What to cook now

You need

• 1½ lb ripe tomatoes
• 2 cans white beans, rinsed
• ½ red onion or 2 green onions
• A handful of basil or parsley
• 3 tbsp olive oil, splash of vinegar or half a lemon
• Salt, pepper

Do this

1. Cut tomatoes into rough chunks, salt them well, let them sit 5 minutes — the salt pulls out the juice that becomes your dressing.
2. Add beans, thinly sliced onion, torn herbs.
3. Oil, vinegar, toss, taste. It's better after 20 minutes and still good tomorrow.

You need

• 2 medium zucchini, grated
• 2 ears corn (or 1½ cups frozen)
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup flour, ½ tsp salt
• Oil for the pan
• Yogurt + hot sauce to serve (optional, correct)

Do this

1. Grate the zucchini, salt it, squeeze it dry in your fists or a towel. This squeeze is the entire difference between crisp and soggy.
2. Mix with corn, eggs, flour, salt — thick batter.
3. Fry spoonfuls in a hot oiled pan, ~3 minutes a side, until deeply golden.

You need

• 2 ripe peaches or nectarines
• 1½ cups plain yogurt
• ½ cup rolled oats
• Honey or sugar, pinch of salt

Do this

1. Toast the oats in a dry pan with a pinch of salt until they smell nutty. (Skip it — raw oats are fine — and the whole recipe is no-stove.)
2. Tear the fruit apart over bowls of yogurt. Ripe June peaches tear; that's how you know they're ready.
3. Oats on top, drizzle of honey.

You need

• 1½ cups rice + 2 cans beans (the food box backbone)
• 1 tsp cumin or chili powder
• 2 large tomatoes, ¼ onion
• 1 lime or splash of vinegar, salt
• Cilantro if the market had it

Do this

1. Cook the rice however you cook rice. Last 5 minutes: rinsed beans and cumin go in on top to warm.
2. Chop tomato and onion fine; lime and salt. That's the salsa — don't overthink it.
3. Hot rice, cold salsa, done. The temperature contrast is the point.

You need

• 2 large cucumbers
• 1½ cups plain yogurt + ½ cup cold water
• 1 small garlic clove
• 2 tbsp olive oil, salt
• Mint or dill if available

Do this

1. Grate the cucumbers into a bowl, skin on. (Blender if you have one — everything at once.)
2. Stir in yogurt, water, grated garlic, oil, salt.
3. Chill if you can wait. Over ice if you can't. It's July-in-Sacramento survival food.

You need

• 1 lb strawberries (peak-season flats are the cheap ones), halved
• 1½ cups rolled oats, 1 cup flour
• ½ cup + 1 tbsp sugar, ¼ tsp salt
• 1 stick butter, melted

Do this

1. Toss berries with 1 tbsp sugar. Mix everything else into a crumbly dough — one bowl.
2. Press ⅔ of the dough into a lined 8×8 pan, berries over it, scatter the rest on top.
3. 375°F, 35 minutes, golden. Cool fully before cutting. Yes, fully. We know.