1–½ pounds Italian chicken sausage links, (fully-cooked, like al fresco brand) cut into 36, 3/4-inch slices
1 pound red table grapes, (approx 72)
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
Equipment: 12 long metal skewers (if you use bamboo skewers, soak in cold water for 30 minutes before threading)

Preheat grill to medium high.

Thread one piece of sausage onto a skewer, followed by 3 grapes. Repeat once more and end with another piece of sausage. Repeat with the rest of the skewers.

Brush (or spray) the skewers with olive oil and sprinkle with pepper. Grill 4-5 minutes per side, until sausage is heated through and grapes are just starting to collapse.

Serves 4

3 tablespoons white wine or Champagne vinegar
1/2 shallot, finely minced
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2-1/2 teaspoons coarse sea salt, or more to taste, divided
1-1/4 teaspoons black pepper, divided
5 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1/2 pound napa cabbage (about 1/4 medium head), cored and cut into 1/4-inch shreds (you should have about 3 cups)
1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled blue cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
6 (6-ounce) firm white-fleshed fish fillets, such as halibut or sturgeon
6 whole-wheat hamburger buns, split horizontally

Combine the first 3 ingredients in a small bowl. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, whisking to dissolve the sugar and salt. Whisk in 3 tablespoons oil. Set aside. (You can prepare the dressing up to 3 days in advance, storing it covered in the refrigerator.)

Combine the cabbage, cheese and mint in a large bowl. (You can prepare the undressed slaw up to 4 hours in advance, storing it covered in the refrigerator.) Add the dressing to the slaw mixture, gently tossing to combine. Taste, ideally with your wine, and add more vinegar, salt and/or pepper if you like. Set aside.

Preheat the grill to medium-high. Brush both sides of the fish with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and sprinkle with the remaining 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Grill until cooked through, about 3 minutes per side. During the last minute, place the buns , cut side down, on the grill to toast.

Place the fish fillets on the bottom halves of the buns. Top with the slaw and the top halves of the buns, and serve.

Serves 6

1 tablespoon honey
2 cups stone fruit (I like to use nectarines and plums), cut into a 1/4-inch dice
1/4 cup finely diced red onion
1 serrano chile, minced
2 tablespoon basil, minced
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 pound wild Alaska salmon

Heat honey in a small saucepan until it becomes liquid.

Mix together stone fruit, onion, chile, basil, oil and vinegar with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside and heat grill to medium-high.

Place salmon flesh-side down over direct heat and grill for 3-5 minutes, until it comes away from the grates clean. Flip, baste with honey, and grill for an additional 3-5 minutes, basting once more in the process.

Serve salmon with stone fruit salsa.

Serves 4

Tempeh is a firm, chewy cake made from fermented soybeans, and its dense texture makes it a hearty yet cholesterol-free and very low-fat stand-in for meat. You can crumble it into chili, or slice it and throw it on the grill. Here, we use it as a substitute for beef in fajitas. Tempeh does well marinated (it really soaks up the flavors). For this weeknight-friendly recipe, combine the tempeh with the marinade in the morning, pop it in the fridge, and then finish the recipe in the evening. We use plain old soy tempeh, but you can use other varieties, such as flax or three-grain. Serve with salsa (either End-of-Summer Pico de Gallo or Fiery-Sweet Peach Salsa) and a dollop of Guatemalan Guacamole.

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided (plus additional oil for pan)
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
2 garlic cloves, grated
2 (8-ounce) packages soy tempeh, cut into 1/4- X 2-inch strips
1 medium red onion, cut into 1/4-inch vertical slices
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1/4-inch slices
Sea salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas

Combine 1/3 cup oil, juice, soy sauce, cumin, oregano, cayenne and garlic in an 8-inch dish. Add tempeh, tossing to coat. Cover, and refrigerate 2-12 hours, stirring occasionally.

Heat a large cast-iron grill pan over medium-high heat. Brush pan with oil. Add half of tempeh to pan. Cook 5 minutes on each side; transfer to a bowl and cover to keep warm. Repeat with remaining tempeh.

While tempeh cooks, toss onion and bell pepper with remaining 1 tablespoon oil, salt and black pepper. After tempeh is done, add bell pepper mixture to pan. Cook 5 minutes or until tender.

Heat tortillas directly over the flame of a gas stove or in a dry nonstick pan. Place 2 tortillas on each of 4 plates. Top evenly with tempeh and bell pepper mixture.

Serves 4

1 cup soft white wheat berries (like Bob’s Red Mill)
3 cups water
sea salt
3 cloves garlic
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon sumac (or lemon zest)
1-1/2 pounds eggplant, cut into 1-inch slices
1-1/2 pounds firm tomatoes, cored
¼ cup finely chopped parsley

Combine wheat berries and water with a pinch of salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 60-90 minutes, or until tender. Drain off any excess water and transfer to a large mixing bowl.

Heat grill to medium high. Brush eggplant slices with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Grill eggplant and tomatoes, turning occasionally, for 8-10 minutes, until eggplant is tender all the way through and tomato is slightly charred. Transfer all to a cutting board, remove any skin that peels off the tomatoes and coarsely chop all. Transfer vegetables and all their juices to the mixing bowl with the wheat berries.

Pound together garlic with a pinch of salt in a mortar and pestle to a paste. Whisk in 2 tablespoons olive oil, lemon juice, cumin, coriander and sumac. Heat a small frying pan over medium-low heat and add paste to pan. Sauté for 2-3 minutes, until fragrant, then whisk in remaining 2 tablespoons oil and scrape into bowl with wheat berries and vegetables. Toss well, stir in parsley and serve.

Serves 4

Flaky white fish are tough to grill, but that doesn’t mean they need to be left out of the summer repertoire. Just wrap them up in a parchment package with a handful of summer veggies and you’ve got yourself a whole meal on the grill. Not inclined to fire up the grill? You also can cook the fish in the oven at 450 degrees F for 10-15 minutes.

1/2 pound red new potatoes, very thinly sliced
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 (4-ounce) white fish fillets, such as barramundi or catfish
2 cups cherry tomatoes, stemmed
1 cup corn kernels, cut off cob (about 2 medium ears)
1/4 cup sliced scallions
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chiffonade basil
1/4 cup dry white wine

Preheat grill to medium heat. Cut four 14-x-14-inch squares of parchment paper. Fold each in half and cut it into a wide heart shape. Then unfold and lay flat.

In a medium bowl, mix together potatoes with 1 tablespoon oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Arrange a quarter of the potatoes on half of each of the parchment paper hearts, leaving a 1-inch border around the edge. Place a piece of fish on top of each. In the same bowl, combine the tomatoes, corn, scallions, garlic, basil, remaining 1 tablespoon oil, and salt and pepper.

Divide tomato and corn mixture evenly over fish and drizzle a tablespoon of wine over each. Then fold over the empty half and crimp the edges. Beginning at the top of the heart, roll the edges up and tightly over onto themselves and twist the end so that the packet is securely sealed. Lay finished packets on a rimless cutting board, a pizza peel or on the back of a cookie sheet.

Using a wide spatula, carefully transfer sealed packets onto the grill grates and cook for 10 minutes (they should be puffed and golden brown). Use the spatula to transfer the packets to individual plates. Let rest for 5 minutes, then slice open packets (or have diners do it themselves) and serve.

Serves 4

Marinating tenderizes lean grass-fed beef. Bulgogi means “fire meat” in Korean and is the name of a beef dish in which paper-thin sliced meat is soaked in a flavorful combo of soy sauce, black pepper, ginger, rice wine, and pureed fruit. In this version, readily available pureed kiwifruit stands in for traditional Asian pear to help tenderize the meat. To make the beef easier to slice super-thin, pop it in the freezer for 30 minutes. If you don’t feel like firing up the grill, you can stir-fry the meat. Serve in lettuce cups with short-grain brown rice. We also love it on warm tortillas with a dollop of Fiery-Sweet Peach Salsa.

1 pound top sirloin, trimmed
1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon mirin
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon grated peeled ginger
1 garlic clove, grated
1 kiwifruit, peeled and pureed
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onion, plus additional sliced onion for garnish

Freeze beef 30 minutes or until firm. but not frozen.

While beef is in freezer, whisk together soy sauce, oil, sugar, mirin, pepper, ginger, garlic, and kiwifruit in a medium bowl. Stir in 1/4 cup green onion.

Remove beef from freezer. With a very sharp knife, cut beef across the grain into 1/16th-inch slices. Add beef to soy sauce mixture and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Preheat grill. Remove beef from marinade and discard marinade. Place beef in a grill basket or thread it on skewers. Grill 1 minute on each side or until desired degree of doneness.

Serves 4

2 pounds asparagus, trimmed
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Fleur de sel to garnish

Toss asparagus with olive oil, salt and pepper and let marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.

Heat grill to medium-high and grill asparagus over direct heat for 3-5 minutes, turning on all sides, depending on thickness. Asparagus should be tender and slightly charred yet still crisp.

Serve hot or at room temperature garnished with fleur de sel.

Serves 4

Soaking the hardwood is crucial for successful barbecue. As you may have learned while camping, wet wood produces lots of smoke–bad for camp-outs but just what you want for barbecue. For brisket and other relatively lean cuts, basting is necessary to keep the meat moist; any kind of high-quality beer will work well in this recipe. Hardwood chunks are ideal, since they burn slowly and produce gentle, consistent smoke.

Rub:

1 whole (8-pound) beef brisket, cleaned and trimmed
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup stone-ground mustard
1/2 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons freshly black pepper
2 tablespoons cayenne pepper (or to taste)
2 tablespoons ground cumin

Baste:

1/2 cup good beer
1/2 cup cider vinegar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

24 to 36 hours ahead:

To prepare the rub, slather beef with mustard. Combine sugar and next 7 ingredients (through cumin); press evenly onto meat. Cover, and refrigerate at least 12 and up to 36 hours.

24 hours ahead:

Soak 10 pounds of hardwood chunks in water. (If you use hardwood chips, they only need to soak for 2 hours.)

To prepare the baste, combine beer, vinegar, and Worcestershire in a clean spray bottle; refrigerate.

12 hours ahead:

If you have a smoker with a side firebox, you probably already know how to stoke it. If you’re using a charcoal or gas grill, build the fire on one side of the grill. Add some of the soaked hardwood to the hot coals (or place it in a smoker box or foil pouch if using a gas grill).

When the temperature has reached about 200 F, place brisket in smoker or on the unheated side of the grill and cover.  Mind the fire to maintain this temperature throughout the cooking process. Baste the meat with beer mixture and add new wet wood every hour or so, for a total cooking time of 10-12 hours.

The beef is ready when the internal temperature registers about 170 F on a meat thermometer.  It will be completely charred black on the outside (don’t worry, that’s a good thing).  Let it rest at room temperature for 20 minutes before slicing it across the grain. Serve with your favorite barbecue sauce and plenty of cold beer.

Serves 24

Skirt steak is a great choice for a weeknight meat craving: it cooks up super-fast and takes great to rubs. A few slices served with a plateful of veggies and whole grains brings something traditionally thought of as a nutritional no-no (steak) into a more nourishing category.

2 teaspoons coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1-1/2 pounds skirt steak

Mix coriander through pepper together in a small bowl. Rub all over steak.

Heat grill to medium high and grill for 3-5 minutes per side, until medium rare.

Let rest for 5 minutes, then slice thinly against the grain.

Serves 4 to 6