Cook

PREPARE NO-COOK MEALS

It’s hot enough without turning on the oven or stove top. Plus, this is the month for peak-of- season summer produce—tomatoes and cucumbers and zucchini and peppers—that will make any store-bought shortcut taste fresh.

Build dinners on heat-free foundations—homemade hummus or guacamole, for example—and pantry staples such as canned beans and tinned fish. Think panzanella made with day-old crusty bread (add chickpeas for protein); gazpacho with precooked shrimp; Middle Eastern wraps with tahini, cucumbers, tomatoes, and vacuum-packed lentils; and (below) an Asian-style bowl with marinated tofu, baby bok choy, no-cook rice noodles (they become tender after soaking in hot water for ten minutes), and an easy sauce made with peanut butter, honey, soy sauce, scallions, and fresh ginger, plus sliced Thai chiles and peanuts for the garnish.

GENTLE REMINDERS

Take advantage of old-fashioned home-cooling techniques. Keep curtains drawn during the hottest part of the day, and at other times open windows and allow cross-breezes to cool the space. Run ceiling fans in occupied rooms—they can make the space feel up to four degrees cooler.

Replant basil early in the month. Most varieties mature in about 70 days, so this planting will be ready around the same time as late- summer tomatoes—a natural pair.

Planning a trip? Enlist a friend or neighbor to look after and water your plants, especially any hanging planters, which can dry out in as little as a day when the weather is hot and dry.