Look at the change: just a month ago my dinner looked like a comforting stew and right now I can’t think of anything but raw. This is how I know the summer has arrived: eating raw would have been a hard sell to the winter me. Ok, the whole meal does not have to be raw, but I want all the crunch, and color, and juice of tomatoes, cucumbers and fresh herbs. Unadulterated. So I have been frequently eating shepherd salad for dinner. Until I recalled a dish my mother-in-law introduced me to a few years ago.
The green of summer is different from the green of spring. In spring the green comes from the young herbs and wild plants, a welcome change from the pale colors of the winter produce. Spring greens bring bold peppery and bitter flavors to your meals refreshing your palate and helping your body cleanse after the heavy winter diet. The green of summer is nothing like that. It comes with subtle tastes and succulent bodies to cool down and hydrate you. Think green beans, or zucchini, or cucumber.
I find that the simplest dishes often take me the longest to nail down. Take fava, a Turkish spread of dry broad beans. You will find it in every decent meze set in the restaurants and delis of Istanbul and along the Aegean coast. Fava is velvety, smooth and satisfying. It is so good that I can eat it every day. I mean it. I will not think twice about ordering fava at a restaurant even though I cooked it at home just the day before.
