Keep the Heat out of the Kitchen
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I live in Kansas. It is July, and it is HOT! The weatherman says parts of Kansas could reach 108-110 this week and I just want to melt into the couch with a good book and cold glass of Lemon Ginger Water.
This week’s episode offers lots of ideas to keep things cool in the kitchen.
- Don’t eat hot food
-Summer Salads
Chicken Caesar Salad
Chef’s Salad
My friends, The Dinner Sisters, just did an episode on Summer Salads.
-Sandwiches
My favorite is Chicken Salad with Fruit and Nuts
- Cook in the morning when it is not as hot.
-Bake a pan of bacon or a brisket in the morning, cool it during the day and reheat in the microwave for dinner.
- Use kitchen appliances,
-Microwave
Cook veggies (go super easy and by steam in bag veggies.)
Reheat food you cooked earlier.
-Instant Pot
My friend Rachel, of Thriving Home, has lots of great Instant Pot and Slow Cooker recipes. Her book is great for summer cooking.
-Slow Cooker
I like to make baked potatoes for Cheeseburger Baked Potatoes
-Air Fryer
I don’t have one, but know many of you love yours. Please share your favorite recipes in the Feed Your Family Tonight Facebook Group.
-Toaster Oven
My mother in law swears by her toaster oven.
-Electric Griddle
-I buy one or two pancake griddles every year on Black Friday. Because they are nonstick and I use mine frequently, the coating chips and mine usually only last 1 year, but I never spend more than $20 on a griddle. I use them for pancakes, quesadillas, and hot sandwiches like grilled cheese or Rueben’s.
- Rotisserie Chicken
-I greatly prefer my roasted chicken to a rotisserie chicken, but it is July and it is hot and I am in summer survival mode. The rotisserie chicken is a great way to get hot food in the house and use the leftovers for quesadillas or chicken salad. If you get ambitious you can make bone broth with the bones in your slow cooker.
5- The Grill
-Summer is grilling season for a reason. All the heat is kept outside. Think outside the box for fun grilling ideas.
-I like grilled pizza. Know that you will not get brown and bubbly cheese. I recommend going light on the cheese.
-Grilled Veggies are yummy. Get a grill basket to keep smaller veggies from falling through the grates.
-Kebabs! I love kebabs. I have found that the meat cooks much faster than the veggies. To avoid overcooked meat and undercooked veggies, make the skewers separate. I make ones of just meat and just veggies. It doesn’t look as pretty as a rainbow of meat and veggies, but it will taste much better. If you like kebabs I highly recommend getting some metal skewers. You will never have to soak bamboo ones again. They don’t take up much space in the drawer and make kebabs much easier.
