At home we also learned the same thing, that you always have to cook and it should be homemade, which is tastier and healthier... and it is, but summer is overwhelming, so I look for other options and I also cook at night for the next day so I don't have to be cooking in 35-degree heat, ha ha ha.
Fresh options would be cakes, pies, various salads, homemade hamburgers, stuffed pork loin that you can cut into pieces and eat cold with salad...