Janie Parrish

The first time I tasted guacamole I fell in love with it. Now I love to go to Mexican restaurants with my girlfriends and order the fresh guacamole that they make for you right at the table side.

There’s a great Mexican restaurant near our office and any time we want to go celebrate something, like a co-worker’s birthday, or someone’s promotion, we all go together at lunch to this Mexican restaurant, called Cozymel’s. We are like regulars there now and we even have our own special table if we know we are coming and call ahead to let them know.

I wanted something different for lunch today, so I went to this new little Greek restaurant and ordered a gyro. They make it to order in front of you. You choose the fixins and they pile it on generously to make a flat bread sandwich of sliced lamb, onions, feta cheese, and I like a few black olives.

I asked the guy at the register how to pronounce the word, gyro. He say it sounds like hero, without the “h” and the “g” is silent. I’ve always wanted to know how to pronounce that!

Summer is here and there are tons of fresh vegetables in the stores. So make the most of summer’s bounty and have a fresh salad every day. Enjoy fresh fruit for breakfast. Try something new – if you see an unfamiliar vegetable in the store, ask the produce manager for help in selecting a ripe one and for tips on how to prepare it.

Have you ever had a star fruit? They taste like apples but look nothing like a traditional red delicious apple. Have you had a mango? A plantain? Fresh ginger? There’s a whole world of fresh vegetables and fruit waiting to be discovered by you!