Hello and welcome to Five Weeknight Dishes, Labor Day Weekend Edition — though it’s more to the point to call it the Tomato Edition, so enamored am I of the fat tomatoes at the market. Given the choice, why eat anything else? (Aside from sweet corn. Eat that too.)
Three of the five recipes below use tomatoes, an honest reflection of how I cook and eat this time of year: They appear on the table every day. To round out the list, and for those who can’t eat tomatoes, I offer you black bean tacos and a superb technique for cooking barbecued chicken.
Have thoughts for me? Suggestions? What would you like to see as we head deeper into September? I’m dearemily@nytimes.com.
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Here are five dishes for the week:
1. Seared Scallops With Jammy Cherry Tomatoes
The word “jammy” in the name of this recipe, by Lidey Heuck, describes the way the cherry tomatoes collapse, condense and sweeten in the pan. She pairs them with scallops and suggests serving with some good bread; pasta would be a nice fit too.
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This recipe by Sam Sifton shines for two reasons: the tangy-smoky-sweet sauce brushed on the chicken, and the technique for moving the chicken around on the grill. (If you don’t have a grill, you can follow the method in this oven-roasted version by Kay Chun.) Corn on the side would be a dream.
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This beautiful tart by Vallery Lomas takes a bit longer to prepare than our typical weeknight recipes, but if you buy the crust, then it’s a breeze to make. The eggs and cheese in the filling provide the heft that makes this dinner.
4. Black Bean Tacos With Avocado and Spicy Onions
Pickled onions are a gift to weeknight cooks. They have the power to instantly enliven every taco, sandwich and salad. Here, Melissa Clark pairs them with spiced black beans and avocado to fill vegetarian tacos. Feel free to leave out the jalapeño from the pickled onions, which will keep for weeks in the fridge and bring you a little bit of happiness.
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