Heartwings says, “Simple meals taste best in summer heat.”
In the summer heat, my appetite tends to disappear. In addition, so does my desire to cook. Not much affects Stephen’s appetite. However, he’s not the chief cook in this household. With little desire to cook and practically no appetite, I have to make sure I have food on hand that is easy for me to prepare and tempting to my diminished appetite.
One of our favorites is egg salad. It is easy to prepare if I have hard boiled eggs ready to shell and mash. As I have never mastered the art of successfully peeling eggs without mangling them, I never make stuffed eggs, however, I am happy to scoop the contents from their egg shells and mash them up with a fork. Then I add the following ingredients. Suggested amounts are for 6 eggs.
11/2 tsp Dried or fresh tarragon, 1 tsp granulated dried garlic, ½ tsp. mustard powder, or 1 Tbs. of your favorite prepared mustard, ¼ cup chopped celery, 2 or 3 Tbs chopped scallions, 2 or 3 Tbs, fresh parsley, and 1/2 cups mayonnaise–or to taste. Feel free to substitute, increase or decrease amounts and ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste. Some people like to add 2 tsp. or more of curry powder. In which case, eliminate the tarragon. Serve lettuce with the egg salad.
Another summer favorite is seafood salad. I often bring this to potlucks. It is tasty, simple to make and nutritious as well as friendly to the budget. I usually have a package of the base, usually called crabmeat salad or sometimes, Surimi. It is a combination of pollock and crabmeat, cooked and sealed up; thus it keeps well. I begin by taking it out of the packaging and either taking the block apart or cutting it up-a purely esthetic decision. Next, I put it into a bowl and add the rest of the ingredients.
½ cup mayonnaise—more if you wish, or less; a half a cup of finely chopped celery, ½ cup finely chopped onion, ½ cup finely chopped red or yellow pepper, a tablespoon of dried or more snipped fresh tarragon, and 1 tsp dried, ground garlic. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and serve on a bed of lettuce, or keep it separate and serve it alongside of the mixed seafood.
A good salad can be made with blueberries, strawberries cut up, pears or apples peeled or not, halved grapes, and/or dried cranberries, raisins, pecans, slivered almonds or walnuts. The dried fruit adds fiber and the nuts add protein. Cheese of all sorts can be chopped, slivered, or even grated, to add more protein.
Cottage cheese or feta also add protein.
Tomatoes are a summer standby, however Stephen and I are both allergic to them. My substitute is either Strawberries or blueberries. You can feel free to use any or all of the ingredients I have suggested, and change quantities of seasonings to suit your taste.
GrannyMoon's Morning Feast 