Heat Wave!

After a couple weeks of sunny, but chilly, weather... now we've got a heat wave on our hands! It's awesome! So, it's a good time to share some of the summery fare that I've cooked up recently.

I made up a big batch of the Cook's Illustrated "Ultimate Veggie Burgers" from an old 2005 issue. I found the hardbound copy of all the 2005 issues on sale for only $3, so I picked it up. I've gotta say, these burgers were really yummy. A bit of work, but nothing too painful. I really liked the variety of ingredients: lentils, veggies, panko, bulgur, cashews... In the end, it's a mild, but nicely flavorful patty. And the recipe made about 18 patties, which left me with plenty to pop in the freezer even after a little family dinner gathering. I used vegan mayo instead of the mayo, but I was thinking after the fact that pureed silken tofu might be a nice binder to try next time.

Mmmm! Isn't that a beautiful dinner? A slice of Real Food Daily's "Tempeh Meatloaf" (with a squirt of catsup), some lightly steamed asparagus, a spring salad, and a toasted slice of homemade sourdough rye bread. That Tempeh Meatloaf is a great recipe. Delicious, very flavorful, and quite hearty. It's costly to buy 1.5 lbs of tempeh, but one whole "meatloaf" really does serve a lot of people. A 1-inch slice is plenty filling along with a veggie and some salad, so the whole recipe is about 8 servings. Happy belly!

And, tonight, I broke out the Barbecue! Musty refilled our propane tank, so we were ready to go! These are the delicious Tempeh Kabobs with BBQ sauce from the "Vegan World Fusion Cuisine" cookbook. I made these once before we loved them. What a delicious summery dinner! I don't really like mushrooms, so I subbed in zukes instead of portabellas. Also pictured: tempeh cubes, red bell pepper, red onion, and cherry tomatoes. After the photo was taken, we poured on more BBQ sauce. Yum!

Any favorite hot weather food ideas?