Kielbasa and Veggie Skillet (Provided photo — Yvona Fast)

Right now, there is an abundance of seasonal veggies. Tender new potatoes. Yellow and green beans. Green and yellow zucchini. Young tender carrots. Tomatoes in all sizes, colors and shapes. Swiss chard, kale, spinach. Cauliflower, broccoli, broccolini, bok choy, Napa, radishes, kohlrabi. It’s peak harvest season and there is little the farmers market doesn’t have.

Fresh veggies have lots of fiber, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants … and are low in calories. With all these vegetables at their peak of freshness and flavor, it is easy to exceed the government’s “five a day” recommendations! Combine them with a little meat — like ham, sausage or diced chicken — and potatoes or pasta for quick summer meals.

Summer fare calls for fresh, light meals that don’t heat up the house by using the oven, and don’t require standing long over a hot stove. Most vegetables cook quickly and can easily make a fast weeknight skillet supper; the most time-consuming part is slicing and dicing them. Cook pasta, grain or potatoes while you’re preparing the skillet. Tender new potatoes, pasta and quick cooking grains like quinoa, bulgur or couscous make summer cooking fast and easy. Just add fresh summer veggies and chopped ripe tomatoes for quick, easy and scrumptious summer fare.

Add protein. Choose from meats like ham, sausage or chicken; canned beans; mushrooms. Ham is instant, requiring no prep, and packed with flavor. Fresh sausage is easy to cook with, so it’s wonderfully convenient. Smoked or cured sausage, like Polish kielbasa, Italian salami and Spanish chorizo is another source of protein that doesn’t require long cooking.

Skillets make quick one-dish meals that take little effort to put together. Just a few ingredients — sausage and veggies, maybe a sauce — and it all cooks together quickly, with little fuss. Eat it with bread or cook pasta or a grain (but that will require another pan). And you will have a delicious meal! One skillet makes enough for two, three or four people, depending on appetites.

–

Potato, Ham and Veggie Skillet

–

Ingredients:

A little olive oil and butter for the pan (a couple teaspoons)

1 or 2 potatoes

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 or 2 yellow beets

1/2 onion or a few scallions

Handful or 2 fresh green beans

2 or 3 portobello mushrooms

Garlic scapes

A couple tablespoons broth or water

About 1/3 cup fresh minced parsley

3 slices ham (about a cup, diced)

Directions:

Heat oil or melt butter in pan. Chop potatoes, add, and sprinkle with salt. Cover and cook on low. Chop the beets, and add. Peel and chop onion, and add. Stir after each addition, and continue cooking on low with a tight-fitting lid.

Remove stem ends from beans; cut in half or thirds and add. Slice mushrooms and scapes, and add.

If vegetables are beginning to stick, add a little liquid. Add chopped fresh parsley and ham, and stir again. If desired, sprinkle with a tablespoon or two of sharp cheese, like Cheddar or Parmesan. Serves 2 to 3.

Notes: Experiment with using other vegetables, like fresh peas, carrots or zucchini.

–

Sausage and Veggie Skillet

–

Ingredients:

1/2 pound sweet sausage (like Italian)

1 onion

4 ounces sliced mushrooms

Potatoes (2 cups diced, or 2 cups small baby potatoes)

1 medium or 2 small carrots

Handful green beans (about 2 cups)

1/2 small cabbage (or bok choy or Napa)

1 summer squash, such as zucchini or patty-pan

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

1 Tablespoon flour

1/2 cup Cheddar cheese

Directions:

Break sausage into a large skillet and cook on low to render fat about five minutes. Peel and chop the onion and add. Slice mushrooms and add. Cover and cook sausage with onions and mushrooms on low five minutes. Add potatoes, carrots, beans, and cabbage. Sprinkle with salt and cook on low, stirring, 5-10 minutes or so. Add the squash and cook 2-5 minutes more, until everything is tender.

In a small saucepan blend milk with some of the vegetable liquid from the pan and flour, whisking rapidly over low heat, until blended and smooth. Add cheese and cook, whisking or stirring, until thickened. Stir into veggie skillet. Serve with a salad tossed salad of fresh greens. Serves 3.

–

Dilly New Potatoes with Chicken and Radishes

–

Ingredients:

2-3 teaspoons butter or olive oil

1 large chicken breast (8 to 12 oz.)

1 pint small red-skinned potatoes (about 6 to 10, depending on size)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 onion

1 bunch radishes

1/2 cup broth or water

1/2 bunch dill (about 1 cup, minced)

Directions:

Remove greens, stems and root ends from radishes. Scrub to remove sand and dirt. Set aside. (You can add the washed, chopped radish greens in this dish, but it is optional).

Scrub potatoes, and slice in 1/4-inch slices.

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper on both sides. Quickly brown it, 2-4 minutes per side. Set aside.

Add butter to same skillet. Add potatoes, sprinkle with salt, cover, and cook, stirring every 2-3 minutes.

Peel and dice the onion; stir into the cooking potatoes. Add the scrubbed, halved radish bulbs. Moisten with broth. Cook together about 10 minutes, until potatoes and radishes are tender. Add reserved chicken. Add chopped greens now, if using.

In cup or bowl, stir together 1 cup sour cream with 1 Tablespoon flour. Add a little broth from the skillet to moisten. Stir this into the skillet, along with the chopped dill. Simmer 1-2 minutes for sauce to heat through.

Serve, with a tossed salad on the side. Serves 2-3.

–

Creamy Chicken and Zucchini Skillet

–

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. chicken breast, skinless-boneless

Salt and pepper

1 large onion

2 cloves garlic

1 or 2 medium zucchini (3-4 cups, sliced)

1 red bell pepper

1/3 cup sour cream

1 Tablespoon flour

1/4-1/3 cup minced fresh dill

Directions:

Coat bottom of skillet with oil. Heat to medium; add chicken, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and brown 2-3 minutes, stirring and turning occasionally. Remove to cutting board; set aside to cool, then slice into bite-sized pieces.

Peel and dice the onion; add to the skillet, sprinkle with a little salt, cover, and continue cooking and stirring 4-6 minutes. Peel and mince the garlic, add, along with zucchini. Cover and continue cooking on low about five minutes.

Dice the bell pepper, stir into the skillet, and continue cooking about five minutes.

In a small bowl, blend together sour cream, flour and some of the liquid from the skillet. Stir this back into the skillet, along with the dill. Heat 1-2 minutes; taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

Serve with young potatoes and a salad of fresh greens.

Serves 2 – 3.

Note: For a vegetarian option, omit meat and stir in 2 cups cooked or canned garbanzo beans (chick peas) at the end with the dill.

— — —

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 X: @yvonawrites.