Whoa Momma, is it hot out there! I don’t know how you southerners do it. We’ve had 4 days of 95+ degree weather and I’ve all but shut down. Can… just …barely…lift the spoon from the pint of Ben and Jerry’s into my mouth…
Webster’s dictionary defines Dog Days as:
- The period between early July and early September when the hot sultry weather of summer usually occurs in the northern hemisphere
- A period of stagnation or inactivity
As much as I usually love to cook, these days make me hot and listless with no energy and no interest in preparing a hot meal for my family. Thank goodness for the grill and the abundance of fresh fruits and veggies available this time of year. Here are some ideas of what I keep on hand to pull together a light, low effort meal at the end of a long, hot day.
- Hard cooked eggs. I cook them in the am while the kitchen is still relatively cool. Good by themselves or sliced and tossed into a salad or on a sandwich. If you can get fresh eggs from your Farmer’s Market, give them a try. They are a treat!
- Blanched green beans. These are good chopped and tossed into a green salad or marinated in vinaigrette and served at room temperature as a side to grilled meat or fish.
- Red seedless grapes. Put these in the freezer for an hour or so – they are delicious and refreshing when frozen.
Tomatoes and mozzarella. Simply serve sliced and stacked and topped with a sprinkle of fresh basil, salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Or, for a heartier alternative, get a good loaf of whole grain Italian bread, slice it open horizontally, spread both sides of the loaf with pesto and fill with sliced tomatoes, sliced fresh mozzarella, a stack of fresh spinach leaves, and thinly sliced rounds of red onion. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Close loaf and slice vertically into 6-8 sandwiches. This is great for a picnic and tastes best when made ahead. Tightly wrap the whole sandwich in plastic wrap and refrigerate until you are ready to serve. Unwrap and slice just before serving.- Watermelon. Perfect and beautiful just as it is. Delicious paired with feta, arugula and mint in this Barefoot Contessa recipe. And have you tried Martha’s Tequila-Soaked Watermelon Wedges recipe from Tuesday’s blog?
And for those of you, like me, who were curious about where the term “Dog Days” comes from, here is what I learned:
During the summer, Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, and part of the constellation Canis Major (the big dog), rises and sets with the sun. In late July, when Sirius is in conjunction with (i.e. in particularly close proximity to) the sun, and the Romans believed that its heat added to the heat of the sun making for a particularly hot and muggy stretch of weather. They named the stretch of time from 20 days before to 20 days after the conjunction ‘Dog Days’ after Sirius, the dog star.
What are you serving to keep cool in the summer heat?