How to whip up a summer meal without turning on the stove

You see where this is going: It’s August, and if your kitchen is anything like mine, it’s really toasty, even when the oven is cold. So let me tell you how to put a meal on the table without breaking a sweat.

No grilling; just chilling. No scrimping; just room temping.

In addition to staying cool, you may end up learning a couple of clever techniques: How to make chilled soup like a smoothie. How to press a sandwich by sitting on it.

I will also show you how to turn a cantaloupe into an all-purpose dish that can function as a salad, or as a little something sweet at the end of the meal.

Let’s start with sandwiches. They can be as simple as tomato and mayo on bread. If you’ve got a BLT hankering, buy some pre-cooked bacon. Or go all Dagwood style by adding avocado, cheese, sprouts, herbs, cucumbers or pickle. Tuna salad is another no-cook option.

In the end, I crammed it all into one by making a classic Provencal Pan Bagnat, which layers and compresses all kinds of good summer-y stuff into one neat little package.

Simply slice a rustic loaf or baguette in half. Douse it with olive oil. (Pan Bagnat means “bathed bread.”) Then stuff it with canned tuna, sliced tomatoes, marinated cucumbers, olives, basil leaves and so on. Native to Nice, the sandwich has many of the same ingredients as Salad Nicoise, so if you feel like adding crunchy haricots verts, go for it. (If you steam them a few minutes, I’ll never tell.)

After wrapping the finished Pan Bagnat in plastic, foil and a plastic bag for good measure, you need to flatten it. That way, the bread will absorb the juices, and all those chopped-up things won’t fall out when you slice the sandwich.

You can weigh the loaf down by using a cutting board. Press hard! It may take a few minutes. If so, enlist a heavy pot, a stack of bricks, or heavy books to secure the chopping block.

You can even place the sammy on a stool or chair, cover it with the cutting board — and sit on it. (That’s what I did, and it worked.)

While the Pan Bagnat is chilling, whip up a cold soup.

Gazpacho comes to mind, be it classic Andalusian tomato-based or white versions of pureed almonds and breadcrumbs, with cool green grapes and crunchy cucumber stirred in.

On a recent outing to the Red Barn Cafe at Tiger Mountain Vineyards in Rabun County, I tasted chef David Sweeney's heavenly chilled soup of Georgia peaches, buttermilk, ginger and sesame-seed garnish. (The Atlanta chef is making a pop-up-style appearance at the North Georgia winery through October.)

When I asked him for a cold soup recipe, he gladly obliged with Chilled Summer Corn and Buttermilk Soup, which has a slight South-of-the-border accent, thanks to a hint of cumin and garnish of avocado, jalapeno and cilantro.

But here’s the clincher: “To make this soup nice and frothy and cool off your guests,” Sweeney says, “I recommend cutting the corn off the cob the night before and putting it in the freezer. Much like making a smoothie, you add the frozen corn to the wet ingredients just before blending and serving.”

A corn smoothie. Why that’s brilliant.

To finish off this coolicious meal, I considered ices, granitas, trifles layered with cookies, berries and cream. Or a cheese plate with honey and jam or fruit.

Flipping through Sabrina Ghayour's "Sirocco: Fabulous Flavors From the Middle East" (Clarkson Potter, $3o), I spotted Cantaloupe, Feta, Greek Basil & Pumpkin Seed Salad. Just beautiful.

I opted for honey instead of olive oil and black pepper in place of Aleppo. I omitted the pumpkin seeds but think they would be lovely. So would toasted walnuts.

I wouldn’t try to pass this off as dessert, but it is just treacly enough to satisfy a sweet craving. It also reminds me of my childhood on a Georgia farm: We salted watermelon and peppered cantaloupe.

And now a confession: With apologies to my potato-salad friend, I did turn on the stove to make this meal.

But just once. And only for nine minutes. I boiled two eggs for the Pan Bagnat. (I told you this was hard!)

But hey, if you can’t boil an egg or you don’t want to light a burner, not to worry. The sandwich is perfectly good without, so juicy and so cold, like taking a swim on an August day.

Recipes

No-cook soup, sandwich and salad

Here’s a menu for an easy summer meal that doesn’t require you to turn on the stove. All of these recipes can be made in advance and chilled until ready to eat. To drink, we suggest a cold bottle of rose or a pitcher of lemonade.

Chef David Sweeney’s Chilled Summer Corn and Buttermilk Soup

Sweeney says the richness of the soup comes from adding chickpea miso. (He suggests Miso Master brand, available at local markets like Sevananda and DeKalb Farmers Market.)

3 cups fresh corn (cut from cob)

3 cups buttermilk

1 tablespoon apple-cider vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

Zest of 1/2 lime

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

2 medium shallots, chopped

2 tablespoons chickpea miso (he uses Miso Master brand)

1/4 teaspoon powdered cumin

1/4 teaspoon powdered turmeric

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1 tablespoon agave nectar (optional; may use honey)

16 cherry tomatoes, cut in half (4 halves per soup)

2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced (may use serranos)

1/2 cup of cilantro sprigs

1 avocado, peeled and sliced

Place corn, buttermilk, apple-cider vinegar, olive oil, lime zest, lime juice, shallots, chickpea miso, cumin, turmeric and sea salt in a blender or food processor, and emulsify. In a machine with a sharp blade, this should take no longer than 1 minute, possibly less. Any longer and you will begin to add heat to the soup. It should become frothy and easy to pour directly from blender into soup bowls. (Note: Depending on the size of your blender or food processor, you may need to work in batches to avoid spills.) Taste for seasonings; add agave nectar or honey, if desired, for sweetness.

Distribute soup into bowls and garnish with cherry tomatoes, jalapenos, cilantro and avocado. The avocado may sink into the soup, but it’s such a nice surprise to come across while eating. Serves: 8

Per serving: 185 calories (percent of calories from fat, 40), 7 grams protein, 24 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 9 grams fat (2 grams saturated), 3 milligrams cholesterol, 381 milligrams sodium.

Pan Bagnat

Feel free to do your own variation of this classic. Lettuce, cheese, fennel, pickle, radishes, peppers and pickles: All would make nice additions.

1 loaf crusty bread (may use baguette, ciabatta or a round country loaf; ideally, you want a flatter loaf)

Extra-virgin olive oil

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 anchovy fillets, minced (optional)

1 1/2 teaspoons red-wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

Freshly ground pepper

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 Kirby cucumber or 1/2 regular cucumber, thinly sliced

1 (5- to 6-ounce) can of tuna packed in olive oil, drained

2 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and chopped (optional)

1 medium ripe tomato, sliced

1/2 small onion, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons sliced pitted olives, preferably a mix of black and green

8-10 large basil leaves

Slice the loaf in half lengthwise. (If you are using a fat, round loaf, you may want to pull out some of the soft interior to make room for the filling.) Douse both halves with olive oil, about 2 tablespoons per side. Set aside.

Place garlic clove on a cutting board and chop, sprinkling with salt as you go along. Press with the side of the knife blade to make a paste. Place garlic in a medium bowl with anchovies, vinegar, mustard and a heavy pinch or two of black pepper. Mix well. Drizzle in 2 tablespoons of olive oil, whisking constantly. Place cucumbers in the bowl and stir to coat. Set aside.

Spoon tuna over bottom side part of sliced loaf. Top with egg (if using), tomato, the marinated cucumbers, onion, olives and basil leaves. Drizzle any remaining vinaigrette over the filling. Place top of loaf on the bread, and press gently.

Cover tightly with plastic wrap, then tin foil, and place in a plastic bag. Using a cutting board or chopping block, press firmly on the sandwich. You want to make it as flat as possible. You may have to put it on a chair or stool, cover with the cutting board, and sit on it. Or you may use a heavy skillet or Dutch oven, bricks or heavy books to weigh down the sandwich.

You may slice into pieces and serve or chill until ready to eat, up to 24 hours. The longer you wait, the better it tastes. Serves: 6-8.

Per serving, based on 6: 332 calories (percent of calories from fat, 47), 15 grams protein, 29 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 17 grams fat (3 grams saturated), 77 milligrams cholesterol, 732 milligrams sodium.

Cantaloupe with Feta, Honey and Herbs

Super easy to assemble and pretty to look at, this dish can work as a salad or gently sweet almost-dessert. Use this recipe as a template, and feel free to embellish to suit your fancy. We like it with a sprinkling of black pepper. You can also try cayenne, paprika, Espelette or Aleppo pepper. Perhaps a drizzle of olive oil; a squirt of lime or lemon to freshen; a sprinkling of toasted walnuts or pumpkin seeds for crunch. Basil and mint are lovely in summer, but use any herbs of choice.

1 large cantaloupe

3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/3 to 1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup tiny basil leaves (such as Greek, boxwood or lemon basil; if you only have sweet basil, tear gently into small pieces)

1/4 cup tiny mint leaves (or gently torn large leaves)

Freshly cracked black pepper

Halve the cantaloupe, and scoop out seeds. Slice into quarters, and using a very sharp knife, trim off the skin, removing all green parts. Slice quarters into strips. Arrange on a serving platter. Sprinkle with feta, drizzle with honey, and top with herb leaves. Season with freshly cracked black pepper. Serve immediately or cover and chill until ready to eat. Serves: 4-6.

Per serving, based on 4: 211 calories (percent of calories from fat, 25), 5 grams protein, 36 grams carbohydrates, 2 grams fiber, 6 grams fat (4 grams saturated), 25 milligrams cholesterol, 329 milligrams sodium.