We're Having A Heat Wave!

[GlutenFreeManna]

It's 101 degrees here today! My AC is not keeping up (it's 80 degrees in my place right now) so there's no way I'm going to waste energy and create heat by cooking. I went to the store today and bought: salad fixings--spinach, arrugula, carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers, shredded cabbage for coleslaw, cereal, and lunch meat so I can make gluten-free sandwiches (and I almost never buy lunch meat but the thought of cooking meat so I can have a sandwich is too much).

Yesterday I made some yummy chicken spring rolls in rice paper wrappers, but I did have to cook the chicken on the stove. I plan to also make fruit smoothies this week too.

So, what are your go-to foods when it's too hot to cook and you don't want to eat something that's hot?

[lynnelise]

I'm weird in that I don't really like many cold foods. So I guess I'd go with cereal and milk. Sushi. Salads w/ chicken, fruit, nuts, and cheese. Pear, pecan, and blue cheese is a good combo. I'm also a big fan of the fluffernutter sandwich. I know it's not healthy but you can't go wrong with peanut butter and marshmallow creme!

Edit to add Smoothies! Protein powder, frozen fruit, spinach (you can't taste it, especially if you add banana). Quick, filling, and cold!

[love2travel]

Wow - that's far too hot. Frozen treats such as granitas and adult popsicles are amongst my favourites. Oh, and limoncello. But as far as actual foods go, we love to grill marinaded beef, chicken, lamb, or pork, skewer them, wrap in bibb lettuce and drizzle over some sort of Korean or Thai sauce. Love lamb that has been marinated in yogurt/sumac/garlic/lime, et. al. and grilled. Spatchcocked chicken is another favorite with homemade BBQ sauce. We love to grill a leg of lamb that has been slathered with good olive oil, garlic, rosemary and thyme and served with fresh mint sauce. Another thing is grilling shrimp or scallops on rosemary skewers (all sorts of marinades and sauce possibilities). Yet something is else is grilling squid. We like to wrap fresh fish (i.e. white firm flesh) in banana (or other) leaf packages and grill. We grill portabello shrooms that have been first marinated in balsamic, etc. and sometimes stuff with cheese. We also stuff squid bodies and grill.

Other things we love to grill are cheeses directly on the grill. Provolone and haloumi are excellent for that. Then we simply drizzle with a great green olive oil or chestnut honey. We grill sliced butternut squash and sprinkle with a good vinegar and goat cheese or feta and maybe some Parmesan and fresh herbs. We do baby tomato/boccancini/basil skewers that don't involve heat of any sort. Or we grill pineapple slices or even watermelon cubes.

Roasted potato salad is also yummy - we love the charred flavour from grilling. We also throw a couple of lemon halves onto the grill and squeeze the juice on meats such as lamb.

Love shaved raw asparagus with fresh herbs and feta dressed with a simple homemade lemon (or other such as Thai) vinaigrette. We slice English cucumbers on the mandoline lengthwise, add some homemade Japanese vinaigrette and finely sliced chiles. We love to grill lamb chops and serve on a bed of arugula. Or even steak tartare if you you trust your meat source, also on rocket dressed simply with cornichons and lemon juice and olive oil with some Parmesan. And how about beef carpaccio? Delicious on a hot day.

Smoked grilled duck breast is also fabulous. As you can tell, we love to grill! I could go on but this would get far too lengthy...

[GlutenFreeManna]

As you can tell, we love to grill! I could go on but this would get far too lengthy...

Yes I can tell! Thanks for all the ideas. I'm sure somebody will be able to use them. Alas I don't have a grill and I'm not allowed to have one where I currently rent. Even if I did have one I don't think I could pay my husband enough to heat it up in this heat! We will be eating lots of fruit and raw veggies this week that's for sure. Maybe I will try making some popsicles. I haven't had popsicles since childhood. Or I might have to splurge on some coocnut milk ice cream and sorbet.

[love2travel]

Yes I can tell! Thanks for all the ideas. I'm sure somebody will be able to use them. Alas I don't have a grill and I'm not allowed to have one where I currently rent. Even if I did have one I don't think I could pay my husband enough to heat it up in this heat! We will be eating lots of fruit and raw veggies this week that's for sure. Maybe I will try making some popsicles. I haven't had popsicles since childhood. Or I might have to splurge on some coocnut milk ice cream and sorbet.

Sorry about the grill situation. It is something I have taken for granted! One thing that does not involve a grill is making various kinds of pesto to use on soooo many things including microwave-baked potatoes (since that doesn't heat up the place much).

The sorbet or coconut milk ice cream sound great! I'm making watermelon granita right now.

This recipe for sour cherry and green tea sorbet looks outstanding. There is an option for popsicles which is what I am going to do tomorrow.

Open Original Shared Link

[GlutenFreeManna]

Sorry about the grill situation. It is something I have taken for granted! One thing that does not involve a grill is making various kinds of pesto to use on soooo many things including microwave-baked potatoes (since that doesn't heat up the place much).

The sorbet or coconut milk ice cream sound great! I'm making watermelon granita right now.

This recipe for sour cherry and green tea sorbet looks outstanding. There is an option for popsicles which is what I am going to do tomorrow.

Open Original Shared Link

Yum! I haven't seen much watermelon yet this year but that sounds good. And the sorbet recipe looks good as well. Someone posted a recipe for "ice cream" using nothing but frozen bananas in the food processor. I plan to try that too.

[Mizzo]

I like black bean salad:

Canned beans with finely diced onion, green and red pepper and frozen corn (rinsed in hot water but not cooked) toss in italian dressing and good to go.

A tuna salad with celery, onion and pickles on bed of spinach with chopped hardboiled egg.

My mom used to make us a simple salad of lettuce , peas and hardboiled egg with a mayo and garlic dressing for hot days. I am the only one who likes this in my family I have mayo haters here.

I look forward to reading more idea's.

[GlutenFreeManna]

I like black bean salad:

Canned beans with finely diced onion, green and red pepper and frozen corn (rinsed in hot water but not cooked) toss in italian dressing and good to go.

That sounds good. I think I will try to make a bean salad like that with canned Great Northern beans instead. I already have them on hand and they are easier on my sensitive tummy than black beans for some reason. Thanks for the idea! I so did not want to have to go to the store again tommorrow in the heat to buy something else cold. I have everything to make that type of bean salad.

[Lisa]

Chilled tomato soup with finely sliced vidalia onions and finely sliced cucumbers, with grilled cheese

Marinaded fresh tuna on the grill topping a Cesar Salad

Tacos or Taco Salad

Burgers and Grilled Corn on the Cob

Pasta salad, mixed with black beans, corn, celery, onion and ham

Tomato and mozzarella cheese and onions with oil and vinegar.

Pea Salad - canned peas, canned french cut beans, onions, pimentos, celery, chopped water chestnuts, mixed with vinegar, oil, sugar and pepper.

Broccoli Salad - Fresh broccoli, bacon crumbles, chopped onion, chopped pecans, dried cranberries mixed with mayo, balsamic vinegar and sugar

I love summer food

[love2travel]

Most of these popsicle recipes look wonderful! I am going to make the Pineapple Coconut popsicles. Yum!

Open Original Shared Link

[Marilyn R]

Anything that you can saute quick on the stove is good, like fresh (or thawed frozen) fish and shellfish. The seafood can be served over wilted greens or fresh greens with a squeeze of lemon and some nice olive oil and s&p.

If you can stand to peel a bunch of white potatos, boil them and make some into salad Nicoise, some into potato salad with mustard viniagrette (Bobby F. has a great recipe... olive oil, rosemary, EVO, grainy mustard) and some for American fries for breakfast.

I'm pretty used to the heat where I live. I'm still bringing hot soup for lunch, but I eat it where the a/c is good and cold (usually at work or a hospital cafeteria.)

Fruit salad is refreshing and cool.

Hope you beat the heat! Good luck!

[GlutenFreeManna]

Anything that you can saute quick on the stove is good, like fresh (or thawed frozen) fish and shellfish. The seafood can be served over wilted greens or fresh greens with a squeeze of lemon and some nice olive oil and s&p.

If you can stand to peel a bunch of white potatos, boil them and make some into salad Nicoise, some into potato salad with mustard viniagrette (Bobby F. has a great recipe... olive oil, rosemary, EVO, grainy mustard) and some for American fries for breakfast.

I'm pretty used to the heat where I live. I'm still bringing hot soup for lunch, but I eat it where the a/c is good and cold (usually at work or a hospital cafeteria.)

Fruit salad is refreshing and cool.

Hope you beat the heat! Good luck!

All great ideas! Last summer I made a great green bean and potato salad but I misplaced the recipe and can't find it now. I made a different one a few weeks ago and it was good but not the same as the one I made last year. I have some Tuna Steaks in the freezer. I think I will thaw those out for this weekend and do Tuna tartare over a bed of greens.

[BakingQueen]

I freeze chocolate almond milk in popsicle molds. It makes for a refreshing treat.

[lpellegr]

Cold sesame noodles. Cook up whatever gluten-free pasta you like, make this sauce, add cooked chicken or turkey (even lunchmeat), bits of scrambled egg, julienned cucumber, or any cooked or raw veggie you have around. Here's the sauce, just be sure to use safe soy sauce:

4 T peanut butter

4 T sesame oil

Mix those, then add 6 t of sugar (teaspoons, not tablespoons! I made that mistake once!)

2 T minced garlic

4T sliced scallions

1/2 c white or rice vinegar

soy sauce - the original recipe says 1 c, but that's way too much. Just add enough to make the sauce thin enough to pour, but not too thin to stick to the noodles.

Eat at room temperature.

[love2travel]

I neglected to mention soups that are traditionally served cold like Gazpacho, Vichyssoise, Minted Sprint Pea, etc.

Seafood ceviche is wonderful if you buy the protein truly fresh.

[Marilyn R]

I neglected to mention soups that are traditionally served cold like Gazpacho, Vichyssoise, Minted Sprint Pea, etc.

Seafood ceviche is wonderful if you buy the protein truly fresh.

I worked with a great Belgian chef about 30 years ago. He made a fabulous chilled melon bisque served in a scalloped melon shell. I started thinking about coconut milk and melon and... didn't do anything about it because I have half a bushel of mangos to deal with.

Today I made green mango chutney with the underipe ones, salad with the ripe one, and started a vodka fusion with the overipe one.

Which means I still have a load of mangos to deal with this week, but that's a good problem to have.

Mango soup? Any ideas?

[GlutenFreeManna]

I worked with a great Belgian chef about 30 years ago. He made a fabulous chilled melon bisque served in a scalloped melon shell. I started thinking about coconut milk and melon and... didn't do anything about it because I have half a bushel of mangos to deal with.

Today I made green mango chutney with the underipe ones, salad with the ripe one, and started a vodka fusion with the overipe one.

Which means I still have a load of mangos to deal with this week, but that's a good problem to have.

Mango soup? Any ideas?

This website has some great ideas:

Open Original Shared Link

Granted, the baked goods are not gluten free but I bet you could convert some of them easily, especially the sweet breads. Mango bread or mango muffins sound wonderful and you could probably freeze them for later.

[mbrookes]

Bacon and tomato sandwhiches.. use Udi's whole grain bread toasted (not much heat from a toaster) and packaged crumbled bacon (no cooking). We are also in the extreme heat belt, but we are getting wonderful fresh tomatoes.

Make chicken salad using rotisserie chicken (let the store heat up their stove) to stuff tomatoes.

If you can't use a grill, cook gluten-free hotdogs quickly on a long handled fork over the stove eye. There are some good buns out there. Already prepared potato salad in a carton is good if you add green onions and bell pepper.

On the adult beverage side, try mixing iced tea, Crystal light lemonade and vodka. Add a sprig of mint.

[GlutenFreeManna]

We're enjoying nicer whether here today in the 70's but I got so into making new "cold" food that I decided to make chicken salad today--for the first time in my life! I know that probably sounds strange but I have never liked mayo and used to hate all mayo based salads--chicken, tuna, egg, pasta, potato, etc. Well since cutting out so many foods that used to be my favorites I have found my tastebuds changed. I tried a little sample of the chicken salad I mixed up after looking at a few different recipes and I actually LIKE it!

Here's what I did:

about 3 cups shredded cooked chicken

1/2 cup mayo

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

3 small stalks of celelry

1/2 cup pomagranite flavored craisins

Mixed up the mayo, lemon juice and pepper with a wisk then mixed in the chicken, celery and craisins.

I plan to serve this on toasted Rudi's.

[mbrookes]

If you like them, try adding a few chopped pecans and halved grapes to the chicken salad.