Summer Food Inspiration
As a foodie and person who is hugely grateful that our family manages to convene for dinner almost every night, it's been fun to be part of the Mom's the Word on Dinner conversation series via Momversation. The series has covered a range of topics such as odd eating habits, involving kids at mealtime, funny dinner moments, meal planning, what dinner means to family, and table manners (you can check out all of these video conversations at the Ragú® Facebook page). And now that it really feels as if the warm weather is here (and Memorial Day is coming up!), my mind is turning to summer food inspiration.
Specifically, I'm curious about what changes for your family food-wise with the change in season and how you adjust with your kids. For example, if pasta and pizza are the only things your kids will eat, what do you feed them when the weather gets hot? Or if you're a big grill fan, do you have fantastic recipes beyond the standard burger and dog, or awesome options for vegetarians? Here are a few things I'm planning on trying this summer; I'd love to hear your ideas as well!
Grilled pizza. Pizza is clearly a winner with kids and this summer I'm going to try bringing the pizza outside. Our foodie friends Andrew and Nooshi served grilled pizzas to us last summer and they used large, thin pita bread as the crust. The pizzas were a huge hit with the kids and grownups.
Veggie burgers. Laurel has never been much of a burger and dogs fan and probably will be even less inclined towards them given her new commitment to eating more vegetarian. So I'm on the hunt for a really great veggie burger recipe -- do share if you have one!
Grilled veggie packets. We enjoyed a summer meal with friends where they placed veggies in foil (simply drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper) and grilled the packets. The results were fantastic and it felt like opening a little present. I'm especially excited to try this once our CSA veggies start up and hope the unusual presentation will entice Laurel into trying new veggies.
Fish on the grill. I've never tried fish on the grill but I think this will be the summer to do it. I've seen recipes where you need to use a grill rack (so the fillets don't crumble and fall through the grill slats) or I'll try the foil package technique with thin fillets.
So, do you have any fantastic recipes to share, or tried and true summer foods that your kids will eat (other than ice cream...)? Please share below in the comments!
Also, my fellow Mom's the Word on Dinner panelists are also ruminating about food this week; check out what Audrey McClelland, Caroline Murphy, Daphne Brogdon, Kim Tracy Prince, Mindy Roberts, Vickie Howell, Trisha Haas, and Whitney Moss are chatting about!
Image credit: Simon Howden / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Comments
My mouth is watering reading the different summer food ideas! As I'm down in Miami, summertime is ridiculously hot. We actually grill much more in the winter than the summer. Funny, I know. One thing is for sure, with the heat I am always craving cool foods like fresh fruit salads and popsicles.
Posted by: Caroline | May 26, 2011 12:07 PM | Reply to this comment
We love grilling. I'm not as inventive as you - I usually just grill meat, maybe veggies. We love salmon on the grill, burgers and steaks of course, and my favorite is Ina Garten's Tequila Lime Chicken. YUM.
Posted by: Jo-Lynne {Musings of a Housewife} | May 26, 2011 4:06 PM | Reply to this comment