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With 4th of July right around the corner, I’m guessing many of you are starting to make your barbecue plans! The folks at Albertsons recently contacted me to see if I’d want to share some ideas for all-things grilling! Albertsons is always so generous with their giveaways; of course I said yes!

Yeah! Thanks, Albertsons!

It is end of June here in Western Washington and the weather is just starting, sort of, to perk up. I say sort of because my kids did manage to play in the sprinkler this weekend…

But later that day it started raining every so slightly, so the kids went from swimsuits to coats. Anyhow, this time of year we definitely like to think about bustin’ out the grill, weather cooperating or not!

Summer in Washington!

For today’s barbecue, we decided to use Essential Everyday charcoal and lighter fluid to get things started.

I left the fire part to my handsome firefighter.

Such a natural.

Of course, my husband grilled up the usual suspects…

My husband LOVES grilled shrimp!

But I decided, “hey, let’s try something meatless!” Now of course the tendency may be to just slap a veggie burger on the grill, but there are many delicious eats you can grill up for your vegetarian and vegan friends that don’t involve packages or boxes.

I decided to try grilling portobello mushrooms. I used Essential Everyday Sesame-Ginger Marinade.

I also grilled a number of vegetables: corn, zucchini, sweet onion, and red pepper.

Veggie Love

I completed the dish with fresh picked lettuce from the garden. It was delicious!

How colorful and flavorful does this look?

I also made a raspberry lemonade punch by mixing a can of frozen Raspberry Lemonade with Super Chill Club Soda and a little sugar for sweetness. Easy peasy and the kids loved it!

Yes, she's eating a grilled cheese sandwich. Sigh.

We ate, and ate, and ate….and the kids fell into that kind of fitful sleep you get after playing outdoors all day. Summer is finally here! Until next time, lil’ grill.

Just a reminder from my husband: never, ever grill inside.

For more ideas on planning a better barbecue, check out this week’s Albertsons sales and some Twice the Value sales (through Tuesday only) as well as my recap about the amazing event I attended in NYC to learn more about the Essential Everyday line.

Enter the Giveaway

One Lucky Coupon Project reader will win the same grill set package I received! It includes a grill, a $25 Albertsons gift card, and a ton of food perfect for your barbecue – SunChips, Vlasic Pickles, Keebler Club Crackers, and Essential Everday flavored water enhancers, to name a few. It’s a very generous prize!

To enter: simply leave a comment on this post. For fun, I’d love to hear what you’d plan on picking up from Albertsons to throw on the grill! Limit one comment/entry per person, please. The contest will run through Friday, June 29th, 12pm PST. One winner will be randomly-selected and notified by email. (So do make sure you’re using an email address in your entry that you actually do check!)

Good luck everyone!

Disclosure: While I did not receive compensation to write this post, I was provided a grill set courtesy of Albertsons for the purpose of this review as well as one to give away. The opinions expressed and concept for this post were 100% mine. For more information on how this site makes (and does not make) money, you can always swing by my Disclosure Policy.