Ghost Chilis are (supposedly, arguably, possibly) the hottest pepper in the world. In 2007 The Guiness Book of World Records deemed them 401.5 times hotter than Tabasco sauce. Since then, the Naga Viper Pepper, Infinity Chilli, and the Trinidad Scorpion Butch T Pepper have been bred to (supposedly, arguably, possibly) surpass the ghost pepper on the Scoville scale, which (supposedly, arguably, possibly) measures the heat level in chili peppers.

Not that the semantics matter when you taste one– because they are hot. Damn hot. Too hot for me (supposedly, arguably, possibly). But that doesn't mean I can't find a way to cook with them. Take this Flatiron Steak Sandwich With Cucumber, Ginger Relish & Ghost Chili Aioli. I took a great sandwich recipe from Tom Colicchio and adapted to include this Ghost Chili Aioli.

I have been wanting to do something with Ghost Chilis for about a year. You see Marx Foods sent me some dried Ghost Chili samples and they have sat in my pantry this past year zinging me with the promise of a heat so hot as to be (supposedly, arguably, possibly) inedible.

Inedible. Heat so Hot. Those are fightin' words in my house. I'll eat anything, and I'll scar my tongue just to prove it if I have too.

I know you love your grill. In fact I have seen you in that backyard of yours cooing into its grates. I bet you grilled half the summer away with that smoky look of longing burning in your eyes. The lusty licking of flames doesn’t scare you. Yep, you and your grill got a good thing going on.

I get the attraction. The lure of tasty summertime meals served charred and smokin’ in the sultry summer air is enough to get anyone’s grill on.

But be honest– after an entire summer of grilling are you feeling restless? Are you longing for something sautéed and saucy? It’s only natural. Flames are great, but do you ever wonder what sous vide would be like? What? I am just asking…even a grill master has the right to look around a little bit, so long as you keep your tongs in your apron.

Now I am not suggesting any drastic changes between you and that sweet grill of yours. I know it's a mighty sexy beast. But maybe just maybe you've grown tired of the same old routine. Maybe grilling has lost some of its heat.

Well, lucky for you, grilling isn’t just for burgers, steaks and chicken! So put your brain to work and spend the last rays of summer fantasizing about fun foods that you may not have considered grilling!

That's just what me and my old grill did. We shook things up. Introduced a few new flavors. Nothing exotic, nothing dangerous. But the thrill of the unfamiliar reminds me just what a grill I got. Look at the hot mess we made! The bread is grilled, the prosciutto is grilled. Even the avocado is grilled!

I'm on day five of a week long series dedicated to the summer salad. So far all of my salads have been a bit special. Salads that could work as a main course– or salads that feature a special ingredient. But today I have a salad that is a side dish. Meaning it's supposed to play second fiddle to whatever else is served on the plate.

Which doesn't mean it's not special in it's own simple (quiet) way. Besides, how can a discussion of summer salads go by without a proper nod to potato salad? Today's salad fills that void. But it ain't no plain ole potato salad. It's a Chilled Sweet Potato Salad with Lime and Chili Oil.

Who says sweet potatoes (or even yams) need to be cold weather food? Not me. Why not shake up your ideas about potato salad. So leave the mayo in the fridge and have a look at what I can do with the humble (sweet) potato. My version is a little sweet, a little sour and even a little spicy. It's so me. So of course I love it. But as much as I love it I gotta say it's very second fiddle. Which isn't a bad thing. Except I just got through cooking with Linda of Salty Seattle, right here in my own kitchen. She was giving me a little lesson in molecular gastronomy (is that the right term?).

We were using chemicals like calcium chloride and sodium alginate to create little bouncy balls of pea and mint. They were pretty damn spectacular, but not at all second fiddle.

So as I sit here pecking away at this keyboard trying to explain how or why my simple potato salad deserves your attention I feel a little like the kid whose bird's nest show and tell flopped when Johnny SoAndSo brought a moon rock to class. It almost made me feel sorry for my simple little salad.

But you know what? Just look at the color of my salad. It might not bounce and squirt. But man oh man, does it taste good on the plate with grilled chicken on a hot summer's day.