Chill Out with Mache and Cherry Salad

By Lori Powell

We are experiencing yet another heat wave and I’m not sure about you, but I am in no mood to cook today. That’s completely odd for me to say, but true! Usually I have to be stricken ill not to want to cook.

Along with people, not a lot of crops are happy in this heat. I’m not quite sure what happened to the cherry crop but they are amazing in the Northeast this year – super-dark and sweet. Also, they keep you cool if you eat them chilled.

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Too Hot to Cook!

By Sandy Hu

We haven’t had a single sweltering summer day, to date, in San Francisco this year. But across the country, people are baking. So all this week, Special Fork bloggers are sharing no-cook, cook-ahead or cold dishes to help lower the temperature in the kitchen and at the dinner table.

My favorite hot weather meal is cold soba noodles with a dipping sauce, called Zaru Soba. This is a Japanese classic summer dish. There’s no fat in this meal – just a clean, simple taste – so it won’t leave you feeling sluggish.

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Too Hot to Cook!

By Sandy Hu

In San Francisco, summers are usually cool, so rarely is it too hot to cook. But elsewhere, temperatures are rising and no one wants to be chained to a stove.

My favorite no-cook summer meal is a salumi platter – hot copa, prosciutto, mortadella or other cured meats, plus some thinly sliced ham, all arranged on a wooden board or platter with one or two cheeses, some peperonicini or cornichons, roasted red peppers, sliced cucumber and a baguette or two with a good Dijon mustard. While it’s a delicious, no-fuss appetizer for company, a salumi platter can also make a welcome light supper on its own.

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