Chew on these stories...

If you buy meat in bulk (and if you're trying to feed a family, you should), there always seems to be a problem with logistics regarding the time it takes to thaw a potential main course. For boneless cuts that are usually cooked through, a quick brine can take you from freezer to grill in about 2 hours; all without the worry of an over-cooked dried-out piece of grill jerky. The technique I like to call the 'Turbo Brine' has been tuned for use with boneless cuts of poultry, and (in this case) pork. Turbo Brining uses the brine to thaw the frozen cuts meat and unlike using running water or the microwave (ugh, seriously?), the brine ensures that the subject of your grilling remains juicy and flavorful.

I make granola all the time; at least a couple of pounds every month. The textures and contrasting flavors provide for a taste bud tug-o'-war that is light and healthy, yet satisfying. I almost never make the same flavor combination twice, however this last batch is worth an encore. The punch of cinnamon and cardamom are tempered by creamy-smooth white chocolate and sweet dried blueberries, with the perfume of fresh lavender infused into the blend.

A crumble (or crisp if you like) is a simple and satisfying dessert that I consider the express-train to pie when you can't be bothered to fuss with a crust. More-so than a pie or cobbler, a crumble puts the focus back on the filling because the topping is so hard to mess up. After picking up a couple of pounds of crimson-colored rhubarb at the farmer's market, I was craving pie, but in no way wanted to mess with an oven on a hot summer day. With judiciously-applied heat courtesy of my gas grill, I baked a rhubarb + peach crumble that exemplifies all that is tart and lovely about rhubarb (and made me want to skip lunch and go straight for dessert).