Advance preparation: The soup will keep for about three days in the refrigerator, but the barley will swell and absorb liquid, so you will have to add more to the pot when you reheat.

“Serve this hearty gratin as a main dish. It’s good hot or at room temperature.”
_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Advance preparation: This can be made a day ahead and reheated. Or prepare the vegetables through step 1 a day ahead, and assemble the gratin the next day. It will keep for four or five days in the refrigerator.

This is a typical Provençal gratin, bound with rice and eggs. Use this recipe as a template for any gratins made of cooked vegetables.
Recipe for Sauteed summer squash:
Advance preparation: The filling will keep for three days in the refrigerator. The gratin can be made a day ahead and reheated; leftovers will be good for four or five days.
Sauteed squash recipe: http://www.recipething.com/recipes/show/15945

“This refreshing soup is unbelievably easy to make. To chill it quickly, place the soup bowl inside a larger bowl, then fill the larger bowl with ice and water. For best texture, be sure to strain the soup before serving.”

“Pisto is Spain’s ratatouille, a savory mixture of summer squash, onions, garlic and tomatoes usually cooked down until the squash falls apart. This very traditional dish might also include chorizo and peppers. You can serve it as a side dish without the eggs, but with them it makes a great supper.”
Note: When you seed the tomatoes, set a strainer over a bowl. Squeeze the seeds into the strainer, then press the pulp and juice through the strainer into the bowl. Discard the seeds and use the juice as described below.
Advance preparation: The pisto will be delicious for three or four days, but until you reheat it, don’t cook the eggs. To reheat the pisto, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Transfer the cooked pisto to a lightly oiled baking dish. Make six depressions in the top, and break an egg into each one. Salt and pepper lightly, and bake in the oven six to eight minutes or until the eggs set.

“This is a quick, simple marinara sauce that will only be good if your tomatoes are ripe. If you have a food mill, you don’t have to peel and seed the tomatoes; you can just quarter them and put the sauce through the mill.”
Serve with Zucchini Pasta: http://www.recipething.com/recipes/show/15940

“If you miss pasta, because you don’t eat wheat or you’re on a low-carbohydrate diet, this dish makes a nice stand-in for fettuccine. Be careful not to overcook — it will be al dente with a few minutes of cooking, after which it will quickly fall apart. When made just right, it’s silky and wonderful. You can serve as is, or toss it with a fresh tomato sauce. Use a vegetable peeler or mandolin to make the thin zucchini strips.”
Tomato sauce recipe at: http://www.recipething.com/recipes/show/15941

This salad, which resembles gazpacho, is a lovely, light way to begin a Mexican meal. Serve it atop lettuce leaves as a salad, or serve over rice. Alternately, use it as a sauce with fish, chicken or fajitas.

Good, can use spinach here as well.