It's too Fricken Hot to Cook

[The empressof all]

It's a cold cuts and ice cream kind of day here in the Seattle area. We're looking at the second day of 90 plus temperatures. I know that's chump change for many of you but for my poor PNW acclimatized and menopausal body this is quite a nasty series of events. Forget about trying to find an air conditioned restaurant to linger over a good bottle of wine.....Air Conditioning is the exception here. I finally broke down and bought the last portable air conditioner in Western Wa. I was ready to drive to Yakima to pick one up yesterday but DH secured one in Renton so the drive wasn't that bad. We now can keep one room cool. Even the dog wouldn't leave it last night.

So what's on your easy- too hot to cook menu.

[babylonsister]

1. On days like this, the movie theatres and malls are packed around

here. Lots of a/c to be had, and this is TX! The heat is brutal here as well. Just returned from 'brunch' so we're set; no cooking here!
Steaks on the bbq tomorrow, fairly early before the heat cooks us.

[NMDemDist2]

2. Costco canned chicken salad on greens

no cooking but tasty! or you can serve them in pitas instead of on a bed of lettuce. or stuff a big tomato with the chicken salad

you guys must be miserable :hug:

[Stinky The Clown]

3. Sandwiches and cooling salads

Lots of good cold cuts. Nice, fresh, crusty bread. Sliced sharp provolone.

Simple cuke salad: clean the cukes, leave on the skin. Slice them. Slice a whole onion. Pour in some olive oil and white vinegar. Add sugar if needed to cut the tartness a bit. Salt and pepper to taste. Chopped parsley. Done

Simple tomato salad: wash maters. Cut as for any salad. Slice a whole onion. Add olive oil, salt, pepper, oregano and parsley. (Garlic is optional. I almost never use it in this salad.) Allow to marinate for a a few hours. The tomatoes will give up their juice and make a sort of natual viniagrette out of the rest of the ingredients. The juice, dipped with bread, is maybe even better than the tomatoes themselves!

Another one, but needs at least 24 hours: ceviche.

[grasswire]

4. eastern european style

hard boiled eggs, sliced salamis, breads, pickled vegetables, lots of fresh fruit, cheeses. And cucumbers!

[cmf]

5. I'm in the seattle area, too.

We have casement windows, so we don't even have a window unit. Yuck. I think all of the gloating I did last week when we had awesome weather is now contributing to our heat. Karma can be kruel.

Anyway, we're totally insane and planning to go to Bite of Seattle for dinner. I just hope it stays cloudy so that it doesn't get boiling hot.

[eleny]

10. Did you know that they make window units for casements?

In one room, we have a large picture window flanked by two smallish double hung windows. There isn't a traditional window unit small enough to fit. But one day I was Googling and found that if we took both top and bottom windows out (they're vinyls), we could fit a casement sized air conditioner in the opening. They're tall and skinny and are also for slider windows. Here's a page to show you some.
http://www.nextag.com/casement-air-conditioner/search-html

My husband leaves it in all year in that room. He built-in some wood for the opening at the top and painted it on the outside to match the house.

If that wasn't going to work out for us, I was going to get a portable air conditioner on wheels. The challenge there are to figure out where to put the exhaust hose.

[The empressof all]

11. I put the exhaust hose out the casement window

I just turned the extender piece vertically rather than horizontally. It works like a charm. I also understand they have the extenders for sliding doors. I'm planning to get rid of my leaky french doors in my bed room by next summer so I'll then be able to move this little sucker from room to room next year.

[eleny]

12. Great!

We have a mom in law cottage on our property that has the slider windows. I could get a portable a/c for the kitchen that would probably keep the whole house comfortable. I'm just going to need it when I make the bedroom a bedroom instead of a giant storage closet like it is now. Then when company visits in the summer, it'll be comfortable for sleeping at night. It's even been very warm here in the Denver area at night. Thanks a bunch!

[cmf]

15. Huh!

I'm definitely going to look into it. Thanks!

[eleny]

16. Good luck and stay cool!

[yewberry]

6. I'm thinking of heading to the PCC deli.

Or, if they have them, a jamaican jerk sandwich from Hillside Quickies. We're crazy for those things!

(I'm considering finding an excuse to go to Fred Meyer and walk around, pretending to shop in the cool, cool air.)

[Warpy]

7. It cooled off to the upper 80s here in central NM

so I planned a hearty dinner, something I crave in midsummer after endless days of yogurt and salad and fruit.

I did a vegetarian stroganoff, used Smart Foods "steak" strips, lots of mushies, onions, sour cream, seasonings, and put it atop homemade noodles.

It was lovely and I have leftovers for the next cool day.

If I never see Krab salad again, I will be happy. Tomorrow I'll be back to yogurt and salad.

[KyndCulture]

8. I hear ya, it's finally cooled down here in MN

but for the last week, it's been:

deviled eggs and a salad tray, cukes, maters, celery with cream cheese and poppy seeds.

The pitas, like the thread I started.

Tomorrow I am gonna try my hand at hummus for the first time.

[yy4me]

9. All you folks bragging about your tomato salads, I'm jealous!

Its hotter than the devil here in NE but not a fresh tomato to be found. The farm stands and home gardens have had so much rain that they are rotting on the vine. Corn is bad too. Our hot night meals are a quick roast beef sandwich from the local sub shop. Green salad with cukes and red onions, radishes and other decorations. Pasta salad in a pinch(hubby doesn't understand it-to him it is cold leftovers), potato salad works. For me, a good loaf of french bread, smoked turkey sandwich
would be great. Local farmers markets are suffering. Lots of cold showers,(I'm running out of light weight changes of......clothes.

[spindrifter]

13. Too hot to cook--but not too hot to go for Vietnamese food!

Seattle has a lot of great Vietnamese restaurants. We went to one tonight and afterward went right into one of the nearby grocery stores to get rice sticks and rice paper to make Vietnamese spring rolls. Yum.

[politicat]

14. Bread-maker bread, raw vegetables, hard-boiled eggs, maybe

some cheese or butter. Fruit-juice ices and iced tea by the gallon. Ice cream. The occasional hot dog.

It's been hot here for Colorado, and humid to boot. I feel like I'm damp all the time.