Wrangle recipes from this year's crop of cookbooks

Here's what doesn't make sense: The season that gives us the biggest bang for our food bucks is the same one in which we attempt to flee the kitchen - all because of the heat? C'mon, people. Install a fan or become bakers and canners of the night. Learn how to wrangle a recipe by prepping in the cool of the morning or by placing a griddle on a gas grill for long simmers.

Because the cookbooks of summer will tempt you. They are handsome and charming and informative. They manage to offer blendings of flavors and cultures you might not have thought of on your own. I'd wager you'll be inspired to make more than three recipes from any one of them.

These are listed in order of preference within their categories.

Home Made Summer, by Yvette van Boven (Abrams; $35, 130 recipes). This pleasant collection of recipes lends a certain European sensibility to seasonal cooking, and it could be just the ticket for shaking up a standard rotation of grilled this-and-that with salads on the side. Look for carrot pie with apple and goat cheese; rolled-up feta and garlic bread with radicchio and mint; and stuffed, marinated zucchini blossoms with lavender salt.

Fresh Food Nation: Simple, Seasonal Recipes From America's Farmers, by Martha Holmberg (Taunton Press; $22.95, 125 recipes). No reason to keep hounding your produce provider. This is a comprehensive self-help guide for the farmers-market community-supported-agriculture-member set, with mini profiles of CSA farms nationwide.

A History of Food in 100 Recipes, by William Sitwell (Little, Brown; $35, 100 recipes). What food lovers will be reading at the beach; the format delivers culture in fascinating, digestible chunks. The inclusion of Rice Krispies Treats signals the absence of culinary snobbery.

 Fresh Happy Tasty: An Adventure in 100 Recipes, by Jane Coxwell; $35, 100 recipes). The adventure comes by way of the South African author's work as a private chef to the yachted rich and famous - most recently, for power couple Diane von Furstenberg and Barry Diller. Seafood is the largest chapter, naturally; recipes are written simply, with some techniques highlighted by process photos, such as cleaning squid.

Bakeless Sweets, by Faith Durand (Stewart, Tabori & Chang; $29.95, 100 recipes). Those would be puddings, custards, mousses, individual jellies, icebox cakes, and whipped-cream desserts. And I would be remiss not to mention the Salted Caramel Risotto. Many good variations on baked items, too, including brownies, Meyer lemon bars, and crème brûlée.

The Animal Farm Buttermilk Cookbook: Recipes and Reflections From a Small Vermont Dairy, by Diane St. Clair (Andrews McMeel; $27.99, 100 recipes). Recognize the author's name? She supplies butter and buttermilk to the likes of chefs Thomas Keller and Barbara Lynch. The book's small history lessons go down as smooth as a creamy, cold glass of the stuff in summertime. With this on the shelf, you'll never again wonder what to do with the rest of a bottle.

Gluten-Free Girl Every Day, by Shauna James Ahern with Daniel Ahern (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; $29.99, 120 recipes). Cooking and eating like this Seattle family proves there's joy in "living without," to refer to a regrettably named magazine. Nobody could work their way through this book and feel gustatorially deprived.

Bake It Like You Mean It: Gorgeous Cakes From Inside Out, by Gesine Bullock-Prado (Stewart, Tabori & Chang; $29.95, 70 recipes). Although these creations are some of the most stunningly visual we've seen, they seem possible to re-create and almost irresistible. If assembly steps look too steep to climb, keep in mind that you are concocting works of edible art. Be sure to visit the compilation of book errata on the publisher's website, which involves a larger-than-usual number of recipes.

Flour, Too: Indispensable Recipes for the Cafe's Most Loved Sweets & Savories, by Joanne Chang (Chronicle; $35, 100 recipes). You don't have to visit either Massachusetts location of Flour Bakery + Cafe to appreciate the chef's hand. And you won't necessarily be baking your way through the book, either - the hot and sour soup, the winter paper salad (go ahead, make it in the summer), and the cantaloupe-mint seltzer being three savory recipe reasons why.

Saving the Season: A Cook's Guide to Home Canning, Pickling, and Preserving, by Kevin West (Alfred A. Knopf; $35, 220 recipes). Pleasant surprises await, in the book's unusual recipes and in the author's pectinlike ability to find the right set for blending food lit, essays and smart seasonality.

Southern Living Little Jars, Big Flavors: Small-Batch Jams, Jellies, Pickles, and Preserves From the South's Most Trusted Kitchen (Oxmoor House; $21.95, 110-plus recipes). Bright and good for beginners, this book has solid recipes, thanks to the expertise of Southern cookbook author Virginia Willis. Check out the chapters on "putting-up parties"; they are downright neighborly.

Makes 4 servings

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4 bone-in pork chops (about an inch thick,  8 ounces each)

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons canola oil

5 thin slices prosciutto, rolled up and cut crosswise into thin slices

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 cups chopped fresh baby spinach

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1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Set a large, ovenproof skillet, preferably cast iron, over medium-high heat. Season the pork chops all over with salt and pepper to taste. Place the chops in the skillet and sear them undisturbed for about 5 minutes, until they are browned on the bottom. Turn the chops over, then transfer the skillet to the oven. Roast for about 5 minutes or until their internal temperature registers 140 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. Transfer the meat to a plate to rest while you make the sauce.

2. Return the same skillet to medium-high heat and add the oil. Use your fingers to gently uncoil the strips of prosciutto; add them to the skillet and cook for a few minutes, until they are crisped and some of their fat has been rendered, then use tongs to transfer them to a plate. Add the onion and garlic to the skillet; cook for about 5 minutes, until the onion has softened, stirring occasionally and reducing the heat as needed so the garlic does not burn.

3. Stir in the rosemary and cook for 1 minute, then pour in the cream. Once it has heated through, toss in the chopped spinach and cook just until it has wilted, then return the crisped prosciutto to the mix, tossing to incorporate. Taste, and adjust the seasoning as needed.

4. Divide the chops among individual plates. Spoon the sauce over each chop; serve warm.

Per serving: 360 calories, 28 grams protein, 5 grams carbohydrates, 1 gram sugar, 25 grams fat, 105 mg cholesterol, 370 mg sodium, no dietary fiber.

Makes about 4 cups or 4-6 servings

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2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 cups thinly sliced cleaned leeks (white and light-green parts)

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 sprigs thyme

4 medium tomatoes,  coarsely chopped, plus their juices

1/3 cup sauvignon blanc or other dry white wine

Maldon or other flaky sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Agave syrup (optional)

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1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the leeks, garlic, and thyme. Stir to coat, and reduce the heat to medium; cook for 8 to 10 minutes, until tender but not browned, stirring occasionally.

2. Add the tomatoes with their juices and the wine, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook uncovered for about 30 minutes, adjusting the heat as needed. The mixture will thicken and begin to look like a chunky sauce. Add the agave syrup, if desired; stir and/or mash as needed.

3. Discard the thyme sprigs. Taste, and adjust the seasoning before serving or cooling and storing.

Note: This sauce goes well over your favorite cooked and/or cooled grains, cooked beans, or grilled fish.

Per serving (based on 6): 90 calories, 1 gram protein, 8 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams sugar, 5 grams fat, no cholesterol, 55 milligrams sodium, 2 grams dietary fiber.EndText

Makes 2 cups or 4 servingsEndTextStartText

1 tablespoon cornstarch 1/4 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature

1 large egg yolk

1 cup whole milk

1/4 cup sugar

Grated zest and juice of 1 large lemon

1/2 cup regular or low-fat sour cream EndTextStartText

1. Whisk together the cornstarch and salt in a medium bowl, making sure there are no clumps. Whisk in half of the heavy cream to form a smooth slurry. Use your fingertips to check for/eliminate any clumps.

2. Use a small whisk to beat the cream cheese in a separate medium bowl until it is slightly whipped.

3. Gradually whisk in the remaining cream, then pour in the cornstarch slurry and egg yolk, whisking until well incorporated.

4. Stir together the milk, sugar, and lemon zest in a medium saucepan, then place over medium heat. Once bubbles begin to form at the edges, stir slowly with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom to make sure a skin doesn't form there. Once the surface of the milk mixture begins to quiver a bit on its own, turn off the heat.

5. Pour 1/2 cup of the heated milk mixture into the slurry mixture, whisking to incorporate, then slowly pour that tempered mixture back into the saucepan while whisking; this should take a deliberate and measured 10 seconds to complete.

6. Return the heat to medium and cook for 2 to 5 minutes. The thickened mixture will bubble and burp. Reduce the heat to medium-low or low and whisk until the mixture reaches a puddinglike consistency. Remove from the heat.

7. There will most likely be some small lumps. Use a flexible spatula to press the pudding through a fine-mesh strainer into a shallow container (at least 2-cup capacity). Gently and thoroughly fold in the sour cream. Place plastic wrap directly on the surface. Refrigerate for 1 hour, then stir in the lemon juice. Cover again and refrigerate overnight before serving.

Note: The custard is best made 1 day in advance so it can be thoroughly chilled.

Per serving (using low-fat sour cream): 260 calories, 5 grams protein, 21 grams carbohydrates, 18 grams sugar, 18 grams fat, 115 milligrams cholesterol, 220 milligrams sodium, no dietary fiber.EndText