Expect More From Summer Dining (With Less Work!)

One of the many (many) things I love about summer is the ease of outdoor cooking and dining. Sure us Canadians still bbq in the winter months, but there is something so much more satisfying about a meal cooked on the bbq in the heat of summer. The ease of clean up (no pots and pans to wash!), you don’t heat up your house from stove burners and ovens, and those delightful grill marks (I swear they make food taste better!)! But all the same, I can get caught up eating the same bbq meals week in and week out. Burgers, steak, grilled veggies, and if I’m feeling fancy grilled pineapple, but that’s about as wild as I seem to get.

That is until now.

Recently I had the chance to check out some of President’s Choice’s new recipes for Summer 2015 put on a lovely al fresco supper Friday night and now I’m going to be expecting more from summer dining all season long!

I can’t take any credit for the pineapple and kale smoothies as all I did there was pour the smoothie out of the bottle and into the glasses.

Normally I’m more of a, “spinach in your green juice or smoothie” type of girl, but I actually quite like this Pineapple Kale 100% Vegetable & Fruit Smoothie from PC. Kale has quite a distinct taste, but the other flavours help tone it down. It definitely still tastes “green” but I like green 😉 so that isn’t an issue for me.

First up on al fresco Friday was the Chipotle Taco Salad (click here for the recipe).

I made it as instructed except I used Salsa Ranch dressing instead of the Chipotle Ranch (my local store was out of the later), and picked up the PC Chipotle Cheddar Tortilla Strips instead of Chili Lime. It was extremely quick and easy to put together, and you can make it and serve it right in the same bowl (cutting back on those dirty dishes!).

And now we enter the bbq zone. These Creamy Asiago Mini Naan Pizzas were cooked on the bbq, making it the first time I’ve ever made any type of pizza on the grill. Using a pre-made asiago dip as the base means the hardest part of this recipe is cutting the tomatoes. If you can cut a tomato, and know how to turn on a bbq, you are set! The recipe can be found here, and if we’re going to play favourites, this was my favourite dish of the night – but not by much. I’m so glad there are enough leftover ingredients that I can have these again this week. The heat from the bbq made the naan crispy without making it “crunchy” and the toppings made for a perfect blend of creamy, fresh and delicious. Yum.

Now we move onto the recipe I was most sceptical about. The Grilled Peaches and Goat Cheese the original recipe (found here) called for nectarines or peaches, and since I saw a lovely display of peaches at the store, I decided to go that route.

The reason I was a little sceptical is because I find goat cheese to be a bit hit or miss for me. Either I love it and don’t know the difference, or I find it tastes, well, goat-y. So I was a tad leery to try these when it came time for dessert but you know what? DELICIOUS! Had someone told me it was regular cream cheese with a maple flavour I would have believed them. I might feel different having it with another dish but pared with the grilled peaches and walnuts it is a home run. A home run I intend to hit again. 😉

President’s Choice offers so many unique flavour combinations in their foods (and remember, all PC products are now made without artificial flavours or colours) there is something for everyone. For the folks looking for more traditional bbq fare you can pick up their new double decker burgers and buns, or indulge in a new twist on an old classic.

The reverse s’more is so good it might ruin you for regular s’mores moving forward. Just a little pre-warning for ya 😉

So when you next find yourself looking for an impressive meal for a potluck, bbq, or any random week night, don’t forget to check out the President’s Choice website for their new products and recipe ideas. Oh and If you haven’t already, be sure to sign up for the PC Plus Program while you’re there – I cashed in another $20 worth of points just this week!

Disclosure: I was provided President’s Choice’s products free of charge as part of my ongoing relationship with PC/Loblaws. I was not required to write this or any other post, and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.