When it's summer in Augusta, the last thing you want to do is heat the oven and cook. This Italian Salsa Pasta Toss will keep your kitchen cool, and the light, uncooked sauce makes it great summer fare.

The sauce began as an Italian salsa topping for bruschetta, but I tossed some of the leftover salsa with hot pasta and added the reserved marinade from a jar of marinated artichoke hearts for a pasta that was worth sharing.

Leftovers are delicious served as a cold pasta salad.

ITALIAN SALSA PASTA TOSS

8 ounces pasta, any shape

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic, about 2 medium cloves

3 Roma tomatoes, washed, cored and diced

1 6.5-ounce can sliced black olives, drained

3 tablespoons capers, drained

1 small jar marinated quartered artichoke hearts, undrained

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta according to package directions. When done, remove 1 cup of the pasta water and then drain. Immediately return to the pan and toss in the remaining ingredients, including the reserved artichoke heart marinade. Toss well, taste and add salt and pepper as needed. If the sauce is too dry, add a little of the pasta cooking water. Serve immediately, sprinkling each serving with some of the cheese.

Makes 4 servings.

SHOPPING LIST

1 box pasta (you will need 8 ounces, shape of your choice)

1 6.5-ounce can sliced black olives

1 3-ounce jar capers

1 small jar marinated quartered artichoke hearts

3 Roma tomatoes

Pantry: fresh garlic (you will need 1 clove), olive oil, block of Parmesan cheese

What's your favorite cold summer salad recipe? Post recipes at augustachronicle.com/karin.

Ms. Calloway would like to include reader input, so send requests to karin.calloway@comcast.net.

E-mail Karin at karin.calloway@comcast.net. You can see her prepare the recipe at noon Tuesday on television station WJBF (Channel 6). Follow Karin on Twitter at twitter.com/karincalloway.

EAT DOWN THE FRIDGE

It's Day 3 of the Eat Down the Fridge challenge, in which foodies around the world are trying to run through the contents of their refrigerators, freezers and pantries before hitting the supermarket and engaging in mindless grocery shopping.

I have been blogging about my experience at www.augustachronicle.com/karin.

I was also a guest blogger Tuesday for Kim O'Donnel, a Washington Post food writer, at (http://voices.washingtonpost.com/mighty-appetite/) who came up with the challenge.

You can join other Eating Down the Fridge challengers on Facebook, where Ms. O'Donnel has set up discussion boards, and you can post on the challenge wall. Do a search on A Mighty Appetite's Eating Down the Fridge.