25+ French Easy Summer Recipes
Summer in France means eating outside as much as you possibly can. Weekend lunch drifts into the middle of the afternoon, and dinner waits until the sun has dropped enough that you’re not squinting at your plate. And when it’s 35 degrees, nobody wants to be stuck in a hot kitchen. Me first! So these are the easy summer recipes we actually eat at home when it’s hot. The ones I make again and again, all summer long!
French summer recipes in my kitchen
In summer, I mostly let my garden, my neighbour’s garden and the market decide what I eat. It’s always an exciting time, because, as you know, I get the best tomatoes in the world from Jacky next door. There’s a reason I talk about them so much: they’re fleshy, with hardly any water or seeds, and they taste of sunshine. But I digress! I’m just obsessed with them. I also get courgettes from three different neighbours, plus beautiful lettuces and aubergines. Plenty to cook with!
The French way with summer food is simple: grow it, get it from a neighbour or buy the best you can find, do one or two things to it, and stop there. A ripe tomato with good olive oil, a pinch of flaky salt from Camargue and a few basil leaves? That’s a gorgeous starter, and it needs nothing else. A whole fish roasted with lemon and herbs? Perfect as it is.
Most of these recipes are quick and easy, lots of them under 30 minutes, and some are more putting things on a plate than actual cooking. A few take a bit longer, but you make them ahead and eat them cold or at room temperature. Which is exactly what you want when friends are coming over and it’s far too hot for a three-course meal.
My easy summer recipes for hot days
In summer, I mostly let my garden, my neighbour’s garden and the market decide what I eat. It’s always an exciting time, because, as you know, I get the best tomatoes in the world from Jacky next door. There’s a reason I talk about them so much: they’re fleshy, with hardly any water or seeds, and they taste of sunshine. But I digress! I’m just obsessed with them. I also get courgettes from three different neighbours, plus beautiful lettuces and aubergines. Plenty to cook with!
Little things for the apéro
Put these out with a cold drink. Most of them can be made ahead, and together they're a whole dinner (more on that below!)
1
Mimosa Eggs (French Deviled Eggs)
Hard-boiled eggs filled with a smooth, creamy mixture of yolk, mayonnaise and Dijon mustard, finished with a dusting of grated yolk that looks like mimosa flowers. The filling is rich and softly tangy, lifted by fresh herbs. Simple, elegant, and perfect for apéro-time!
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2
Courgette & feta appetizers
Layers of soft sweet courgette, whipped feta and mascarpone with fresh herbs, and a crunchy cracker base, served chilled in small glasses. Fresh, creamy, a little tangy, with that crunch at the bottom holding everything together.
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3
Fig & Goat Cheese Toasts
Creamy, tangy goat's cheese spread on warm toasted sourdough, topped with sweet fresh figs, toasted crunchy walnuts and a drizzle of honey. The perfect sweet and savoury combination from the south of France.
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4
Spinach Ricotta Tarts
Golden, flaky puff pastry cups filled with a creamy ricotta, spinach, and pea mixture. Light yet rich, with a mineral note from the spinach and sweet bursts from the peas, all wrapped in buttery pastry. Perfect for picnics, snacks, or as elegant appetizers!
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5
Rillettes de thon (Tuna Spread)
A creamy, savoury tuna spread that tastes fresh and rich, with a bright lift from lemon juice and a faint peppery finish. This spread will take you ten minutes and it goes on everything from apéro baguette to picnic sandwiches!
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6
Mini Quiches Salmon Courgettes
Buttery shortcrust pastry cases filled with a creamy custard of smoked salmon, grated courgette and crème fraîche. Gently smoky, creamy, and delicate. And because they're individual smaller ones, there's more golden pastry per bite!
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7
Roasted figs with goat cheese and honey
Ripe figs cut into a cross, filled with creamy goat cheese, scattered with walnuts and thyme, drizzled with honey and roasted for ten minutes. Sweet, savoury, and gooey. It's the French late-summer starter, and it takes about as long to make as it does to open a bottle of wine!
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8
Grilled Aubergines
Aubergine slices brushed with garlic oil and grilled in a cast iron pan until charred, soft and tender. The yogurt and dill sauce alongside is cool, sharp and pairs beautifully. Good as a starter or as a side, or even straight off the grill!
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9
French Savoury Biscuits
These crisp buttery French savoury biscuits are made from one buttery dough with chickpea flour for the perfect snap! Pick from six flavour combinations, from Gruyère and nigella to Comté and walnut. Perfect as an appetizer, apéritif snack or with a glass of wine!
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10
Anchoïade
A rough, intensely flavoured paste of anchovies, garlic, capers, and olive oil, served in a bowl with grilled bread and raw vegetables for dipping. Strong, salty, deeply savoury, this is Provençal aperitif food at its most honest!
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Salads to make in the morning
They're even better after a few hours in the fridge.
11
Salad Niçoise
Tuna, hard-boiled eggs, salty anchovies, briny black olives, artichoke hearts, sweet tomatoes, crisp vegetables all pulled together by a sharp garlicky vinaigrette. Every forkful is special and has something different going on. This is what summer tastes like on the French Riviera!
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12
Fennel Salad
Shaved fennel with lemon juice, toasted sesame seeds, fresh parsley, and a generous pinch of flaky sel de Guérande. Clean, crisp, and ready in ten minutes.
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13
Tabbouleh
Sweet tomatoes and crisp cucumber mixed with tender couscous, all sharpened up with lemon and loads of fresh parsley. It's rich without being heavy, and the mint gives it that fresh, summery kick. Light, bright, and ridiculously easy!
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14
Beetroot Salad
Roasted beetroot, sliced thin and arranged on a plate, dressed with a sharp Dijon mustard and lemon vinaigrette, scattered with toasted pine nuts and a handful of microgreens. Earthy, sharp, and a little nutty. A proper French starter that takes almost no time to assemble once the beetroot is done.
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15
Cucumber Salad
Crisp cucumber slices in a cool, creamy dressing of crème fraîche, chives, and a little Dijon. Sharp and refreshing, with a richness from the crème fraîche that makes it feel substantial. This salad works with everything, quiches, savoury tarts or just on its own with good bread on a warm day.
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Tarts and bakes (best at room temperature)
Bake them early while the kitchen's still cool, and bring them out whenever people get peckish.
16
Tomato Tart
Ripe summer tomatoes on buttery flaky puff pastry with a savory backbone from the Dijon mustard and melted comforting Emmental cheese on top. This is the Provence-style tomato tart!
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17
Quiche Lorraine
Crisp shortcrust pastry filled with a silky egg custard, smoky lardons and sweet caramelised onions. The custard sets to that perfect wobbly texture, creamy in the middle and just firm enough to slice. French comfort food that works for lunch, dinner, or a picnic!
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18
Pissaladière Niçoise
Caramelised onions cooked down until they're sweet and almost jammy, spread over a soft yeasted dough and topped with salty anchovies and black olives. This is Nice's answer to pizza, and it's delish!
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19
Courgette Cake Smoked Salmon
Smoked salmon, grated courgette, dill and Comté baked into a savoury loaf. Moist and gently smoky, with a mild sweetness from the courgette that balances the salmon perfectly. Brilliant warm from the oven, just as good cold the next day!
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20
Stuffed Aubergines with Goat Cheese & Honey
Aubergine roasted until sweet and collapsing, topped with creamy goat cheese, herbs and a drizzle of honey. The combination is rich, tangy, and floral all at once. It's the south of France on a plate!
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21
Leek Tart with Lardons
Silky, buttery leeks folded into a light binder with smoky lardons and nutty Gruyère, all baked in a golden, crisp shortcrust shell. Rich, savory, and comforting, this rustic French tart is simply irresistible!
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Salads to make in the morning
Half an hour, a handful of ingredients, and you're at the seaside.
22
Roasted Sea Bream
Crispy golden skin, tender flaky flesh perfumed with lemon and herbs, all drizzled with good olive oil. Classic French coastal cooking, a few ingredients and half an hour in the oven for a ridiculously good result. The dish that makes everyone go quiet whilst they eat.
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23
Moules frites
Plump mussels steamed in white wine, garlic and shallots until they open, in a buttery, garlicky broth that smells like the sea. The mussels are sweet and tender and the broth is rich enough to dip your fries into it! This is the Belgian-French seaside classic.
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Summer desserts
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24
Lemon Cake with Yogurt
A dense, moist lemon cake with yogurt and a bold citrus intensity. Rich, buttery, and unapologetically lemony, it's the ultimate cake for lemon lovers!
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25
Strawberry Tart
Fresh, ripe strawberries arranged over a light, vanilla-scented diplomat cream in a crisp, buttery sweet shortcrust pastry shell. The cream is somewhere between a custard and a mousse, rich but not heavy. The perfect summer dessert!
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26
Melba Peach
White peaches poached in vanilla syrup, laid over vanilla ice cream, with a sharp vivid raspberry purée and a scatter of toasted almonds. This is Escoffier's original recipe, created at the Savoy in the 1890s for opera singer Nellie Melba!
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27
Lemon Tartlets
Crisp, buttery pâte brisée cases filled with a silky citrus cream. Sharp and bright at first, then settling into something soft, mellow, and almost custardy underneath. Rich and refreshing at the same time, with the pastry adding a sandy crunch!
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28
Layered Strawberry Dessert
Fresh strawberries layered with a rich and lightly sweet vanilla mascarpone cream and crushed Breton shortbread. The strawberries are sharp and juicy, and the shortbread at the bottom stays just crisp enough to give texture against both. The perfect summer dessert!
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The apéro dînatoire (our favourite lazy summer dinner)
On really hot evenings, a lot of French people don’t bother with dinner at all. Well, not a proper cooked one at least. You just sit outside with a glass of cold rosé or kir and warm air on your skin and have the apéro that turns into dinner. That’s what we name the so called “apéro dînatoire”. Instead of a few crisps before the meal, you put out enough little things that nobody needs a main course. Everyone sits outside, picks at the table, and suddenly it’s eleven o’clock and you’re full!
The apéro section above is made for this. Mimosa eggs, the courgette and feta glasses straight from the fridge, a plate of fig and goat cheese toasts, a few mini quiches or spinach tarts… honestly, that’s dinner for six. If people are really hungry, add a slice of tomato tart or pissaladière and a big bowl of tabbouleh. But beware, I know from my own experience I always think there isn’t enough, but there’s always a lot of left-overs. Perfect for the next day of course!
How I cook when it’s too hot to cook
My trick in a heatwave: cook once, early in the morning while the house is still cool, then eat well all day.
| In the morning | I bake the tarts and roast the aubergines. I make the taboulé so the lemon, oil and herbs have hours to soak in. And I boil the eggs for the mimosa eggs and the niçoise. |
| In the middle of the day | Everything goes in the fridge or under a clean tea towel, and the oven stays off. |
| In the evening | I put the niçoise together, fill the eggs and make the toasts. If someone really wants something hot, the sea bream or the mussels only take about half an hour. |
That’s why so much French summer food is eaten at room temperature. Nothing has to be piping hot, nothing minds sitting on the table for a while, and everyone can stay as long as they like. Just keep anything with eggs, cream or fish in the fridge until you’re ready to eat.
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Where I’d start
New to French summer food? Start with the salade niçoise from Nice. It’s easy to put together, you can change it with whatever you have, and it’s filling enough that you won’t be raiding the fridge an hour later.
After that, anything with tomatoes. Wait until they’re really ripe and almost anything you do with them tastes of summer. The tomato tart is the one I make the most. The stuffed aubergines are lovely on a warm evening when you want something a bit more filling but still light. And if friends are coming, make one of the tarts in advance and serve it at room temperature. When everyone arrives, the only job left is opening another bottle!
FAQ
What do French people eat in summer?
Light, simple food, and as much of it outside as possible! Big salads like salade niçoise and taboulé, savoury tarts, fish, mussels, and loads of raw tomatoes and courgettes. A lot of it is eaten cold or at room temperature, often after a long apéro.
What is an apéro dînatoire?
It’s an apéro that turns into dinner. You put out enough little dishes (eggs, toasts, mini quiches, tarts, salads) that nobody needs a main course. On hot evenings in France, it’s how a lot of us eat.
What can I make ahead for an easy summer dinner?
Taboulé, salade niçoise, tomato tart, pissaladière and stuffed aubergines can all be made in the morning and eaten in the evening at room temperature.
Is French tabbouleh the same as tabbouleh?
Not quite! Lebanese tabbouleh is mostly parsley with a little bulgur. French taboulé uses couscous, with tomato, cucumber, lemon and herbs. Every French supermarket sells it ready-made in summer, but homemade is so much better.
Do you have to cook the leeks first?
Yes. Raw leeks stay firm and release water as the tart bakes. Cooking them slowly in butter first makes them sweet and silky, and it’s the base of the creamy binder that fills the tart.
I live for those summer evenings when everything on the table is relaxed and at room temperature, nobody’s in a hurry, and the evening goes on much longer than anyone planned. These easy summer recipes are the opposite of winter comfort food, and that’s exactly why they taste so good!
What’s your go-to summer recipe when it’s too hot to cook properly? Are you a cold salad person or do you brave the barbecue? Tell me in the comments!
