Throwback Thursday: Perfect Summer Meals

How has your summer been so far?  Has it been treating you well?  Ours has not been as warm as I would like, but it's still been pleasant.  I always love being able to leave the doors and windows open at night, listen to the crickets and go barefoot.

Along with summer comes a preference for lighter, cooler and less intensive meals.  We tend to eat a lot more salads, sandwiches and simple dinners of fruits, cheeses and charcuterie - like this simple meal I posted recently. Ice cream becomes the King of desserts and we really enjoy small, home-assembled Ice Cream Sandwiches.

I wish I could say that we spend our time outdoors, swimming (which we do love), gardening, hiking and camping, but to be perfectly honest, I spend most of my spare time working indoors on recipes, blog posts and videos or gaming with my friends.  Aside from the occasional trip (by occasional, I mean yearly or maybe every other year) to the ocean to hang out on the beach flying kites, we tend to be real homebodies.



With summer already starting to wind down here (it's only 9:00 pm right now, and it's already been dark for about an hour!), I thought this would be a good time to share with you some of our favorite meals for hot weather - some might even say perfect summer meals.
 
Nacho salads are a quick, refreshing meal for warmer temperatures.  Simply layer your favorite filling onto a bed of tortilla chips...



...and pile on a bunch of crunchy, iceberg lettuce, olives, green onions, tomatoes, cheese and sour cream.



Sandwiches are a great choice for hot weather and if you are among the many who rely on their grills in summer, you can grill up a variety of great sandwich fixins from steak, to chicken, to seafood or veggies - the choices are truly endless.  This one is a Bolillo roll filled with steak, sauteed mushrooms, onions and bell peppers and sprinkled with Feta:



...and this sandwich built on a Pretzel Bun with lemon-garlic mayo, turkey, provolone and spinach - YUM!

This Asian Noodle Salad is perfect for a potluck or pool party - or add some grilled chicken to it and enjoy it as a refreshing meal.



I've made this Orzo Salad with either chicken or shrimp, it's always a winner for BBQ's...



...and you certainly can't go wrong with a simple, green salad topped with grilled shrimp or Spaghetti with Lemon-Garlic Shrimp which cooks up in minutes.



What are your strategies for beating the heat?  We're off to the ocean next week, so no posts for a bit, but I'll be sure to return rested, relaxed and ready to bring you more recipes and cooking tips.  Until next time - stay cool!

Quick Fix: Sandwich Night Part 1

Some nights you just don't want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen - even when you love to cook.  I'm sure I'm not the alone either, in spending my commute home trying to figure out what to make for dinner because I forgot to think ahead (please, please say I'm not alone on this).

That's exactly how I ended up making this lovely and delicious Turkey, Provolone and Spinach on a Pretzel Bun Sandwich for dinner recently.  Sandwich Night is the perfect answer to quick week night meals - especially as the weather warms up and we are ready for less rich foods.

This Sandwich was hot, crispy with lovely, melted Provolone cheese and piled high with peppery deli Turkey.  What really put this sandwich over the top, besides the pretzel bun and melting everything in my toaster oven, and besides the fact that it took 15 minutes or less to make, was The Mayo.  No, seriously, it was The Mayo!

I took regular old, every day, spread-it-on-your-sandwiches-put-it-in-your-tuna-salad mayo and elevated it in moments by adding a few, simple ingredients.  Lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, salt  and pepper.  Yes, it was that simple.



I just spooned a couple of large spoonfuls (soup spoon size) into a small bowl.  Grated in the zest of about half a lemon.  Squeezed in the juice of half of that same lemon.  Then sprinkled in some Garlic Powder, a pinch of salt and a healthy sprinkling of pepper.  Mix it up thoroughly, then spread it on the top and bottom of your split pretzel rolls.

Place a slice of provolone on the bottom slice of the roll and top that with your favorite deli turkey (I used pepper crusted turkey), put another slice of Provolone on top and top it with the other half of the roll.  Wrap in foil and bake for 10 minutes in a 400 degree toaster oven or conventional oven. Remove it from the oven, unwrap it and open it up.  Add a handful of baby spinach leaves to each sandwich, place the top back on and enjoy with your favorite beverage!