Summer is the time to cook like the Italians, getting the best ingredients you can find, perhaps grown nearby or shipped from not too far away.

Squash, corn, berries, peppers, even tomatoes are in now and need little or no cooking to become perfectly respectable dinner fare.

If you can get wonderful fresh green beans, our simple recipe of sweet-sour will make them exceptional in very little time, and with no fancy ingredients.

SWEET AND SOUR GREEN BEANS

• 2 slices bacon
• 1 pound green beans
• Half of a 1-inch slice red onion
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon (freshly ground) black pepper

Cut bacon in halves to make 4 short pieces. Put them in a wide skillet, and cook over medium-low heat.

Meanwhile, wash and trim green beans. Dice red onion. In a cup, mix sugar, vinegar, salt and pepper.

When the bacon is crisp, set aside on absorbent paper. Turn heat under skillet to high, and add onion. Cook about 30 seconds, stirring, then add green beans. Cook, stirring occasionally, until green beans are just turning tender and some perhaps have browned and wrinkled in places. Add vinegar mixture to pan, and stir quickly to scrape up any bits stuck to the pan. Put beans on serving platter or plates and sprinkle with chopped bacon. Serve with grilled or baked chicken and grilled garlic toast.

Serves four.