“Hot August Nights” is underway in Reno, Nevada and the weather is doing its best to provide the atmosphere for it.  For those who don’t know, “Hot August Nights” is a classic cars event with the highlights being on cars from the peak of Rock ‘n’ Roll, but really, lots of old cars, in excellent condition, are motoring all over town.

But when the weather is hot, the last thing you want to do is spend a lot of time in the kitchen.  This is great for grilling outdoors if you can take the heat, but it’s also a good opportunity to make salads, particularly if you pick up one of the pre-grilled chickens from the grocery store and use that rather than heating the oven up to roast it yourself.  Other options are the deli-cuts at the store, canned tuna, turkey, chicken and salmon made into a tasty chicken salad.   You can add hard boiled eggs easily, and avoid the heat in the kitchen if you purchase pre-boiled ones — also saves on peeling them.

If you do have to cook ingredients, like for a tasty turnip cauliflower salad, do it early in the morning or late at night when it’s a little cooler.  With this in mind, here some links to a few salad options that I already have posted on this site and my latest offering, which is up today.  They are all delicious and low carb, so you enjoy the summer with cool, refreshing salads.

Turkey Salad With Golden Beets – My newest addition to the Summer Salad lineup is a delightful offering.  It’s easily made with canned turkey or freshly chopped cooked turkey, so it doesn’t heat up the kitchen when the nights are barely cooler than the days.   The page includes a recipe for Low Carb French Dressing or use a low carb commercial one.

Crisp Cucumber Salsa –  This is so refreshingly delicious.  I’ve made it a few times this summer already.  You can use it as a dip or as a salad.  The lovely sweet taste of cucumber mixes wonderfully with the slight bite of chile.

Mexican Style Asparagus Salad –  So very tasty.  It has a little bit of a bite, but it isn’t detracting.  Asparagus are a little pricier at the market now, but this salad may be worth it.  Make it a main meal salad by adding grilled or roasted chicken or salmon to it.

Springtime Coleslaw – This is just as good in the Summer as it is in the Spring.  The only iffy thing, carb-wise, in this is the pineapple.  It isn’t on Phase I or Phase II of Atkins, so you might omit it.  If you decide to use it, be sure it is fresh, not sweetened pineapple.

Strawberry Chicken Salad – This is one of my favorite salads.  I love the fresh berries in it, although it does come in a bit higher in carbs than I normally like my main meal to be.  It is filling and satisfying though.  To make it a little lower, you could omit the golden beets and cut the lime juice in the dressing back to just 2 tablespoons.   You can also swap out those strawberries for raspberries to get a slightly different flavor.  Or you could use salmon or turkey in place of the chicken.  Want to try a different dressing?  Why not?  Just be aware of the carb counts on the dressing.

Texas Style Turnip Cauliflower Salad – Such a part of my childhood, this style potato salad was a staple at every picnic and many Sunday dinners.  I had to recreate it in a low carb version and this was my solution.  Since I first put this recipe out, I have added kohlrabi into the mix and even a cup of celery root.  Both of these bring even more to the flavor and I don’t really miss the potatoes at all, because the dressing and the blended flavors of the vegetables are just as good.