looking to make a dinner reservation or wondering which farm stands and markets are open, visit What's Open on Martha's Vineyard for regularly updated listings.
