TARBORO — When it stays hot for so long, the desire to heat up the kitchen cooking fades away. So, if you don’t want to have a heavy meal, try one of these refreshing salads for dinner. Besides, if you eat salad for dinner, you won’t feel guilty about some cool ice cream for dessert!

Our first recipe is really refreshing. It’s watermelon and feta cheese. The recipe doesn’t have the amounts of each ingredients and that’s so that you can adjust it based on the number of people that you are feeding and how large you want the salad to be. So, you have to use your imagination for this one.

The second recipe has bacon! For my husband that says enough right there. As a tip, I cook my bacon in the oven. I put foil on a sheet pan (make sure it has sides so the grease won’t run off) spray it with a little Pam and cook the bacon at 425 degrees for about 20 minutes. No getting burned. Then chop it up for this salad.

The third recipe is pork and apples. Since everyone has seen the photos of the roasted pig with the apple in his mouth, we know that pork and apples go well together. This is a great salad and you cook the pork on the grill so the kitchen still stays cool.

The fourth recipe is broccoli salad. You can add any other ingredients into this that you like but it’s great just as it is.

The last recipe uses whatever is in season.  This salad looks and tastes great and can be varied with the seasons. In summer use your favorite type of berry along with the grilled chicken, and in winter use orange segments (or try dried apricots or cranberries. The dressing is a sweet vinaigrette, and goes well with both the fruit and the poultry.



Watermelon-Feta Salad

white wine vinegar

olive oil

salt

pepper

baby arugula

 red onion slices

watermelon cubes

crumbled feta

nicoise olives

fresh oregano



Whisk 1 part white wine vinegar with 3 parts olive oil, and salt and pepper. Toss with baby arugula, red onion slices, watermelon cubes, crumbled feta, nicoise olives and fresh oregano.

Simple Bacon Salad

Bacon, fried and chopped

Cider Vinegar

Dijon mustard

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Mesclun greens or other salad greens

Poached egg



Chop and fry bacon; combine the drippings with cider vinegar, Dijon mustard, olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss with mesclun greens; top with the bacon and a poached egg.



Pork and Apple Salad

3 tablespoons apple jelly

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

3 boneless center-cut pork chops (about 11/4 pounds)

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing

1/2 small red onion, finely diced

3 tablespoons whole-grain mustard

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

2 heads Boston or Bibb lettuce, torn

1 Fuji or Gala apple, diced

1 small turnip, peeled and diced

3/4 cup crumbled blue cheese

Chopped fresh parsley, for topping (optional)



Preheat a grill to high. Mix 2 tablespoons apple jelly with the thyme. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper and brush with olive oil on both sides. Grill the chops until marked, about 3 minutes per side. Brush with the jelly-thyme mixture and continue to grill until the chops are cooked through, about 2 more minutes. Set aside to cool.

Soak the diced onion in a bowl of cold water, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk the mustard, vinegar and the remaining 1 tablespoon apple jelly in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Slowly add 1/2 cup olive oil, whisking until smooth.

Cut the pork into bite-size pieces and drain the onion. Add the lettuce, apple, turnip, pork, onion and blue cheese to the bowl with the dressing and toss. Top with parsley, if desired.



Fresh Broccoli Salad

2 heads fresh broccoli

1 red onion

1/2 pound bacon

3/4 cup raisins    3/4 cup sliced almonds

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup white sugar

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar



Place bacon in a deep skillet and cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Cool and crumble.

Cut the broccoli into bite-size pieces and cut the onion into thin bite-size slices. Combine with the bacon, raisins, your favorite nuts and mix well.

To prepare the dressing, mix the mayonnaise, sugar and vinegar together until smooth. Stir into the salad, let chill and serve.



Grilled Chicken Salad with Seasonal Fruit

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken

breast halves

1/2 cup pecans

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

1/2 onion, minced   

1 teaspoon ground mustard

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

2 heads Bibb lettuce - rinsed, dried and torn

1 cup sliced fresh strawberries



Preheat the grill for high heat.

Lightly oil the grill grate. Grill chicken 8 minutes on each side, or until juices run clear. Remove from heat, cool, and slice.

Meanwhile, place pecans in a dry skillet over medium-high heat. Cook pecans until fragrant, stirring frequently, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat, and set aside.

In a blender, combine the red wine vinegar, sugar, vegetable oil, onion, mustard, salt, and pepper. Process until smooth.

Arrange lettuce on serving plates. Top with grilled chicken slices, strawberries, and pecans. Drizzle with the dressing to serve.



Did you know?



Wow what a little gem the cucumber is, will you look at it differently now.

1. Cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc.

2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B Vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds? Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.

5. Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!!!

6. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!! This will still depend on how much you consume!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explores for quick meals to thwart off starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don't have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!

10. Stressed out and don't have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa? Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber with react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown the reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Just finished a business lunch and realize you don't have gum or mints? Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the phytochemcials will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.

12. Looking for a 'green' way to clean your faucets, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the shine, but is won't leave streaks and won't harm you fingers or fingernails while you clean.



Karen’s Kitchen is a weekly column by Karen Freeman of Tarboro. Contact Karen at:

kvfreeman@triad.rr.com to exchange ideas, ask questions, submit recipes, tips or suggestions.

Check out her Web site: http://www.geocities.com/kvfreeman27886/