Keeping things cool with a summer supper salad

Hot summer days just seem to cry out for a cool summer salad for supper and some ice cream for dessert. Salads come in a variety of styles, so I decided to pass along a few recipes to you. You can serve as an entrée salad or small portions as a side salad with the entrée of your choice. Salads are so versatile, you can be creative, adding or deleting ingredients as you wish. Add ice cream from the recipes I am passing along to you, and you are set for a cool summer supper.

Grilled Chicken Salad Wraps

3/4 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 small onion, sliced

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 cup seedless red grapes, halved

2/3 cup chopped peeled mango

1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon or 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon

4 flour tortillas (8 inches)

1 cup fresh baby spinach

Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Place onion in a grill wok or basket; brush with oil. Grill chicken and onion, covered, over medium heat for 5-7 minutes on each side or until chicken juices run clear and onion is tender. When cool enough to handle, chop chicken and onion.

In a large bowl, combine the grapes, mango, walnuts, mayonnaise, tarragon, chicken and onion. Place 1 cup filling down the center of each tortilla; top with spinach. Roll up tightly. Serve immediately. Yield: 4 servings.

Corn and Black Bean Salad

3 cups chopped iceberg lettuce

2 cans (8-3/4 ounces each) whole kernel corn, drained

1 can (15 ounces each) whole black beans, drained, rinsed

1 can (10 ounce) Ro-Tel Mexican Diced Tomatoes with Lime Juice & Cilantro, undrained

2 tablespoons canola oil

Toss together all ingredients in large bowl until combined.

Asian Chicken Salad

Oriental Dressing:

3 tablespoons honey

1 1/2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 teaspoon Grey Poupon Dijon mustard

1/8 teaspoon sesame oil

Salad:

2 to 4 cups vegetable oil (for frying)

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup corn flake crumbs

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 skinless chicken breast fillet

3 cups chopped romaine lettuce

1 cup chopped red cabbage

1 cup chopped Napa cabbage

1/2 carrot, julienned or shredded

1 green onion, chopped

1 tablespoon sliced almonds

1/3 cup crispy chow mein noodles

Blend together all ingredients for dressing in a small bowl with an electric mixer. Put dressing in refrigerator to chill while you prepare the salad. Preheat oil in deep fryer or deep pan over medium heat. You want the temperature of the oil to be around 350 degrees. In a small, shallow bowl beat egg, add milk, and mix well. In another bowl, combine flour with corn flake crumbs, salt and pepper. Cut chicken breast into 4 or 5 long strips. Dip each strip of chicken first into egg mixture then into the flour mixture, coating each piece completely. Fry each chicken finger for 5 minutes or until coating has darkened to brown. Prepare salad by tossing the chopped romaine with the chopped red cabbage, Napa cabbage, and carrots. Sprinkle green onion on top of the lettuce. Toast almonds in a small skillet over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes, or until light brown.

Sprinkle toasted almonds over the salad, then add the chow mein noodles. Cut the chicken into small bite-size chunks. Place the chicken onto the salad forming a pile in the middle. Serve with salad dressing on the side. Makes 1 dinner-size salad.

Sugar Cone Ice Cream Pie

For ice cream lovers, there's nothing better than a cake that's actually made with ice cream -- like this yummy sugar cone–studded showstopper.

Servings: 14 servings

1 tub (1.75 quart) vanilla ice cream, slightly softened

6 sugar cones, divided

4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

1 tablespoon oil

1/4 cup chopped dry roasted peanuts

Use back of spoon to pack ice cream into foil-lined 1-1/2-quart bowl. Crush 4 sugar cones; place over ice cream. Press gently into ice cream to form even crust. Freeze 4 hours or until ice cream is firm. Unmold dessert onto plate. Remove foil. Break remaining cones into pieces; press into side of dessert. Melt chocolate as directed on package just before serving dessert. Stir in oil; cool slightly. Drizzle over dessert; sprinkle with nuts.

The chocolate must be slightly cooled before pouring over ice cream to prevent the ice cream from melting. Chocolate will harden almost immediately after pouring over dessert. This dessert can be stored in freezer up to 3 days. Let stand at room temperature about 10 minutes to soften slightly before serving.

Salted Caramel Ice Cream

1 1/4 cups sugar

2 1/4 cups heavy cream

2 teaspoons flaky sea salt such as Maldon

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup whole milk

3 large eggs

Heat 1 cup sugar in a dry 10-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring with a fork to heat sugar evenly until it starts to melt. Stop stirring and cook until it is dark amber, swirling skillet occasionally so sugar melts evenly.

Add 1 1/4 cups cream (mixture will spatter) and cook, stirring, until all of caramel has dissolved. Transfer to a bowl and stir in sea salt and vanilla. Cool to room temperature.

Meanwhile, bring milk, remaining cup of cream and remaining 1/4 cup sugar just to a boil in a small heavy saucepan, stirring occasionally.

Lightly whisk eggs in a medium bowl, then add half of hot milk mixture in a slow stream, whisking constantly to temper. Pour back into saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until custard coats back of spoon and registers 170 degrees on an instant-read thermometer (do not let boil). Pour custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, then stir in cooled caramel.

Chill custard, stirring occasionally, until very cold, 3 to 6 hours. Freeze custard in ice cream maker (it will still be quite soft), then transfer to an airtight container and put in freezer to firm up.

Have a great week, and until next time, happy cooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at news@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, MO 63702. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by Southeast Missourian staff.