Make meat loaf burgers, potato salad and lemon pie without turning on the oven? That’s cool!

Sometimes it’s just too hot to turn on the oven. Safely inside with the air conditioner going, you can get dinner ready using the top of the stove. But the heat is no reason to leave the flavor outside.

Meatloaf, when traditionally made, is in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour. But meatloaf burgers cooked on top of the stove are just as tasty and save you from turning on the oven. They’re faster, too.

You can serve these on a bun like a burger, but I think they’re best on an onion roll. Or you can serve them without the bun.

Instead of a baked potato, serve the burgers with potato salad. This potato salad is super tasty and can be enjoyed hot or at room temperature, so you can make it when the burgers are cooking — you won’t have to make it ahead of time to serve it cold.

If you do make it early, take it from the refrigerator when you start the burgers so it isn’t cold when you serve it. This potato salad is even better the next day, so don’t worry about leftovers. All you need is a big salad with lots of Creole tomatoes to complete this meal.

The lemon pie is a no-bake dessert. Even though it avoids the oven, I recommend that you make it early so it’s cold when you serve it. It is a zingy sweet ending to this meal, with a combination of lemon and ginger that balances its sweetness.

You will get this meal on the table, keep the house cool and sit down to a delicious dinner that’s familiar — but different enough to be interesting.

Meatloaf Burgers

This recipe uses ground pork as well as ground beef. You can increase the beef and eliminate the pork, if you like. Makes 6 burgers.

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

1 teaspoon cayenne

1½ pounds ground beef

¾ pound ground pork

1 cup breadcrumbs, made with French bread

¼ cup grated Parmesan

1 egg, beaten

¼ cup whole milk or cream

½ bunch of parsley, chopped

1. Add half the oil to the skillet and heat to medium. Sauté the onion and garlic until they are soft, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

2. Transfer the cooked onion and garlic to a large bowl and wipe out the pan. Add all the ingredients to the bowl and mix with your hands. Do not over mix, but the mixture should be uniform.

3. Shape into 6 patties. (If you make smaller patties, you will have smaller and more burgers.)

4. Return the pan to the heat and add 2 tablespoons of oil on medium heat. Cook the burgers for 10 minutes on each side, longer if you like your meat very well done.

5. Garnish with parsley and serve. (If you are making burgers for buns, have ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise on the table.)

Potato Salad

You don’t need to add much extra salt here because the Creole mustard is salty. Serves 6.

3 pounds new potatoes of any skin color, or mixed colors, quartered but not peeled

2 tablespoons bacon fat

1 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts

½ teaspoon honey

3 tablespoons cider vinegar or cane vinegar

3 tablespoons Creole mustard

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

6 slices bacon, cooked to crisp and crumbled

½ bunch parsley, chopped

1. Simmer the potatoes in salted water in a 6-quart container until they are tender, about 20 minutes.

2. Drain the potatoes and transfer them to a large bowl.

3. Add bacon fat to a skillet and heat to medium. Sauté the chopped scallions for 3 to 5 minutes. Stir regularly to keep them from sticking.

4. Add the honey, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper to the skillet and stir well.

5. Pour this mixture over the potatoes in the bowl.

6. Stir well to coat all of the potatoes.

7. When ready to serve add the crumbled bacon and stir again.

8. Garnish with the chopped parsley and serve.

Lemon-Ginger Pie

Makes 1 pie.

FOR THE CRUST: 

1½ cups ground ginger snaps

1 teaspoon ground ginger

⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1. Stir together the ground ginger snaps, ginger and pepper.

2. Add the melted butter and incorporate well.

3. Place the crumb mixture into an 8-inch pie pan and with your hand push the mixture over the pan to cover the surface on the bottom and sides.

4. Tidy up the top edge and refrigerate.

FOR THE FILLING:

2 large eggs

½ cup sugar

½ cup lemon tea

3 tablespoons lemon juice

Zest of one lemon

2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger

½ cup cold heavy cream

Lemon slices for garnish

1. Beat the eggs with an electric mixer until blended. Add the sugar and continue blending until the sugar is well incorporated. Continue to beat the mixture for 3-4 minutes after the sugar is incorporated.

2. Add the lemon tea and the lemon juice and beat until incorporated.

3. Transfer the mixture to a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over low to medium-low heat until the mixture thickens. Stir constantly. Do not boil the mixture. Remove from the heat immediately and add the ginger. Stir well. Cover the mixture with plastic film to keep a skin from forming. Refrigerate.

4. Beat the cream until it forms soft peaks.

5. Fold the cream into the thickened mixture.

6. Pour into the prepared pie shell.

7. Garnish with lemon slices and refrigerate until ready to serve.