It’s August. Tomatoes are coming into their glory.

One of my favorite ways to use the bountiful crop of fresh summer tomatoes is in salads. There are so many choices! Stir them into salads of fresh greens, grain salads, pasta salads, or salads where the main ingredient — the star of the show — is the tomato!

When I lived in Yugoslavia, the word for tomatoes was paradisa — the fruit of paradise! Indeed, nothing compares to a fragrant, juicy tomato, warmed by the late afternoon sun, eaten straight off the vine.

Mollie Katzen writes: “Vine-ripened tomatoes in season should be tampered with as little as possible. After all, who are we mortals to think we can improve upon perfection itself? I like to use them fresh only when in season, and prefer to use a good brand of canned tomatoes off-season.”

As I mentioned last week, there are a zillion varieties of tomatoes. They come in many colors, shapes and sizes. Not all are red; some are orange, others yellow, others purple, black or brown, or green with stripes (the zebra). Heirloom varieties have unique flavors. Make your salad a bouquet of tomatoes.

Tomatoes are high in vitamin C and in the antioxidant lycopene, which is known to reduce the risk of macular degeneration, cardiovascular disease, and certain cancers. Low in calories (35 in a medium tomato), they also provide fiber, vitamins A and B, potassium, iron, and phosphorus.

Do not store tomatoes in the fridge, or they will acquire the bland flavor and starchy texture of winter tomatoes. Keep them at room temperature until ready to use.

Tomatoes are best combined with other sweet and savory seasonal vegetables. Be creative. Use green beans or canned beans (like garbanzos or black or cannellini) in a salad with tomatoes; season with olive oil, basil, salt and add a little feta and olives. Combine tomatoes with cucumbers, zucchini or broccoli.

Make a quick salad with chopped ripe tomatoes, pasta and other vegetables. Herbs like basil and arugula are a great accompaniment, as is extra-virgin olive oil.

We love fresh summer tomatoes sprinkled with a little salt and perhaps some sliced cucumber or sweet onion. No dressing is needed If you wish, use just a little plain Greek yogurt.

Ethnic cuisines bring us many tomato salads. Panzella is a traditional Italian bread and tomato specialty. Salade Aveyronnaise is a classic salad from southwest France, made with tomatoes dressed with bacon, walnuts and Roquefort. Cachumber, a north Indian specialty, combines cucumbers, tomatoes, fresh coriander, fresh lemon and chili pepper seasoned with the Indian spice blend chaat masala. All three are best at room temperature, and some even like them warm.

Summer tomato salads don’t need a lot of greens or fancy salad dressings; you want the flavor of the tomatoes to dominate. And they don’t need to be complicated; most are simple creations requiring a little chopping and a quick stir. The recipes below will get you started; you can come up with many more yourself.

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Greek-Style Tomato Salad for Two

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Very simple and quick.

Ingredients:

2 tomatoes (try different colors) — or about 2 cups diced tomatoes

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon olive oil

1/4 cup fresh minced basil or arugula

1 cup black olives

1/4 to 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:

Wash and dice tomatoes. Place in a bowl, sprinkle with salt and drizzle with oil. Stir to combine.

Wash the basil to remove clinging sand. Chop. Slice olives in thirds. Combine with greens, olives and crumbled feta cheese. Dig in! Serves 2.

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Tomato Salad with Pickles and Peppers

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This basic salad has just four ingredients.

Ingredients:

1 or 2 large tomatoes

2 dill pickles

1 small bell pepper (choose yellow for color combo but it can be green or red too)

1/2 cup sliced scallions or sweet onion

Optional ingredients: wax or green beans, feta cheese, black olives

Directions:

Dice the tomato and add to bowl. Dice the pickles and add. Remove seeds from pepper, dice, and add. Remove root ends and wilted parts from scallion, and slice, or peel and dice the onion and add. Add a tablespoon or two of brine from the pickles, and mince a clove of garlic from the pickle jar; toss all to combine. Let stand at least 15-30 minutes for flavors to blend a bit.

If desired, add lightly steamed garden green or wax beans, and garnish with crumbled feta cheese and/or black olives.

Serves 2.

Note: We use our own homemade brine pickles for this. I would not use sweet pickles.

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Tomato Cucumber Salad

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Ingredients:

1 large tomato

1 medium cucumber

1 / 2 teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon plain yogurt

1 cup minced chives or sliced scallions

Crumbled feta, optional

Directions:

Wash and slice or dice the tomato; wash and slice the cucumber thin. Add salt and a dash of pepper; stir in the yogurt and chives. Allow flavors to mingle 15 or 20 minutes before serving.

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Author of the award-winning cookbook “Garden Gourmet: Fresh & Fabulous Meals from your Garden, CSA or Farmers’ Market,” Yvona Fast lives in Lake Clear and has two passions: Writing and cooking. She can be found at www.yvonafast.com and reached at yvonawrite@yahoo.com or on Twitter: @yvonawrites.