Cold Suppers for Hot Nights

Why am I reading "Feeding the Kids"? I picked it up on impulse at the grocery store, because it promised a no-hassle, simple, flexible way to eat healthier. I thought, if it is simple enough for busy parents, and friendly enough for kids, then maybe Mike and I can manage it. So far, it's been pretty smart. I read the first two chapters and skimmed the rest before I loaned it to a friend (who DOES have a kid).

The first chapter, among other things, simply asks you to try to eat fruit three times a day. The second adds vegetables, three times a day, whenever it works for you, to try to make a habit of it. This alone is going to make you feel healthier and more energetic, and whether you buy the book or not, it's worth trying. It's easy. Especially now that it's summer and there are beautiful fruits and vegetables everywhere. The book also contains easy to incorporate strategies for decoding labels and categorizing the foods you eat.

Last night and tonight, it was just too hot to cook, so the sliced and pre-prepped vegetables and fruits hit the spot. Although the air-conditioner was on inside, it still felt withering every time we walked out the door. It's nice to have some cold vegetables, something to dip them in, and a few cold salads alongside. If I had some sliced meats, like prosciutto or salami, that would have been tasty too. Last night, it was big marinated beans (see Italian Antipasto, below, and if you can find Corona beans, buy them), hummus with raw peppers to dip, blanched green beans and endive and some leftover ribs. Tonight, we had a grilled skirt steak with a big cold crunchy romaine salad, with tomatoes, more green beans, egg and a little grated cheese.

It is also too hot to sit in front of the computer, so I'm going to keep it brief. Here are some past summer favorites from the blog to inspire your hot-weather antipasto cooking (or not cooking, as the case may be): Blue Cheese Dip with Vegetables, Two Bean Salad, Italian Antipasto, Basic Gazpacho, Three Good Cold Salads, Hummus and Return of the Hummus (great to serve pre-meal to kids or grown-ups with carrot and cucumber sticks, sliced sweet bell peppers, endive and anything else you can think of). Try Turkish White Bean Dip, too. Pretty soon, it's going to be time for Ratatouille as well. In case you think of that as something hot that can only be served with pasta, don't forget how delicious it is cold or ambient, spread on flatbread with a sprinkling of feta cheese, or cold on a sandwich or in a quesadilla...that should be enough to get you started.

On the way home, I also picked up two dozen beautiful, fragrant purple plums (I promise to always stop for handmade cardboard signs advertising fruit for sale from now on). These are soon going to be transformed into Plum Upside-Down Cake. If you have an abundance of fruit, you could also try this terrific cobbler dough. Lou Lane, if you're out there: zip THIS!

Happy Summer!