Tired of making the same grilled chicken? Try this cilantro-mint dressing to turn plain grilled chicken into something new and interesting. Serve with some grilled vegetables - you can use the dressing on them too if you want - and you have a complete, easy summer meal.

I prefer rice vinegar to red wine vinegar and substitute green onion for red onion in this recipe. To prepare, I sauté the white part of the scallions, most of the garlic and ginger with the shrimp and add just a tiny amount of these ingredients raw to make the dressing. I serve with limes rather than lemons when I can. A few times I have replaced the vegetable oil with a light peanut oil and added chopped toasted peanuts to the sauté before serving. Lots of variations will work with these ingredients. If fresh water chestnuts are available try using them in place of the Jicama.

Fresh Gravenstein apples are in the market now and the best thing to do is just plain eat them. For breakfast, for lunch, and for dinner- in salads, in sandwiches, and just freshly washed. But when you've got lots of leftovers in the fruit drawer - cook them into applesauce and make these tasty muffins.

Hot weather, spicy food...a marriage made in heaven. Summer doesn't have to be all about the outdoor grill; sometimes a quick stir-fry makes the most satisfying supper on a warm evening. I love the spiciness that comes from the red pepper flakes, offset with the touch of fresh orange. I opt for cooking my own rice, rather than using the boil-in-the bag variety, but definitely serve this with the refreshing cucumber relish suggested in the recipe. An Asian-esque sorbet for dessert--such as green tea or coconut--rounds out a quick and healthy meal.