As summer winds down, perhaps you've barbecued virtually every meat and vegetable imaginable. Expand your imagination to include fruit and you and your family or guests are in for tempting treats.

As in the grilled strawberry salad that follows, it can take just seconds to make your mark (grill marks that is, while accentuating both the juiciness and flavor of fruits even more than when they are served chilled or at room temperature).

Following are some additional quick ideas. Fruit should be ripe, but not soft. If applicable, fruits should be pitted or hulled, cut in half and grilled with cut sides down, for 30 to 40 seconds. Use a grill basket when size of fruit makes that the best choice.

NECTARINES ARE NICE CHOICES

Dice grilled nectarines and sprinkle over cooked, skinless chicken breasts along with curry powder, golden raisins, cooked fresh corn kernels and fresh or dried tarragon.

PEACHY KEEN

Add grilled peaches to cooked oatmeal, along with honey, candied pecans, chopped dried apricots and shredded unsweetened coconut.

EVEN MORE PERFECT PLUMS

Use grilled plums to top vanilla frozen yogurt along with splashes of dark chocolate sauce and pomegranate or cherry juice, pomegranate molasses or pomegranate or raspberry syrup.

SIZZLING STRAWBERRY SALAD

Combine grilled strawberries and grilled large cabbage leaves that you've sliced. Add grilled shrimp and cashews and toss with raspberry vinaigrette and fresh lime juice.

APRICOTS THAT HAM IT UP

Top grilled apricot halves with finely diced cooked ham and crumbled feta cheese. Drizzle with a mixture of olive oil and balsamic vinegar and sprinkle with minced fresh basil.

BLACKBERRY BREAKFAST

Grill blackberries and use as topping, along with chopped walnuts, ground ginger and cinnamon and brown sugar for cooked oatmeal.

BETTER THAN BANANA SPLITS

Hot fudge is not the only item to warm up a sundae. Grilled bananas do the trick as well. Halve bananas lengthwise and lightly grill them. Chop and add to strawberry sundaes topped with chopped pistachios and drizzled with hot fudge and warmed strawberry sauce.

AFTER-WORK GOURMET COOKBOOK SHELF

Sometimes pie recipes call for a double crust. "If you are using store-bought commercial crusts, which come frozen and only as bottom crusts, be aware that you can use a bottom crust as a top," writes Robert L. Blakeslee in "Your Time to Bake: A First Cookbook for the Novice Baker." He continues: "Just let it thaw out until the dough becomes workable, then place it over the filling as a top crust or cut it into strips to create a lattice top."

Lisa Messinger is a first-place winner in food writing from the Association of Food Journalists and the author of seven food books, including "Mrs. Cubbison's Best Stuffing Cookbook" and "The Sourdough Bread Bowl Cookbook." To find out more about Lisa Messinger and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.