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You won't catch Marilyn Markel in the kitchen for long on a hot summer evening.Markel, the cooking school manager for A Southern Season in Chapel Hill, slices, grills and dices early on a weekend morning. Then, after working long hours in the store, she can complete most meals in less than 20 minutes."It's a great day on Saturday when by noon, you have five meals for the week," she says.Markel starts by shopping early Saturday at the Farmers Market in Chapel Hill.As she sips homemade lemonade with cucumber from one of the vendors, she picks out the best of summer's bounty.Quickly, her cloth bag is filled with Japanese eggplant, squash, zucchini, tomatoes and gorgeous onions.As soon as Markel returns home, she heads straight for the kitchen. She cuts the veggies while her husband, Jim, gets the charcoal grill ready.In addition to the produce she just bought, Markel will add peppers and portobello mushrooms to the grill."You're getting the best flavor out of the vegetables," Markel says.And Markel leaves almost no mess in the kitchen. The bowls used for the vegetables go into the dishwasher. She's already thinking about turning her grilled ingredients into a Sunday morning frittata, veggie tacos, a pizza, a chopped salad with rotisserie chicken and portobello sandwiches. She picks up the chicken and pizza dough from the grocery store.Another good cooking method for summer is to use your slow cooker, says Beth Hensperger, author of "Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker: Recipes for Entertaining" (Harvard Common Press, $18.95).The slow cooker is perfect during the hot and humid months because it doesn't generate a lot of heat, Hensperger says."Your kitchen stays totally cool," she says. "Feeding a family is tough. And when you're tired when you get home, even cooking a hamburger can be too much."Here, Markel, Hensperger and Lynne Rossetto Kasper, cookbook author and radio host of NPR's "The Splendid Table," share tips and recipes to help you beat the heat and cut down your evening time in the kitchen.RecipesAlmond Chutney Chicken in Lettuce Roll-Ups
bridgette.lacy@newsobserver.com or (919) 829-8925
