Summer salad and light pasta

You can supposedly have dinner on the table in 22 minutes using this recipe. And who wants to be in the kitchen in the heat of the summer?

Instead of boiling the pasta in a lot of water like you normally do, this recipe has you boil it in only 3½ cups which is all it will take to cook the pasta and everything else.

One-Pot Pasta Primavera with Shrimp

12 ounces short pasta, such as penne or fusilli

3 1/2 cups hot water

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 1/2 tsp (or more) kosher salt

3/4 tsp (or more) freshly ground black pepper

1 (10-ounce) bag frozen broccoli florets

6 ounces green beans, preferably haricots verts, trimmed

8 ounces large shrimp, peeled, deveined

1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

1 cup frozen green peas

3 tbsp unsalted butter

1 tsp finely grated lemon zest

3/4 cup finely grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

1/4 cup coarsely chopped basil

Red pepper flakes (for serving; optional)

Place pasta in a large, wide-bottomed pot or large, wide, straight-sided pan. Add garlic, salt, black pepper, and the hot water. Cover and bring to a boil.

Once boiling, uncover and cook, setting a timer for cooking pasta according to package directions and stirring often. When five minutes remain on timer, stir in broccoli and green beans. Cover pot and return to a boil. (If pot starts to dry out at any point, add another 1/2 cup water.)

When two minutes remain on timer, stir in shrimp, tomatoes, peas, and butter. Cover and continue to cook two minutes, then uncover and cook, stirring, until pasta is tender, shrimp are cooked through, and water is almost completely evaporated, about 1 minute more.

Remove from heat. Stir in lemon zest and 3/4 cup Parmesan and toss to coat. Season with more salt and pepper, if needed. Divide pasta among plates. Top with basil, additional Parmesan, and red pepper, if using

Here’s a salad meal using rotisserie chicken from the store—and its juices so don’t throw them out. The Panzanella salad is Italian and is a way to use up stale bread. Not sandwich bread but a nice crusty baguette. If your bread isn’t stale just put them in the oven to toast while you prepare the other ingredients.

This is a very basic recipe but almost any pickled vegetable could be added: olives, roasted red peppers, giardiniera and the like.

Chicken Panzanella Salad

5 cups torn bread pieces

1/4 cup chicken drippings or chicken stock

4 cups shredded chicken

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

1 medium cucumber, sliced

1/2 small red onion, sliced thin

1/4 cup basil, torn

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp red or white wine vinegar

Coarse salt

If you have very stale, crunchy bread, you don't need to toast your bread. Just tear it into pieces. If you are using fairly fresh bread, spread the pieces out on a baking sheet in a single layer, then toast at 400 for about 10 minutes.

When the bread is toasted, spread the pieces on a large serving platter in a single layer or close to it. Drizzle with chicken drippings or chicken stock.

Spread the shredded chicken evenly over the bread. Do the same with the tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion and basil. Drizzle the whole salad with the extra virgin olive oil, red or white wine vinegar and sprinkle with coarse salt.

Salad leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to two days.