Savory (Cold) Summer Meals

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Ingredients:

• 8 black tea bags
• 3 quarts boiling water
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 bottle ginger ale, 32 ounces
• 1 can lemonade, frozen concentrate, 12 ounces

Steep the tea bags in the boiling water for 10 minutes. Remove the tea bags and discard. Mix the tea with remaining ingredients.

Chill. Serves 15.

Roast Beef Roll-ups

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. thinly sliced rare roast beef from the deli
• 8 oz. light cream cheese
• 1/4 cup light mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1/2 tsp. salt and black pepper
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• dash or two of ground cayenne pepper

Bring the cream cheese to room temperature. In a bowl beat in the mayonnaise and the spices. Fold in the green onions. Lay out about a fourth of the beef slices at a time. Over lap the pieces to form a square. Using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon spread 1/4 of the cream cheese mixture on the beef. Roll it up fairly tight, going slowly.

Roll the beef roll up in waxed paper and chill for several hours, or place in the freezer for less time until firm. Repeat with the rest of the beef slices. Remove one roll at a time when they are firm, and carefully unroll from the wax paper. Using a very sharp knife cut the roll into slices. Go slowly and don't smash down the roll. Do this with all the rolls. Place on platters. Cover with plastic wrap and chill until serving time. Notes: You can also add horseradish to the cream cheese for a very spicy roll! This will also work with ham or smoked turkey.

Shrimp Waldorf Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons Dijon-style mustard
• 2/3 cup buttermilk
• 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar or honey
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 1/2 pounds medium peeled, deveined and cooked shrimp
• 3 cups diced apple, green or red (Granny Smith, Fuji,
• 2 cups thinly sliced celery
• 2 cups red seedless grapes, cut in half
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds or other chopped nuts
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives or green onions
• Lettuce leaves

Whisk the mayonnaise, mustard, buttermilk, lemon juice, sugar, tarragon, salt and pepper together. Taste to season more if needed. Set aside.

Cut the shrimp in half and add to a large bowl along with the apple, celery and grapes. Fold in the dressing and gently mix to combine. Line a platter with lettuce leaves and place all the salad on top. Sprinkle the salad with the nuts and chives. Serves 8-10

Greek-Style Summer Salad

Adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients:

• 2 cups uncooked white rice
• 1 cup boiling water
• 3/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, no oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 8 cups spinach
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups feta cheese, crumbled
• 1/4 cup kalamata olives, chopped and pitted
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1 (15 1/2 ounce) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

Cook rice according to package directions. Cool and set aside.

Combine the boiling water and sun-dried tomatoes in a bowl; let stand about 30 minutes, then drain and chop. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add spinach and garlic; sauté 3 minutes or until spinach wilts. Combine rice, tomatoes, the spinach mixture, cheese, olives, oregano, salt, pepper and beans.

Drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon oil; toss gently to coat.

Rainbow Sherbet Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 (9 inch) angel food cake
• 4 cups sherbet, softened-- 2 cups of 2 different flavors
• 2 cups raspberry sherbet, softened
• 2 cups lime sherbet, softened
• 1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

Slice the angel food cake crosswise to make four layers. Place the bottom layer on a serving plate and spread a layer of one of the sherbets evenly on top. Repeat with remaining cake layers, alternating the two flavors. Finish with final layer of cake. Frost the sides and top with whipped topping and place in the freezer for 1 hour, until firm.

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Pizza Rustica

Remove sausage from casings and crumble into a large skillet. Saute until brown, adding onions and garlic. Drain off fat and set aside to cool. Combine 1/2 cup all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, corn meal, sugar, salt and yeast. Stir in hot water and butter and mix well. Stir in remaining 1 cup of flour to form a soft dough. Cover dough in bowl and let rest for 10 minutes. Grease a 9 inch spring form pan. Stir down dough. With buttered fingers, press 2/3 of dough in bottom of pan. Add cheese and peppers to sausage mixture and spoon into center of dough. Spread and press filling toward edge of pan, leaving a 1/2 inch rim of dough around sides. Drop remaining dough by tablespoons over filling. With the back of spoon or buttered fingers, carefully spread dough to cover and enclose filling. The top will be rough. Cover with a cloth and let rise until doubled in size, about 20 - 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush top of loaf with beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake loaf at 400 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes, or until loaf pulls away from sides of pan and is golden brown. Cool 5 minutes. Remove from pan. Can be served warm or room temperature. Yield: 6 servings.

Country Cobb Salad

1 head iceberg lettuce, cut into bite-size pieces
2 packages (10 ounces each) cooked boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1/2 cup real bacon bits
1 large tomato, coarsely chopped
1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and chopped
3 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1 package (4 ounces) crumbled blue cheese
Salad dressing (any variety)

Arrange lettuce on a large serving platter. Place cooked chicken in the center of the lettuce. Place bacon bits in a row on one side of chicken. Place tomato in a row beside bacon bits and avocado in a row beside them.

Place eggs, green onions, and blue cheese in rows on the other side of the chicken. Serve immediately with salad dressing.

White Chocolate-Mint Tart with Strawberries

5 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/3 cups graham cracker crumbs
4 ounces white chocolate
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon pure mint extract
1 pint fresh strawberries

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Melt the butter in the butter warmer or saucepan. Combine the sugar and graham cracker crumbs in the medium-size bowl and stir in the melted butter. Press the graham cracker mixture evenly across the bottom and all the way up the sides of the tart pan, packing it tightly with your fingertips so it is even and compacted. Bake until crisp and golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Set aside to let cool.

2. Finely chop the chocolate and place in a large bowl. Heat the heavy cream in the saucepan until almost boiling. Whisk the hot cream into the chocolate until smooth. Whisk in the mint extract. Refrigerate until completely cooled.

3. Whip the chocolate mixture with the electric mixer until it holds soft peaks. Refrigerate until ready to serve, up to 3 hours. Spoon into the cooled tart shell and smooth with the spatula.

4. To serve, slice the tops off the strawberries and slice thin. Place wedges of the tart on 6 individual dessert dishes and spoon some strawberries alongside each wedge.

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Fenyck Grilling Chicken

Mix well and let marinate at least 6 hours, best if overnight. Grill over hot flames 8 minutes per side or until fully cooked yet juicy.

Stromboli

Preheat oven to 375° . On lightly floured surface, unroll dough and pat to 14 x 12 inch rectangle. Sprinkle Mozzarella cheese over dough to within 1/2 inch of the edge. Top with single layer of salami and pimientos. Starting with shortest side, roll up tightly; pinch edges firmly to seal. Place seam side down on ungreased baking sheet. Brush with melted butter; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 5 minute. To serve, cut into 1 inch slices with serrated knife. Serves 6-8.

Nutty Mandarin Salad

Drain Mandarin oranges and reserve 1/3 cup of the juice, discard the rest. Toss spinach, oranges, sunflower seed and chives in a large bowl and set aside. Heat the reserved juice until almost boiling and remove from heat. Add the honey to the hot juice and stir until dissolved. Let cool. Add the vinegar and oil to the juice mixture and blend with a mixer until well mixed and smooth. Pour over spinach combination and serve.

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Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• a pinch of salt,
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, minced
• 1 cup cooked minced chicken
• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 20 slices bread, your choice

Combine the butter, lemon juice, salt and basil leaves. Spread each slice of bread thinly with this. Combine the chicken, mayonnaise, salt and pepper. Spread this mixture on half of the bread slices. Top with the other slice of bread, buttered side down. Remove the crusts with a sharp serrated knife. Cut into squares or triangles.

Orange Banana Bread

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, room temperature
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 eggs
• 1 tablespoon orange zest or 2 tsp. dried orange peel
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 6 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 cup finely chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Cream together butter and sugar. Sift together the dry ingredients. Add eggs one at a time, alternating with the dry ingredients and beating well. Add rind and juice; mix well.

Add the bananas and mix well. Fold in nuts. Pour into 8 sprayed mini loaf pans or 4 regular pans. Bake for 50-60 minutes till the center of the loaves tests done.

Lemon-Chamomile Shortbread

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• Grated zest from 1 lemon (no white)
• 1 teaspoon loose chamomile tea or dried chamomile
• 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Heat oven to 325 degrees F. Combine the butter, sugar, and salt and beat until fluffy. Blend in the lemon zest, loose tea, and flour until smooth. Press into an 8-inch square pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until shortbread begins to turn golden. Cut into 9 squares and then cut each square into 2 triangles. Cut while warm, then cool in the pan before removing. (if you wish you can process the chamomile in a blend or food processor to make it finer).

Citrus Iced Tea

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
• 1 cup orange juice
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1 teaspoon lime zest, grated-no white
• 6 cups brewed black tea, chilled

In a large saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil. Reduce the heat. Add the juices and lime peel. Simmer, uncovered, for about 30 minutes. Strain this mixture and refrigerate for about 2 hours to chill. Add this to this 6 cups of brewed tea. Taste and add more water if it's too strong. Use any type of black tea. I like Earl Grey.

From Brenda Hyde, owner of Old Fashioned Living.com. Visit her for more tips, recipes and crafts. Sign up for her free newsletters here: http://www.oldfashionedliving.com/news.html