Food

Fabio takes on hamburgers and hot dogs with spectacular results, and shows easy tips on how to set up your charcoal grill for awesome summer barbecues. Step up your game this grill season and turn up the heat with Fabio's awesome BBQ recipes! Featuring special guest, Dean McDermott.

Culinary tips:

• Simple foods don't have to be bland just because you're cooking on the grill. Seasoning and sauces add flavor to everything: add grilled, chopped veggies to hot dogs, or dress up burgers with a great barbecue sauce.
• Fabio's simple charcoal grilling tips will help you cook everything to perfection.
• • Stack your coals into a pyramid before lighting them. This maximizes the heat you'll get out of them. When they are burning white, spread the coals out to create more surface area to cook.
  • Don't overuse lighter fluid. The flames may look pretty, but you want hot, radiant coals, not a fireball, which will burn your food on the outside and leave it raw on the inside.
  • Keep your grill clean. T

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When the dog days of summer hit, there's nothing more refreshing than a popsicle. Made with Greek yogurt and fresh strawberries, these strawberry yogurt and chocolate chip popsicles will not only cool you down, but they are a healthy alternative to ice cream.

Ingredients:
1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled
1 cup Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons honey
3/4 cup mini chocolate chips

Related: Sherbet, ice cream sandwiches and 29 refreshing frozen treats

Helpful Tip:
Special items needed: 10 count popsicle mold and 10 popsicle sticks

Directions:
1. Place washed and hulled strawberries into a food processor or high powered blender with yogurt and honey. Process until smooth, 30 seconds to 1 minute.

2. Pour strawberry mixture in a 10 count popsicle mold until each mold is 3/4 full. Pour a spoonful of mini chocolate chips into each popsicle mold and stir the chocolate chips with a popsicle stick or spoon so that the chocolate chips distribute evenly. Top each popsicle mold with a laye

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"I'm making guacamole, but the avocados are hard as rocks."

Vivian Tran, via e-mail

Originally appeared on RealSimple.com.

The Fix: Place avocados in a brown paper bag with a banana, then leave the bag on a sunny windowsill for 18 to 24 hours, says Joe Quintana, the New York City-based regional executive chef for the Rosa Mexicano restaurants. Together, the banana and the avocados release a large amount of ethylene gas, which can hasten ripening. (The heat may help speed the process, too.) If you can't wait a day, try this trick from California avocado grower Carol Steed: Place 2 peeled, pitted avocados in a blender with 1 cup peas (fresh, or frozen and thawed); pulse until smooth. The peas will help soften the consistency of the unripe avocados but won't affect the flavor.

More from RealSimple.com:
10 Party Dips
9 Healthy Store-Bought Snacks
Kitchen Tricks and Tips from Our Expert Cooks
How to Fix 17 Basic Cooking Mistakes

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By Refinery29

Let's face it: You're busy - too busy to mess around with complicated cooking at the end of the day. Still, dinner should be more than just a cup full of cereal and the dream of a brighter tomorrow. Enter: Jenny Rosenstratch, a busy mom who makes dinner happen with style, simplicity, and just the right amount of sizzle. Whether or not you're cooking for kids, we love her easy, delicious approach. In fact, we love it so much, we'll be sharing one of her recipes every week, so you can have a life - and a REALLY good meal, too.

RELATED: 3 Perfect Salads For A Healthy Spring

Chicken Chorizo Taco with Spinach and Avocado
Serves 4

1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup cilantro
juice from 1/2 lime
1/4 teaspoon cumin
salt
2 links smoked chicken chorizo sausage, sliced into rounds (or 1/2 link per eater)
4 whole wheat tortillas
4 handfuls fresh spinach, cleaned and chopped
1 avocado, chopped

Make creamy cilantro dressing: Using a small food processor, blend together yogu

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Source: Tips For Making a Stunning Salad

When building salads, it's far too easy to get stuck in a rut. You know what works, buy the same ingredients, and inevitably eat green leaf lettuce with black olives, sliced tomatoes, and shredded carrots everyday. However, with a little creativity and an open mind at the grocery store, you can enjoy a fabulous variety of healthful yet crave-worthy salads on a regular basis. To get inspired, take a walk around the produce section and be inspired by the vegetables and fruits you come across. Try a new lettuce or pick up a veggie you're unfamiliar with. Just remember: from crunchy to creamy to crispy, a good salad has an assortment of textures (and colors). Here are a few ways to shake things up in the salad department.

Filling Proteins

• Think beyond grilled chicken: Sliced steak, chunks of pork, and flaked fish are excellent additions. Deli meats, like salami, ham, and turkey are easily shreddable, too.
• Don't forget cheese

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