You know what’s great about summertime? Pretty much everything, especially the part about it being summer in the summertime.

Summer is my favorite season, mostly because this is when the sun is shining. I heart sunshine.  I also love heat, because here in Nebraska, I spend about 13 months out of the year shivering. Once summer hits, the sun shines daily, and my bones warm up – then I am in my happy place.

While sun and heat rock my world, dripping sweat down my nose and into my cooking pot is not a part of my summertime enjoyment. Well, don’t picture it. It’s just that I remember watching my grandma cook in her 115° kitchen, wiping away sweat before it salted the veggies she was preparing. She never learned to close up the house and use the window air conditioner properly, so all of us almost melted and died from the heat in their house every time we visited during the summer. Her kitchen turned us all into sweaty, sloppy…hold on. Why are we still talking about this? We’re here to talk about great food in the summer that does not heat up the house. Moving right along…

I have so much fun preparing yummy meals for my family in the summer. Why? Because there are so many fresh food options available. Watermelon, peaches, corn on the cob – mmmmm I love the taste of summer. In the sunshine. On a hot day. (Yes, Laura. We get it. You like hot weather. Weren’t you going to tell us some good summer meal ideas?)

Indeed.

Here are 10 great summertime meals that won’t heat up your kitchen:

1. Hamburger patties with cheese, buttered green beans, and tossed salad

2. Grilled Italian chicken (recipe in Let’s Do This! eCourse), tossed salad, steamed broccoli, watermelon

3. Grilled barbeque chicken, tossed salad, sweet corn, grilled asparagus

4. Baked potatoes in the crock pot topped with slivered ham, shredded cheese, sour cream, and steamed broccoli – cantaloupe on the side

5. BLT wraps, sliced sweet peppers, carrot sticks and cucumbers with ranch dip, chocolate whipped cream on strawberries

6. Chicken tacos, spicy avocado dip, pineapple cream dessert

7. Pasta salad bar with chicken and lots of veggies, blackberries and fresh peaches

8. Taco salad, fresh pineapple

9. Turkey ranch pinwheels, olives, sweet peppers, honey glazed carrots, watermelon

10. Black bean salsa with corn chips, carrot sticks and cucumbers with ranch dip, nectarines

What are your favorite summertime meals that don’t heat up the house? Whose with me in the “I love summer” camp?