Midwest Living July/August 2015 Recipes

A crisp shortbread crust holds orange pastry cream in this recipe from Allison Gnade and Thomas Agran of Burrowing Owl Bakery, who have established themselves as a fixture at Iowa City's downtown farmers market. They would scatter the berries casually on top, but we couldn't resist stripes.Citrus-Berry Tart

When Kristin Rosenau (thepastryaffair.com) discovered her lactose intolerance, she had to get creative in her Bismarck kitchen. The result: Desserts like Blueberry-Coconut Pavlova, a crispy-chewy pillow of meringue topped with whipped coconut milk and blueberry sauce.Blueberry-Coconut Pavlova

Fresh basil in the dressing lends a hint of pesto-inspired sophistication to this mayo-rich pasta salad.Find more seasonal recipes in our cookbook-style Taste of Summer magazine, available on newsstands or online at midwestliving.com/tasteofsummer.Creamy Spinach-Basil Pasta Salad

If you're the kid who requested the corner slice of birthday cake (with roses!), these ultrasweet Double-Berry Sammies are for you. Crispy sugar cookies sandwich strawberry buttercream and blueberry jam. The recipe comes from Christy Augustin of St. Louis Pint Size Bakery and Coffee. (Yes, it's as tiny and cute as the name would indicate.)Double-Berry Sammies

Erin Mahoney's Cherry Almond Cake is the kind of towering, old-fashioned layer cake you expect to see wearing a blue ribbon at the state fair. The KC blogger (lemon-sugar.com) relies on a boxed mix for fluffy texture but adds scads of sour cream, maraschinos and almond extract to make it her own.Cherry Almond Cake

One-pan cooking, summer-style: As the vegetables and brats finish grilling, nestle them in a pan of seasoned sauerkraut.Grilled Veggies and Brats in Kraut

The bittersweet crumbles on these nutrient-packed parfaits are actually a gluten-free blend of nuts, dates and cocoa. That's because Alex and Sonja Overhiser have a particular soft spot for sweets with a better-for-you streak. At acouplecooks.com, the Indianapolis couple blogs about wholesome, mostly vegetarian cooking. Raw Brownie and Greek Yogurt Parfaits

The deceptively rich but notably not gooey Raspberry Butter Bars from WheatFields Eatery and Bakery in Omaha are perfect for occasions when mess-free desserts appeal (say, a day on the boat). They're darn good with coffee in the morning, too-fitting for a place that specializes in outsize breakfasts.Raspberry Butter Bars

Picky eaters in your family? Bacon-dressed beans will surely tempt them to eat their veggies.Find more seasonal recipes in our cookbook-style Taste of Summer magazine, available on newsstands or online at midwestliving.com/tasteofsummer.Green Beans with Bacon and Onion

How to improve on a childhood classic? First, use real fruit. Second, spike those stripes. In her Boozy Bomb Pops, Hildie Haviland of the Detroit Pop Shop (a fixture at metro-area farmers markets) layers tangy yogurt with vanilla vodka-laced strawberry and blueberry purees.Boozy Bomb Pops

Frosting for a cause? Sold. Chicago's Cupcakes for Courage food truck donates 10 percent of proceeds to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and other nonprofits. Their 50-plus flavors include this stunner, a White Chocolate Raspberry Cupcake topped with a voluptuous swirl of worth-the-effort Swiss meringue buttercream.White Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

These sundaes are more than just another excuse to ride the Mason jar wave. There's genius under that screw-top, thanks to inspiration from Silver Lining Creamery in Rapid City. Bake the cake batter in the jars; pile ice cream, fudge and nuts on top; then stash them in the freezer to serve later. They're perfect for serving at outdoor parties in large silver tubs filled with ice.Red Velvet Sundae Jars

FrozBroz, an underground ice cream biz in Minneapolis, has a Wonka-meets-Robin Hood spirit. Every week, Ben Solberg and Erik Powers give away pints of wildly inventive new flavors like Toasted Grits with Maple Syrup or this scrumptious Jam 'n' Graham Buttermilk Ice Cream, rippled with strawberry jam and graham cracker piecrust crumbles.Jam ‘n' Graham Buttermilk Ice Cream

Protein-rich edamame makes this salad a nutritious meal, especially when paired with whole-grain bread. Find more seasonal recipes in our cookbook-style Taste of Summer magazine, available on newsstands or online at midwestliving.com/tasteofsummer.Tomato Salad with Edamame Succotash

The idea for these mosaiclike Yogurt-Berry Jelly squares (aka wiggly, jiggly bites of happiness) came from Faith Durand's cookbook Bakeless Sweets. The Columbus writer is executive editor of the massively popular website thekitchn.com (and co-author of The Kitchn Cookbook).Yogurt-Berry Jelly Squares

Floral notes from lemon zest, thyme and honey round out the sweet-tart punch of ripe berries in this creation from Shelly Cross and Jill Long of Madison's Humble Sweet and Savory Pies bake shop. Shelly and Jill have some mad pastry skills; amateurs can get creative, too, with the extra dough.  Mixed Berry Slab Pie

We liked the hoppy bitterness of a pale ale for these simmered brats, but you can use a more mild lager.Beer Simmered Brats and Potatoes