Hi,
I am out of ideas of cold dinners to take to the pool. We spend a lot of time at the town pool and would prefer to pack a cooler for dinner as opposed to the snack bar. I am running out of ideas of what to make/pack for dinner. We are getting sick of cold cut sandwiches. Does anyone have any creative ideas of what I can cook in the afternoon and have cold for dinner at the pool?
Thanks!!!
Quiche sprung to mind immediately. If you use a pre-made pie crust all you have to do is add scrambled egg, a little milk, some grated cheese and whatever veggies or cooked meats you like in it and bake until cooked all the way through (1/2 hour to an hour at 350 degrees, depending on thickness. Then let it cool and serve cold. What a great topic!
How about Pasta Salad. You can add tomato, cucumber,squash,black olives,cheese,croutons or any other specialty you may have to the spaghetti. A little Italian dressing to keep it all from sticking and you have a nice meal. Have some cut up melon or a fruit cup and you have your veggies and fruit for the meal.
We also spend a lot of time at the beach and make pasta salads, with or without meat, grilled meats with salads and fruit and/or cheese. We also buy snacks in bulk at Bj's or Costco, which saves us a fortune at the snack bar.
We tend to eat a lot of "ethnic" foods in the summer - and have had tacos on the beach, cous cous salads, tabouleh, lamb, chicken, naan bread and curries with rice, etc.
We do have a pyrex take thing that has a heat pack in it, or use a thermos for the part of the meal we want to keep hot (cooked early in the day)then put the rest in the cooler.
Not sure which pool you go to, but you can get a small propane grill at Wal mart for about $30, and cook in the parking lot on it at some places.
Check recipezaar and epicurious dot com for cold dinner ideas - you can do a search based on what you have on hand.
sarah
We have cold dinners in the car about 3 times a week during the school year. My kids love it when I make a meatloaf during the day and bring sandwiches (with ketchup of course) for them to eat for dinner. I have also made chicken and pork cutlets into sandwiches, pork tenderloin that has been marinated, I also have thermoses that I can put mac & cheese in and it stays warm. We eat tons of fruit in the summer and lots of cheese. Good luck.
One of my favorite summer time meals is very easy to make and tastes great even cold! I love to make pasta with grilled chicken, tomatoes, and mozzarella. I use whole grain pasta, cut up grilled chicken, and cut up tomatoes. I buy little mozzarella balls from the groecery store and cut them in half. I chop up basil and garlic and put it in the food prodessor with olive oil, and then pour it in with all the other ingredients and mix it together. YUM!
I went to a family reunion this weekend and had some very good pasta, bean and cous-cous based salads. They were wonderful although I'm not sure if they'd appeal to a 4 year old.
Corn & Black Bean salad is one yummy idea. Here is a link to that recipe and more from my summer salad file posted in Bedford Magazine.
http://www.bedfordmagazine.com/Media/PublicationsArticle/Susan%20Rubins%20Summer%20Recipes_0.pdf
Also, think Quinoa!! Delicious, very versitile and super healthy!
Have fun!
How about salads with grilled veggies, chicken, or shrimp? Or a cold pasta salad?
I was thinking you could take egg salad or tuna in a bowl and make sandwiches, if you haven't tried that yet. You could make a tuna casserole. That is good served warm or cold. Make a macaroni or potato salad. If the pool is at a park and it has a grill, maybe take some hotdogs and cook them there. I don't know what your son likes or will eat, but you could try a 3 bean salad or even deviled eggs. Make a taco salad. I cannot think of much more at this time, but those are just a few of the ideas that I have.
I hope this helps at least a little.
you could make a great pasta salad with leftover chicken and fresh veggies!
What about making Kabobs? You could make meat and veggie ones that are great warm or cold. You could also make fruit ones for desert and take along fruit dips for dipping. I have been packing coolers to go to the beach all summer and just thought of the Kabob idea the other day. It all comes on a stick and is easy for the kids to eat. I don't have to worry about a plate or their sandwich baggie blowing away! Have a fun summer!
crackers with turkey, ham or roast beef
fruit, pb and j
grilled cheese sandwiches
panini ( grilled cheese with grilled turkey )
pasta salad,
salad pizza
fluffernutter, with nuttella
tuna casserole,
baked ziti
chicken cutlets are AWSOME
tomatoe salad
fresh mozzerella with tomatoe slices, basil and balsamic vinegar
rotisserie chicken with stuffing
rotisserie chicken in a salad
chicken pot pie
quiche
bagels
pizza
chicken nuggets
M
As long as you have a good cooler, you can take fruit salad, make a pasta salad using Italian dressing, or bring grilled chicken breasts, either in a salad, on a bun with lettuce and tomato, or by themselves. You can grill the chicken ahead of time, or you can use the premade strips from the store.
Fried chicken & coleslaw or pasta salad. Meatloaf sandwiches. You can also make hot sandwiches like meatball subs and wrap them up in heavy duty tin foil, they will keep for a few hours outside of the fridge and should still be warm when you unwrap them.
I went down to the beach this weekend and the day before I made two spanish omlets well I cut them up in square pieces and the kids love it!!!! :) Easy recipy also.
Hi Gerri,
I hear you! Last week I finally decided no more cold cuts! I had chicken breast that I sliced in half. Grilled them in zesty italian dressing then put them in the fridge. Put them in bulkie rolls and you're good to go! Really yummy, super simple and just a bit different. We had pasta salad with it. You could also throw in some fruit and dip (kids love dip of any kind) for color.
What about cold chicken. Roasted, breaded, or fried. This is a great picnic. You can even pack old salads like macaroni or potato.
Hello Gerri-
Here are some ideas that work for us:
- whole wheat tuna pasta salad with shredded carrots, black olives, finely chopped celery and sweet onion, frozen peas or mixed vegetables (pre-cooked and cooled), chopped cucumber, dill and lots of mayo. This dish gets all of your veggies, grain and protein in one dish. My kids love it.
different containers of chunked or thick slices of cooked chicken breast, fresh cucumbers, cherry tomaotes, chunks of cheese, carrot sticks, fresh fruit and "dipping" (like ranch dressing). This sounds like a typical salad type thing but I think it is all in the presentation. Your son can take what he likes and may enjoy the dipping, as my kids do.
Any variation of a wrap; fill them up with deli meat, chicken salad, shredded lettuce, etc... slice and poke with a toothpick (just like they do for caterinig; make a fruit salad, too
I hope this helps. Sometimes just hearing what other people do is enough to help us be more creative. I look forward to reading what other mom have to suggest!
Happy Summer!
Cristine in Rochester
What about "Garbage Bread" You take pre-made pizza dough and roll it out into a large circle as if you were making a round pizza. Add cheese and any toppings you might put on your pizza (minus the sauce) roll the dough towards you and pinch at seams. Place seam down on a large baking sheet and poke several holes in the top using a fork. Bake at 450 until golden brown. This can be eaten warm or cold. Hope this helps.
Megan
Working mom of a 15 mon old girl.