Balanced Living Magazine - May-Junel 2007

Eat to Beat the Heat in the Hot Summer Months
By Ben Bebenroth

The summer is in full swing, and the hot days can make cooking seem like a chore. There are better ways to stay cool, however, than hiding out in your air-conditioned house and letting your power bill take the brunt of the strain. Keeping it simple is the secret to success in summertime cooking. The grill is always a great option for fresh preparations that avoid creating additional heat indoors. Serving raw dishes such as cucumber salad or tomatoes and olive oil make mealtime prep a pleasure. With all of the summertime veggies that currently are available at your local farmers' market, plentiful options abound for a quick, healthy meal.

Aside from the common salads that grace our tables in the summer months, try to mix up flavors and textures to add some variety. For example, grilled bok choy can be chopped and chilled. Then add a little fresh lime juice, toasted chilies, peanuts and a drizzle of honey to create a little pad thai-style treat. The possibilities are endless. For inspiration, grab a cookbook from the library with recipes from hot-weather areas of the world to see what types of meals keep folks cool in the fiery months of summer.

People in some of the hottest regions of the world rely on chilies and hot curries to cool them down from the inside out. While your first impression may be to avoid spicy foods altogether, it is quite an exhilarating experience to eat spicy foods on hot days. Chilies contain a chemical called capsaicin that triggers the sweat gland of the body while you are eating, which can prove to be quite the relief when the temperature is soaring. Sweat evaporating from your skin actually is a cooling mechanism of your body. Should your curry be a little too hot, try to calm your taste buds down with a nice slice of melon or a cool yogurt-based sauce made from herbs and cucumber.

Contrary to popular belief, drinking water after eating hot dishes does not help. In fact, it can make matters worse when the water carries the capsaicin to other areas of the mouth setting everything on fire in there. If in need of some serious relief, drinking milk or eating some bread will remove a bit of the heat. Or, to truly remedy the issue, sipping a little alcohol goes a long way. Alcohol actually begins to dissolve the compounds in spicy foods, allowing you to eat more of your tempting spicy-hot treats.

Below are some recipes that will help you beat the heat while enjoying fresh summer treats. Remember to visit the farm markets and talk to the farmers, and flip through some cookbooks from the library for more ideas. From there, have the confidence to experiment on your own.

Cool Cucumber Salad

2 seedless cucumbers (also called English, hothouse or burpless)
1 red onion
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1/4 C mint, chopped
2 T basil, chopped
1 lemon, zest and juice
1/4 C red wine vinegar
1 t sugar
1/4 C extra-virgin olive oil
salt, to taste
freshly ground pepper, to taste

1. Peel one cucumber, wash the other. Slice both into thin rounds.
2. Slice red onion into quarters with the root end binding each section (as in a “blooming onion”), then cut into thin strips creating a Julienne effect.
3. Cut cherry tomatoes in half.
4. Combine chopped vegetables in bowl and lightly season with salt and pepper.
5. Separately combine chopped mint, basil, lemon zest and juice, sugar, vinegar and oil. Mix lightly with a fork.
6. Pour dressing over veggies and refrigerate for four hours, stirring every hour.

Grilled Corn Salad

6 ears sweet corn
1 bunch cilantro
1 red onion, minced
1 red pepper, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut into halves or quarters
2 carrots, peeled and shredded
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 C cider vinegar
1-2 limes, juiced
sea salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
2 T olive oil
1 head lettuce

1. Shuck and grill sweet corn until 10 percent of kernels are black. Set aside to cool.
2. Chop cilantro roughly and bruise with the side of a knife to release juices.
3. Cut the corn off the cob and place in a bowl. Using the back of a knife down by the handle, scrape the cob to collect remaining hominy. Add to bowl.
4. Combine the chopped and minced veggies, garlic and cilantro with the corn and hominy.
5. Toss with the cider vinegar, lime juice to taste, salt and pepper.
6. Drizzle olive oil over the salad for a shine to your presentation.
7. Serve with a pile of full lettuce leaves to eat wrap-style.

Full Heat Lamb Chops

1 lamb rack, cut into chops
1 t coriander
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 t black pepper (whole peppercorns)
1-1/2 t sea salt
1 t cider vinegar
1 t honey
1 T fresh ginger, grated
1-1/2 t red chili flakes
1/4 t cayenne powder
1-1/2 T mustard oil

1. Sprinkle lamb chops with ½ t sea salt. Set aside.
2. Toast whole coriander and black pepper in a pan until fragrant. Cool and grind together in a mortar and     pestle or on a cutting board with a meat mallet.
3. Mix together cider vinegar, honey and freshly-grated ginger until honey is dissolved.
4. Combine with remaining ingredients (except salt) to form a paste.
5. Spread paste on both sides of lamb chops, and place in a plastic bag. Massage often for 2-24 hours. The     longer they sit, the hotter they will be.
6. Grill on a very hot surface for a few minutes on each side. Move to medium heat to finish cooking.
7. Remove chops at desired temperature and sprinkle lightly with sea salt. Allow the chops to rest for about     10 minutes to draw in the flavor.
8. Enjoy with a side of cool cucumber salad or a little sour cream.

Chef Ben Bebenroth is Northeast Ohio's only caterer with both extensive fine-dining experience and deep-seated relationships with local farmers. As executive chef/owner of Spice of Life Catering Co., he customizes every menu to the season and occasion using local and organic ingredients. Visit SpiceOfLifeCaters.com or call (440) 623-9990 for details.