Summer's Here!

My new "find" in the cooking and food world... thanks to Giada and my friend, Andrea, is grilled fruit!

Tonight I was motivated by 3 things to break out my new circular grill pan (thanks, Andrea!!!).

1) Giada's Grillin' & Chillin' episode that I saw while working out yesterday
2) My brand new grill pan
3) Delicious fresh summer fruit, like strawberries, on sale and just begging to come home with me

After selecting your favorite fresh fruit (strawberries and bananas are great!), the "recipe" is simple and produces results both delicious and with endless possibilities! Tonight, I just quickly cleaned, hulled, and halved a few strawberries, tossed them with about 1 1/2 TBSP of sugar, and poured them onto my grill pan on medium heat. About 3-5 minutes later (depending on how much fruit you start with), the strawberries will start to carmelize and sizzle. Turn them, if necessary, and cook for another minute or two and then remove from the grill.

I'm going to try Giada's complete recipe this weekend... she pours a simple syrup with mint over both the bananas and strawberries, but tonight we just ate the grilled fruit plain. For another easy and pretty dessert, try your grilled fruit over vanilla ice cream.

However you prepare it, you just can't beat fresh summer fruit!