Skewer

Serve these atop rice, and offer cherry tomatoes tossed with ranch dressing on the side. Purchased peach tarts wrap it up.

Either potato salad or bulgur salad would be lovely with these summer kebabs.

The salsa is also delicious made with diced ripe mangoes.

In central New York State where I grew up, summertime is speidie-time. Speidies are beef or chicken kabobs marinated in a locally produced spiedie sauce. Nobody makes their own; everybody buys it by the case to make it through the summer's grilling. Now that I live downstate, I've had to devise my own speidie sauce (really nothing more than a quite acidic vinaigrette), which I'm willing to share for the very first time.

Rosemary sprigs double as flavoring agents and skewers in this beautiful hors d'oeuvre. Only half of the pesto is used for this recipe; toss the remainder with pasta or spread thinly on crostini or grilled chicken breasts. What to drink: Pinot Grigio.

Easy to make and absolutely delicious. Pour a good Cabernet Sauvignon with this.

Asparagus is a star of the season, as a side dish to any main course — chicken, fish, pork, beef, or lamb — or as a salad topped with a squeeze of lemon juice. Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 30 min

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. With the fish, offer thinly sliced cucumber‑tossed in a dressing of rice vinegar and vegetable oil‑and some purchased sesame noodle salad. For dessert, side-by-side scoops of mango and raspberry sorbets look pretty sprinkled with toasted coconut. (Wasabi powder can be found in the Asian foods section of the supermarket.)

Although having your guests shell their own shrimp can be a messy proposition, the result of grilling shrimp in the shell-unbelievable succulence-is worth it!

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Here's an easy-to-make entrée flavored with a spicy marinade; the shrimp are nice on a bed of salad greens or with rice.

There's something for everyone in this traditional specialty. Don't forget to soak the bamboo skewers before using them.

Cunetto House of Pasta in St. Louis has an excellent grilled skewered chicken entrée. Sometimes I even make a special trip just to have it. Could you request the recipe? Georgeann King Memphis, Tennessee

Try these as appetizers, as a salad (on a bed of greens) or as a light dessert.