5 Tasty Summer Meal Ideas That Won't Heat Up Your Home

BBQ chicken wraps

When it is hot outside, I do not always want a hearty, super-filling meal in the evening. I like lighter meals, and this is one of my go-to for the summer. It is perfect for a busy day, allowing me to make a delicious quick meal for my family in no time. Moreover, they can build it themselves.

1. Season

Take a couple of chicken breasts and season them. I use some all-purpose seasoning, but you can use whatever you like.

2. Grill

Cook the chicken on the grill until the internal temperature is 165.

3. Coat with barbecue sauce

Once the chicken is almost done, coat both sides in barbecue sauce. If you do not want to make barbecue chicken, you could just leave these plain.

4. Service buffet style

To make it simpler for yourself, set it out buffet style, so everyone makes their own wraps. I suggest putting out tortillas, ranch, cheese, bacon, spinach, avocado, and a variety of chips.

These barbecue chicken wraps were so easy, and this made the perfect lunch or dinner.

Smoked sausage and cauliflower Alfredo

1. Cook the sausage

Cut up some smoked sausage and put it in a full pan.

2. Add cauliflower

Add a whole bag of fresh cauliflower (32 oz).

3. Season

Season it up. I use all-purpose seasoning and a decent amount of dry onion mix. I make mine homemade.

4. Mix

Mix it all up and add in some heavy cream.

5. Cover

Cover the pan with foil and get it into the grill. Use a lower setting and leave it in for about 20 minutes. It should be bubbly once you get it out.

6. Top the cheese

Take the foil off and top it with some cheese, letting it melt.

This one does not look appetizing, but it was so delicious.

French onion burgers

Crock pots do not heat your house up as much as the oven does, which makes them a great way to feed your family in the summertime. These French onion burgers are definitely a go-to in my house year-round.

1. Make the patties

Form and season your burger patties.

2. Sear

Sear the patties in a pan over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes on both sides. If you do not want to use the stovetop, you can do this on the grill. Make sure you are not cooking them all the way through, but just rendering off some of that fat and locking in the seasoning.

3. Add Campbell’s French Onion Soup

Get some Campbell’s French Onion Soup in the bottom of your crock pot.

4. Top with the soup mix

Get the patties in the crock pot and top them with the rest of your French onion soup mix.

5. Add onions

Cut up onions and sprinkle them on top, too.

6. Cook

Put the lid on it and let these cook for about 8 hours on low.

Here is what they look like when they are done.

I made some homemade rolls to go with them, and we normally serve them with provolone cheese.

Grilled BBQ chicken pizza

Pizza night is a weekly staple in my house. We always try to change it up and fix something different, but when it is hot, cook them on your grill. If you have never made pizzas on your grill, give it a try, because they are delicious.

1. Put barbecue sauce on naan breads

Get some naan flatbreads for the pizza crust and put some barbecue sauce on them.

2. Add chicken and cheese

Add some rotisserie chicken to save time and make it easier. Then add some cheese.

3. Grill

Get your pizzas onto the grill. Try getting the grill very hot while prepping the pizzas, and then turning it down really low once they are in. Let everything get heated up and the cheese melt.

4. Top with ranch and parsley

Once they are done, top the pizzas with some ranch and parsley.

I highly recommend making pizzas on a grill. They turned out delicious.

Meatball subs

Meatball subs are another great option for the summer. I like making my own homemade meatballs in a big batch and having them in my freezer, but you can absolutely use frozen meatballs for this.

1. Add meatballs and spaghetti sauce to the crock pot

Put some spaghetti sauce in the bottom of your crock pot and add the meatballs. Then top them with the rest of the spaghetti sauce.

2. Cook

Cook the meatballs for six hours in the crockpot. The cook time may vary depending on whether the meatballs were already fully cooked beforehand, so make sure to check that they are cooked all the way through in the end.

3. Build the sandwiches

I make homemade buns for them. You can serve whatever you want inside, I always choose provolone cheese and mozzarella.

Summer meal ideas

There are so many different ways that you can still feed your family in the summer months and not heat up your house. I hope you will try out these amazing meal ideas for the summer, and enjoy them with your family.

What are your go-to quick summer meals? Do you also refrain from using the oven in the summer? Let me know in the comments!