Are you looking for some easy recipes for summer? Wondering what to make for dinner when the weather is so hot? We know when it’s hot outside, we don’t want to cook!
With this in mind, we’d like to share a few of our favorite family recipes for summer.
Now, we know we aren’t food bloggers, but with the holiday weekend and grilling season, we thought we’d share four of our family favorite recipes. Maybe they will even become prized recipes for summer in your family too.
These are tried and true recipes that always get rave reviews. Perfect for an easy dinner with the family, or they are special enough for a party or barbecue with friends! They are light, healthy and make the ideal summer meal.
Recipes for Summer - Main Course
In the summer, I can’t think of anything better than a savory, juicy burger. Over the years we have played with a few recipes and have come up with our own favorite, the Chipotle Spiced Burger.
We like our burgers to be hot, juicy and full of flavor. This Chipotle Spiced burger has that for sure! It has a hint of smoke from the chipotle peppers that adds a unique flavor to the burger. Yet, it’s not too hot for even the little ones to eat. In fact, a regular burger to them is just boring!
Even though we like to use a leaner healthier ground beef, these burgers are juicy with our special ingredients. Take a look.
And if you like a little spice in your food, you need to try my deviled egg recipe with my secret ingredient.
Chipotle Spiced Burger
Equipment
- Barbecue grill
Ingredients
- 1 lb. Extra Lean Ground Beef (90%)
- 1 Egg
- 1 tsp. Basil
- 2 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 Chipotle pepper in adobo sauce minced
- 1 tbls. Green chilies, canned chopped
- 3 tbls. Bread crumbs, seasoned or substitute 3 tbls. ground pork rind for Keto friendly burger.
- 1/2 tsp. Salt
- 4 Hamburger Buns
- 4 red onion, thinly sliced
- 4 slices Pepper Jack cheese optional
- 4 tbls. Guacamole optional
- 4 slices Tomato
- 4 Lettuce leaves
Instructions
- Beat egg. Combine with ground beef, basil, garlic, chipotle pepper, green chilies, salt and bread crumbs (or crushed pork rinds) in a medium bowl. Form into 4 patties.
- Heat barbecue grill to a medium-high heat. Add patties and cook for about 5 minutes on each side. Until a thermometer inserted in the side registers 160º.
- Place burgers in the buns with the onion, tomato, lettuce and guacamole.
Recipes for Summer - Salads
Roasted Sweet Potato Salad. Doesn’t this salad just look and sound delicious?! Roasted sweet potatoes combined in a jalapeño lime dressing, tossed with black beans, red onion, sweet red bell peppers, and fresh cilantro…who can resist?!
This salad can be served warm or cold. In the summer I definitely prefer it cold. It’s so refreshing!
Roasted Sweet Potato Salad with Jalapeño Lime Dressing
Equipment
- Blender is required to liquify the dressing.
Ingredients
- 3 medium sweet potatoes peeled and cubed
- 1 medium red onion coarsely chopped
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 (15 oz) can black beans rinsed and drained
- 1 red bell pepper chopped
- 1 tsp. salt
- freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup cilantro chopped
Dressing
- 2 medium jalapeños seeded, membrane removed and roughly chopped (wear gloves when working with jalapeños)
- 1 garlic clove
- juice of 2 limes
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400º. Coat a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
- Toss sweet potatoes and onion with olive oil in a large bowl. Spread out sweet potatoes and onions on the baking sheet. Roast 30-35 minutes.
- In a large bowl toss warm sweet potatoes and onions with rinsed black beans, red bell pepper and cilantro. Add the jalapeño dressing, salt and pepper. Toss well.
Dressing
- Place jalapeños, garlic and lime juice in blender and process until liquified.
Notes
This yummy corn salad has evolved over the years. Adding more and more veggies and making the dressing a little more healthy. It’s packed with so many delicious flavors, it’s a party in your mouth!
There is also a lot of flexibility. You can use fresh corn off the cob, frozen corn or canned corn. Just use what you have readily available.
Crisp English cucumbers, sweet bell peppers, tasty cherry tomatoes fresh from the garden and crunchy jicama create the perfect summer salad.
It’s quick and easy to prepare, in fact it can be made in a matter of minutes. Just chill and serve.
Easy Corn Salad with a Zesty Lime Vinaigrette
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups corn fresh off the cob, canned or frozen
- 1/2 orange bell pepper diced
- 1/2 red bell pepper diced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 cup jicama diced
- 1/4 cup red onion diced
- 1 cup cucumber diced
- 1/3 cup cilantro chopped
Lime Vinaigrette
- 2 limes zest and juice
- 1/4 tsp. salt or to taste
- 1/8 tsp chipotle chili powder
- 1 tsp. chili powder
- 1 tbls. olive oil
Instructions
- Combine in a large bowl corn, cucumber, peppers, tomatoes, jicama, red onion and cilantro.
- For the dressing, combine lime juice ,zest, salt, chipotle chili powder, chili powder.Slowly whisk in olive oil. Pour over corn salad mixture. Chill and serve.
Notes
Dessert
All of the credit for this recipe goes to my dad! He loves to experiment and make different flavors of ice cream. This recipe has been a favorite in our family for years.
It’s a wonderful combination, peanut butter and banana. And if you’re in a chocolate mood, just add some chocolate syrup into the mix. That’s delicious too.
Without a doubt the banana make this ice cream extra creamy and you just can’t go wrong with peanut butter.
You’ll notice in this recipe that you can substitute powdered monk fruit for the sugar. If you are watching carbs. this is a great way to lower the carbs, yet keep the yummy sweetness. I would way that 99% of the time I use monk fruit and no one can tell the difference. We’ll just keep that as our little secret. 😉
Dad's Homemade Peanut Butter Banana Ice Cream
Equipment
- Ice Cream Maker I use the Kitchenaid Ice Cream Maker Attachment
- Blender
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 3/4 cup sugar can substitute 1/3 cup powdered monk fruit
- pinch salt
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 banana
- 1/4-1/3 cup natural peanut butter
Instructions
- Place all ingredients except cream in a blender, whirl until smooth and sugar dissolves, about 1-2 minutes. Then add the cream and blend for 5-10 seconds until combined. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Pour cream mixture into an ice cream maker and churn to desired consistency, following the manufacturers directions. Your ice cream will be ready in about about 15-20 minutes. Immediately transfer ice cream into serving dishes or freeze in an airtight container.Garnish with peanuts, banana slices, chocolate chips, hot fudge or Reeses Peanut Butter Cup.
Notes
Now as you’re wondering what to fix for dinner or planning the menu for a summer party, we hope you’ll try 1, 2 or all of these recipes for summer.
Thanks for spending some time with us! Enjoy the upcoming summer holidays with family, friends and good food!
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And as always here at Sunny Side Design
BRINGING YOUR HOME TO THE SUNNY SIDE OF THE STREET!
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