Almost time for Labor Day BBQs and picnics

It’s hard to believe that Labor Day is just around the corner. (This year, it’s as “early” as it gets — on Monday, Sept. 1.)

The summer, as usual, has flown by in the proverbial blink of an eye. The lazy days have been replaced by the flurry of activity surrounding school supplies, new shoes, clothes and schedules. Stores are filled with kids getting ready to leave for college and I am still amazed at the amount of stuff they can fit into a tiny dorm room. I keep hoping for more 90-degree days — I know, most people hate them, but I love the heat and the I’m blessed to be able to go to the beach or a friend’s pool if I want. Or I can stay home and try out a new recipe or start the baking for the holidays.

I love summer, and just like my dad, my happiest place on earth is the beach no matter the weather, or the season. So, as I watch the days get shorter, and the mornings cooler, I feel nostalgic and a bit sad that another summer will soon be gone.

Labor Day has always been a day of gathering and backyard cook-outs, a time for families to gather and play just once more before everyone hunkers down for the year to come and the winter we all know is too close for comfort.

We all want the summer to last, so we make Labor Day the punctuation mark of the season — a big blast of last-minute grilling and fun, a day filled with friends and family and lots of food. And still, I will look on the long-range forecasts for just one more day of summer — even after the holiday.

I hope that you have had a wonderful summer and that you have relaxed, eased up on schedules (and cooking, too), and really enjoyed these long languid days and nights. Have a wonderful end-of-summer blast and stretch out those lazy, hazy days just a little longer with a great barbecue or picnic. (And, it really is not too early to bake a few things to freeze for the upcoming chagim!)

Grilled Summer Vegetable Ka-Bobs (Pareve)

These can be made with any vegetables that you like. Standard Veggie ka-bobs are often made with small baby veggies, but you can cut up any vegetables to fit a skewer. Marinate veggies for about an hour or overnight in the refrigerator

4 large cloves garlic

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 yellow summer squash

1 zucchini

2 Japanese eggplants

1 yellow sweet onion (Vidalia is great)

1 red onion

1 green pepper

1 red pepper

15 mushrooms

15 cherry tomatoes

15 very small red potatoes

3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

OPTIONAL: 3 ears of sweet corn, husked and cut into 2-inch long pieces

Place the gloves of garlic in a small saucepan and add the oil. Bring to a low simmer and cook until the garlic cloves are light golden. Watch closely and cook until the cloves turn a bit darker and the small nitty. Remove from the burner and add 1/4 cup of olive oil. This will stop the cooking process and keep the cloves from overcooking. Stir and set aside.

Blanch the potatoes in boiling water for 4-5 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool.

Slice the squash and zucchini into half-inch thick slices. Set aside. Slice the eggplant into 3/4 -inch-thick slices and set aside.

Seed the peppers and cut them into large chunks and set aside. Clean the mushrooms and trim the stems.

Place the garlic cloves in a medium bowl, and add 1/3 cup of the olive oil in which the garlic was cooked. Mash with a fork and then mix until blended. Add the balsamic vinegar, sugar, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Whisk until everything is emulsified, add the cut up vegetables and stir well. Cover and refrigerate for one or two hours or overnight.

Just before grilling, cut the onions into chunks and dip into the marinade without breaking them. Wash the tomatoes. Place the vegetables on skewers in any order, but be careful with the mushrooms, they tend to break so I usually put them on the end of the skewer. Grill over medium heat until deep golden brown.

If you don’t want to use skewers, use a veggie grill basket and shake and toss until brown. The onions will probably break apart, but that’s ok. Baste the cooking veggies with any leftover marinade. Cook until the veggies are softened and have some charred areas. You can figure about 1/3 to 3/4 cup per person, so adjust as needed.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS: Serve with rice or pasta as a main dish or with any meat, fish or poultry as a side dish, or use them in the recipe below. Makes about 6-10 skewers.

Grilled Veggies Antipasto (Meat or Dairy)

Several Grilled Veggie Skewers (see recipe above)

1 head Romaine lettuce

1 head red or green leaf lettuce and additional lettuce, if needed

4 Tbsp. capers

1 cup black olives (green or brown are fine)

Sliced red onion, as much as you like

Thinly sliced carrots, as much as you like

Thinly sliced red or green pepper, as much as you like

1 large cucumber, cut in half, seeded and cut into slices

Any homemade or bottled pareve vinaigrette dressing

croutons

FOR DAIRY: Fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into slices, Fresh Burrata or other cheeses that you may like

FOR MEAT: Add sliced chicken breast, or London Broil, Roast Beef or other meat you like.

Wash and dry the romaine lettuce and line a large serving platter with the leaves.

Wash, dry and tear the red or green leaf lettuce into bite sized pieces. Place on the romaine leaves. Add some additional baby lettuce leaves if you like.

Add the remainder of the cold veggies and then place the grilled veggies (hot or cold) over the lettuce and add the cucumbers and olives. Slice the cheese and place around the platter. Garnish with the pepperoncini. Add the capers and drizzle with the dressing. Serves 4-6, or more..

Many Mushroom Skewers With Lemon-Garlic Marinade (Pareve)

This is a wonderful recipe to serve with a wild rice pilaf, pasta, chicken or beef for a great main or side dish. The flavors of the different wild mushrooms come out in the grilling and the marinade enhances their deliciousness

4 portabella mushroom caps

16 large button mushrooms

16 oyster mushrooms

16 shitake mushrooms

8 skewers

Lemon Garlic Marinade

NOTE: You can use as many different kinds of mushrooms as you like, allowing about 6-8 mushrooms per skewer.

Lemon Garlic Marinade

6 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1/2 tsp.(scant) kosher salt

1/2 to 1 tsp sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced, more if you like

freshly cracked black pepper, to taste

Mix together in a glass jar and refrigerate.

Peel the Portobello mushrooms and remove the gills with a spoon. Wash and then cut them into quarters.

Place cleaned mushrooms in a large shallow glass baking dish. Drizzle the marinade over the mushrooms and marinate for about 30 minutes.

Carefully skewer the mushrooms and grill for about 10 -20 minutes, until charred in spots and golden brown, turning frequently and basting often. Serves 4-6 or as many as you like allowing about 6-10 mushrooms per person.

Hot Cajun Jerk Wet Rub for B-B-Q (Pareve)

If your family likes hot, Cajun spices then this barbecue wet rub is for you. Just make it in advance and then use sparingly on chicken, thick fish fillets, and beef.

1-2 Tbsp. ground allspice

1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg or one-quarter tsp. nutmeg powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

12 scallions, white part only, finely chopped

8-12 jalapeno peppers, seeded OR

1 Scotch Bonnet pepper, seeded OR

4-6 jalapeno peppers and 1Scotch Bonnet

1/3 cup garlic wine vinegar

1/3 cup. canola oil

2 Tbsp. tamari sauce

1 Tbsp. Tabasco or hot pepper sauce

salt and pepper to taste

a pinch sugar

Process all the ingredients in a blender or food processor, adding the hot peppers to taste. Process until smooth and liquid, 1-2 minutes. Pour into a glass jar and refrigerate. This will stay up to a month in the refrigerator.

Brush onto cooking food. Use sparingly as it is quite potent. You can also use it over a sweet barbecue sauce to give an extra layer of flavor.

NOTE: You can easily adjust the amount of heat by decreasing the amount of peppers used.

NOTE: Scotch Bonnet peppers are the hottest peppers and you must use care when handling. Use food prep gloves and try not to touch the peppers with your bare hands. If you do, do not touch your eyes and be sure to wash your hands thoroughly immediately after handling the peppers. Jalapeno peppers are milder, but precautions should also be taken to wash hands immediately and avoid the eyes. Adding sugar to the mix cuts the heat a bit but use just a pinch or two.

NOTE: Use your favorite hot peppers for this hot, hot sauce to adjust the heat to your liking.

Summer Fruit Pies (Pareve)

Summer fruit pies are the perfect ending to any barbecue or picnic. Who can resist a juicy peach or a tart strawberry-rhubarb pie. If you make your own crust (well worth the extra effort) the recipe takes about an hour with an hour resting time for the dough. If you use a purchased crust, it takes about 30 minutes to make a pie.

Traditional Home-Made Pie Crust (Pareve)

This is a traditional pie crust that is flaky and delicious and has been in my family for generations

3 cups unbleached flour, sifted

1/2 cup ice-cold solid vegetable shortening

1/2 cup ice-cold orange juice

2 tsp. salt

4 tsp. sugar

Dissolve the sugar and salt in the orange juice and place the cup of orange juice in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes.

Place the flour and the vegetable shortening in the food processor and pulse until the dough resembles coarse cornmeal. Pour in the juice while pulsing the motor. Blend just until the dough forms a ball. You may not need all the juice. Remove from the mixing bowl, bring the dough together into a disc, wrap in plastic and let rest in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

Divide the dough in half and roll out half on a floured surface until it is 3 inches wider than the pie pan you are using. Roll the dough over the rolling pin and transfer to the pan. Gently place into the pan, letting the excess hang over.

After filling the pie, roll out the rest of the dough about an inch or so larger than the pan. Place over the filling, roll up the bottom edges and crimp. Poke holes in the top, glaze or sprinkle with sugar and bake according to directions.

Whole Wheat Pie Crust (Pareve)

This is an adaptation of a pie crust dough I saw made on a television cooking show called “Christina Cooks.” It is actually very good, though some may object to the definite whole wheat flavor and the fact that it is not quite as flaky as a traditional crust.

1-1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 (scant) tsp. salt

1/4 cup corn oil

1/4 cup chilled orange juice or ice water

Mix flour, salt and oil in a bowl. Use a pastry blender or fork and mix well. Add the juice or water, just enough to form a stiff dough. Gather together and knead for about 2 minutes. Let the dough rest for about 5 minutes and roll out on a floured surface. NOTE: You will need two recipes for a two-crust pie. Don’t double this as it becomes too stiff to handle.

Fruit Fillings for Summer Pies (Pareve or Dairy)

3 pounds or any fruit you like or 3 quarts of any berries. Suggestions below are stand alone fillings or a mixture of any:

Blueberries

Peaches

Nectarines

Cherries, pitted and cut in half

Strawberries

Rhubarb

Apricots

Raspberries

Blackberries

1/4 cup cornstarch

2/3 to one cup sugar depending on tartness of fruit

Juice of one-half to one lemon

FOR FRUIT: You may want to peel the peaches, nectarines, etc. Boil a large pot of water and gently drop in the fruit. Fill a large bowl with ice and water.

Let the fruit boil for about 20 seconds or until the skin cracks. Remove with a slotted spoon to the bowl of ice water. The skins will peel off very easily, saving lots of time.

FOR BERRIES: Wash and pick over the berries carefully to avoid stems, leaves, etc. Drain them well or place on paper towels to absorb excess moisture.

Mix the fruit with the lemon juice, cornstarch and sugar. You can add a bit of flour and a bit of butter for a richer, dairy pie. You can also add some pure extracts for a different flavor such as apricots with almond extract (about a half teaspoon tossed with the fruit).

Mound the fruit into the prepared crust, top with the top crust, poke a few holes in the center top, sprinkle with sugar, and bake at 350 to 375 degrees for about 45-60 minutes. Be sure to place the pie plate on a foil-lined cookie tray to catch any spills.

Be creative with this. Mix all kinds of berries and fruits together for a delicious treat. Apricots and cherries, nectarines and raspberries, these are great combinations. Makes one pie.