Sunday July 8, 2012 Time for BBQ!

The sun is shining and the temperatures are rising. It’s the perfect time to get outside and have a barbecue. Whether its dinner or dessert, meat or vegetables, indoor or outdoor, the Thunder Bay Public Library has a great selection of books for all your grilling needs. Here are a few examples that will definitely have you craving barbecue.

The Barbecue Collection by the Canadian Living Test Kitchen has a variety of delicious recipes for cooks of all skill levels. Each chapter focuses on a specific food to grill, such as burgers, roasts, vegetables, marinades, and side dishes. The hundreds of coloured photos are definitely an added bonus.

For the beginner griller, try Steven Raichlen’s book How to Grill. Raichlen provides step-by-step instructions, with photos, for learning to grill practically every type of meat, seafood and vegetable. With one hundred recipes to choose from, it will be hard not to barbecue every meal this summer. Also check out 25 Essentials: Techniques for Grilling by Ardie A. Davis and Remus Powers.

Smoking Meat: The Essential Guide to Real Barbecue by Jeff Philips is a step-by-step guide that will have you smoking your own food in no time. Start by learning the basics of smoking techniques and tools, then get creative and develop your own recipes for smoked food.

With over 200 recipes created to save you time, Weber’s Time to Grill: Get In. Get Out. Get Grilling by Jamie Purviance has it all. Weber’s Time to Grill not only provides step-by-step instructions, charts, and shortcuts, but also comes with free mobile tools you can access on your smartphone or Web-enabled mobile device. Now you can spend more time enjoying the outdoors.

If you just spent the day out on the lake and caught your dinner, try a recipe from Fish grilled and smoked: 150 recipes for cooking rich, flavorful fish on the backyard grill, streamside, or in a home smoker by John Manikowski. Recipes are also provided for side dishes, sauces, desserts and more.

Skip the meat tonight and try a recipe from the book Grilling from the Garden: vegetarian dishes for the outdoor cook by Diana Shaw. These delicious vegetarian recipes come with grilling instructions to help you create a very tasty meal.

Before it hits the grill, spice up your food with Elizabeth Karmel’s book Soaked, Slathered, and Seasoned: a complete guide to flavoring food for the grill. With 400 recipes for flavouring your food, you will have no choice but to barbecue every night just to try them all.

Pick up one of these books from your Thunder Bay Public Library, fire up the grill, and have a fantastic day in the sun.

Lindsey Long