The heat and humidity are seriously getting to me this summer. When you start sweating just from washing dishes, you know it’s dang cold. My appetite has gone down the tubes during the super hot days and most days I don’t want anything but something cold to eat.
I don’t mind cooking but I really don’t want to crank the oven on for an extended period of time nor do I want to stand over a simmering pot of whatever tending to it.
I have busted out the crockpot which is actually a very nice appliance to have in the summer! Just toss ingredients in and let it do its thing without heating up the kitchen and breaking a sweat.
But I can only use the crockpot so much before I start running out of things to use it for. And it still provides us with a hot meal which sometimes I have no desire to eat.
I recently asked on Twitter what your favorite cold meal is for hot days and I got a lot of different responses.
- Pasta Salad
- Potato Salad
- Quinoa type salad
- Chicken salad
- Veggie salads
- Smoothies
Great ideas right! I eat salads almost everyday and smoothies everyday. But those are for lunch and I need some dinner options. I like getting in plenty of veggies at dinner and some non-animal protein most days.
This heat issue is leaving me a bit stumped on what to make. I recently made some pasta and lentil salad which was excellent! Full of veggies, great carbs, and protein. I’m not really sure where to go from there. I’m not much of a sandwich girl so wraps and things aren’t really very appealing to me.
What are your favorite heat buster meals that you enjoy in the warmer months? Do you have trouble with your appetite and does your motivation for cooking tend to decrease when the weather is really hot?
I LOVE having our entire dinner cooked on the grill. That means Nick’s cooking just about everything except for a little prep work, and it keeps the house cool inside.
We love grilling meats, burgers/veggie burgers, yellow squash, zucchini, mushrooms, onions, potatoes, etc. And grilled fresh fruit makes the BEST dessert! Cut ripe peaches or plums in half, take the pit out, and throw them on the grill. serve with yogurt or ice cream.
Brandi, grilling for sure! If we had more time, we would be grilling way more than we currently do. We try to make sure that we grill on the weekends and I try all kinds of stuff. We just did scallops for the first time last weekend and they were amazing!
I hear ya.
I have a.c in the apartment and I still don’t want to turn on the oven when it’s scorching outside. I ve taken to using my toaster oven and setting it on convection with the appropriate temperature , and using it as I would the oven !
One of my favorites is Ina Garten’s Gazpacho soup. No cooking involved – lots of veggies to up the nutrition :)
we recently acquired a panini press and it will be our GO-TO tool this summer (aside from the grill)…can make so many tasty sandwich combos–and we’ve decided a warm sandwich is ALWAYS better than a cold one :)
Oh I hear you on that! I had a lovely salad last night that consisted of chopped tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, bits of cheese, olives all tossed in a vinagrette. So no lettuce, but still an italian style salad of veggies. If you marinate in the fridge for a bit everything is nice and cold and it’s a refreshing side to a meal!
I have been living on Overnight Oats, Iced Coffee, Smoothies and Grilled Food. Oh and I think I’ve eaten 6 whole watermelons this month. Nothing wrong with that right? :)
My motivation has definitely declined when it comes to cooking. I’ve been relying on a lot of frozen foods and convenience meals.
I recently tried overnight oats and it’s amazing, plus you make ‘em the night before and it saves time.
I have the opposite problem of everyone else though, I get hungrier in the heat! I think it’s all in my head though, like in my mind I think I need to eat more to keep from passing out, haha.
Really cold and yummy lunch or dinner…
Lettuce wraps (basically bit romaine lettuce leaves)
Spread them with a thin layer of your favorite hummus
(I use lemon dill or edemame hummus- but if you don’t like hummus use guac) Top with different spouts … sunflower, broccoli, pepper, even lentil or garbanzo spouts or pea shoots. Squeeze some fresh lemon and top with a sprinkle of sea salt. Wrap and munch. Nice with ice tea or lemonade!
Heather, I love lettuce wraps! They are very filling and totally light not weighing you down afterwards.