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Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Ten on Tuesday!!!! 6-21-2011

.Today is the First day of Summer!!!!!!


So today is the first day of Summer, and what reminds us of summer more than the heat, the sun, and the idea of having to cook in the heat, let alone eat something hot.  Here are 10 of the Coolest Summer Foods and a recipe for each of them.


1. Snow Cones or Hawaiian Ice ----shaved ice with a syrup on it.  Fun to eat, satisfying crunch and great for any age.  You can make them at home by picking up a snow cone maker or take out your frustrations and put the ice in a bag and smash it with a hammer.   
                           Snow Cone Syrup Recipe
                          2 cups sugar
                   1 cup water
                   1 .22 ounce unsweetened powder drink mix
                    Mix all ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and then immediately remove from heat. 
                    Allow to cool. Used a funnel to put syrup into a recycled bottle, refrigerate until use.

2. Gazpacho--- a chilled summer soup, a great pairing for a sandwich.  
                   Homemade Cucumber Gazpacho   recipe found on Bay Area Bites Blog
                   2-3 English Cucumbers or 10 small Persian cucumbers (about 3 cups)
                   1/4 cup Olive oil
                   1/4 cup Ice cold water
                   1/2 small clove Garlic
                   1 Tbsp White wine vinegar
                   2 tsp Fresh lemon juice
                   dash of Salt
                   dash of Black pepper
                   a minute sprinkle of Cayenne  
                    Instructions
                     1. Peel cucumbers and rough chop. Place all the ingredients in a large bow.
                     2. In small batches puree mixture in a blender.
                     3. Garnish with cucumber and a smattering of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
                     4. Serve with a fresh baguette.      

3. Ice Cream---- to be honest you can do just about anything to ice cream and it would be awesome, or nothing and it would still be fine.  My favorite summer treat with ice cream is as follows.         
                       Cantaloupe 
                       1 Carton Vanilla Ice Cream
                        ---cut the cantaloupe in half and scoop out the seeds.  If the lope is really large you can cut it into                                                  4 but I try and purchase smaller ones for this purpose.  Place each peace of cantaloupe in a bowl.  Place a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream in the hollowed out area of the fruit and eat.  


4. Grilled Burgers, Brats or Ribs---- nothing is better than something cooked on the grill and it won't heat up the kitchen, which is a huge plus.  
                         Chicken Burgers                
                      1 pound ground chicken breast
                      1/4 cup finely grated sharp cheddar cheese
                      1 teaspoon smoked paprika
                      1/2 teaspoon onion powder
                      1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
                      1/4 teaspoon black pepper
                      1/4 teaspoon salt  
                      1/4 cup your favorite BBQ sauce
                       
                      1.In a large bowl, combine chicken, BBQ sauce, paprika, onion and garlic powder, salt, pepper and   
                        cheddar cheese.
                      2.Mix until just combined, then form 4 patties.
                      3. Place on grill and cook until cooked through, approx 8 mins on each side.  (can be cooked in a   
                         skillet too.)
                      4.Top burgers with grilled onions, cheese of your choice and additional BBQ sauce.  
                      5. Serve.   For added treat, brush roll with a light coating of olive oil or butter and toast.


5.  Green Salad---  you simply can not go wrong with a regular green salad.  Fresh vegetables are great for those suffering from chronic pain.  It is said that a natural diet with raw foods, or unprocessed items are good for us.  So add this to any meal, as a side dish, or make it your main course.
                        Market Salad  by 
                       3 hard boiled eggs roughly chopped
                       4 thick slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
                       2 cups green beans, cut into 1 1/2 in pieces, cooked and drained
                       1 Tablespoon fresh basil, italian parsley or chives 
                       4 cups baby mixed salad greens, washed
                       3 Tablespoons olive oil
                       1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
                       1 teaspoon dijon mustard
                       1/4 teaspoon salt
                       1/4 teaspoon pepper
                       
                       1. Combine bacon, green beans, basil and salad greens in large salad bowl.
                               2. Stir chopped egg into salad carefully not break up the yolk.
                               3. Combine oil, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper in small bowl; drizzle over salad.
                               4. Stir gently again to coat salad and serve immediately.


6. Chicken---- this meat is great because cooked any way, it tastes great cold.  


                                  BLT Chicken Salad with Ranch recipe found at Food.com

  •                                   2 boneless skinless chicken breasts (grilled or baked and chopped)



  •                                   8 ounces tri-color spiral pasta, cooked and drained



  •                                   6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled



  •                                   1 medium tomato, chopped



  •                                   2 scallions, sliced



  •                                  1/4 cup shredded carrot



  •                                  1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese



  •                                  1 cup ranch dressing



  •                                  2 tablespoons ranch dressing mix



  •                                  1 romaine lettuce hearts, chopped



  •       



  •                                 1. Mix all the ingredients together.



  •                                 2 Refrigerate until ready to serve.











  • 7. Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato Sandwiches,  BLT!---  seriously what can be better.  Farm fresh tomatos and crisp bacon and lettuce make this amazing sandwich a staple over the summer.  If you are not a bread eater, try the following recipe!



  •                                   BLT Cukes from TLC recipes



  •                                   3 slice bacon, chopped and cooked crisped/drained



  •                                   1/2 cup finely chopped iceburg lettuce

  •                                   1/2 cup finely chopped spinach or romaine lettuce

  •                                   1/4 cup diced tomato

  •                                   1 1/2 Tablespoons low fat or regular mayonnaise

  •                                   pinch of salt

  •                                   1/4 teaspoon pepper

  •                                   1 large cucumber

  •                                   minced parsley or green onion (optional)

  •                                              1. Combine bacon, lettuce, spinach, tomato and mayonnaise. Season with salt and pepper; set 

  •                                    aside.

  •                                   2.Peel cucumber. Trim off ends and slice in half lengthwise. Use spoon to scoop out seeds; .



  •                                     discard seeds.

  •                                   3.Divide BLT mixture between cucumber halves, mounding in hollowed areas. Garnish with            


  •                                    parsley. Cut into 2-inch pieces
                                                  4. Can be made up to 12 hours in advance and refrigerated until ready to serve


    8. Fresh Fruit--- This one is simple and no recipe needed.  Eat it up, fresh fruit is abundant in the summer.  Amazing fruit that we don't  always have access to, at least fresh from the tree or the vine.   Melons, peaches, plums nectarines, berries of all kinds.   Eat them plain, on ice cream, on cereal, add them to pancakes, you name it there is a fruit that will fit the bill.

    9. Fair Food, or Beach Food.----yes, I am aware that fried food and greasy food is not the best for any of us.  Especially those of us that have chronic pain and IBS or bowel issues, but you have to admit, a funnel cake or french fries from the fair or board walk are worth almost everything.  So remember when you are going out that we all deserve a treat once in a while.  Cotton Candy, a candy apple, Chocolate covered strawberries, just don't over do it and be careful.  Oh did I mention the carmel corn.  LOL!


    10.  LASTLY.....------CORN ON THE COB--- you have to love it.  It says summer right there with  you.  If you are one of the lucky ones that don't get added pain from tomatoes (night shade plants), let  me tell you, sliced tomatoes and corn on the cob are dinners that take me back to my childhood.  


    We used to go to a local road side stand called the Corn Wagon, along with almost the rest of Lancaster County where I grew up.  You always got a baker's dozen for their price, and when I was a kid it was about $0.75.  Last year I remember getting it for about $2.00 for 13 ears of corn, brought right to the location in huge wagons straight from the fields.  We would buy 10 or more dozen, go home and with my grandma and mom, husk all the corn, and cook it up.  What we did not eat, we would cut off the cob and freeze.  This happened at least once a week the whole time corn was available.  The corn wagon also sold tomatoes, melons and all sorts of other vegetables.  We would have a ball, get all our good for you stuff, make dinner out of the straight from the farm stuff.  Those were the great days.


    Well, a little late in finishing up my Ten on Tuesday, that held over into Wednesday, but it is here in all of it's glory.  10 Coolest Summer foods.    What are your favorites?  Please share them here.  Recipes for quick easy summer meals would be great.  In the mean time, try and stay cool, remember what is best for us, unprocessed food.  So bring it, straight from the farm to your table.  Of course clean it up, but the purer the better.  Summer is the best time for it.  Have fun, stay cool, and do what you can.  Me, I think I am going to grab some blueberry cake I made from fresh blueberries.   


    YES I DO LOVE SUMMER FOODS




    Thanks to TLC Cooking.com for the top ten ideas, I just added my own recipess and anecdotes, plus It was an awesome idea for the first day of summer.  Besides, I have to agree completely with the list.  All my favorite stuff.  

    16 comments:

    1. SnoCones are one of my favorite parts of summer! That an 59 cent fountain drinks at QuickTrip.

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    2. Great list!!!

      I want corn!.. and ice cream! not at the same time obviously...

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    3. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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    4. YUM! All of these summer foods sound awesome and remind me of how much I love summer! #commenthour

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    5. I completely agree! Ice cream and anything are a tasty treat! Just like cheese and anything makes a meal in my mind :)

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    6. First day of summer vacation of of school here! These recipes look great.

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    7. I've already had dinner (and dessert) But now I just want to go to a cookout, lol! #commenthour

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    8. Thank you for posting all those great recipes. Can't wait to try some of them out.

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    9. I was just at a Hawaiian festival this weekend, and ordered a coconut shaved ice. The most amazing part was they poured sweetend condensed milk on the top - so yummy!

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    10. Mmmmm....I can taste summer now. I must try making my own sno-cones!

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    11. I love summer foods, myself! In fact, I love the entire season of summer, because I am just a sucker for warm weather and beaches! Thanks for sharing this post on your fave summer foods; I'll definitely be trying to make my own Hawaiian Ice soon!

      visiting from #commenthour

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    12. Yumm... its 8:30AM and I'm ready for a cook-out!

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    13. Stopping by from comment hour! Thanks for the great recipes. I am a med student and learning about fibromyalgia has been so interesting. God bless you and I admire your strength!

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    14. I would really REALLY love to try a snow cone but we don't have them in the UK. Are they just shaved ice covered with different sauces? I'm completely clueless! #commenthour

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    15. I am in love! i love recipes and summer and food and you have it all!

      thank you so much for sharing and congrats on being featured #commenthour!

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    16. Great list although I may pass on the gazpacho. I'd add fruit smoothies to the list. :-) Stopping by from #commenthour.

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