Summer Recipes

[mooglegirl]

I don't know if you have a toaster oven but it can be a good alternative to the oven for small stuff. We make pizza in ours. We use tortillas for thin crust and pitas or naan for thick crust.

Here's one of our favourite recipes.

4 naan/pitas
1/2 cup salsa
1/4 cup mango chutney
6 oz frozen shrimp/diced cooked chicken
1 tsp curry powder
1 1/2 cups mozzarella

Mix salsa and chutney for your sauce. Assembly your pizzas and bake for 15 mins at 425 F.


Also, I don't know if the grocery stores in your neighbourhood do this, but the ones near me occasionally run specials where you can pick up a whole cooked chicken with a couple of sides and a 2L of Coke/Pepsi for around $10. My hubby and I used to be able to stretch that for a couple of days before we had kids.

[RMDC]

Crock pot / slow-cooker meals are good in the summer - start it in the early afternoon, forget about it until dinner, and the units don't heat the house. We make game hens, soups, and even shredded chicken BBQ in ours during the warmer months, and chilis and stews for winter.

[half-stitched]

Crock pot / slow-cooker meals are good in the summer - start it in the early afternoon, forget about it until dinner, and the units don't heat the house. We make game hens, soups, and even shredded chicken BBQ in ours during the warmer months, and chilis and stews for winter.

Aw man, you just beat me to it. And here I was thinking I had a new idea to add to the board..

But really, slow cooker meals are great. I live in Florida most of the year and about 3/4 of that it's too hot to turn on the oven or else everyone in the house will start to cook along with the food. My mom picked one up at Big Lots for 10 bucks a year or two ago and it's holding up really well. You can make so much more than just soup with it, its great. (/food rant over)

[m4pl3g1rl]

In the crock pot or slow-cooker (depending on where you're from I guess) try ginger ale soda with pork. I know it sounds crazy but it is tasty. Especially when used with things like maple syrup, oranges, or apples. Ginger ale and orange/apple juice also makes a great pork roast flavor. Oh, but if you do, add some all spice berries. They make stuff taste good and they smell incredible while cooking. You don't want to eat them though.

[Yurtle]

Rootbeer also works really well if you're making pulled pork. That's what we do all the time!

[Ishtar]

Potato salad. All you require is potato (boiled or microwave steamed), some mayo, sour cream and herb/spices to flavor. You can add bacon and other stuff, or have with some ham, lettuce and cheese or eggs etc. I also add some mustard for a little extra.

Also, make/buy pesto and mix through cold/cooled pasta with tomato, grated cheese and cold chicken/meat.

I could also live off Cesar salad.

Buying up on leg ham ATM is a good idea at $6.99 a kg. It can be frozen, but isn't quite as good defrosted. Requires carving but tastes a lot better than the pre-cut stuff.

Quiche was also mentioned, as well as spiders.

A dessert we like in our house we call flummery. A can of Carnation milk, whip it up. Slowly add in a pack of jelly mixed up to half strength (eg. Half cup water, not a whole cup). Don't go too far per say, but if you don't have much it can go far. We love it in pinapple.

Fruit salad with some of the crazy good fruit prices is fantastic. Especially with home made custard.

[Pyper]

I love potato salad We use greek yoghurt instead of sour cream in ours. Also a fan of pesto and salad, especially when avocados are in season

I've started pre cooking meals when I see its going to get hot, and will be trying some of the other ideas in this thread, so keep 'em coming

[Ishtar]

I love potato salad We use greek yoghurt instead of sour cream in ours.

Was looking at greek yoghurt today in Woolies, but decided Christmas Day probably wasn't the time to experiment

We have only just moved out/bought a house so we will be playing the 'spend light' game too after Christmas.

That will probably just mean a lot of sandwiches and pasta in this house since one of us is not a fan or salads *looks at partner*

[elsewhere721]

I know salad was mentioned a few different times already (a perfect summer food), but I often like to make a large batch of vegetable salad that can last for days. Just buy some of your favorite fresh vegetables that can be eaten raw (I like to use cucumber, tomato, and red onion from our local fruit stand), cut them up into medium-sized pieces, mix them all together and pour on a oil-based dressing. I like to use Italian dressing, but you can also make your own with oil, vinegar, and seasonings to your liking. Then I put them into single serving containers and store in the fridge. It's also good for a quick snack!