Slow-cooking options for summer meals

smcclanahan

The first official day of summer has arrived, and so did the temperatures. It seemed like overnight that it turned summer with rising temperatures during the daytime -- which causes me to turn to cooler options for cooking.

Tracey Tripp of Cape Girardeau writes that we usually think of crockpot recipes for colder weather, but they are great for summer. You can prepare the recipe in the morning, then go swimming or to softball games and supper is ready when you come home. It doesn't heat up the kitchen like using your oven, either.

Italian Beef

3 pounds boneless rump roast

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon oregano

2 cups water

1 teaspoon chili powder

2 cubes beef bouillon

1 teaspoon onion salt

Put roast in crockpot and all seasonings on the top; then pour water over all. Cook on high for 8 hours. After 6 hours, shred meat with a fork and put back in crockpot. When done, put meat on hoagie buns and serve the juice in small bowls for dunking your sandwich in. You may add shredded mozzarella or provolone cheese to your sandwich, if desired.

Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken Italian

8 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1 package dry Italian salad dressing mix

1/4 cup water

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 (4-ounce) can mushrooms, drained

Place chicken in greased slow cooker. Combine salad dressing and water. Pour over chicken. Cover. Cook on low 4 to 5 hours. In saucepan, combine cream cheese and soup. Heat slightly to melt cream cheese. Stir in mushrooms. Pour over chicken. Cover. Cook 1 additional hour on low. Serve over noodles or rice.

Barbecued Turkey Legs

4 turkey drum sticks

1 to 2 teaspoons salt

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/3 cup molasses

1/4 cup vinegar

1/2 cup ketchup

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

3/4 teaspoons hickory liquid smoke

2 tablespoons instant minced onion

Sprinkle turkey legs with salt and pepper. Place in slow cooker. Combine remaining ingredients. Pour over turkey. Cover. Cook on low 5 to 7 hours.

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This brownie recipe is also a time saver. It is much quicker than baking several trays of cookies to take to ballgames or a picnic.

Fabulous Blonde Brownies

13/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup (6 ounces) white chocolate chips

1 cup (4 ounces) blanched whole almonds, coarsely chopped

1 cup English toffee bits

2/3 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 13-by-9-inch baking pan. Combine flour, baking powder and salt in small bowl; mix well. Combine white chocolate, almonds and toffee in medium bowl; mix well. Beat butter and brown sugar in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed until well blended. Stir in 3/4 cup of white chocolate mixture. Spread evenly into prepared pan. Bake 20 minutes. Immediately after removing brownies from oven, sprinkle remaining white chocolate mixture evenly over brownies. Press lightly. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool brownies completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into 2-by-1 1/2-inch bars.

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Jodi Thompson of Jackson shares a few summertime favorites with us. My sister-in-law Ann loves chocolate and strawberries together. When we have fresh strawberries for dessert, she always spoons them over chocolate ice cream, so I know she will enjoy this first recipe shared by Jodi.

Chocolate Strawberry Shortcake

6 cups fresh strawberries

3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup Hershey's Cocoa or Hershey's Dutch Processed Cocoa

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine

2/3 cup milk

1 egg, beaten

1 cup (1/2 pint) cold whipping cream

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Reserve 6 strawberries. Slice remaining berries; in bowl, gently stir together sliced berries and 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Grease 8-inch round baking pan. In medium bowl, stir together flour, cocoa, remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar, baking powder and salt; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir together milk and egg; add all at once to dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened. Spread dough in prepared pan, building up edges slightly. Bake 15 to 18 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean; cool 10 minutes. Remove from pan and place on serving plate. Beat whipping cream and powdered sugar until stiff. Arrange some sliced berries over cake; top with whipped cream. Garnish with reserved whole strawberries; serve with remaining sliced berries. Yields 8 servings.

Grilled Chicken and Apple Kebobs

1/4 cup honey

4 teaspoons lemon juice

4 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme

1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard

1 teaspoon vegetable oil

Salt and pepper to taste

2 apples

1 red onion

1 green bell pepper

3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

In a small bowl, mix together honey, lemon juice, thyme, mustard and vegetable oil until thoroughly combined. Season with salt and pepper. Core apples and cut into 12 wedges each. Cut onion into wedges about 1/2-inch thick. Cut bell pepper into 1-inch squares. Cut chicken breast into chunks. Skewer chicken, apple wedges, pepper and onion wedges onto metal skewers, alternating ingredients evenly. (If using bamboo skewers, soak skewers in water for 2 to 3 hours to prevent burning.) Place skewers on well-oiled grill over medium hot coals. Cook, turning once, until chicken appears translucent, about 3 to 5 minutes. Brush skewers generously with honey glaze, cooking and turning until chicken is cooked through and apples are golden, 1 to 2 minutes longer. Yields 4 servings.

Lemon Pudding Custard

4 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

3 tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt, optional

3 cups skim or low-fat milk, heated until very hot

Cooking spray

Sliced fresh strawberries

Jam, jelly or fruit preserves

Lemon peel strips, optional

Fresh mint leaves, optional

In medium bowl, beat together eggs, sugar, juice, grated peel, vanilla and salt, if desired, until well blended. Stir in milk. Place 6 (6-ounce) spray-coated custard cups in large baking pan. Pour egg mixture into custard cups. Place pan on rack in preheated 350 degree oven. Pour very hot water into pan to within 1/2 inch of top of custards.

Bake until knife inserted near center comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove promptly from hot water. Cool on wire rack about 5 to 10 minutes. Serve warm or chilled inverted onto individual plates. Arrange sliced strawberries around each custard. Spoon jam on top of each custard. Garnish with lemon peel strips and mint leaves, if desired. Yields 6 servings.

That is all the room we have for this week. Please send in your favorite recipes to share with others this summer. So, until next week, happy cooking.

Susan McClanahan is administrator at the Cape Girardeau Senior Center. Send recipes to her at smcclanahan@semissourian.com or by mail at P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63701. Recipes published have not been kitchen-tested by the Southeast Missourian staff.