6 easy and delicious Ina Garten dishes you need to make this summer

• I've made dozens of Ina Garten's recipes, and some of her dishes are perfect for summer.
• Garten's Greek orzo salad and summer garden pasta are light and fresh.
• Her mocha chocolate icebox cake and blueberry-ricotta breakfast cake are perfect sweet treats.

Over the past few years, I've whipped up dozens of Ina Garten's breakfast, pasta, and dessert recipes while teaching myself how to cook.

The "Barefoot Contessa" star has delicious dishes for every season, and some of my favorites are perfect for summer. They can be enjoyed every month of the year, but I think you'll especially love them during the sunny season.

From a cake that makes grown men weep to a pasta that will remind you of Italy, these are Garten's best summer dishes.

Ina Garten's blueberry-ricotta breakfast cake is the perfect way to start your morning.

Garten's blueberry-ricotta breakfast cake appears in her cookbook "Go-To Dinners." She's also shared the recipe to celebrate Mother's Day.

Along with fresh blueberries and whole-milk ricotta, the cake features lemon zest, pure vanilla extract, and a dusting of powdered sugar on top.

It takes only about 45 to 50 minutes to bake, and it makes for an impressive centerpiece.

Garten's blueberry-ricotta breakfast cake tastes as bright and cheerful as it looks.

I first made this recipe for Mother's Day, and it was a huge hit with my family.

The cake was light as air and deliciously fluffy thanks to the ricotta and sour cream. The sweet blueberries paired well with the lemon zest, adding big bursts of flavor to each bite.

"This was superb," my mom declared. "I give it a 10/10."

Whether you're hosting a summer brunch or just want something sweet for the season, Garten's recipe definitely … takes the cake.

Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's blueberry-ricotta breakfast cake here.

When it's cocktail o'clock, look no further than Garten's watermelon cosmopolitans.

Garten became the queen of cosmos (and Instagram) after she filmed herself whipping up a massive drink at 9 a.m. during the pandemic.

"It's always cocktail hour in a crisis!" she wrote in the video's caption.

Garten decided to update her iconic recipe for "Go-To Dinners." It features fresh watermelon juice, vodka, Cointreau, lime juice, and mint sprigs.

I loved Garten's watermelon cosmo even more than the original.

Garten's watermelon cosmos are bright and fun. The fresh watermelon juice is made for a hot summer day, and the vodka and Cointreau perfectly balance its sweetness.

"It's everything you want in a summer cocktail," my friend Julia said. "Definitely packs the freshness thanks to the watermelon juice, not to mention the gorgeous color — it almost looked fake, it was so vibrant!"

Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's watermelon cosmos here.

Garten's Greek orzo salad is packed with delightful summer flavors.

Garten's Greek orzo salad, which also appears in "Go-To Dinners," was inspired by Round Swamp Farm, a third-generation family farm in East Hampton.

"Their prepared food and baked goods are simply outstanding," Garten writes in her cookbook. "This recipe was inspired by one of their salads; it has all the Greek ingredients that I love."

Garten's Greek orzo salad features red bell pepper, red onion, Kalamata olives, baby arugula, chickpeas, capers, dill, and some good Greek feta.

My parents, who immigrated to the US from Greece, couldn't get enough of Garten's recipe.

My dad loves sharing his Greek recipes with Business Insider readers (check out his pastitsio and avgolemono soup), and my parents have tested more than a dozen Greek products from Trader Joe's. They're tough critics and were intrigued to see what Garten's Greek orzo salad had to offer.

Her recipe had so many of the Mediterranean flavors we know and love — from the salty feta cheese and rich kalamata olives to the crisp red bell pepper and fresh lemon that tied everything together.

My parents now ask me to make Garten's Greek orzo salad whenever I come to visit. It's perfect as a summer barbecue side, or a fresh lunch or dinner when you want something healthy and light.

Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's Greek orzo salad here.

Garten also has a Greek panzanella salad that's packed with vibrant colors and crunchy textures.

My mom has said that Ina must have been Greek in one of her previous lives, which would explain why she has so many great recipes inspired by Greece.

I stumbled on Garten's Greek panzanella salad while leafing through her 2010 cookbook "How Easy Is That?" With a base of cucumber, tomato, red onion, and kalamata olives, it reminded me of the classic Greek salad known as horiatiki.

The homemade croutons, though, were a fun new twist. I knew I had to try it.

The delicious salad is super easy to make, and the homemade croutons are a highlight.

Everything works so well together in Garten's Greek panzanella salad.

The combination of colors is beautiful on a summer table, and the crunchiness of the homemade croutons paired with the juiciness of the veggies is oh so satisfying.

It's my favorite thing to make for summer potlucks and the only thing I want to eat during a heat wave.

Maybe my mom was right. Maybe Ina really was Greek in another life.

Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's Greek panzanella salad here.

Garten's summer garden pasta takes full advantage of tomato season.

Garten shared the recipe for this pasta in August 2020, and it was one of the few bright spots during a very weird pandemic summer.

The recipe is super simple and features only five main ingredients: angel hair pasta, Parmesan cheese, cherry tomatoes, garlic, and basil leaves.

But Garten has a special trick that really amps up the flavor: soaking the tomatoes, garlic, and basil together in olive oil for four hours. That extra step is definitely worth it.

Garten's summer garden pasta is one of my favorite "Barefoot Contessa" recipes.

Garten can make magic from just a few ingredients thanks to her four-hour trick. The flavor of the tomatoes is so beautifully rich — I can still remember my reaction the first time I tasted them.

They paired perfectly with the airy, fluffy angel hair pasta, which helps balance the tomatoes' richness and keeps every bite light. There's a reason this dish earns such a high spot in my ranking of "Barefoot Contessa" pastas.

Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's summer garden pasta here.

Garten's mocha chocolate icebox cake is the best sweet treat to beat that summer heat.

Garten once said her mocha chocolate icebox cake is so good it "makes grown men weep."

The cake has 10 layers and features Tate's Bake Shop chocolate-chip cookies, Italian mascarpone cheese, Kahlua liqueur, and cocoa powder.

I'd recommend this cake for just about anything — a birthday party, special dinner, or simply because it's summer.

Garten's cake is ridiculously good. The layers have a satisfying, rich, buttery taste, and the cookies and mocha whipped cream pair well. There are also chocolate chips in almost every bite — who doesn't love that?

Since no baking is required, Garten's mocha chocolate icebox cake is also perfect for those super-hot days when you don't want to turn on your oven. Plus, the recipe is easy enough to make with the family, but thanks to all those layers, it still looks impressive on the dinner table.

Get the full recipe for Ina Garten's mocha chocolate icebox cake here.

Read the original article on Business Insider