Watermelon salad

This salad is slightly spicy but is really refreshing on a hot day. This is a great way to use up the rest of a watermelon if you have some left over after a barbecue. Feel free to adjust the spice by adding or reducing the amount of jalapeno, or even replacing it with serrano peppers if you want it hotter.

Ingredients:

2 cups chopped watermelon
1/2 cup feta cheese
1/2 a jalapeno, sliced
1 lime, juiced
1/4 cup cilantro leaves
salt, to taste

Directions:

Place everything in a mixing bowl and stir to combine, season with salt according to your tastes.

Zucchini and feta cakes

One of the easiest veggies to grow in the summer is zucchini, which means you can almost always find someone looking to give a few away at the end of the season. This is a really good way to use them up. When you're making these just be sure to squeeze out as much water as you can from the zucchini.

Ingredients:

1 zucchini, shredded on a box grater
1/3 cup crumbled feta
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon dill
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
pepper, to taste
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
1/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
3 tablespoons olive oil
lemon wedges

Directions:

Squeeze out as much water as you possibly can from the zucchini and then place it in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add the feta, egg, dill, garlic, salt, pepper, and cayenne and mix well. Stir in the flour and the baking powder and mix very gently until it is just combined (don't over mix). Heat a cast iron skillet over low heat and when it is hot (wait a minute or two for it to really heat up) add the oil. Place spoonfuls of the zucchini mixture into the oil and gently push them into a flattened patty. Cook for about 3 minutes, flip, then cook for another 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle with salt while still warm, then serve with lemon on top. I served mine with arugula, lemon, and tomato and then a runny egg on top.

Soft pretzel sticks

Growing up we always called these "hot pretzels", I've been told that no one else says that. Just like no one else calls nachos "chips and cheese". Whatever, soft (hot) pretzels are delicious and relatively easy, although they do require a few steps and a bit of time. These are delicious served with cheese sauce or this mustard (or this mustard!).

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter, melted
1 1/2 cup warm water
2 1/4 teaspoons yeast
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
4 1/2 cups flour
10 cups water
1/2 cup baking soda
coarse salt for sprinkling on top

Directions:

Combine butter, water, yeast, and sugar together in the bowl of a stand mixture. Stir things together and allow it to sit until it becomes nice and bubbly and the yeast has dissolved into the water. Then add salt and flour and mix with a dough hook for 3-5 minutes on medium-low until the dough is smooth, elastic, and forms a ball that pulls away from the side of the bowl. Knead it for a few times by hand and then place back in your bowl. Cover with a towel and allow it to rise for 1 - 1.5 hours until it doubles in size. After it has risen, preheat oven to 425 and bring 10 cups water and baking soda to a boil in a large pot. Cut dough in six pieces and roll each into a log with your hands that is about 1/2 an inch thick. Cut into sticks that are about 3-4 inches in length (or however big you want them, but just remember that they will puff up). Roll out all the dough, then drop four pieces at a time into the boiling water. Boil for 30 seconds, then place on a cookie sheet lined with foil and sprayed with non-stick spray. Sprinkle the boiled dough with coarse salt and repeat with dough until your cookie sheet is full. Bake for 13-16 minutes, or until nicely browned. Cool pretzels on a cooling rack and continue with the rest of your dough.