Emily Craner has graduated Eastern Washington University since we heard from her last. Gotta love a repeat blogger! Thanks for another great blog, Emily!

Sometimes, it may not feel like summer. These are the times in which one must urge summer to come on full-force, by sending the swirling smoke from the BBQ circling up into the air as a sacrifice.

I tried my best to do my part last weekend, with simple (yet TOTALLY delicious) chicken, veggie and fruit kabobs.

First we marinated the chicken in some tasty marinade plucked straight from the valleys of Leavenworth, Washington. Found in a little shop called A Matter of Taste and packed carefully home, it is a cracked pepper garlic marinade, and is a little spicy and a lot zesty. The fruit and veggies were tossed in it as well—pineapple, onions, peppers. Sigh. My mouth is watering as I write this.

After soaking the cedar grilling skewers for about twenty minutes, we loaded them up and tossed them on the barbie, watching carefully with spray bottle in hand (the cedar skewers, as skewers are wont to do, caught on fire. While thrilling, in the future I am planning on soaking them for a bit longer). They only took between 15-20 minutes to cook, but after that, it really just depends on your kabob preference. As a tasty side-note, we threw some blanched asparagus on as well, seasoned with the tried and true seasoning—5th Season garlic and onion salt. As another side-note, it is helpful to have a sidekick while planking or skewing. Such as, for example, your trusted dachshund.

Soon, the cedar grilling skewers were done, and we were left with a delicious bevvy of colors, smells, and taste sensations. Total prep time was no more than twenty minutes (not including the time the chicken marinated), and grill time was about the same. Not bad for a delicious, savory kick-off to summer.