This weather is so beautiful! I love summer time, but last week, with temperatures rising to over 100 degrees, I felt as if was winter because we were staying in the house to have some respite from the heat, just like we had to do in the winter from the cold. My kids and I played in the cool basement, my husband talked me (tricked me) into cleaning out the crawl space –“since we were down there anyways”, and we were having movie nights to stay cool inside instead of being outside enjoying what should be beautiful summer nights.. On the 4th of July, the adults were almost begging the kids to come out of the pool and come back inside so we didn’t have to sit outside and sweat.
It was THAT hot.
That is not the summer I envisioned.
Summer for me is warm weather, but only topping out in the mid eighties. Oh, and don’t forget a cool breeze. A nice breeze is a must. I love getting the kids outside and playing all day long until they are good and tired and ready to turn in extra early so I can continue to watch season 2 of The Vampire Diaries.
Whaaat?
I mean….relax.
Well, summer cooking should be fresh and fun as well. This is one of my all time favorites for the summer. I think my favorite part is the smoky flavor of the red pepper and red onion sauteed in the olive oil. The sweetness of the balsamic vinegar tempers the spice of the cayenne pepper and the cilantro is the final, perfecting, finishing touch.This recipe was originally my mom’s, and it brings back a feeling of home every time I make it.
Whip up a big batch of this, serve it along grilled chicken, fish or a nice marinated flank steak for the week. Yum.

Summer Corn Salad

6 ears of fresh corn, cooked, corn scraped off OR 4 cups of frozen corn, thawed
1 tblsp olive oil
1 red pepper, diced
1 small red onion, diced
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp salt
5 tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 tblsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4-1/2 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

Scrape cooked corn off of husk into a large bowl. Let cool. Meanwhile, in a small saute pan, heat olive oil. Add peppers, onion and garlic and cook until golden and slightly browned. Sprinkle with 1/2 tsp salt. Add pepper mixture to corn and stir gently. Add tomatoes, balsamic and cayenne pepper. Stir. Sprinkle with cilantro and chill for 1 hour before serving.

This garlic bread is the best! My family likes to have this bread with a nice bowl of pasta, but I have found that it is very versatile as a nice accompaniment to soups, stews and pasta dishes, but also during the summer with grilled chicken or fish and veggies. I have even served it as an appetizer and it was gone very, very quickly. It is delicious, easy to make and is a nice alternative to the usual “bread spread with butter and sprinkled with garlic salt” garlic bread.
Beware though…it is very garlicky (delicious) so if say, you are cooking dinner for your boyfriend for the very first time, or having a dinner for work colleagues…this is probably not the bread to make! If you have been married for a long time and know to stay away from your spouse after they consume large amounts of this bread….you are good to go!

Roasted Garlic Bread

1 baguette, sliced in 1 ” thick slices
 6 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tblsp olive oil
2 tblsp butter, softened
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to350 degrees. Wrap garlic cloves and olive oil in a foil packet making sure sides are closed tightly. Roast in oven for 45 minutes. During last 10 minutes of baking, slice baguette and place in one layer on a baking sheet.

 Bake bread until crispy and crunchy about ten minutes. Mix garlic with butter, parmesan cheese, salt and pepper, mashing with a fork.

 Spread evenly on baguette slices and serve. Heavenly.

Ok, so I sooooo want to live on the ranch.
Do you watch Pioneer Woman on the Food Network Channel?
If you did, you would want to live on the ranch too.
Seriously. It looks so fun. Ree Drummond is awesome. She seems like the world’s greatest mom. You know the one who cooks, has a beautiful house AND never seems to get mad at her kids and has TONS of patience for every silly, and not so silly thing they do. Oh and she takes great pictures of them too. All the time. It is like she always has her camera just hanging around her neck, ready to capture the cutest things her kids do. (Unlike me, who usually says, “Oh. I wish I had my camera.”)
She actually has a “lodge” and a “house”. As in, “I am going to head up to the lodge to get dinner ready and we will eat there and then hang at the house later.” Two houses you can live in. On the same piece of  property.
This is all on the ranch.
She is always feeding “cowboys” and “hungry kids” and her kids always seem like they honestly love whatever she decides to make for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Even if it contains things like jalapenos (which a lot of her cooking does) or cilantro (both things none of my kids would ever eat).
 She homeschools them and they do all sorts of really fun activities and she seems so patient with them, all the time. Even while homeschooling  four different age kids.
They have horses…tons of horses and a dog that just follows them around all day because life on the ranch is so….well, just simple..and happy.
I really want to live on the ranch with Ree Drummond.
But then, I come back to earth and I realize… wow, she lives on a ranch.
Like, a place that is far away from…well, everything. 
And there are animals there that need to be taken care of… all day long. I mean, I don’t have anything against animals, but let’s just say, I am not exactly an animal person. As in, I really don’t like to be anywhere near them. You know, that kind of animal person.
And then there is that whole “homeschooling” thing. I mean, I bet she gets to snuggle her kids all day long which sounds really wonderful, but then I think…what happens when they start fighting with each other? What happens when they are having a really cranky day? You mean to tell me, you can’t send them off to school so you can catch your breath?
Okay, I can deal….but.…..Then I think about how they get up at the crack of dawn,  to take care of those darn animals again. They are literally starving and so tired when they are done that when she tries to feed them spicy pork with jalapenos (okay I never saw that recipe, but I am just sayin’), they can’t even muster enough energy up to complain. That is why they seem like they love everything she cooks!
Okay…
Forget living on the ranch.
I think I will just stay here and just cook like I live on the ranch, because she makes some really good stuff. And she is always entertaining people at her house (lodge)  which I love to do. I love having people over for dinner and being able to cook for them. Seriously. Some people probably feel like it is their worst nightmare, but I really enjoy it! I get inspired by new recipes and just want to share them with the people I love. So, although I don’t have a lodge, I still love to cook like I do.
So, maybe the ranch isn’t for me, but she sure makes it look like fun.
This recipe just reminded me of something she would make. It isn’t hers, but I think it would be “cowboy and hungry kid approved.”
(Seriously, you really have to tune in to get all my play on words here…or you probably really find this post not funny at all and probably a little annoying!)
This calzone is the perfect grab and go food, but it was great for our family sit down dinner too. The crust was flaky and slightly sweet and the chicken was deliciously tender and perfectly seasoned. The melty cheddar inside was perfect and paired with some fresh crisp veggies dipped in my Carmelized Onion Yogurt Dip , it was the perfect dinner.
Enjoy your dinner with your family! (And check out The Pioneer Woman  on Food Network . You will be inspired too!)

Whole Wheat BBQ Chicken Calzones

Calzone Dough:
1 1/8 cups warm water
3 tsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 tblsp honey
1 1/2 tblsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
Olive oil to coat bowl

Filling:
3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 cups of your favorite barbecue sauce
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

In a large bowl combine water, yeast, honey and olive oil. Stir gently and then let sit until yeast becomes alive and mixture looks creamy and slightly bubbly, about ten minutes. Add the salt to the mixture and then add the flours a little at a time and knead the dough until dough becomes smooth and stretchy, not sticky (about 10 minutes).  Remove the dough from the bowl and set aside. Pour a little olive oil in bowl to coat. Return dough to bowl and turn over to coat in the olive oil. Cover the bowl with a clean towel and place in a warm place to rise for about 2 hours.
Once dough has risen, take dough out and place on a floured surface. Punch dough down and add flour if it is a little sticky. Separate dough into six round pieces, flatten, and place on a baking sheet and let rise, covered for about 15 minutes more.
While letting the dough rise the last fifteen minutes, place shredded chicken in a bowl. Add 1 cup of the barbecue sauce, paprika and onion powder. Mix until chicken is well coated. Uncover dough circles. Divide chicken evenly, placing a mound in the middle of each dough circle. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of shredded cheese and another dollop of barbecue sauce.

Bring the sides up around and tightly seal with your fingers.

 Repeat for each calzone. Poke some holes in the top of each one. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until calzones are lightly browned. Serve with extra barbecue sauce or buttermilk ranch dressing for dipping. 

I love Mexican food, especially enchiladas. I usually make the original ones, stuffed with chicken or beef and then smothered in red enchilada sauce and melted cheddar cheese.
Yum.
Recently, I have become a little more experimental with my enchiladas, actually trading in the originals for some new variations. Have you tried the Honey Lime Enchiladas on my blog? You have to check them out.
Delicious.
The other day, I had some friends over and I prepared these Tomatillo Shrimp Enchiladas. They were something different, and really, really good. Tender shrimp, crisp green peppers and sweet corn all tucked into a corn tortilla, covered with a creamy sauce and melted monterey jack cheese. I actually made the filling the night before , which is always a plus when you are entertaining. When it was time to assemble the dish, I just took the filling out of the fridge, and I was able to easily assemble them while enjoying a glass of sangria and conversation with a great friend. They baked up in under a half hour and we had a delicious meal that was easy to make and really good.
I love entertaining, but I love easy entertaining even more!
I think they were a hit with my friends, and they definitely will be added to our list of family favorites!

Tomatillo Shrimp Enchiladas

1 tblsp olive oil
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup red onion, chopped
1 1/2 lb raw shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed
1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 cup water
2 cups shredded monterey jack cheese, divided
8 corn tortillas
1 1/2 cups green tomatillo salsa
1 cup half and half  (I have used fat free or regular, your choice)

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and green pepper to hot skilled and cook about 2 minutes. Add shrimp, cooking until shrimp is pink and cooked through. Add corn and stir well. In a small bowl, mix cumin and chili powder with water. Pour over shrimp mixture and heat, stirring until shrimp mixture is coated, about two minutes.
At this point, you can refrigerate the shrimp mixture to be used within the next day or you can begin to assemble enchiladas.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray an 8×8 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Heat corn tortillas in the microwave for 30 seconds so they become more flexible and easier to work with. Brush each tortilla with abou a teaspoon of green tomatillo salsa, about a 1/4 cup of the shrimp mixture and a tablespoon of shredded cheese. Fold and place in baking dish, seam side down. Repeat process with the remaining tortillas, placing them side by side in the baking dish. If you have any extra filling, just pour it over the top of the prepared enchiladas in the pan. In a medium bowl, combine remaining green tomatillo salsa with half and half and pour over folded enchiladas. Sprinkle remaining cheese evenly over the top. Bake at 375 degrees for about 20-30 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly on top.