No one feels like cooking when it’s 90 degrees outside, but eating out is not in the budget. Here are some options.
GRILLING
The easy answer is throw some meat or fish on the grill. The heat remains outside and you can’t beat the flavor. You can also grill your veggies while the meat cooks by either placing them directly on the grill or wrapping them in a foil packet first. Easy and delicious!
COOKING AHEAD
My favorite plan is to cook ahead (read more here and here). I have a store of pre-cooked meat in the freezer that I can reheat quickly on the stove or in the microwave. This plan keeps the kitchen cool and makes dinner prep a snap.
A few of our favorites are:
Taco Salad-romaine lettuce and tomatoes topped with “taco” meat (ground beef from the freezer heated with my own taco seasoning-recipe here.)
BBQ Chicken Nachos-nacho chips topped with shredded chicken mixed with BBQ sauce (we like Williamson Brothers) and shredded cheese. We prefer to broil these for a few minutes, but if it is too hot we microwave them to heat the chicken and melt the cheese.
Chicken Salad– combine chicken, celery, onion, mayo and serve on toasted bread with melted cheese on top.
Breakfast for dinner- Scrambled eggs along with frozen waffles or pancakes (reheated in the toaster oven) topped with fruit make for a light and quick dinner.
EAT RAW
Another great way to beat the heat is to eat lots of raw veggies and fruit. There are a million ways to do salad and fresh fruit is a very budget friendly way to end the meal.
With a little bit of creative thinking, you can avoid the heat and breaking the budget.
I love using the grill to “bake” things as well!
The other night I used the grill to cook the stuffed shells I had made in individual Pyrex dishes. They turned out delicious!! Pizza, desserts, so many things can be cooked this way.
I usually put a couple of bricks on the bottom rack of my gas grill while it is heating up and place my “baking” items on the top rack with the lid closed while it cooks to maintain an even temp.
Great ideas Michelle!