We were in San Diego for all of two days for Hugh's company party deal and I met three of you in the wild! Hi Heidi, Penny and Stefa! What a world. I love that this little slice of the internet has connected me to strangers over a shared love of food.

I know so many of us are experiencing some higher temperatures lately, so my apologies for the bit of oven time here. I swear by a toaster oven (Breville Smart Oven forever!) if you want a small appliance that doesn't heat up the kitchen. You can definitely do the chickpeas for the salad on a stove top, they just won't be quite as crispy. The taquitos were a kid favorite and puttanesca is just a summer classic. The ice cream cake can be made in a spring form or loaf pan, so read the headnote if you are scaling up or down. It's pretty fool proof, just keep layering! And no oven!

Have a great weekend and stay cool!

This week's recipes by Mckenzie Mitchell.