How to get through hot days...

Uffda! It is so rare to have a heat wave this early but that is what happened here this past week. It was so hot that I couldn't even work at my computer! The computer even hated the heat and tried to continuely cool itself off with the fan running constantly. "She" only cooperated fully when I had my fan on her as well! Ha! I say "She" because of over-heating! It appeared she was having hot flashes! LOL
So what do you do to survive a heat wave? Of course at the top of the list...Drink lots of fluids. Keep curtains closed where it's sunny and open curtains/windows in the shaded areas. Turn the fans on high. Do as little as possible. Get plenty of rest. (Yeah, like that's going to happen!) Ok, so that is pretty standard information. But what about cooking? Of course there is the barbecue outside...but then you have to be out in the heat. My trick is to cook in the late evening/early morning. Great idea if your brain is still functioning! Not a good idea if you're starting at 4 AM! I have to say first...that I've never done anything as stupid as this EVER before in my life. I decided to boil enough eggs for either egg salad or potato salad. I put five eggs in a non stick pot (which I never use for boiling eggs) of water and turned on the stove burner. I do remember checking them about half way through the cooking process. ; )
Ok, so you probably have an idea already that something is going to happen that shouldn't have. Yep, I went to bed totally forgetting about the eggs. Little to say, I had quite an egg mess to clean up later. I'm surprised the "shot" didn't wake me. When eggs explode, they apparently sound like a gun shot going off! When eggs explode they go fifty directions! I'm still cleaning exploded egg mess in my kitchen! Now that is a big uffda! The good news is that I can finally laugh at what happened. After all, I didn't find it humorous one bit when I first found out what I had done!
So alrighty now! I'm not going to give up this easy, right? I decided last night to start earlier even if it was still hot in the house. No! I didn't have a problem this time around! : ) This time I boiled pasta and as you all probably know...that doesn't take as long to cook. I actually finished a Greek pasta salad in record time. I only "cheat" by using a Greek Feta dressing. Anyway, I was just thinking that I haven't shared a recipe in such a long time, now would be a good time to share some summer recipes...but first, here's what you can prep in advance when the house is cooler.
Boiled eggs, potatoes, pasta - can be refrigerated for a few days
Baked ham - can be frozen for later
Browned taco meat, ground lamb, ground turkey, etc. - can be frozen for later
*It's always a good idea to stalk up on condiments, onions, dressings, pasta, potatoes, cabbage, etc. before a heat wave.
So, on with the recipes...

Pasta Greek Salad

1 pkg. pasta - cooked (I prefer spirals, shells, or wheels)
1 med onion - finely chopped
1/4 C. green olives - pitted and chopped in large pieces
1/4 C. kalamata olives - pitted and chopped in large pieces
16 oz. or more of feta cheese
1/2 C. sliced quartered English cucumber
6-12 marinated artichoke hearts - chopped
Approximately 1/2 bottle of Seeds of Change Greek Feta Dressing
1/4-1/2 C. mayonaise
Cracked pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients thoroughly and chill for about 2-3 hours.

If you would like to make your own Greek dressing (Tzatziki Sauce) that is as follows:

1 cucumber - finely chopped
1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup sour cream
2-6 cloves of minced garlic
1/2 - 1 tsp. dill weed
1 small onion - grated (optional)
cracked black pepper (optional)

This recipe above is the one I created after having my first Gyro. The traditional Tzatziki sauce is the following recipe.

1 cucumber
1 cup yogurt
1 cup sour cream
2 spoons garlic powder
1 spoons oregano
1 spoons mint
1 pinch dill (optional)
2 T olive oil

For the summer months I would buy ground lamb for the gyros. You can purchase flat bread - pita bread in most stores now or I suppose you could make your own. For gyros, just layer browned lamb, onions, lettuce, tomatoes, feta cheese, and tzatzika sauce on flat bread and fold in half. Serve with Greek pasta salad on the side.

If you would prefer a standard Greek salad you would just chop up a tomatoe, slice an English cucumber, crumble feta cheese, and chop/slice an onion. Top with tzatzika sauce or Greek feta vinaigrette.

So, there you have it. These are great during the hot weather. Don't forget the lemonade and ice tea! : )