Easy Cold Cucumber Soup

 

Summer heat and humidity makes it hard to turn on the stove and heat up the house. Today’s recipe is perfect for hot August days, but is easy and tasty enough for any day. Cold cucumber soup is a quick-to-make, refreshing, and flavorful cold soup. and it helps use all those fresh cucumbers from the garden. Perfect to serve as an appetizer, side dish, or for a light, healthy main dish. I’m using Greek yogurt low fat but you can certainly use regular Greek yogurt too. Add lemon juice, minced shallots and fresh herbs and blend. Refrigerate at least 4 hours up to overnight for a wonderful mouthful of cold goodness.

 

 

Cold Cucumber Soup

Use organic when available. Makes 6 servings of 1/2 cup

 

Ingredients

• 2 large English or seedless cucumbers peeled, seeded, sliced
• 2 cups plain Greek yogurt
• 1 shallot minced
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1/4 tsp ground cumin
• 3 tsp chopped fresh dill
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped
• 1 lemon juiced (or lime)

Instructions

• In a blender or food processor, add cucumbers, yogurt, shallot, garlic, fresh dill & parsley, lemon juice and ground cumin.
• Puree for 1 minute until smooth
• Taste and adjust seasoning, add salt and white pepper to taste
• Refrigerate for at least 4 hours until cold
• Optional garnish of sliced cucumbers, fresh herbs
• Serve well chilled

Enjoy!

 

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Easy Pineapple & Cucumber Salad

  

 

Sometimes the best things are just plain easy. For a fast and tasty side dish during the summer heat, try an easy Pineapple Cucumber Salad. It works well with a cookout or a sit-down dinner. Spend 5 to 10 minutes to throw it together. Chill it.  Then devour it.

This makes a great lunch or snack too. Yum!  Halve the cucumber lengthwise and slice. Dice the pineapple in cubes. Add cilantro and lime juice with zest. Easy peasy. (If you don’t like to cut up a pineapple, buy it sliced at the grocery store and just cut in smaller pieces.)  Hate cilantro? Drop it and substitute fresh mint for a great flavor.

 

 

 

 

Pineapple Cucumber Salad

Use organic when available; serves 4 to 6

 

Ingredients

• 1 pineapple peeled & chopped (2 1/2 to 3 cups)
• 1 English cucumber halved & sliced
• 2 limes – zest and juice
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro diced
• 1/4 cup Optional fresh mint diced
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste
• Optional tomatoes

Instructions

• Combine pineapple, cucumber in bowl
• Mix lime zest & juice, olive oil, and cilantro separately
• Drizzle dressing over salad
• Toss gently
• Add salt and pepper to taste
• Chill until served  

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One Pot Ham & Veggie Pasta

Today’s recipe, Ham & Veggie Pasta, is a hearty meal but easy to make for busy weeknights. What makes it superb for summer is all the cooking is in one stove top pot. For summer, I suggest you buy a center cut ham steak of about 1 to 2 pounds. 2 cups of chopped ham is approximately 1 pound; you’ll need 2 1/2 cups for 6 servings. When fall and winter comes, use leftovers from your baked ham. I used a defrosted frozen green peas and carrot mix for my veggies, but you could just use green peas or another vegetable.

I like cute bow tie pasta (Farfalle), but you can change up this recipe by using a different pasta shape or switching out Parmesan for another cheese. If you don’t eat pork, substitute bite-sized pieces of other cooked protein. The sauce is based on low sodium chicken broth and half-and-half. Half-and-half comes in variations, including low-fat and fat-free varieties. Regular half-and-half is 10.5% to 12% fat. Low-fat has 50% less fat than regular half-and-half. Fat-free half-and-half has one-tenth the fat of regular half-and-half. I suggest low fat half-and-half to cut fat but retain the creamy flavor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One Pot Ham & Veggie Pasta

Use organic when available. Serves 6.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 1/2 cups cubed cooked ham
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 1/4 cup low-fat half-and-half
• 1/4 cup flour
• 16 oz package farfalle (bow tie) pasta
• 2 cups frozen peas and carrots defrosted
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste
• optional chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

• Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat
• Add onion and ham
• Sauté for about 3 minutes
• Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds
• Stir in Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper
• Cook for 2 minutes
• Whisk together chicken broth, half-and-half, and flour in a bowl until smooth
• Pour into the pot of ham mix
• Stir in farfalle pasta, cover, and cook for 15 minutes
• Add peas and carrots
• Cook until pasta is cooked through, about 8 more minutes
• Stir in Parmesan cheese
• Optional garnish with chopped parsley
• Serve immediately with bread and a salad   

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Peach Coleslaw

 

I’m doing my recipe early due to Memorial Day in a couple of weeks. Traditionally, summer starts with Memorial Day. I'm wishing you all a day of safe time with family, with a few moments remembering those who served our country. Now let’s talk about coleslaw.

 Peaches are one of my favorite fruits.  Peaches are available from April to October.  Since Florida is a hot state, you probably think we don’t grow peaches.  Peaches do grow here, in mostly the north part of the state.  Our peaches are available April and May. By June, our markets are selling Georgia peaches.  No matter the state where they are grown, I just love fresh ripe peaches. I love them as my snack or dessert and also like adding them to many dishes.

 

 

 

My Peach Coleslaw is to similar dishes in some restaurants, and even Trader Joe sells it.  My recipe is similar to Trader Joe's with a few modifications. 

 

Peach Coleslaw

Use organic when available. Serves 6

Ingredients

• 16 oz bag of coleslaw or mix of shredded cabbage and carrots
• 1 cup raisins
• 2 large ripe peaches diced
• 1/3 cup diced red onion
• 2 tbsp unfiltered apple cider vinegar
• 1 tsp sugar
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• In small bowl mix vinegar and sugar
• Optional – Add diced red onion and let it quick pickle for about 5 to 15 minutes
• Optional – Drain onions and reserve vinegar for dressing
• In large bowl combine cabbage/carrots with onion and raisins
• In the bowl of vinegar solution, add mayonnaise, salt and pepper
• Mix dressing well
• Toss cabbage mix with dressing
• Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve
• Toss diced peaches into slaw right before serving cold

 

 

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