Tonight I hosted my parents at my apartment for our very first Boston dinner! It's been quite busy around here so I had to come up with a menu that I could make easily after work and didn't need a lot of prep work. It also needed to be light - no one wants to eat heavy when the air is heavy - and of course, take advantage of the fresh fruits and vegetables that have finally come into season in New England. I am eating as much of it as I possibly can!

The menu I settled on was Chili-Rubbed Steak Tacos with Tomato and Peach Salad. Yum! I used the spice rub from this Food Network recipe on a large steak I'd been storing since buying a double pack a few weeks ago (see Steak Night). I let the rub settle into the steak for about 30 minutes before grilling it. It took no time at all. The salad recipe came from Mark Bittman's 101 Simple Salads for the Season, an article he wrote for the New York Times last week. If you haven't read this yet, read it now. If you have a picnic to go to or you just want to use up the items you bought at the Farmer's Market, you will surely be able to find something delicious in Bittman's list. Tomatoes and peaches are among my favorite summer fruits (yes, tomatoes are fruits) but I'd never thought of pairing them. With the cilantro, lime, and onion, this salad sounded like a perfect companion for tacos, and it really was.

I went family style and let everyone make their own tacos. I wish I'd taken some pictures but there was just too much going on. I put most of the taco fixings on one big platter - thinly sliced steak, red onions, cilantro, shredded cabbage, and lime wedges. These are all of the traditional Mexican toppings like I always ordered in the LA taquerias. I also had some salsa verde and hot sauce. You can't have tacos without hot sauce! I learned from my last experience in grilling steak and the meat was the level of doneness I desired - rare but not bloody. The salad was absolutely delicious, and luckily the peaches and tomatoes were very ripe. With a light Chilean white wine, it was a great summer night meal and my parents were quite happy.