Who else hates to spend time in the kitchen during summer vacation? Are you tired of sandwiches for lunch? My husband (who is a teacher and home for the summer) requested that we try to look for a healthy alternative to cold cut sandwiches and raw vegetables for lunch every day. Since I’m not a big fan of cooking lunch AND dinner, I’ve been spending some time looking for quick and easy recipes that involve some fresh garden fruits and veggies. Here are a few making the rotation at our house this summer.

Strawberry Breakfast Oatmeal Smoothie – I made this just this morning (minus the sugar) after my workout, and it was delicious! If you’re watching carbs, you could definitely skip the oatmeal and add some hemp hearts or almonds instead. Smoothies are quickly becoming my favorite way to add in fruits, veggies to our diet.

One of my favorite green smoothies is 2 cups spinach, 1 cup coconut water, 1 cup pineapple, 1 cup strawberries, and 1 banana. Blend and enjoy.

I’m going to give these California Tortilla Pizzas a try over the weekend. It uses fresh tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella cheese and you only need the oven on for a few minutes.

Speaking of California, I’m super excited to try this open-faced California sandwich. I’m pretty much up for any recipe that calls for an avocado.

This BLT Chopped Salad looks amazing.

These turkey nachos are SO good that I made them twice in one week, and using ground turkey instead of beef helps keep them a little healthier.

This Crunchy Cashew Thai Quinoa Salad was really good, and I’m planning to add it to our lunch menu.

And because it wouldn’t be summer without ice cream, I’ve experimented with a shake recipe that rivals Sonic’s Peanut Butter Fudge shake. Take 2 cups milk, 2 cups vanilla bean ice cream, 2 TBS all-natural creamy peanut butter, 2 TBS raw cacao powder or just regular cocoa. Blend until smooth and enjoy.