Week 3 of Our August Grilling Challenge: Grill Beyond the Expected

Hello there! Welcome back. Week one was all about fine-tuning those grilling basics; week two was all about throwing an excellent cookout. Now? We’re getting creative, because no one can subsist on grilled hot dogs alone.

This week’s challenge is to grill something you’ve never considered grilling before. Give corn the night off and throw some leafy greens on the grill. Make an actually grilled grilled cheese sandwich. And definitely try grilling your pizza (above), which New York Times Cooking columnist Kenji López-Alt says is one of the easiest ways (really!) to get restaurant-quality pizza at home.

We’ve also included some rigorously taste-tested essentials you’ll need for your grilling adventures — olive oil, canned tomatoes and vanilla ice cream, plus the one tool our experts say is a must-have. Go ahead, live a little. (Besides, all of these recipes are free, so you may as well get to experimenting.)

A pizza oven is, by no means, essential. But it sure is fun to use. Wirecutter journalist Katie Quinn had a realization living in Italy years ago: Homemade dough is the first step to making a really great pizza. Equally as important: simple but high-quality ingredients, and the gorgeous brick oven that bakes the pizzas to perfection.

Back stateside in Brooklyn, Katie’s outdoor oven has helped her recreate some of that Italian magic. Plus, it frees up her grill for all those wild sides.

After researching over 40 bottles of olive oil, consulting a trained olive oil taster and taste-testing 15 options ourselves, Wirecutter’s experts have come away with the best extra-virgin olive oils — all available in your local grocery store.

Our panelists agreed that the Graza Sizzle Extra Virgin Olive Oil, which smells like fresh living tomato plants, was the best all-purpose oil. It’s balanced, green and peppery, and would pair nicely with any of today’s recipes (try it on those grilled peaches!).