Tuesday, August 12, 2014

Cooking Cool in the Summer Heat -- Pasta Salad and Fruit Salad Recipes





 
Killdeer or plover bird in Texas pond water
The Killdeer Keeps Cool in the Texas Heat by Standing in Water

Texas summer is upon us and we attempt to keep the electricity costs down by using recipes that don’t require the oven. We also like cold salads and have a couple of recipes we’ve developed over the years that are economical and easy. When cooking, we often read a recipe and remove the foods we don’t like or don’t have on hand. Then we substitute foods we like that sound like they would go with the recipe. Here are a couple of recipes we've created that you can modify to suit your family’s likes and dislikes.

Vegetable Pasta Salad

Boxed Mac and Cheese Dinner
Cucumbers, tomatoes, celery, bell peppers, carrots and other vegetables you like, chopped in bite-size pieces.

Boil some salted water on the top of the stove and add about half a cup of macaroni. Cook until tender. Pour off most of the water (leave a few tablespoons of water to wet the dry cheese) and add the cheddar cheese mix to the macaroni. (We don’t use butter or milk like the Mac and Cheese recipe calls for.) Allow to cool. Add chopped vegetables and mix so the cheese coats the vegetables. Season with black pepper and Tony Chachere’s Creole seasoning. Cover and refrigerate until serving. If we have ham available, we chop it into the salad and serve as a main dish.

Fruit Salad

1 Can of pineapple chunks
1 Cup of mini marshmallows
1/2 cup of coconut
1/3 cup sour cream
1/2 apple, chopped fine
Can of mandarin oranges, drained or fresh oranges in broken sections
Strawberries or other berries, fresh or frozen
Other fruit in season that you like

Mix all ingredients and cover. Refrigerate until cold.

Adapt these recipes to suit your family, and enjoy the fruits and vegetables while they’re in season and affordable. As a smart consumer, you can find ways to beat the heat and the utility bills while eating well. We have other tips and practical cooking recipes in an ebook we wrote a couple of years ago. You can find it here in Tips and Recipes for Easy Cooking.

Enjoy your summer. Eat economically and keep cool.

Linda
cajunC