Savor the Taste of June with my Summer BBQ Menu

June carries a certain energy—schools are letting out, summer travel plans are being finalized, and there’s a collective exhale as everyone eases into a slower rhythm. In Los Angeles, the skies start to clear, and the first real taste of summer begins to show up not just in the weather, but in the garden too. My backyard is coming alive with fruit—mangoes just starting to form, fig trees heavy with promise, and the apricots, longans, and cherimoyas quietly making their appearance.

Up at the farm in Paso Robles, it’s a whole other kind of magic. The tomato plants are loaded with green fruit, the corn stalks are climbing tall, and the Thai chili peppers are just beginning to peek out from the leaves. Blackberries are starting to ripen along the fence line, and the peas—snap, snow, and shelling—are twining their way upward. Even the carrots are pushing their way up from the soil, ready to be pulled.

With the Fourth of July just around the corner, the grill becomes the heart of the kitchen. I’ve pulled together a menu that leans into all the flavors of summer—smoky, juicy, fresh, and celebratory. From charred meats to easy sides that showcase what’s coming out of the garden right now, this is the kind of food meant to be eaten outside, barefoot if possible, surrounded by the people you love. There’s nothing fussy here—just honest summer cooking that lets the season do the talking.

xo. Cindy