Summer foods fill you up and cool you down
Summer is here!
And if you are anything like me, the last thing you want to do when it’s hot and steamy outside is stand over a hot stove cooking a meal.
The warm summer months are the perfect time to lighten up your family meals with dishes that require little time in the kitchen and short cooking times. Salads like chicken salad, egg salad, pasta salad and broccoli salad are great options in hot weather. They are served cold and are a great way to use leftover chicken and broccoli, any extra eggs or extra noodles.
Other good options are fruit salads using sweet summer melons like watermelon and cantaloupe or honeydew and berries; strawberries and blackberries are two wonderful options.
A light ambrosia salad packed with fruits and nuts is another great idea. Cold vegetable salads like cucumber, tomato and onion salad are always a tasty choice as well.
All of these options taste incredible and can be easily tailored to satisfy even the pickiest eater in your household (even if that person is you!).
Most importantly, most of them require minimal cooking and all of them taste fantastic. Here are 2 easy, delicious summer-inspired recipes for you to make this summer. I know you’ll enjoy them!
Sweet & Tangy Fruit Salad
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons instant sugar-free vanilla pudding mix
1 cup low-fat or fat-free vanilla yogurt
1 (15-ounce) can pineapple chunks, in juice, drained
1 (11-ounce) can mandarin oranges, in juice, drained
1 cup grapes
2 medium bananas
Directions:
1. Combine pudding mix and yogurt. Stir well
2. Drain Fruit and mix together in medium bowl
3. Fold yogurt mixture into fruit
4. Cover and refrigerate. Serve when chilled
Refreshing Cucumber, Onion & Tomato Salad
Ingredients:
2 cups cucumber, diced
1 cup tomato, diced
¼ cup red or sweet onion, chopped or cut into thin strips
2 cups cooked rice or cooked couscous
2 chopped teaspoons dill week (dried or fresh, optional)
½ cup low-fat Italian salad dressing
Directions:
1. Toss together the diced cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, cooked rice (or couscous), dill and salad dressing
2. Chill for 1 hour in refrigerator
3. Serve chilled
For more recipes, cooking tips or nutrition information, contact LSU Ag Center Nutrition Agent Saundra Raines by phone at 318-435-7551, email her at sraines@agcenter.lsu.edu or stop by your local LSU Ag Center extension office.