Summer Days

By Lori Powell

Ribs are so delicious and summer is the best time for them since they are messy, necessitating a picnic table and the outdoors to consume them properly. All ribs are pretty scrumptious, and I usually like mine super-meaty, like country style ribs.

But baby back ribs are making a comeback at my house. Since they are not as meaty, they don’t take as long to cook and the upside is that there is a lot more bone to meat – yes, upside, since the bone adds flavor.

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Riffing on a Wrap

By Sandy Hu

Some years ago, Steve’s friend Shadi introduced us to the shawarma, an Arab wrap sandwich of grilled meat. It’s one of our go-to takeout meals. We always order lamb and we get it with eggplant and potatoes.

Steve liked the idea of grilled lamb and veggies in a wrap so much, he decided to riff on the concept to see if he could come up with something fun to barbecue this year. His experimentation was such a huge hit with our family, I thought I’d share his recipe with you.

The instructions may look long, but they’re really simple. 1) Grill some meat. Steve grilled a bone-in leg of lamb; no reason it couldn’t be boneless or another cut of meat. 2) Grill some vegetables. 3) Make a sauce. Steve just stirred a bit of canned harissa into yogurt. 4) Wrap everything up in a lavash, a soft, thin flatbread. 5) Grill the wraps.

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Impromptu Date Night

By Andrew Hunter

Ever wish you could have a date night but you don’t have a sitter? We started a new tradition that the boys enjoy as much as we do. It’s a date night for the grown-ups and kids!

All you have to do is ask for two tables separated by a few feet. This way, the kids feel grown up by placing their own orders and talking to the servers, while we enjoy a grown up conversation. It works even better when there’s counter seating, which our boys love!

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It’s a Grilled Pizza Party!

By Katie Barreira

One of the great injustices of apartment living is not having a grill. I’ve tried a few questionable substitutions, including a tailgating-esque fiasco on the fire escape. Beyond the obvious safety concerns, it’s just not fun to negotiate a window entrance with a platter of juicy burgers.

It simply is not summer without a real backyard ‘cue, so this past weekend I ventured to Jersey, usurped a friend’s grill and threw a make-your-own grilled pizza party.

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