Summer

Tomatoes take a bath in olive oil, then are finished with breadcrumbs.

This puffy, soufflé-like pancake starts in your blender and makes a fantastic dessert—or breakfast. The honey-sweetened compote works well with fresh or frozen cherries.

This crumble-topped pie stars the flavors of an Old Fashioned cocktail. Our secret weapon: jarred sour cherries (just think of all those cherries you won't have to pit!). We like Trader Joe's Dark Morello Cherries, but other brands work well, too.

This oily fish gets a summery makeover in this tomato-heavy salad.

Andrea Reusing, chef at Lantern in Chapel Hill, NC, cooks whole ears of corn in the dying embers of a charcoal fire after the burgers or pork chops have finished cooking. "I love the efficiency of it," she says. The waning heat produces some sweeter bites and others that are more charred. Keep the husks on to protect the corn, and soak the ears before they hit the embers so the kernels don't dry out.

Grunts get their quirky name from the fact that the fruit, which is topped with dumplings and cooked on the stove in a covered skillet, can make a grunting sound as the dessert steams. Molasses adds sweetness and a lovely depth of flavor.

The creamy peanut marinade comes together in just minutes. For maximum flavor, we like to soak the chicken for at least three hours.

Like the classic combination of melon and prosciutto? Then you'll love this main-course pasta salad.

This recipe is a template, open to endless riffs depending on what vegetables you have on hand. No matter what seasonal produce you use, remember to keep an eye out for a mix of colors.

Because overcooking can cause this comforting pudding to separate, take it out of the oven when it's still slightly wiggly in the center. Then give it a quick flash under the broiler to brown it.

In this delicious double dose of pork, the tenderloin stays juicy inside a crispy pancetta crust. Make sure to save any extra chutney—you'll want it for pork sandwiches the next day.

Hollowed-out cherry tomatoes are spiked with horseradish mayo in this summery appetizer.

Truly ripe tomatoes don't need much more than olive oil, salt, and herbs.

The warm flavors of the Indian-accented butter elevate classic creamed corn. When making this dish, scrape juices from corn cobs with the back of a knife to extract as much milk as possible.

It's hard to imagine anything better than freshly picked ears of corn roasting to golden-brown goodness on the grill. One taste of our Honey-Ginger Barbecue Sauce and you'll be wondering why you ever stuck to plain ol' butter. This sweet and tangy sauce transforms the season's staple produce into a standout, flame-kissed favorite. Editor's Note: This recipe is part of Gourmet's Modern Menu for A Fourth of July Cookout. Menu also includes Grilled Shrimp with Honey-Ginger Barbecue Sauce and Red, White, and Blue Ice Cream Cake.

Of all the ways to prepare shrimp, the grill delivers the best flavor. Although unadorned "shrimp on the barbie" are great, an easily assembled gingery barbecue sauce makes them that much better. You can save time by buying already shelled and deveined shrimp, but our recipe developer, Alexis Touchet, who grew up in shrimp country in southwest Louisiana, thinks shell-on shrimp are better quality. Depending on where you live and what's in your market, you may not have much choice. Freshness trumps all, so don't hesitate to use your nose in deciding which shrimp to buy.

When it comes to ice cream cakes, there are no hard-and-fast rules as to what form they can take. Some consist solely of ice cream molded and then decorated to resemble a cake, while others intersperse layers of ice cream with thin layers of cake, crisp meringue, or even crumbled cookies. Our red, white, and blue July 4th extravaganza is a gorgeous amalgam of ice cream, cake, and blueberries and raspberries cooked separately into their own jammy fillings. Frosted simply in sweetened whipped cream and topped with more berries, this cake sparkles as much as the fireworks in the sky! Editor's Note: This recipe is part of Gourmet's Modern Menu for A Fourth of July Cookout. Menu also includes Grilled Corn with Honey-Ginger Barbecue Sauce and Grilled Shrimp with Honey-Ginger Barbecue Sauce.

Toss the season's first ripe peaches into a tangy relish to spoon over smoky grilled pork chops for the first official day of summer.

Why use frozen berries in the summer, when local fruit is at its peak? Because we love fresh local berries so much when whole or, in the case of strawberries, when sliced as well, puréeing them seems almost a sacrilege. If, however, you've got a surplus of fresh berries, go ahead and purée them.