Some cool salads and snacks to keep you hydrated and energized.
Tabouli is a Mediterranean (namely Lebanese) salad, traditionally made with very little bulghur wheat and lots and lots of fresh herbs and tomatoes. If, however, the idea of an herb salad is a little weird to you, try this; you can also make it with couscous or quinoa. It's very refreshing and flavorful, and I love it on a day like today (high of 97!! Yipe!). What I especially like about this recipe is that it requires almost no heat to make it, besides boiling the water... no slaving over a hot stove! Yay!
2 cups bulghur (cracked wheat)
2 cups boiling water
1 medium-large cucumber, chopped (1/2 inch cubes)
2 medium tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup fresh chopped mint leaves (minimum!)
2 cups fresh chopped parsley (also minimum!)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small onion or shallot, minced
1/2-2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
3/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Combine the hot water and bulghur in a medium bowl; cover and let sit for about 30 minutes until the water is absorbed. Prepare the vegetables, whisk together the lemon juice, oil, salt and pepper; toss together in another large bowl. When the bulghur is ready, fold it into the mix (make sure that there is no excess water left; if there is, drain it) and incorporate thoroughly. Check the seasoning, then chill for at least a half hour. (this recipe is adapted from http://www.greatpartyrecipes.com/tabouli-recipe.html)
Fruit salad is another fabulous way to cool down; however, it need not be supersweet, soaked in syrup like canned fruit salads-- bleh. This is a nice, simple salad that you can make in less than 15 minutes and instead of getting a megadose of sugar, you get all the yummyness and nutrition of these naturally sweet fruits.
2 lbs fresh strawberries, cut into bite-size pieces
1 pineapple (you can cheat and go with the cored one at the store, it's easier), chopped
2 grapefruits, peeled and cut into sections*
2 fresh peaches, cut into bite size chunks
1 ripe d'Anjou pear, cut into bite-size chunks
1 cup (or 2) fresh berries-- blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, or a combination
2 tbsp organic granulated sugar
1 tbsp fresh lemon or lime juice
a few leaves fresh mint, bruised
*or you can do what I do with grapefruits; I cut them in half, then scoop out the sections with a spoon... it's so much easier!
Combine all the fruits and the juice in a large bowl, then lightly sprinkle with the sugar, add mint leaves and toss together well. Yep, that's it... how easy was that?? Now enjoy!
One last thing... sometimes it's tough to get kids (even some grown-ups) to drink enough water. I mean, if it was easy, would we need Kool-Aid, or its adult counterpart, Crystal Light? Come on! The stuff is gross (in my humble opinion) but it does the job. A slightly more healthy way to make water more interesting is this: fill a half-gallon pitcher of water, grab a handful of fresh or frozen berries/other fruits and a little honey. Stir them all together, and viola!! Alternatively, add one of those squeezy-lemons or limes (I like Sicilia, but whatever) to said water along with some honey or natural sugar and some squished strawberries, and you've got yummy homemade strawberry lemonade!
Alrighty kids, it's starting to get warm out. It's time for me to call it a day. Stay cool, eat well and have fun!
Ciao!
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