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by Kimberly A Cook                 (Twitter@   WarriorTales)

With our wacky weather giving us early hot temperatures and then thunderstorms and humidity, the best thing to do is pace ourselves. Or in my case, be lazy. One way I accomplish that is to make salads I love which last for a week. I think calories don’t exist during heat waves, at least according to the ransacking the grocery store ice cream aisle took last Wednesday night.

Today I’m sharing two fabulous pasta salad recipes. All you have to know how to do is boil water and chop.

Out to dinner with a friend last Thursday night and we explored the joy of making food, knitting and jewelry items that look complicated but are easy. Not lazy, I prefer to call it efficient. These two salads fit the bill, just in time for the long holiday weekend!

The original Shrimp Pasta Salad recipe from a co-worker at the day job is second. I modified her recipe for a Greek Pasta Salad I adore right below. Perfect for hot weather and the coming Fourth of July picnics! Here goes:

Greek Pasta Salad ala Kim

1 package Orzo pasta, 16 oz. – I use Barilla

1 bottle Girard’s Greek Feta vinaigrette

1 Cup chopped celery

1 whole cucumber, chopped

3/4 pint of cherry tomatoes cut in half

6 to 8 ounces of Traditional Feta crumbled cheese

9 Kalamata olives cut in fourths (I found they have ones already halved and pitted, score!)

Bring 4 to 6 quarts of water to boil. (I used a 6-Quart pot, but a larger pot works better so you don’t have to watch it all the time.) Add dash of olive oil to boiling water. Cook pasta for 9 to 10 minutes. Drain in strainer using lukewarm water, not cold. Place in 4-Quart bowl. Pour entire bottle of salad dressing over pasta and stir. Cover and place in fridge overnight or for four hours. Chop everything else and mix well.

Original recipe – Shrimp Pasta Salad

1 package Orzo pasta, 16 oz.

1 bottle Girard’s Champagne dressing, lite

1 Cup Chopped celery

1 Cup Sliced green onion

1/2 Cup Mayonnaise (optional)

1 Tablespoon Mustard

1 tablespoon Dill Pickle Relish (I’m a sweet relish girl myself, do what you want)

1 teaspoon celery seed

1/2 to 3/4 pound Salad Shrimp

Same as above, marinate pasta overnight, then thrown all the ingredients in. Fabulous! This is so simple and looks great too.

Let’s raise a bowl to summer, cheese and pasta!

Photo Alert: To my photographer friends, tonight is the full Thunder Moon so get out there with your cameras between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. and get some great pictures. If you can see the moon, that is! Have fun!