Summer Meals

2008 at 3:22 pm   |   by Kristin Chesemore
Filed under Homemaking Eating and Mealtime Holidays and Seasons

Wow--you outdid yourselves this time! We received so many wonderful entries for our summer contest. As always, we're sorry we can't post them all.

Let's begin with summer meals. You can download this Summer Meals pdf which contains over thirty delicious looking recipes and creative tips for simple and yummy summer food.

Our winner for today is Talitha. She sent in four creative ideas for summer eating fun. Congratulations Talitha and thank you for sharing these suggestions with all of us. Let us know which of the fabulous books you would like to receive.

To all of you, my husband and three growing boys thank you for the new recipes they'll enjoy this summer!

SUMMER MEAL IDEAS from Talitha

Have a Picnic                                        

Number one is the obvious one and not really original but… eating outside is one of the most enjoyable things to do in the summer! With family and friends enjoying good conversation, a ray of sunlight in your hair and fresh air while eating your lunch. From breakfast to supper, outside is the place to be when the sun is shining.

Make Your Own BBQ

One of the fun things to do is make your own BBQ roaster with branches and aluminium foil. When we were little we often roasted little sausages outside. Each of the neighbour kids had to bring something: ketchup, a can of sausages, bread… This way we made our own hot dogs. (First ask the parents for permission of course)

My brothers also liked to build special ovens in the ground. (We, the girls, had to carry along the heavy stones…) We worked a whole week on it, every day a little further towards the final result. At the end of the week we could bake food on the stones. Fun! You can find inspiration for different kinds of ovens to build in survival books.

Make Norwegian Pinnebrød                

Another all-time popular thing to do outside is baking bread in a small fire. (You can even do it in a fire basket or inside on a rainy day.) Since I learned to bake pinnebrød in Norway we have repeated it many times on parties or family & friends nights. You just make dough for a white bread and gather some sticks. You roll a small piece of dough and twist it around your stick. You hold the stick above the fire for a while and watch your bread until it is finished. The first time you have to give yourself some time to learn, so be patient. 

You can also put a sausage inside the bread. Another idea is to put cheese, smashed tomatoes, pizza spice in the bread. You get a very tasty pizza bread! As dessert… you eat some more bread But now you put brown sugar, cinnamon and butter in the dough. It is fun for young and old to do! I did it last month again on a party with and everybody enjoyed it so much!

(UPDATE Another reader, Karen, wrote in with a suggestion to add: We call the Norwegian Pinnebrød "doughboys." We use the inexpensive biscuit dough, wrap around a thin dowel, and bake over the fire. It has replaced smores as the favorite dessert while camping!)

Do a Snack Bar with Kids

Since I have no family on my own I like to cook together with my little nephew and niece. This morning we cut potatoes into chips, cut vegetables and set the dinner table. It is a morning-filling activity--really time consuming but rewarding!

One time as children we had our own snack restaurant as a family event. We did everything, including baking the chips, preparing the pitas, hamburgers… Much fun for older children! First of all the preparation, building the bar, putting up a plate with the name of the snackbar… And then the fun of ‘playing’ with real food and customers.

 

Cutting the peppers (it is easier with scissors)