I love summer, especially all the fresh produce! But the last few weeks I haven't been posting as often for two reasons: First, I've been making really simple meals trying to focus on summer produce. Nothing wrong with that, I just haven't had a whole lot of actual recipes.
The second reason can only be explained as a healthy dose of nesting! As strange as it may seem, about a month and a half ago it suddenly become more fun for me to clean my house than to blog (I know, very strange!). With Allie, I was only nesting for a few days before she was born. Jake was just shocked to find me scrubbing the floor behind the stove the day I went into labor. I assumed it would be the same this time around, but it's been going on for so much longer! I love it, but I need a break from it! Especially since scrubbing floors is not getting easier as my belly continues to grow! I had Jake snap one last maternity picture last night. Almost 39 weeks--I can hardly believe it!
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So this post doesn't really contain any recipes. It's just a collection of photos of meals from the past month. It can be challenging to come up with gluten free meals, and sometimes it's just easier to keep things simple. So, here are some very simple (and delicious) summer dinner ideas.
Fish: one big, recent change, is I've been trying to make a lot of meals with fish. It just seems lighter in the summer when it's hot. I realized I hardly ever made fish before because I wasn't sure where to buy it, or how to make it, and it always seemed so expensive. Somehow I decided to take the plunge and start purchasing more and it's been so good! (My apologies for the very sunny pictures--dinner time is just not the ideal time to photograph!)
(Brown rice, green beans (I love the frozen bags you can get from Trader Joes--it makes dinners so easy!), cherry tomatoes, baked salmon and homemade tzatziki sauce. I've been cooking big pots of brown rice once a week and storing the leftovers in the refrigerator for quick sides. It makes gluten free dinners so much easier!)
This is a pretty similar meal to the last one: Fish (Mahi Mahi), summer squash, brown rice and tomatoes and basil. Jake's garden tomatoes are ripening and we've really been enjoying them! Fresh tomatoes and basil have turned out to be one of my favorite sides of the summer. I usually make a big plate of sliced tomatoes with basil, feta, salt and pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It's so simple, but we love it.
To keep the kitchen cool, we've been grilling a lot too. This meal came together so fast off the grill and I am still in love with it! I seriously need to make it again soon!
Pulled barbecue chicken (I made it in the crock pot), zucchini spears with sea salt and lemon juice (inspired by a recipe from the Pioneer Woman), grilled sweet potatoes and some red pepper slices. I was amazed how fast sweet potato wedges cook on the grill. They usually take so long in the oven!
This next picture didn't turn out very well, but any post of meal ideas from our house wouldn't be complete without a Mexican inspired dish. We love Mexican food and it's also something that is easy to do gluten free. If you look really hard, you can tell this is a picture of chicken fajitas (on a corn tortilla) with rice and beans. Fajitas are one of my favorite meals to make, especially for a crowd. So good!
You'll have to let me know what your favorite, summer dinners are! In the meantime, we'll be enjoying Allie's new water table (for many long hours) and waiting to have a baby!
Take care!
Serena
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