As summer approaches and you break out the grill, your diet can take a beating with too many high-fat foods. One of the easiest and definitely the most delicious ways to eat healthy is by grilling veggies.

From asparagus to zucchini, you can cook many vegetables on the grill. The best options have fewer juices such as eggplant, onions, peppers, corn, asparagus, squash, carrots, and mushrooms. But that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy other grilled vegetables.

Grilled vegetables are anything but boring. They can be grilled with little or no seasoning, which is great if you have special dietary needs. You can also marinade them, if you want a big bold flavor, or add a smoky flavor by grilling them with a steak over your favorite wood chips.

Since vegetables can be cooked directly on the grill, placed on skewers, or wrapped in foil, there is no reason to leave these healthy side dishes off your grilling menu.

Ingredients:

2 small or 1 large zucchini
2 small or 1 large yellow summer squash
2 medium red onions
Seasoned salt
Crushed red pepper flakes
2 tbs. olive oil

Preparation:

Slice zucchini and summer squash length wise. Slice the red onions into large rounds.

Rub the vegetables with a small amount of olive oil to prevent them from sticking on the grill. Sprinkle with seasoned salt and red pepper flakes or your favorite seasonings. Adjust the amount to desired taste.

Grilling the veggies will only be a few minutes so you want your grill to be hot.

Add the veggies to the grill, cut side down. Grill for 2 to 3 minutes.

Flip the veggies over and grill another two to three minutes or until desired tenderness. Onions may take longer depending on thickness.

Your finished veggies should be tender and delicious!

Tip:  Experiment with your favorite seasonings, sauces and herbs to find your preferred winning combination. Here are some you may want to try.

• Lemon juice and grated ginger
• Hot pepper sauce & a splash of lime juice
• Rosemary and minced garlic
• Horseradish
• Bacon crumbles and chili powder
• Soy sauce, lemon juice and minced garlic
• Basil and thyme
• Balsamic vinegar dressing & Dijon mustard
• Worcestershire sauce and garlic
• Brown sugar and chives

Save the leftover veggies to use in soups, stews or omelets. Because they’re pre-cooked, wait to add them until the last few minutes of cooking so they warm up but not overcook.

Grilled fruit can be used as toppings for many things including pancakes, pound cake and ice cream as shown here. It is best to use fresh fruit when possible. However, if you’re like me and grill every chance you get, regardless of the season, you can always use frozen fruit for this recipe.

One word of caution, frozen fruit will create more juice as they thaw so you may have to drain off the juice before serving or thaw the fruit before cooking.

Many fruits will work for this recipe but cooking times will vary, for example if you use peaches or pears, they will take longer to soften and warm on the grill than your blueberries or raspberries.

Ingredients

2/3 c. strawberries, rinsed
2/3 c. blueberries, rinsed
2/3 c. raspberries, rinsed
2/3 c. blackberries, rinsed
1/4 c. butter – could use olive oil if you prefer
1/2 c. granulated sugar
Aluminum foil

Preparation:

Preheat the grill to a low heat.

Tear off two large pieces of foil and lay them on a flat surface. Place half of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries in the middle of one foil sheet. Place the remaining fruit on the second sheet.

Divide the butter into two equal parts and place on top of the fruit. This will help steam the fruit and keep it from sticking to the foil.

Seal the foil around the fruit leaving a small hole at the top for steam to escape.

Grill the packets, turning once, for 10-15 minutes or until the fruit has softened. Grilling time will vary depending on the type of fruit you use.

Carefully open the packets and sprinkle each one with ½ of the sugar. Stir to coat.

Immediately transfer the fruit to a serving bowl or storage container. If using warm, serve over ice cream as we have done.

Other Use Ideas:

Double the recipe and serve as a side dish. It would be an delicious side dish for a ham dinner.

Use some to make unique, fresh fruit smoothies.

Grilled fruits have a delicious flavor that would be excellent for using in cobblers, pies and crisps.

Try various combinations of apples, pears, peaches, oranges and pineapple. You can include bananas, nectarines, plums, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, kiwi, mango, star fruit, strawberries or any of your favorites.

Instead of sprinkling with sugar, try using cinnamon, nutmeg, honey, maple syrup, brown sugar or lemon juice for extra flavor.

For a twist on traditional strawberry short cake, use pound cake instead of angel food cake, add grilled fruit, whipped topping and crush a few ginger snap cookies over the top.

Nothing says summer like the smell of grilling steaks. Tender and juicy on the inside and cooked to perfection is the dream of all grill masters.

Grilling steaks isn’t hard; it takes practice and a whole lot of patience from the family eating the steaks, until the grill master has perfected his or her technique.

The best grilling steaks need to be well-marbleized. The fat around the outside should be no more than ¼ inch thick. Grilling steaks should be one to two inches thick. To help them cook evenly and accept the seasonings better, they should be brought to room temperature before you start grilling.

In addition to choosing a good steak, you also need to have the right fire. Grills should be preheated and coated with non-stick cooking spray.  Steaks need a high heat in order to sear the meat properly. Searing essentially forms a crust that holds in the juices.

With these tips in mind, let’s get started.

Ingredients:

Garlic Powder or 1 clove, minced
Italian Seasoning
Paprika
Red Pepper flakes
Salt & Pepper
Olive Oil
1 Small red onion, sliced into rings
1 Bell Pepper, chopped
Steaks – Any kind you like. Pictured here: Sirloin

Preparation:

Wash the steaks and pat them dry. Rub each steak, front and back, with small amount of olive oil, just enough to lightly cover.

Sprinkle steaks with Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, paprika, salt and pepper. The amounts will depend on your individual taste as well as the size of the steaks.

Once seasoned, place steaks into a storage container with a lid or you can use a large plastic freezer bag, if you prefer.

Add the rings of onion and chopped bell peppers to the container or bag.

Place steaks in the refrigerator for at least four hours. About 30 minutes prior to cooking, remove the container or bag from the refrigerator. Leaving them covered; allow the steaks to come to room temperature.

While the steaks are coming to room temperature, heat the grill to maximum heat.

Place the steaks onto the hot grill. Sear for one to two minutes, flip and sear the other side. Make sure when you flip it that you do not place the steak in the same spot as before as that spot will be cooler.

Reduce heat to a medium setting and continue to cook for 6-12 minutes per side, depending on the thickness of the steak and how done you like it.

Remove steaks from the heat a few minutes early as they will continue to cook for a few minutes. Allow the steaks to rest about 5 minutes before serving.

Pictured steaks are grilled to well-done, however most people like their meat medium rare or medium well.

Tips:

Internal temperatures of meats should reach….
Rare – 125 degrees
Medium – 135 degrees
Well done – 155 degrees

Do not open grill top more than necessary! Only open it to flip the steaks and once or twice towards the end of the cooking time. Continually checking the meat reduces heat and can cause steaks to become tough.

If you like a smoky taste, cook with hickory wood or add hickory chips to the charcoal. Be sure to soak the chips in water for 30 minutes before using.

Save & freeze leftovers for soups, stews or a steak stuffed omelet. Just divide into single serving portions and store in a freezer bag.

Chillin’ and Grillin’ Chicken Kabobs

One of the best things about making kabobs is that the combination of ingredients is endless. You can add as much or as little of anything you like to eat, until you get to the end of the skewer that is.

In addition, you can eat them straight grilled like these or add your favorite marinade for even more mouthwatering fun.

With all of the fruits, veggies and marinades to choose from, you could eat them every day for a month and never have the same kind twice.

Kids love kabobs because they can help prepare them and make their own favorite combination.

Ingredients

2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Cherry tomatoes
Pineapple chunks
Bell peppers
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Wash the chicken breasts and pat them dry.  Chop them into bite size pieces.

The bigger the size, the longer they will need to cook so take this into consideration when chopping.

You want them to cook through without burning the fruit and veggies.

Chop the bell peppers into desired size pieces. Using different colors of peppers will make your kabobs more appealing.

Assemble your kabobs.

Start with a piece of veggie or fruit to help hold the chicken on the skewer.  Then alternate the meat and veggies as you like.

After you’ve finished assembling your kabobs, it’s time to add your seasoning. We’re using salt and pepper only, but you could add a marinade here, if you desired.

Using a non-stick spray, lightly spray the grill grates to prevent the kabobs from sticking.

Warm the grill to a medium-high heat.

Place the kabobs on the grill, leaving room between each one so they do not stick to one another.

Grill kabobs for three to four minutes per side or until the meat is fully cooked.  Cooking time will vary depending on the ingredients you used and the size you chopped them.

The finished product is a sweet and savory delight!

Tips:

In this recipe, we chose to use chicken but you can use any meat.

Kabobs are perfect for picky eaters because they can easily be customized for each person. Just cut up some chicken, shrimp, pork and steak along with a variety of fruits and veggies and let everyone make their own.
Here are some winning combinations:

Turkey, zucchini, peppers, onions and mushrooms

Chicken, scallions, pineapple, green peppers, mushrooms and bacon

Shrimp, oranges, red onions and bacon

Steak, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes, pineapples and mushrooms

Tofu, red onions, mushrooms and lemon

Pork, summer squash, red onions and egg plant

Steak, jalapeno peppers and limes

Lamb, oranges and chili peppers

Leftovers can be used for stir-fry, frittatas or omelets, casseroles and more.