Seasonal Table in 7 Days

We start the week with tomatoes at their peak of ripeness. The tomatoes you'll find on market stalls in summer settle easily into soup, salad, or right alongside the meal — no other vegetable is quite this versatile. Today's tip: store tomatoes at room temperature; the fridge dulls their taste and texture.

Tomatoes are known for their vitamin C content and a plant compound called lycopene. This is a valuable detail for the sake of daily vegetable variety — let's think of it not as a promise of protection against any disease, but as part of a balanced plate.

Day two is dedicated to eggplant — the quiet star of summer tables. Roasted in the oven with basil, it brings a whole different mood to the kitchen through both its aroma and its texture. When buying eggplant, look for a green, fresh stem and glossy skin; that's the simplest sign of freshness.

Eggplant is a vegetable worth noting for its fiber and potassium content; eating it with the skin on lets you benefit more from that fiber. Today you'll get to know eggplant in two different guises — in a warm main dish and in a cool, yogurt-based salad.

Day three, we lighten up with zucchini. Summer zucchini is a high-water-content, light and versatile vegetable; it gives soup a velvety texture and adds freshness to salad. When buying zucchini, choose small to medium ones — as they grow larger, the seeds harden and the flavor becomes watery.

Zucchini is a low-calorie vegetable containing nutrients such as vitamin B6, folate and potassium. Today's pattern brings together both a warm and a cool version of zucchini — getting to know the same vegetable in two different forms is the easiest way to break monotony at the table.

Day four brings us to green beans — summer's most generous legume. Cooked in olive oil, they release their own juices and take on a slightly sweet aroma; paired with mint yogurt, they reveal a whole different side. When trimming the beans, remember to remove the string — it's harder to pull off once cooked.

Green beans are known as a source of fiber and folate; having legumes appear often at the table is a good contribution to variety. Today you'll get to know them through two different olive-oil preparations, simply with different spices and accompaniments.

Day five is dedicated to purslane — one of summer's least known yet most valuable greens. A staple of Aegean and Mediterranean kitchens for centuries, this leafy green, with its slightly tangy taste, works beautifully both in an olive-oil dish and in a yogurt-based salad. When buying purslane, choose leaves that are crisp and glossy; since it wilts quickly, it's best consumed within a few days.

Purslane is one of the rare greens notable for its plant-based alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) content; it also contains vitamin C and various minerals. In today's pattern, we'll try it both warm and cool, in two different dishes.

On day six, we take a sweet break with peas. Fresh peas have a short seasonal window, so it's a good habit to make the most of them the moment you find them. They lend soup a velvety texture and give the main dish a light, sweetish balance. Frozen peas are also a good alternative — since they're frozen quickly after harvest, they lose very little of their nutritional value.

Peas are a legume known as a source of plant protein and fiber; their contribution to the week's legume variety matters. Today you'll get to know them through two simple recipes — one soup, and one plain olive-oil preparation.

We close the week with borlotti beans, the table's quiet hero. This dried-or-fresh legume, cooked in olive oil, leaves behind a distinctive sweet-earthy aroma; served cold as a salad, it's a refreshing option on hot summer days. Soaking borlotti beans a day ahead shortens the cooking time and helps them cook more evenly.

Borlotti beans are a legume worth noting for their plant protein, fiber and iron content. Closing the week with a legume is a nice way to reinforce the variety on your plate — and it leaves a good starting point for next week too.