In an effort to keep the kitchen cool, I haven’t used the stove or oven in over a week now. No, we’re not subsisting on cold food or takeout pizza—we’ve been grilling.

It’s been a lot of variety, too, everything from burgers and hotdogs, to steaks, to salmon, but mostly we’ve eaten a lot of chicken. When making chicken in the oven, I prefer bone-in; on the grill, boneless is a lot quicker and easier to handle.

Here is my favorite new-ish recipe for flavorful grilled chicken:

• • 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, well trimmed
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup lemon juice
  • 1 clove garlic, smashed
  • 1/2 Tsp. ground ginger
  • 1 Tsp. black pepper

Combine all of the ingredients in a large Ziploc, making sure chicken is well coated. Let marinate overnight. Cook chicken on a preheated, oiled grill for 8-10 minutes per side.

Because every grill seems to heat a bit differently, the cooking time is approximate. (Normally, I cut into a single piece and check to make sure it’s finished.)

I find this chicken pairs exceptionally well with potato salad and a green salad, but feel free to vary the sides. Cornbread is another good addition for heartier appetites.

Do you have a delicious recipe for the grill? I’d love to try it!

What better way to celebrate July 4 than by serving a bunch of Patriotic plates of red, white, and blue goodies! (I know some people think it’s a little corny, but I personally can’t get enough.) Our tentative plan—and I say tentative because it depends on the rain forecast—is to grill chicken, asparagus, and corn on the cob along with these yummy sides.

Red, White & Blue Fruit Salad:

This one is so simple it doesn’t even need a recipe. Just mix 1 box of strawberries, 1 pint of blueberries, and 4 sliced bananas in a large bowl.

Red, White & Blue Potato Salad:

You know those cute little bags of tri-colored mini potatoes? Now is the time to use them. (Yes, they’re overpriced, but I’ll make an exception for a holiday). Aside from chopping, the effort is minimal, and everyone seems to universally enjoy it.

To make, you’ll need:

• 3 lbs. potatoes  
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1/4 cup vinegar (Plain or Apple Cider works best)
• 3 Tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 2 Tsp. sugar
• salt/pepper to taste

Chop potatoes into small cubes, add to a pot of boiling water, then simmer for approximately 10 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse well with cold water. Refrigerate until they are at least room temperature.

Combine all of the remaining ingredients in a large bowl to make the dressing. Add cooled potatoes and stir until totally blended.

Red, White & Blue Berries:

In addition to the plain fruit salad, I’m making these for the kids. The idea comes from The Sister’s Café. Another super-simple one.

Dip whole strawberries in melted white chocolate, then coat with blue sprinkles.

What’s on your July 4 menu?

After reviewing Blue Apron’s meal delivery service, the number one question readers have asked is about price, mainly wanting to know if the service is too expensive. Cost, of course, is subjective, but we can all agree that a discount makes anything seem—taste?—better!

If you’ve been wanting to try Blue Apron, now’s the time, because you can get $30.00 off a box. That’s half the normal cost, making the meals only $5.00 per person. (I can spend twice that amount on a junk food binge at the drive-thru and be hungry again thirty minutes later!)

Wondering what’s inside the box? You’ll find step-by-step recipe cards, farm-fresh produce, meats, starches, and miscellaneous items (spices, vinegar, etc.)  that are called “Knick Knacks.” The ingredients are good for three meals (selected by you!) that feed 2 people. Sample recipes for the week of June 19 include:

• Seared steak, fingerling potatoes, & butter lettuce salad
• Cajun spiced chicken, potato salad, & red cabbage slaw
• Spring vegetables, toasted pearl couscous, & halloumi cheese
• Spinach and ricotta cannelloni & marinated shallot salad
• Chiles Rellenos, summer squash, & Monterey jack cheese

By having everything I need, grouped together and portioned, it’s so easy to put a healthy meal together with very little effort. No shopping, no waste, and no wondering either.

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There are many things that come to mind when Boy George is mentioned, but cooking usually isn’t one of them. Turns out, the 1980’s musical sensation loves to experiment in the kitchen, specifically with Avocado Lime Cheesecake.

Since Shavuot is next week and my curiosity was piqued, it was the perfect time to get started. All I needed was a good recipe. Googling “Avocado Lime Cheesecake” produced tons of options, many of them British, which means metric measurements. Now, yours truly is American to her core and simply can not compute metric! Nor can I deal with long, complicated ingredient lists. This was turning out to be more challenging than expected!

As usual, AllRecipes came to my rescue. Their version looks gorgeous, seemed pretty easy, and earned many good reviews. Only one problem: it suggests using an ice cream maker. (Don’t have one.) Evidently, I’m not the only one. Solution: skip that step and simply freeze it in the shell. I LOVE shortcuts and the sage advice of other cooks!

Here’s the way I did it, with a few tweaks, should you wish to make one of your own:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 2 ripe avocados, diced
• 6 ounces plain cream cheese
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 graham cracker crust (I bought a Keebler.)

Combine cream cheese, avocados, and lime juice in a blender until smooth. Heat whipping cream on the stove until it gently starts to bubble; add in sugar and stir to dissolve. Let cool for 10 minutes, then whisk into cream cheese mixture. Pour into crust and freeze. (The original instructions say 2 hours, mine sat for 4 hours and was just fine. I also skipped the garnish.)

Some may call it Avocado Lime Cheesecake, but to me it will forever be known as a Boy George Cheesecake. (Gosh, I miss those amazing tunes I grew up with…)