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3 Cool Summer Dishes To Beat The Heat

Chef Rodney LoveJones in an undated photo
Courtesy Photo
Chef Rodney LoveJones in an undated photo
3 Cool Summer Dishes To Beat The Heat
3 Cool Summer Dishes To Beat The Heat GUESTS: Rodney LoveJones, chef-partner, 2Good2B Bakery Caron Golden, food writer, San Diego Foodstuff

Lately perhaps you've heard hot weather weary San Diegan's say it's too hot to these. There are many of us who feel it's never too hot to eat. It's definitely been too hot to cut. Is the time of year we need some delicious cool recipes that showcase the best that someone can offer. Who best to tell us about them to turn golden -- Caron Golden, food writer, San Diego Foodstuff and Rodney LoveJones, chef-partner, 2Good2B Bakery go Karen, what do you think does it get too hot seat? Sometimes it feels like that. You can be strategic about it, you need nutrients. It can be really too hot to cut and last week was a good example. It was brutal. Is it ever too hot to eat, shop? It depends on what you're eating? A lot of customers recommend my sandwiches because it's mobile and you can eat half there, take half of it with you to the beach or would have. Salads are key. If you're really into a meal that light and robust, you can always go with a salad. Everybody knows I big mill can make you feel hot and sluggish, how do you recommend people eat when it's hot? Smaller, light meals and as much hydration as you can get which is not to say you have to drink your meal. So this is an different vegetables and fruits also have lots of water in them. That can help keep you hydrated. Definitely I would probably stay away from the heavy meals we associate with winter time eating. And go with things that are light and seasonal. This obesity we eat seasonally. That's because what's in season now is adapted to the weather patterns of the season. You're going to want to eat berries and peaches etc. You do need protein and carbohydrates but you can be selected about not only what you eat and how much of that you incorporate into a dish. I want to ask you about a recipe posted on your blog or chilled honeydew coconut milk soup. Wow. This is one of those inspirations I happen to be a Trader Joe's and they had is gorgeous on -- orange honeydew melons. I got one home and thought I could cut it up and eat it but I thought I would love to make a soup. And made melon soups in the past and Angel use yogurt with them and they taste okay. I thought I would really like to try something a little different and I realized I had some light coconut milk in a cat in my pantry. I pulled that out and that changed all the rest of the group is going to put in. Now I was going for Southeast Asian flavors. I happen to have some lime leaf powder which is an astringent thinks he don't want too much but I thought that would work really well as well as some lime juice. I pulled it all together, with some ginger and put it in the blender like a smoothie. It took five minutes to make and I put in the refrigerator for a little bit too cool and it was wonderful. Chef Rodney, can you take any vegetables and make cold soup or are there some vegetables and fruits that will work? I suggest this. Most people will make a mixed veggie hot. If you don't eat it all, you can refrigerate it and then add some coconut milk or whatever and make a really great chilled soup the next day. You don't have to get rid of the vegetables. You can do some amazing things with vegetables without the cooking them. They state they were even in that cold setting? Yes. You don't even have to cook vegetables either. People know me know I make gazpacho that my mother had made first when we were kids. That is simply a whole lot of chopped up vegetables. It's not technically gazpacho. It's a chunky vegetable soup but it's tomatoes and fresh corn and cucumbers and jalapenos if you like the heat. There are onions and red bell peppers and some V-8 juice and lime juice and cilantro. You just process all of it separately, not the corn, then put it in a bowl and mix it together. I make this with kids when I was teaching. That is the best way to get kids to eat vegetables. It's non-stop vegetable from one ingredient to the next. And it keeps you hydrated. You have to watch your salt intake at this time of year as well go You have a great appetizer recipe. Is called Mediterranean cheese balls? If you really want an advertiser, you can get some ice chips. They have some really great thin rice chips and the Mediterranean cheese ball is basically cream cheese, cottage cheese, a few items like our lives. You get a version of canned roasted red peppers and chop it all up and add a little white pepper. We can add a little jalapeno for flavor, just for heat. You roll it up and -- in some that's and well into a ball and put in the refrigerator. How long to refrigerate? I would say 30 minutes. Can put in the freezer for 10 minutes. It's a great appetizer. You have a recipe for pizza, but is not your typical pizza? I have been thinking about this for some time. Had seen somewhere a watermelon pizza. All they did was piled on top of slices of watermelon and I thought that's boring. One of the things I love this time of year is the watermelon salad that Matt Gordon makes at urban solace. It's a seasonal thing. I was waiting what if I took the concept and added some of the components that Matt has in his watermelon salad and make a pizza out of that? Which is limited? When the time came, in June, I had my watermelon is listed to 1 inch thick slices. I put Guccis, -- goat cheese or feta. Cherry tomatoes and currents and red onion. I have some arugula. I layered the slices with some of these ingredients and then I surrounded it with the arugula and made a citrus been a great -- vinaigrette that I poured on top. You can put them on the watermelon slices and then you have pizza. I would never think of putting cheese on watermelon. You need to try its. It is wonderful. I know it sounds weird, but it's delicious. Also toasted pine nuts. If you're looking for a dinner party, it's a wonderful thing to serve as a first course. It looks really cool. A lot of people really indulge in surveys for summertime. Are there other types of desserts that you can have during the summer they don't have to turn the oven on earth do anything extravagantly warm great? And a favorite cookie I do that's a non-bake cookie. It's basically like a cookie dough. I call it the hunting granola from all. -- Honey granola from ball. Is basically taking vanilla wafers or strawberry cookies and mix it with graham cracker and mix it up with a little orange blossom honey. You also makes with confectioners' sugar and makes it was really great. The scoop it out in little balls and would lads in confectioners' sugar or something like that. Cellos and they are nice and cool and delicious. Those are good. Their nephews and nieces love suites in the summertime. Do you make ice cream or survey? I have. I made is granita. You take about anything, it requires a little cocaine because you have to do some stovetop cooking to put the sugar to melt and the combination. Once you do that and it's pretty low efforts, you put it into a casserole dish and put it in the freezer and every 20 minutes or so ago with a fork and pull it out and scrape it. Eventually you have this wonderful machine icy delicious sweet thing you favorite with berries. I made at once with sorrel. And meant. It was very good. Occasionally you want a higher -- heartier dish, what would you recommend to make an actual dinner? One of my favorite things to do is to make pasta. Guillotine your cooking is the pasta. Get some fresh tomatoes, there's no better time of year that to have a wonderful fresh heirloom tomatoes. Get fresh mozzarella or Guccis and it will be tested pine nuts, all lives, whatever you enjoy with those flavors. You don't have to cook anything because the hot cost of two the cooking. It will melt the cheese and you end up with the sauce and you have this fresh tomatoes and other ingredients, maybe some chopped basil. May be a little olive oil other you have the cheese. That's a wonderful way to approach it. You can let the pasta get a little cold. I would like whole grains. What I think is a good way to do it is on a day when it's not very hot. You can cook up your favorite grains and put them in the freezer. When you're ready to use them, you're already cooked and tossed them with pre-roasted chicken and can pull the chicken a parts and make some really good salads that are heartier. Grains and means another one also. You do a great salad with beads and kale. I suggest adding a green so you can do a wild rice and you can freeze it and then let it thaw. You can add more of the rice into the salad and toss it. We sell it at a restaurant as a salad. We had grains to the rice but at the same time if you take a little less outs and Admiral. rice, it's a heartier dish. We have one of our baguettes with it is really great. You have for lunch or dinner. If you forget to do this, if you happen to have rice maker it doesn't generate any heat. You can make your grains in a rice cooker and not worry about it. Yet given us such wonderful ideas. They will be on our website. I want to thank you very much. If you -- Caren Golden -- Caron Golden, food writer, San Diego Foodstuff and Rodney LoveJones, chef-partner, 2Good2B Bakery. Thank you so much for having us.

San Diego experienced record-breaking temperatures over the weekend and while this may be the perfect time for outdoor grilling — for others, it may be too hot to cook.

There are a number of dishes people can whip up in their kitchens that require no cooking, from cold soups to deserts.

San Diego chef Rodney LoveJones of 2Good2B Bakery and Cafe in Encinitas and San Diego food writer Caron Golden share cool recipes that showcase the best summer can offer Tuesday on Midday Edition.

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Bowl of Chilled Honeydew Coconut Milk Soup
Caron Golden
Bowl of Chilled Honeydew Coconut Milk Soup

Chilled Honeydew Coconut Milk Soup

Yield: 2 cups

1/2 honeydew melon (about 2 cups), seeded and cut into chunks

1/2 cup light coconut milk

1 teaspoon ginger, minced or grated

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1 pinch kaffir lime leaf powder (available at Specialty Produce or spice shops)

Juice from one lime

Drizzle of honey

Combine all the ingredients. Puree in a blender until smooth. Chill for an hour before serving. Grate a little lime zest over the soup as garnish. Recipe from San Diego food writer Caron Golden.

Watermelon Salad Pizza

Slice of watermelon pizza salad
Caron Golden
Slice of watermelon pizza salad

1 Baby watermelon

6 Cherry tomatoes

1 Hot house cucumber

1 Onion

Pine Nuts

Kalamata Olives

Arugula

Currants

Goat Cheese

Slice the watermelon about an inch thick and place on a flat surface. Layer cucumbers first. Then, add tomatoes, olives, onions, and cheese. Scatter currants and toasted pine nuts. Make a bed with the arugula and drizzle with the vinaigrette. Then, quarter the slice. You can serve quarters as an appetizer or a whole slice as a lunch, accompanied with some crusty bread or biscuits. Visit San Diego Foodstuff to learn how to make Caron's Basil Mint Vinaigrette.

Honey Vanilla Rum Balls

3/4 Cup Vanilla Wafer (Crumbled)

1/4 Cup Graham Cracker (Crumbled)

1 Cup Confectioners Sugar

1 Cup Chopped Pecans

1 ½ Tsp. Orange Blossom Honey

2 Tsp. Unsweetened Dutch Cocoa

1/4-Cup Light Rum

1/3 cup Confectioners sugar (For Dusting/Finishing)

Combine all cookie/cracker crumbs, finely chopped pecans; combine in separate bowl confectioner's sugar and cocoa. Blend the rum and honey together; add the crumb mixture and mix well. Shape mixture into 1” balls and roll in confectioner’s sugar. Refrigerate for no less than 2 hours before serving. Recipe from Chef Rodney LoveJones of 2Good2B Bakery in Encinitas.