The inevitable summer dilemma is what to cook when the weather turns unbearable. Whether your house is air conditioned or not, cooking during heat kitchen isn’t very motivating. Let me share with you some recipes that may inspire you and keep your kitchen cool.
 
Back in May I shared with you a recipe I found at Southern Living Magazine for Sesame Shrimp Stir-Fry. Two Ali Slagle recipes are great one pot meals such as Shrimp Scampi with Orzo or Summer Shrimp Scampi with Tomatoes and Corn. While shrimp requires a short time to cook, so does pork tenderloin. Lidia Bastianich’s recipe for Pork Tenderloin with Balsamic Onions. Moving from on from shrimp and pork, how about Quick Jambalaya from Vallery Lomas of The New York Times. 
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As you may recall, I have a wide variety of herbs in my yard this summer. My husband purchased four lemon scented herbs i.e., lemon grass, lemon thyme, lemon verbena and lemon balm. In the April 2022 issue of Charleston Magazine, they published an article called, “A Tasty Trio, Container Gardens.” Garden editor Joan McDonald had some wonderful ideas on how to use the herbs and some recipes. One recipe that caught my husband’s eye was Spring Citrus Salad Dressing made with a combination of the aforementioned herbs.
 
For the salad dressing you’ll need olive oil, white wine vinegar, fresh herbs (lemon balm, lemon thyme, lemon verbena and lemon grass (with leaves removed from any woody stems), fresh garlic, honey, Dijon mustard, shallots, salt and pepper to taste. What a flavorful dressing. The combination of ingredients made for a lovely creamy dressing, courtesy of the Dijon mustard that created an emulsion. The dressing was bright and had a light citrus taste, refreshing for a summer salad.

​Last week at the Asbury Fresh farmers market, I picked up a bunch of golden beets from Rolling Hills Farm. I did a web search and found an interesting recipe, Moroccan Cold Beet Salad with Vinaigrette. The recipe was found on the “The Spruce Eats” website and is by Christine Benlafguih.  For the recipe you’ll need, red beet roots, fresh parsley, fresh lemon juice, vegetable oil, salt, fresh ground pepper, and red onion. Although the recipe calls for red beets, it works perfectly with golden.
 
The vinaigrette was delightful, it was light and refreshing. Using lemon juice in lieu of vinegar was a wonderful change. Also, the substitution of yellow onion, didn’t alter the taste. I also added slivered almonds for a bit of crunch.