JBug's Kitchen Antics

Smoked Salmon Pizza

I'm not sure whether to call this effort a pizza or snazzed up flatbread although I suppose it could be one or the other or both, but I do know for certain it is a heck of a way to showcase some of Big Guy's home smoked salmon. 

I happened to have some homemade pizza dough in the freezer leftover from a previous pizza pigout, and quickly defrosted, it hit the gas grill for a grand total of 4 minutes a side. Cooled briefly, we topped the crisp and crunchy disc of deliciousness with a whipped up combination of cream cheese, sour cream and lemon juice, followed by flakes of smoked salmon, minced sweet onion, freshly chopped dill and salty capers.

What can I say except we'd do it all over again in a heartbeat big time. Kinda' hard to go wrong with the perfect combination of sweet smoky salmon, tart sour cream/cream cheese, spicy onion, salty capers and fresh herbacious dill.  

Incidentally, my new favorite pizza crust recipe is found here. Just be sure to use bread flour rather than all-purpose for a never fail crisp crust although all-purpose will do in a pinch.  

Smoked Salmon Pizza (Inspired by Rachael Ray)

1 ball ready made pizza dough

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

1/4 cup sour cream

Salt & course ground black pepper

Juice of half a lemon

4 to 6 ounces smoked salmon

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

1/4 cup chopped sweet onion

2 tablespoons capers, drained

Preheat gas grill to 450. Roll or stretch dough out into a 16 inch circle and place onto grill. Bake for approximately 4 minutes a side or until cooked through and crisp. Remove to a board and cool.

In a small bowl, whip cream cheese until light. Add sour cream slowly a spoonful at a time and whip to combine well. Add lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. To finish pizza, spread cream cheese mixture onto crust. Top with crumbled smoked salmon, dill, onion and capers. Cut into pieces and serve. 

Peaches And Pork On The Grill

In my opinion, nothing screams of summer quite like the smell of a sweet juicy sun kissed peach. Add a grill and a few pork loin chops to the equation along with a drizzle of good balsamic vinegar and you'll find perfection on a plate. It is darned easy on the cook too.

We've Williams-Sonoma to thank for last night's inspiration although their recipe calls for a basil garnish that I didn't have, but no matter. It is perfectly acceptable without.

Simply pork loin chops seasoned with salt and pepper, then brought to room temperature before they hit the grill, the real flavor quotient's fresh from the tree peaches, quartered and splashed with a little oil and maple syrup then grilled for 60 seconds until golden. Finished with a touch of balsamic vinegar and a dusting of freshly ground black pepper, they are a perfect accompaniment to moist and tender pork chops. Throw in a tossed salad and dinner's cooked in under 10 minutes.  Here's the link to the recipe and just so you know, I'd be inclined to try it with chicken or halibut or even salmon too. In fact, I'm going to do just that. 

Other ideas for grilled peaches - how about serving them with a grilled Ham Steak or show them off along side a chipotle chicken salad for a soothing grilled sweetness next to the salad's spicy heat. 

      

 

Catching Up

We've had friends visiting for the past couple of days and when it comes to summer entertaining and this type A personality, planning ahead is the key to keeping life rolling along as it should. It certainly kept J'Bug semi sane although Max and Finnigan's varying degrees of social skills or lack thereof darn near put me over the edge. Anyway, here's the low down on some of our menus during the past week.

Korean Barbecue Flanken Ribs is a perfect summer night dinner because the meat marinates for a minimum 24 hours before it hits a super hot grill for a grand total of 2 minutes per side. The combination of hoisin sauce and sugar in the marinade never mind lots of minced garlic and fresh ginger make for a fabulously caramelized crunch on the outside and fork tender juiciness on the inside of the ribs. 

Along with a made in advance Spicy Noodle Salad chock a block full of colorful veggies such as carrots, green onions, julienned mini sweet bell peppers and and snow peas and a crunchy ramen noodle slaw, dinner was super easy on the cook. 

 

Of course we also had to take advantage of the riches Neptune bestows and enjoyed crab caught by you know who, roasted in the oven accompanied by a rich and buttery orange sauce perfect for dipping bread fresh from the oven. I know I've bragged about this particular dish before but it is one of our favorite ways to prepare our local Dungeness crab. Along with a salad, it makes for another easy on the cook dinner. Here's the link the recipe for Oven Roasted Crab with Orange Butter Sauce and I'm telling you, it is amazing. Just be sure to keep the cool white wine flowing and a roll of paper towels on the table and you'll have a bunch of happy people. 

When you're looking for something quick and easy, you don't have to look any farther than bonless chicken thighs on the grill.

In our case we enjoyed a re-run of the Mustard Maple Marinated Chicken from way back in 2011, grilled up all crisp and crunchy and accompanied by a curry flavored orzo salad - same as the recipe on the link with orzo pasta instead of basmati rice for no other reason than I just wanted to give it a try, particularly after the fabulous cold lemony orzo and asparagus combination we had a while ago. 

Just so you know, I whipped up the sauces, marinades and salad dressings all in advance and stored them in the refrigerator until they were needed. Some of the veggies were pre-prepped as well and that means I got to spend less time in the kitchen and more time with the wine bottle(s) and the guests. 

 

 

 

 

 

Salmon with Whiskey Barbecue Sauce

Not even crazy people like us had the inclination to barbecue yesterday although we could have as it was a beautiful sunny day here on the coast unlike other parts of Oregon that are digging out from 4 days of snow and ice. Anyway, with a surplus of salmon still in the freezer and a selection of whiskey in the booze cupboard, I thought I'd whip up an indoor style barbecue instead of an outdoor one.

I don't know about you but when I think barbecue the sauce is the main focus because I'm just a saucy kind of person. This one claims a cup of the good stuff (I used Canadian Mist because you know who would have had a coronary if I'd used his good bourbon), along with brown sugar, catsup, vinegar, lemon juice and lots of worcestershire and dry mustard. Seasoned with salt and pepper, I simmered it on the stove for a mere 5 minutes just to incorporate the flavors and then let it mellow for a while in the refrigerator.

As for the salmon, I preheated the broiler, dried the outside of a one pound piece of salmon fillet, cut it into narrow pieces, seasoned it with salt and pepper and slathered a few tablespoons of sauce over each. Placed close together but not touching on a pan under the broiler, 10 minutes later we were chowing down. 

Served on a bed of lemon risotto, the salmon was tender and bursting with barbecue flavor...and not a hot coal or gas barbecue in sight. Good for us, huh. When you get a chance, give this sauce a try on almost anything, but it'll be perfect with pork ribs or chops, or on chicken too. 

Whiskey Barbecue Sauce from JBug’s Kitchen Antics adapted from Jack Daniels Cookbook

1 cup whiskey (I used Canadian Mist)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup catsup

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 to 1 teaspoon dry mustard

Dash red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper to taste

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly for 5 minutes. Transfer to a jar and refrigerate for a minimum 2 hours to allow flavors to develop.

Two years ago - Pudding Chomeur

Cherry Berry Pie

There's nothing quite like a cherry berry pie for dessert in the dead of winter, or anytime for that matter. Somehow I just knew I'd appreciate the fruit more now than I did during the hours spent cleaning flats of strawberries and pitting cherries this past summer. 

I've made a lot of pies in my lifetime and it is often a crap shoot as to how they'll turn out because so much depends on how juicy the berries are to begin with never mind that I haven't always had the best of luck in the pastry department. Lately I've been using a recipe from Ina Garten which has yet to fail me, enough so that I'm at the point of claiming it as my own (almost). Can I do that without the Ina police coming after me?

Anyway, as for the pie's innards - frozen, direct from the freezer strawberries, sweet cherries and wild blueberries went into this one along with a limited amount of sugar (because we don't like our pies too sweet) mixed with both flour and cornstarch. A few pats of butter and a lot of oven time, a fair bit of patience and here's the result.

Just so you know - 

• I use a deep dish pie tin with a removable bottom so you may have to adjust the filling quantities you use depending on the size of pie pan you're using;
• Should you be making this pie with fresh rather than frozen fruit, you'll need to lower the amount of thickening agents (flour and cornstarch) because frozen berries have more juices than fresh ones
• Baking time may vary and because the fruit's frozen, it'll take longer than it will if you're using fresh fruit. About the only way I can tell a pie is really done is by the amount and consistency and color of juices it burps out from under the pastry lid. In my opinion, more burping is better so be sure to put a sheet pan under the pie plate to collect all the drips. 

 

Cherry Berry Pie an original from JBug’s Kitchen Antics with pastry recipe from Ina Garten

Pastry:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) very cold unsalted butter

1/3 cup very cold shortening

1/2 to 2/3 cup ice water

Place flour, salt and sugar in food processor with steel blade and pulse a few times to combine. Add butter and shortening cut into cubes to dry ingredients and pulse processor 10 to 12 times or until butter is the size of peas. With motor running gradually add ice water and pulse until pastry comes together. Place pastry into a large zip bag and form into a flattened disc. Press all the air out of the bag and seal. Refrigerate for a minimum half hour.

Pie Filling:

2 cups frozen blueberries (I used wild berries)

2 cups frozen whole strawberries (heaping cups)

2 cups frozen pitted sweet cherries (heaping cups)

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon butter

In a large bowl whisk together sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt. Add berries and fold together to dust frozen berries with dry ingredients.

To make pie – Preheat oven to 450. Divide pastry disc in half and roll out on a well floured board. Line bottom of pie tin leaving a 1 inch overhang. Fill with fruit pouring excess dry ingredients into center of pie. Dot with butter. Roll out top crust and arrange over fruit filling. Seal edges and flute. Decorate as you wish and cut slashes in top crust to allow steam to escape. Place pie tin on a flat baking sheet to catch any drips and bake pie for 15 minutes.

 Reduce heat to 350 and continue baking for 60 to 90 minutes or until juices escape top of pie and run clear. Cool on a wire rack. 

Two years ago - Pancetta and Smoked Mozzarella Pizza

Cranberry Barbecue Sauce

This may come as no surprise but I love to collect things - dishes, cookbooks, spices, rolling pins, antique platters - well you name it. I'm a sucker for all of that stuff. I might have taken my collecting fetish a tad too far though because a look in the freezer says I've been collecting too many bags of cranberries.

I love the tart little bullets and they're really not a bad thing to collect since they're so hard come by during spring and summer but enough's enough. Yesterday I used a bag of my precious treasures to whip up this barbecue sauce. 

Totally different from any I've made in the past, this sauce includes frozen whole cranberries along with orange juice, tomato sauce, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar and honey. I added kick in the form of habanero hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce and Dijon mustard because I'm smart enough to know a little spicy heat is guaranteed to make you know who happy. Thing is the flavor's rather deceiving but after a good whir with the immersion blender and a little mellowing time in the refrigerator, it was just perfect. It is kinda' tart, kinda' sweet, kinda' hot and definitely a hit on this Big Guy Sandwich. 

If you think it looks like he fried up some oysters, you'd be wrong although I'm pretty sure the cranberry BBQ sauce would make oysters sing too. During our shopping trip yesterday Big Guy cast a yearning eye on the some awful offal. That's what I call stuff I won't eat, like chicken gizzards and hearts. He's such a gem I couldn't deny him so he enjoyed the cranberry barbecue sauce on a ciabbata roll piled high with pan fried chicky hearts and had more as a dipper too with the boat load of extras.

Me? I had it with some sliced smoked chicken on a roll with sweet pickles and mayo. I might even have some later on a quesadilla, or with cold roast pork, or maybe slathered on chicken tenders and broiled, or in an apple butternut squash gratin, or spread on some halibut and grilled on the barbecue, or on turkey wings, or....I figure the choices are pretty well endless; however, I won't be having my cranberry barbecue sauce with any hearts or gizzards but you kinda' already knew that, didn't you.

Cranberry Barbecue Sauce (inspired by Jeff Mauro, Foodnetwork.com)

1 – 12 ounce package frozen whole cranberries

3/4 cup tomato sauce

1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon Habanero hot sauce (I used Trader Joe’s)

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon salt

 Combine all ingredients in a medium sized saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, reduce heat and simmer for 25 minutes stirring occasionally. Remove from heat a cool slightly. Puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Place into a glass jar or container, cover and refrigerator for minimum 2 hours before using. Makes approximately 2 cups. 

A year ago - Oven BBQ Pulled Pork 

 

Two years ago - Chicken and Veggie Stew with Dumplings

Three years ago - New England Style Clam Chowder

Four Years ago - Lamb Ragu Over Vegetables

The Salmon Is King

 

Photo from State of Washington Fish and Shellfish website

Salmon is definitely king in the Pacific Northwest and lucky for me there were two kings in our house yesterday. One brought the other one home for dinner. 

Yes, Big Guy's getting this retirement stuff down pat. He went fishing yesterday with Mike and Rob and came home with his catch of the day, a first, and the resulting fillets from a 15 pound King salmon, also known as Chinook.  

 

A view of the "gaggle" of boats from the beach below our house

Salmon fishing season is on and one of the prime fishing areas just happens to be at the "jaws" below our back yard and a part of the view we enjoy every day. OK, I know I'm bragging again but quite honestly I still can't believe our good fortune in finding our little utopia. 

The "jaws" is what the locals call the area where the Alsea river meets the Pacific Ocean and can be mighty tricky to navigate. The fish enter the area to head upriver to spawn so it's supposed to be mecca to a fisherperson. Notice I say "supposed to be" because from what we hear it's been pretty slow fishing so far this season. Personally I imagine the head fish sent some scouts out for a lookie-loo and the scouts returned to headquarters saying "there's too many boats out there so let's take a pass for a while and make 'em sweat it out." I imagine my King musta' caught one of the scouts. 

Anyway, a very excited Big Guy stocked the freezer with his catch minus the huge piece he cooked up for dinner of course. 

 

I had some potlatch seasoning mixed up for just such an occasion, so we rubbed it onto the piece of beautiful red fish and Big Guy cooked it on cedar planks that he'd soaked in water for a couple of hours. After the fish had a good headstart on the grill, he starting basting it with a mixture of real Grade B maple syrup courtesy of my homeland (Canada) via Trader Joe's mixed 4 to 1 with a bourbon, Knob Creek of course. 

Now be forewarned, cooking anything on a cedar plank always takes longer than you think, so give your fish about 15 minutes per inch (depth) rather than the usual 10. 

Big Guy finished the piece over direct heat with another slather of glaze to give it a deeper color and crisp up the glaze a bit because there's nothing like caramelized maple syrup with a bourbon twist.

Pretty darned amazing isn't it? 

Potlatch Seasoning  (adapted from Foodnetwork.com)

4 teaspoons kosher salt

3 teaspoons chili powder

3 teaspoons coarse ground black pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon celery salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon dried oregano

Combine ingredients together in a small jar and seal tightly.

A year ago - Southwestern Style Eggs 

Two year's ago - Chipotle and Green Chile Pork Burgers

Three year's ago - Fried Mac and Cheese

 

Cornmeal Cakes with Smoked Chicken and Coleslaw

Remember the Southern Illinois BBQ sandwiches I'm always talking about? The ones with crispy fried pork tucked into a soft bun with mustardy slaw and a drizzle of barbecue sauce?  

Well this is kind'a like it except for moist corn studded corncakes instead of the bun and smoked chicken instead of pork and sweet coleslaw instead of the mustardy chow. Come to think of it, the only thing the two have in common is barbecue sauce; oh, that and the fact they're both delicious of course.

 

Corn Cakes with Clams, Basil and Sundried Tomatoes

Big Guy and I took a trip into the valley yesterday (Salem) so dinner needed to be of the no fuss, quick, easy and yummy kind. Fresh corn's enjoying its hayday at the moment and while we've created several versions of corncakes in JBug's Kitchen, this one's slightly different from all the rest. Along with chopped corn kernels, it is spiced up with minced onion, jalapeno pepper, roasted red peppers and tiny little chunks of Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese.  

Crunchy in texture because of the addition of coarse ground yellow cornmeal (I used Bob's Red Mill- did you know they're an Oregon company?) they're a cake, like a pancake cooked on a griddle rather than a fritter that's deep fried.

Corn Cakes with Tomato and Avocado Salsa

The moist flavorful corncakes are a perfect backdrop for thin slices of smoked chicken purchased from our local JC Market Thriftway where they homesmoke a bunch of great stuff like jowl bacon, ham, chicken and turkey. We buy it all and Big Guy slices it nice and thin and bags and stores it in the freezer because it beats the heck out of any deli meat, both for flavor and price never mind we've been too busy working on the house to get our home smoker operating, at least that is our excuse and we're sticking to it. 

Anyway, next time you're looking for a quick and scrummy dinner, give this a try. You could even substitute shredded pork, or beef in barbecue sauce, or even shrimp with salsa or use 'em as a taco and/or make 'em into a mini version as an appetizer - now there's a good example of a run on sentence isn't it?  

Spicy Corn Cakes (from JBug’s Kitchen Antics adapted from Gourmet via epicurious.com)

1 cup coarse ground yellow cornmeal (I used Bob’s Red Mill)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons sugar

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 large egg

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon hot sauce (optional)

1 cup fresh or frozen (thawed) corn, coarsely chopped

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced

1/2 cup Monterey Jack Cheese cubes (1/4 inch cubes)

1/2 cup Sharp Cheddar cubes (1/4 inch cubes)

Combine cornmeal, flour, salt, soda, black pepper, cayenne and sugar in a medium bowl and whisk together to incorporate. Fold in cheese cubes.

In a small bowl beat together egg, butter, buttermilk, and hot sauce. Add corn, onion, roasted red peppers and jalapeno and mix to combine well. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Batter will be lumpy.

Heat a griddle over medium high heat then lower heat to medium low. Spray griddle with cooking spray and coat lightly with additional butter. Drop batter onto griddle using an ice-cream scoop and flatten slightly. Cook for about 2 minutes per side or until they are golden brown and feel firm in the center. Move to a platter and keep warm in a low oven. Makes approximately 12.

A year ago - Braised Duck Legs with Marsala and Sour Cherries

Two year's ago - Country Terrine

Three year's ago -  Pork Katsu with Soba Noodles

 

Rustic Blackberry Pie aka Galette

Something bad happened on the way to last night's stellar celebration of all that's wonderful about the Pacific Northwest. A favorite kitchen workhorse bit the dust. The one most dependable piece of kitchen equipment I've owned and treasured since 1981 finally gave in and croaked...my treasured Cuisinart; however, before the plastic workbowl crumbled it produced the pastry for last night's freeform sweet treat also known as a galette. My Cuisinart's last gasp was a darn good one!

Another fabulous Ina Garten pastry recipe, I took the liberty of adding some sugar to this one. Very easy to make and virtually fool proof (thank goodness because this fool hasn't had a lot of luck with pastry in the recent past) it's topped with couple of pints of plump juicy Marionberries tossed with a mere half cup of sugar, 2 heaping tablespoons of cornstarch and a pinch of salt. Piled into the middle of the pastry, the edges are simply folded in on the filling, and the rustic tart hit a hot oven for 45 minutes and came out looking like this! 

Now while most people would consider serving a slice topped with vanilla ice cream, as you may or may not know Big Guy's a purist when it comes to his pie. Coupled with the fact our freezer is bare of the frozen confection, we had our pie unadorned except for a wee dram of cognac on the side. Uh yum!

Rustic Blackberry Galette from JBug’s Kitchen Antics with pastry adapted from Ina Garten

Pastry:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 pound cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

1/2 cup cold vegetable shortening

2/3 cup ice water (more or less as needed)

Place flour, salt, baking powder and sugar into bowl of food processor and pulse to combine. Add cold butter and vegetable shortening. Stir quickly with a fork to coat each piece with flour, then cover and pulse briefly until fats are incorporated and about the size of peas. With the motor running, drizzle in water until dough leaves the sides of the work bowl and just comes together. Place into a zip bag and knead to form a ball. Flatten ball, then refrigerate a minimum of 30 minutes.

Filling:

2 pints fresh blackberries (I used Marionberries)

1/2 cup granulated sugar

Dash salt

2 tablespoons cornstarch (heaping)

Mix together sugar, salt and cornstarch in a medium bowl. Toss in fresh blackberries and fold carefully to incorporate.

To assemble the pie, preheat oven to 425. On a floured board, roll pastry out to a large circle – approximately 16 inches in diameter. Fold pastry into quarters then even edges out by cutting into a relatively even disc. Place pastry on a large pizza pan and unfold allowing edges to drape over sides of pan. Place blackberry filling in a pike in center of pastry then fold edges in to roughly cover the filling, leaving the center exposed. Sprinkle tart lightly with a tablespoon of granulated sugar.

Place into preheated oven and bake for 45 minutes or until filling runs clear and pastry is browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool. Serve warm. 

A year ago - Red Cabbage Salad with Bacon and Goat Cheese 

Two year's ago - Stuffed Anaheim Peppers, Italian Style

Korean Style Beef Short Ribs

In case you didn't know, not all beef short ribs are created equal. The braising kind are cut into 3 or 4 inch pieces with the large bone running down the middle and unless you cook 'em low and slow for a long period of time they'll be so tough your chompers won't be able to handle 'em. 

Not so with flanken cut ribs. They are "cut crosswise from multiple ribs into long thin strips. Each strip has a couple of thin slices of bone" and with some marinating, they're incredibly tender and great for the grill. 

These Korean Style Beef Short Ribs are so good they'll darn near knock your socks off. Bathed overnight in Asian style sweet/sour marinade loaded with lots of garlic and fresh ginger, they're slapped on a screaming hot grill for 1 to 2 minutes a side - yup, that's it. They are fork tender and absolutely loaded with flavor. I'm not kidding - addictive totally addictive.

Since I'd made a pact to cut some carbs this week, we enjoyed our ribs with a crunchy salad on the side but they'd be great with a spicy noodle salad or with steamed rice too. Hit the link and head to the salad recipe because it's a real keeper too.

Perfect summertime food, wouldn't you say.

 

Korean Style Beef Short Ribs (from JBug’s Kitchen Antics adapted from The Oregonian Cookbook)

10 tablespoons soy sauce

3 tablespoons hoisin sauce

6 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 cup sesame oil

1/4 cup Sriracha

1/4 cup minced garlic (12 cloves)

1/4 cup minced fresh ginger

4 pounds flanken cut beef short ribs

Whisk together soy sauce, hoisin, rice wine vinegar, brown sugar, sesame oil, Sriracha, garlic and ginger until well mixed. Pour over flanken cut short ribs and using your hands, mix well to make sure meat is evenly coated. Place into a sealable container and refrigerate overnight. To cook, remove from the marinade and shake off excess.

Preheat barbecue so it is very hot. Oil grates well then grill ribs 1 to 2 minutes per side. Remove and serve immediately.  Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Two year's ago - Chicken Pot Pie with Bacon and Marjoram

Three year's ago - Grilled Salmon with Red Pepper Salsa

Lazy Days of Summer

You're likely all thinking I've faded from the face of the earth but to tell the truth I just haven't been cooking much. That is all about to change because Big Guy's officially on his way to our new Oregon home and not a minute too soon I might add. Three and a half months without that man o' mine's about 3.5 months too long. 

It's a great time for him to be leaving the desert with highs today in Tucson forecast in the area of 115 and 125 in Parker, AZ but if all goes according to my deductions, as I write this he's already north of Parker and heading for Barstow. 

So what does one cook when it's hotter'n the hubs of hell? Well, bring out the fans, turn on the misting system and fire up the barby for one of our favorite treats - a bed of greens loaded with sweet onion and creamy mozzarella balls, topped with slices of perfectly cooked steak and piquant, garlicky chimi churri sauce. 

Oh, and while you've got that grill warmed up, how about roasting some veggies for a lovely pasta salad, loaded with roasted eggplant, peppers and jazzed up with shredded Asiago and and some crunchy pine nuts for a fabulously delicious, cool and meatless dinner. 

Are you craving something cool and sweet? Whip up an Orange Pushup Creamsicle Pie.
It's about as simple to make as you can get, loaded with cream cheese, instant pudding, orange gelatin and "Cool Whip", all piled high in a pre-made crumb crust, it can be frozen or simply refrigerated for a cool, refreshing oh so delicious treat for your tastebuds. 

So now that we have that out of the way, in case you're wondering what I'm planning to serve when Big Guy gets here tomorrow - that would be a stew of course; a nice comforting, stick to your ribs, soul warming, taste filled bowl of pure bliss. After all our forecast high of 73 is darn near 50 degrees cooler than what he'll be accustomed to. He's bound to be freezing, don't ya' think?

A year ago - Honeydew Salad with Chicken Paillards 

Two year's ago - Easy 5 Hour Stew

Easy Orange Rolls for Breakfast

Having Big Guy home in Oregon on a pre-retirement visit meant I not only had to think about what to make for dinner, but breakfast needed consideration too. As you may agree, one can never go wrong with bacon and eggs, or steel cut oats, or pancakes or the like but every once in a while there's nothing wrong with something entirely different.

Personally I've been craving cinnamon rolls in no small part because there's a bakery down the hill that's open for retail on Thursdays only and "taints" the air with the sweetest smells, but unfortunately as it turns out my cinnamon's still in Tucson along with the rest of my spice caddyso I had to come up with a plan B. Enter these beautiful little orange blossoms.

I know you're thinking they look like a lot of work for a breakfast bread but believe me they're darned quick to make. Butter, infused with fresh grated orange rind, a splash of orange juice concentrate and a dash of salt is the key, along with a good sprinkle of plain old granulated sugar topping a loaf of frozen bread dough (I used Rhodes), thawed overnight on the counter then rolled to an 17 x 6 inch sheet. Totally uncomplicated, right?

Sliced and placed into mini muffin tins, then left to rise for 20 minutes in a warm place, they hit a 375 oven for 12 minutes and came out looking and smelling intoxicating. I made them even more decandent with a drizzle and daub of orange flavored frosting. Overkill you say? Not a chance!

We loved them - moist, buttery, orange infused pop it in your mouth and reach for another one kinda' good and totally addictive. No apologies in sight either for using a pre-made bread dough; but listen if you're so inclined, they'd be pretty darned special made from your favorite homemade sweet roll dough too. 

As for me, I've got 2 more loaves of frozen bread dough left in the freezer so I might just have to try making them again, maybe with lemon zest and frozen lemonade concentrate instead of orange; or lime and lime, or what about lemon and lime, or orange and lemon? Now wouldn't that be a kick?

Easy Mini Orange Rolls (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Southern Living Magazine)

1 loaf frozen bread dough, thawed

1 stick butter, softened

1 tablespoon orange juice concentrate

Zest of 1 orange

Dash salt

2/3 cup granulated sugar

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice or more as needed

Whip together butter, orange juice concentrate, orange zest and salt until light, fluffy and well combined. Set aside. Roll dough on a floured surface to about 17 x 6 inches. Spread with butter mixture, and then sprinkle with sugar. Starting on long side, roll up tightly in a jelly roll fashion. Pinch seams to seal. Cut into half inch slices and place into well-greased mini muffin tins. Cover with a cloth and place in a warm place to rise (takes about 20 minutes).

Meanwhile preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake rolls for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden. Remove to a cooling rack. Mix together icing sugar and orange juice until smooth and pour thin glaze over hot rolls. Makes 2 dozen.  

A year ago -  Pizza Napoletana

Two year's ago - Roasted Salmon with Tomato Basil Relish

Three year's ago - Clams Casino Casserole with Lemon Pasta

Entertaining? Go With What You Know!

When you're entertaining new friends and getting used to a totally different kitchen set-up, the best thing to do is to go with what you know. That's what we did last night.

Big Guy's spent the past few days unpacking his garage full of boxes and one of the first cartons he opened contained his trusty Weber charcoal grills (yup there's 2) and the accompanying rotisserie. A trip to Fred Meyer for some gorgeous fresh 5 pound chickens along with his special magic of combining fresh lemons and rosemary from our garden and the entree was under control.

Add a casserole of quick, fruit filled "cheater" stuffingwe've talked about before that makes great use of a loaf of frozen garlic bread along with cooked crumbled sausage, lovely crisp tart apples and a handfull of dried cranberries and you've the makin's of a special dinner. I changed the recipe up a bit by adding a little of the traditional sauteed onions and celery to the mix along with a little splash of white wine just because it seemed like a good idea along with some Jimmy Dean Sage sausage and a few extra cranberries. Hit the link above and it'll take you to the recipe. 

Small steamed veggies including little round white potatoes, perfect tiny carrots, a package of pearl onions and a few frozen peas all lined up pretty like in a casserole dish and covered in a smooth rich herb flavored bechamel sauce all helped fill the dinner plates quite nicely. After all, there's nothing quite like a little sauce on a plate is there?  Once again, we've had this little number before(HERE) but this time I used a smidge of dried Herbs de Provence instead of the fresh dill because I was too lazy to go down the hill to the store (silly me). The fresh dill is really the right way to go! 

A crisp green salad loaded with colorful sliced peppers, chopped onion and tomato wedges completed the menu - well almost.

Rhubarb's in season right now so I couldn't resist whipping up one of our favorite spring time pies - a combination of fresh strawberries and rhubarb along with a 12 ounce package of frozen raspberries makes for an amazing ruby colored taste of heavenly glory.  Next year I'll be making one (or several) from the strawberries and raspberries we've growing on our three quarters of an acre of heavenly coastal bliss; however, the rhubarb better grow in a hurry because try as I might, I couldn't find a plant anywhere on our property. That's gonna' change, for sure!

 

Rhuberry Pie

Pastry for 1 double crust pie

1 - 12 ounce pkg. frozen raspberries

1 cup strawberries, quartered

1-1/4 cup granulated sugar

3 Tablespoons quick cooking tapioca

2 Tablespoons cornstarch

Few grains of salt

Combine above ingredients well and let sit for a minimum of  10 minutes to allow tapioca to soften.

Add & stir gently to combine

2 cups sliced rhubarb

1 teaspoon vanilla

---

1 Tablespoon butter

Line 10 inch pie plate with pastry. Fill with rhuberry filling, dot with butter. Cover with top pastry and decorate as desired. Place in a preheated 450 oven for 8 to 10 minutes, lower heat to 350 and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until filling runs clear and is bubbling over top crust.

Cool for minimum 4 hours before slicing. Serve at room temperature.

Note – be sure to place a jelly roll pan under pie plate to catch any drips. 

A year ago - Crispy Cod

Two year's ago - Pork 'n Apple Sausage Rolls

Three year's ago - Buffalo Salmon

 

Grilled Lemon Chicken Pasta

Last night's dinner was inspired by two recipes, one for lemon chicken from Taste of the Territory a Service League cookbook from Bartlesville, Oklahoma, and the second for lemon pasta from The Best of the Best, Best of Bridge Series Cookbooks. Hey, with two great sources like that failure's not likely to be an option.

Our Meyer's lemons (at least that's what they started out to be but they've morphed into a cross between Meyer's and Eureka's) are coming on strong right now and a ton of them are ready for picking which means any recipe with lemon in it is fair game. I made good use of 4 of them in this tasty lemon loaded dish.

The chicken's marinated in a mixture of vinegar, Dijon, black pepper, sliced whole lemons and olive oil for a minimum 6 hours before it hits the grill, resulting in tender moist morsels of lemon flavored bird. I had half a mind to grill the lemon slices too, but was afraid to because of the fear of contamination so I discarded the zip bag of marinade instead. 

As for the pasta, you could use almost anything; in fact, the recipe calls for fettucine, but I used Barilla's Campanelle because of their unique trumpet like shape (Big Guy picked 'em out). Anyway, the boiled pasta's combined with sauteed onion and garlic, then tossed in the zest and juice of a whole lemon, followed by half and half and grated Parmesan. The key to this one is to make sure the pasta's absorbed the lemon juice before the cream hits the pot otherwise you'll end up with a curdled mess. As you'll notice I didn't do that, so in order to disguise the curdled look I threw in a handful of fresh mozzarella. Oh I forgot to mention I added a little dried tarragon along with some fresh from our herb garden too, but it's been planted quite recently and I didn't want to steal too much of it. 

Once I got over lamenting the fact that I'd curdled the darned sauce, I realized we really liked this dish. Of course by then Big Guy was giving me the "look" because he was well into his bowl of lemony goodness and steering towards his salad - all without uttering one word. I guess sometimes it's a good sign when the dinner conversation's a trifle limited, huh?

Incidentally, if snow, rain, wind and/or some other excuse like maybe flying insects or a shortage of propane are keeping you from your grill, you can certainly cook the chicken in a saute pan or shove it under the broiler. Just sayin'. 

Grilled Lemon Chicken Pasta (from JBug’s Kitchen, inspired by Taste of the Territory, Flair and Flavor of Oklahoma and Best of the Best, Best of Bridge Series Cookbooks)

Chicken:

1.25 pounds chicken tenders

2 tablespoons white or tarragon vinegar

1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

2 whole lemons, sliced (seeds removed)

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Combine ingredients in a zip bag, seal and massage to distribute ingredients evenly in chicken. Place into a container to catch drips, if any, and refrigerate for 6 hours (or longer if you can). To cook, remove chicken from zip bag and discard marinade. Heat grill to medium hot, and cook chicken approximately 7 to 9 minutes, turning often. Remove from grill when cooked through and allow to rest to distribute juices. Slice each tender into thirds. Set aside (keep warm or reheat in microwave when needed).

Pasta:

8 ounces pasta of your choice

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small onion, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon

Salt and coarse ground black pepper

1 lemon, juice and grated rind

1 cup half and half or heavy cream

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1/2 cup fresh mozzarella (optional)

1 lemon, cut into wedges (seeds removed)

Fresh tarragon for garnish

Cook pasta per package directions. Drain well. Meanwhile in a large sauté pan heat butter and olive oil until butter has melted. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until onion is softened. Stir in tarragon and season with salt and pepper. Add cooked pasta and lemon zest and juice. Toss pasta until lemon juice is absorbed, then add cream. Toss pasta to coat well and allow to absorb cream. Add pine nuts, parmesan cheese and mozzarella if using. Toss in warmed chicken pieces. Garnish with additional grated parmesan, lemon wedges and fresh tarragon. Serves 4.  

A year ago - Turkey and Stuffing Hand Pies

Two year's ago - Pumpkin Charlotte with Bourbon

Pork, Chorizo and Green Chile Cheeseburgers

We haven't been home for a Pink Mountain Friday night * (see note)  for a number of weeks and quite honestly I've been feeling guilty about it. I mean I'd hate to get to the point that I take a Friday night date night for granted so instead we teamed up and cooked dinner at home last night.

I mixed up ground pork and Mexican style pork chorizo with chopped roasted Hatch green chiles from our freezer, garlic, a few panko crumbs and salsa verde and formed the mixture into patties. Refrigerated for half a hour or so, they held their shape beautifully on the grill as Big Guy did the cookin.

Topped with slices of gooey Velveeta and some Pepper Jack Cheese, a little mayo and a bunch of other green stuff like more roasted chiles, dabs of guacamole, shredded lettuce and pickled jalapeno's all piled up onto a grilled bun, we were definitely on the right road to flavor town. 

* Note - for those of you who are puzzled by the terminology, Pink Mountain Friday's are our Tucson tradition to be defined as "when the mountains are pink, it's time to drink".)

Pork, Chorizo and Green Chile Burgers (an original from JBug’s )

1 pound ground pork

1/2 pound Mexican style pork chorizo

4 ounces roasted green chiles, peeled, seeded and chopped (canned is fine)

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/3 cup panko crumbs

1/3 cup salsa verde

Course ground black pepper

Salt as needed

4 hamburger buns, buttered and grilled

4 whole peeled and seeded green chiles

4 slices Velveeta

4 slices Pepper jack cheese

Guacamole, mayonnaise, pickled jalapenos, shredded lettuce

Combine pork, chorizo, green chiles, garlic, panko and salsa verde. Season well with pepper but go lightly on the salt because the chorizo is usually quite salty. Form into patties and refrigerate for a minimum half hour. Grill on a hot oiled grill until patties reach an internal temperature of 145. Add cheese slices and cover during last few minutes of cooking to melt the cheese. Serve on grilled buns topped with mayo, guacamole, jalapenos and shredded lettuce.

Makes 4 servings. 

A year ago - Roast Chicken with Apples and Rosemary

Two year's ago - Nasi Goreng

Grilled Shrimp and Sausage with Red Rice

JBug's kitchen antics have included a lot of combinations of shrimp and sausage. We've had sausage and grits, shrimp and grits, gumbo with both shrimp and sausage, as well as red beans and rice but we'd yet to try red rice with either shrimp or sausage until last night. 

     

Another recipe from Williams Sonoma, this dish may look like it goes together in a flash but unfortunately there's a fair bit of prep to it, most of which can or must be done in advance so don't be thinking it is something you can throw together on a whim. I guess the important issue is whether or not the effort is worth it though, huh. 

1. First gorgeous red peppers are roasted, relieved of their seeds, skinned, chopped and sauteed after green onions as well as garlic and shallots in my case and nice smokey hot chipotle chile powder. The whole shebang is then pureed into a nice rich flavorful sauce. By the way, that would be the red.
2. Then the marinade for the shrimp is concocted. Apricot preserves, oil, lemon juice and Dijon mustard are combined and boiled then cooled and coat some huge wild shrimp after their shelled and deveined. The shrimp hit the fridge for a minimum of 3 hours so they can soak up all the yummy flavors before being skewered and grilled. 
3. The next step is all about steaming the rice. 
4. As the rice is cooking, sweet Italian sausage get a little start in some white wine in a covered saute pan before they're finished on the grill. 
5. The rice is combined with the warmed red pepper sauce and joined by the sliced sausage and grilled shrimp with a garnish of chopped fresh basil and parsley; in fact, the recipe called for mixing the whole thing together kinda' like a deconstructed jambalaya...well sort of.

Is it worth the time and effort?

Oh, the rice is darn tasty - enough so that I'd likely make it again as a side dish for almost any meat, fish or poultry. Of course the sweet Italian sausage are only as good as the butcher who made 'em and in our case Sprouts does a bang up job...but the shrimp - ah the shrimp are amazing. Sweet from the apricot preserves and subtly flavored of Dijon mustard with a caramelized finish, they are absolutely without question the true hit of the dish.  

As for the number of pots, dishes and utensils needed to put this dinner together ....uh not so great. The kitchen looked like a bomb hit it and the cook was done for. The good news is the lovely man on KP duty did not utter one word of complaint during the clean up process. That's a true indication he enjoyed dinner enormously; therefore, the whole song and dance must be worth it. Right?   

Grilled Shrimp and Sausage with Red Rice (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Williams- Sonoma.com)

Pepper Sauce:

2 large red sweet bell peppers

2 tablespoons butter

4 green onions, white part only, chopped

2 small shallots, peeled and chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1-1/2 teaspoons Chipotle chile powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup low sodium chicken stock

Roast red peppers slowly until charred on all sides (I do it directly over a gas flame). Place into a tightly covered container and allow to steam for 15 minutes, then remove skin and seeds and coarsely chop flesh. Set aside. In a small pot, melt butter over medium low heat and add green onions, shallots, and garlic. Sauté until vegetables have softened. Add chopped roasted red peppers, chile powder, salt and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer, cover and cook until peppers are softened. Puree with an immersion blender or transfer into a food processor and pulse until mixture is relatively smooth. Set aside.

Marinade:

1/2 cup apricot preserves

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

Combine mixture and place over medium high heat. Bring to a boil while whisking ingredients together. Remove from heat. Cool and set aside.

Shrimp:

1 pound large shrimp

Peel and devein shrimp. In a zip top bag, combine shrimp and cooled marinade. Seal and refrigerate for a minimum 3 hours. Twenty minutes prior to grilling, remove shrimp from bag and place onto skewers. Grill over medium hot fire, turning once, until cooked through – approximately 3 or 4 minutes.

Rice:

1-1/3 cups long grain white rice

2-2/3 cups water

Combine rice and water in a medium sized pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to sit covered for 5 minutes.

Sausage:

3 sweet Italian sausage links (1 pound)

1/2 cup white wine

In a sauté pan just large enough to hold the sausage, bring wine to a boil over medium high heat. Prick sausage in several places with a fork then add to pan. Cover and cook for 4 minutes, turning once.

To finish – grill sausage over medium hot coals for 5 minutes or until cooked through. Combine rice with warmed red pepper sauce. Slice sausage and serve with rice and grilled shrimp. Garnish with fresh parsley and chopped basil. Makes 4 servings. 

 A year ago - Pumpkin Cake with Rum Cream Cheese Frosting

Two year's ago - Brats with Onions, Apples & Sauerkraut

 

 

Hard Cider Brined Pork Chops with Sauteed Apples

We're on a cider kick at our house these days, rather appropriately just in time for apple harvest. Quite honestly, I'm a bit of a newby to the stuff, never having tried it much except for having the odd "snakebite" or two during my travels. For those of you who don't know, a Snakebite is a mixture of beer and hard cider. 

Anyway, much like beer, there are some subtle and not so subtle differences in flavor depending on the brand and naturally also depending on the type of apples used. For example, the Angry Orchard Crisp Apple brand you see on your left is very light in color and flavor, slightly sweet with a dry finish. Strongbow in the middle is imported from the U.K. and has a darker color, almost comparable to a good bourbon. It's rich in flavor, very mellow and goes down real easy. Woodchuck Amber is just that - dark amber in color, slightly sweet but kinda' tart too and definitely says "howdy" when it goes by the tastebuds.  I'd be hard pressed (if you'll pardon the pun) to choose a favorite among them. 

I used Angry Orchard last night to make the brine for this pork chop recipe courtesy of myrecipes.com. Simply hard cider mixed with kosher salt and dried herbs, to be honest I was incredibly disappointed in the outcome. I have a suspicion the whole thing would have worked much better had I heated the cider to dissolve the salt, although the recipe didn't call for that particular step.  

The grilled chops were incredibly tough which means either they didn't soak in enough of the brine during the 2.5 hours I had them marinating, or the pork wasn't the best, or the griller (me) messed up ...yup, believe it not I think I overcooked these puppies although they were only on the grill for 10 short minutes, total. 

Anyway, along with sauteed apples rather than the grilled ones the recipe called for, the keeper was the glaze made from apple jelly, butter and Apple Jack brandy. Hit the link above for the recipe if you're so inclined. As for us, I'll not be making this one again. Just sayin'. 

A year ago - Apple Jack Glazed Ribs with Corn and Green Chile Gratin

Two year's ago - Green Chicken Curry

 

 

Home Made Pizza

Before you read today's post, I need to tell you this is not an advertisement. The people that make the product I'm about to show you don't know from nuthin' about JBug let alone her kitchen, or Big Guy's back yard BBQ heaven and I am not being compensated in any way by them for the secret I'm about to share with you. There! Now that's out of the way, behold the fabulous...the ingenious...the incredible 

 

Take one Weber charcoal 22.5 inch kettle grill and marry it to one KettlePizza oven attachment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fire it up with a chimney full of charcoal along with some wood (alder in our case), arranged in a "C" formation at the back of the kettle grill base and topped with the second grill, a pizza stone and the KettlePizza oven attachment along with the Weber's lid and let 'er soar!  

 

 

 

 

 Add a hand crafted pizza of your choosing- in our case leftover duck with a marsala garlic/sour cherry sauce, onion jam and brie along with a sauce base of brie rind and reduced heavy cream all cozy on the pizza pan that came with the KettlePizza oven.  

Let it bake for approximately 9 minutes in an oven that's so hot it's off the charts.

 

 

 

Slide the pizza out of the pan and directly onto the pizza stone to crisp the crust - only takes about 30 to 40 seconds....

Remove the glorious crisp wood fired yummy result of your efforts

 

 

 

 

 

Stand back for a moment and admire your handiwork...wiping the drool from your chin... then...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pour the wine and tuck in but for heaven's sake, don't burn your mouth!

Are you jealous yet? Sorry....ya' I know I said I was but I'm not really. GO FORTH AND GET YOU ONE OF THESE AND BRAG TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW.  It's the bomb!

A year ago - General Tao Chicken Wings

Two year's ago -  Seafood Chowder with Dill

 

Tuna Puttanesca

Unless you're new to this site, you know we brought back some Albacore Tuna with us from Oregon in July because we've talked about it before. Right off the boat, fresh tuna loins freeze beautifully and possess a totally different texture and flavor than the stuff you find in a can. 

This time I placed the defrosted loin into a little sundried tomato and basil vinaigrette courtesy of our friends at Kraft and it marinated for a few hours before it hit the grill. Ten minutes total and the loin was perfectly cooked - slightly rare on the inside and a little crusty outside. (A hint from the wise - do not overcook the tuna or it will be sawdust dry, and there's nothing you can do about it. No amount of sauce or lemon juice can rescue this fish if you've left it on the fire for too long.)

Served with a puttanesca sauce made from kalamata olives, capers, garlic, red pepper flakes, a couple of anchovies and some drained canned tomatoes, all on a bed of garlicky sauteed spinach, it was really a light and perfect summer Sunday meal. 

Incidentally, my inspiration came from Cooking Light via myrecipes.com; however, as you'll see when you hit the link, I made a few changes as usual. It was our token "moderation" dish this week and honestly it was great on the spinach but man oh man would it be fabulous served on a bed of linguini or fettucine if you're so inclined. Oh and in case you're looking for a few more ideas on how to serve up that gorgeous fresh sea chicken, check these out while you're at it. 

            Albacore Tuna Tacos                Orange Sesame with Hoisin Sauce      

   

Tuna Puttanesca (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Cooking Light via myrecipes.com)

1 albacore tuna loin, approximately 1-1/2 pounds

1/2 cup sundried tomato and basil vinaigrette (I used Kraft)

1/4 cup kalamata olives, pitted and halved

1 tablespoon capers

3 cloves garlic, minced

Juice of half a lemon

3 anchovy filets, chopped

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 – 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained

Salt & course ground black pepper

1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Place tuna and vinaigrette in a zip top bag and marinated for 2 hours. Remove from bag and discard marinade. To cook, place tuna on barbecue and grill for approximately 10 minutes total or until crisp on the outside and rare to medium rare inside. Let rest briefly before slicing.

Meanwhile combine olives, capers, garlic, lemon, anchovy, red pepper flakes and diced tomatoes in a shallow sauté pan and heat for 5 to 7 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as needed. Toss in parsley just before plating. Serve tuna slices topped with sauce. Serve on pasta or a bed of sautéed spinach (or both). Makes 4 servings.

A year ago - Blue Cheese Grits with Veggies & Chicken Sausage

Two year's ago - Pasta with Lamb Ragout

Pineapple Slaw with Dry Rub Ribs

I have a feeling your mouth will water when you see the incredible job Big Guy did on the pork side ribs last night, but I can only tell you about the pineapple slaw because I don't know nuthin' 'bout nuthin' bout cooking ribs on the barbecue. Sorry!

I do know after he took the membrane off the back of the rack, he rubbed it with a mixture of salt, pepper, brown sugar and our new favorite spice, dry chipotle chile powder. After they ruminated for a while in the refrigerator getting all happy, he cooked 'dem ribs over a charcoal fire for about 1 hour on indirect heat, brushing them throughout with a mop mix of water, vinegar and honey. Sorry, I'm no help at all but I'm thinking we may have to start giving grilling lesson via youtube one of these days because you won't believe how moist, juicy and tender those ribs were. 

As for the Pineapple Slaw, this one is purely from memory as my Mother would make it on special occasions. Since this is our anniversary week, I figure the occasion's special enough. I cheated though and used a package of slaw mix then added finely chopped red onion, pineapple tidbits and raisins to the mix along with a sweetened mayo/sour cream mixture.  Crunchy, sweet, tart, chewy and creamy all in one bite, it went beautifully with Big Guy's stellar pork ribs. Aren't we just the luckiest?

Now I gotta' run because at this early hour, the skies are about to fall. There's a huge storm brewing so I gotta' go help batten down the hatches. Here's to rainy days and Sundays. 

Pineapple Coleslaw (an original from JBug’s Kitchen)

1 – 16 ounce package coleslaw mix

1/3 cup finely chopped red onion

1 – 28 ounce can pineapple tidbits, drained

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup walnuts toasted (optional)

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup mayonnaise (lite is OK)

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Salt and coarse ground black pepper

In a large bowl, toss together coleslaw mix, onion, pineapple, raisins and walnuts if using. In a smaller bowl whisk together sour cream, mayonnaise and granulated sugar. When sugar has dissolved pour mixture over slaw. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as required. Cover and refrigerate until serving. Makes 4 to 6 servings.

A year ago - Chicken and Andouille Gumbo

Two year's ago -  Pineapple Bran Muffins

BBQ Chipotle Chicken and BBQ Lemon Rosemary Chicken

Barbecue Chipotle Chicken and Barbecue Lemon Rosemary Chicken - cooked on the rotisserie with your own two hands. How's that for a story for the day...and don't let me hear you say you can't do it!

You see, Big Guy put some birds on the barbecue on Sunday and agreed to part with his secrets. It's only taken years and years of nagging on my part but here you go and believe me, you're in for a treat. 

As you likely know, that man of mine can cook up a storm and barbecuing and/or grilling's his forte; in fact, he's known in some parts as the "Perfessor of BBQ". There's not much he can't do with charcoal, assorted wood chips and the 3 different pieces of equipment he has in his outdoor kitchen - 5 if you count the little red gas grill and his massive propane powered flat top. Anyway, this weekend's efforts resulted in absolutely amazing rotisseried birds loaded with flavor and drippin' with juice.

The chipotle flavored bird was stuffed with onion and celery, then rubbed outside and under the skin with a paste made from unsalted softened butter, dried chipotle chile powder, cayenne, chopped cilantro and prickly pear jelly. Now, I know it's unlikely you'll run across much in the way of prickly pear jelly unless you're somewhere close to a desert but bear with me. I'm about to brag again because BIg Guy made jars of it with his own hands a while ago, but you can always substitute apple or red currant jelly instead. 

As for the Lemon Rosemary, it's made up of unsalted softened butter, lemon zest, garlic, and minced fresh rosemary and stuffed with fresh lemons and rosemary. Both birds were tied onto the same rotisserie and hit the Weber for a little over an hour when they came off looking like this.

Incredibly tender, extremely moist and absolutely full of flavor.  The Chipotle version is loaded with Southwestern flavor with a relatively assertive chipotle oomph while the Lemon Rosemary has a fairly pronounced lemon flavor with the slight tang of garlic and rosemary. Both are absolutely incredible and made for a fabulous Sunday night dinner, with tons of leftovers earmarked for other super summer supper solutions.  Keep coming by JBug's Kitchen Antics and you'll see what I mean. 

Incidentally, in case you're wondering where one finds such a thing as a Weber rotisserie - check out this link to Amazon and it'll give you the goods. If you own a 22-1/2 inch Weber kettle, you've just got to purchase this attachment. Honestly, it's more than paid for itself by producing fabulous rotisserie chicken, never mind the duck and turkey Big Guy's cooked on it. Why, you can even cook roast beef or pork on it too. It's the bomb! Of course, you'll have to master the cooking times/methods like Big Guy has, but believe me, a chimney of charcoal, a lovely chicken or two and Big Guy's recipes are all you need to produce stellar results. You can quote me on that.

 Big Guy’s Flavored Butters for Rotisserie BBQ Chicken (from JBug’s Kitchen, a Big Guy original)

Chipotle BBQ Chicken:

 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature

2 teaspoons dried Chipotle Chile powder

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro

2 teaspoons prickly pear jelly (or apple jelly or red current)

1 – 2-1/2 to 3 pound chicken

1 small onion, peeled cut into wedges

1 rib celery, cut into large pieces

Combine butter,Chipotle chile powder, cayenne, cilantro and prickly pear jelly together in a small container and mix until smooth.

Wash and dry chicken inside and out. Stuff inside with onion and celery. Rub bird with butter mixture, including getting as much as possible under the skin onto the breasts and up onto the thighs. Be careful not to tear the skin.  Place chicken onto rotisserie and roast over medium coals for 60 to 70 minutes or until juices run clear and internal temperature reaches 165. Remove from barbecue and let bird rest for 10 minutes before carving.  

Lemon Rosemary Chicken:

1/2 cup butter at room temperature

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced

1 large clove garlic, finely minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon rind

1 – 2-1/2 to 3 pound chicken

1 lemon cut into wedges

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

Combine butter, rosemary, garlic, salt and lemon rind and mix until smooth. Wash and dry chicken inside and out. Stuff inside with lemon and rosemary. Rub bird with butter mixture, including getting as much as possible under the skin onto the breasts and up onto the thighs. Be careful not to tear the skin.  Place chicken onto rotisserie and roast over medium coals for 60 to 70 minutes or until juices run clear and internal temperature reaches 165. Remove from barbecue and let bird rest for 10 minutes before carving.  

A year ago - Southwestern Corn and Sausage Soup

Two year's ago - Roast Beef Panini

Steak with Lime Mojo

Some people think beef tenderloin should be reserved for prissy date night celebration dinners only. I mean don't we usually wrap the thing in bacon, or top it off with hollandaise with crab or bernaise sauce and call it special?

Well, I'm about to blow that theory all to heck - not that hot August Friday nights aren't enough reason to celebrate that is. You see Sprouts, our favorite market where we buy darn near 99 percent of our meat, had a sale on filet steaks last week and while this recipe from Fine Cooking specifically called for "cube steak", it was more per pound by a longshot than the filet so I thought why not? I mean wouldn't you rather have a filet than a beat up hunk of round any old day? Yeah, that's what I thought too!

I tied our filets up into nice tight little rounds, gave them a pat dry and a dusting of coarse ground black pepper and then went ahead with making the mojo. Mojo is a garlicky citrus sauce popular in Latin American cooking that's used to add flavor with a capital "F" to darn near anything. In this instance, orange juice, lime, lots of garlic, fresh oregano and cumin all go into this scrumptious marinade.

The point is however, not to marinate the meat for longer than 10 minutes or it'll turn to mush and heaven knows filet can be mushy enough without benefit of too much citrus. 

Cooked on a hot gas grill to the perfect medium rare for me, and blue rare for you know who, the filets are topped with sauteed onions and sweet red pepper that benefit from a splash of reserved marinade. Served with a side of black beans mixed with a little corn, some jalapeno, red onion, a little of the marinade and a nice fresh tomato, our weekend started off with a definite Latin flair.  

Give this one a try when you've a chance because I doubt you'll be diasappointed. The fresh flavor's quite spectacular and I for one will be trying the mojo out again using other proteins, like maybe chicken, pork or lamb. Can't wait! 

Steak with Lime Mojo (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Fine Cooking)

Marinade:

4 cloves garlic, peeled

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon fresh oregano

6 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar

2 beef tenderloin filets, about 6 ounces each

1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 onion sliced

1 red bell pepper, sliced

In blender or small processor, combine garlic, salt, cumin, oregano, lime juice, orange juice and sugar. Process until smooth. Reserve a quarter cup of the marinade and place rest into a flat dish the right size to hold the marinade and steaks.

Tie steaks tightly using kitchen string into nice little rounds. Pat meat dry and season lightly with salt and pepper. Place meat into marinade and allow to sit at room temperature for no more than 10 minutes.

Remove steaks from marinade and grill until done to your tastes. Remove from grill and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Meanwhile sauté onion and red pepper until vegetables are softened.  To serve, remove string from steaks and top with sautéed vegetables. Drizzle with reserved marinade. Makes 2 servings.

A year ago - Brats with Braised Cabbage

Two year's ago - Sticky Ribs with Apricot BBQ Sauce

Three year's ago - Nicoise Salad well kinda'

Orange Sesame Albacore Tuna with Hoisin on Curried Rice Salad

Peanut butter and jelly; thunder and lightening; horse and carriage. What do these things have in common? Are you stumped?  They go with each other beautifully - I mean who has a peanut butter sandwich without the jelly?

That's what we thought about our dinner last night. Everything went together beautifully - from the fish to the curried rice salad right on down to the shredded spinach and grilled peach. It was a perfect marriage of flavor, texture, color and taste. Modest aren't we?

 

The recipe for the tuna came from the Oregon Albacore Commission which is rather fitting since the tuna came fresh off a boat at dock in Newport, Oregon. We brought the fish home to Tucson in a cooler loaded with other precious Oregon products all on dry ice. If I'd known how darn tasty it was going to be, we'd have come home with another one too - ya, think I can talk Big Guy into going back for one? It's only 1435.7 miles - 23 hours and 51 minutes. Heck, we could go there and back in a weekend but who on earth would want to leave that quickly. It is beautiful there!

The loin is marinated in a mixture of orange juice, sesame oil, mustard, fresh tarragon and sesame seeds for a few hours then grilled for about 9 minutes total. Brushed with hoisin during the last few minutes of cooking, it almost glows when it comes off the grill. 

Allowed it to rest for a few minutes, then sliced and perched on top of a curried rice salad that I threw together with ingredients hiding in the pantry and fridge, darned if it wasn't just the most perfect thing you can imagine.

If you're lucky enough to find fresh Albacore tuna, you've absolutely got to give this one a try. Albacore is way more than just a fish you find in a can and totally different in texture and flavor than sushi kind (Ahi). The marinade and hoisin glaze would work well with shrimp or halibut or even cod too. Just don't marinate them for too long otherwise the juice will "cook" the fish and you'll have something resembling ceviche which is really a whole other thing!

Hit the link and head to the Oregon Albacore Commission's site to see the recipe. We discarded the marinade rather than brushing the loin with it as it cooked - I kind of have a thing about doing that, but the flavor is not to be believed. By the way, don't forget the fresh tarragon either. The mildly sweet anise flavor is amazingly present in the tuna and definitely not in a bad way. It's a real keeper!

Curried Rice Salad (an original from JBug’s Kitchen)

2 cups cooked basmati rice, chilled (I used leftovers)

5 assorted mini sweet bell peppers, seeded and chopped

1/4 cup finely chopped red onion

1/4 cup raisins

1/4 cup toasted almonds

2 tablespoons candied ginger, finely chopped

4 tablespoons olive oil

1-1/2 tablespoon white vinegar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/3 cup prepared mango chutney

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a large bowl combine rice, peppers, onion, raisins, nuts and candied ginger. In a small jar with a tight fitting lid, combine olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, chutney, garlic and curry powder. Cover jar and shake well to mix. Pour over rice mixture in a bowl and taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as required. Refrigerate until serving time. 

A year ago - Maple Ginger Pork Medallions and Salad with Creamy Maple Dressing

Two year's ago - Teriyaki Salmon on Spicy Thai Noodle Salad

 

Three year's ago -  Black Bottom Banana Cream Pie

 

 

Grilled Shrimp with Lime and Red Pepper Aioli

Saturday night dinners around here are normally on the easy side. It's the one day of the week that we spend almost totally together beginning with breakfast at our favorite Mexican restaurant, followed by shopping, errands and was the case yesterday, an afternoon marathon in front of the television catching up on recorded episodes of Covert Affairs that we missed while we were on vacation. Hey, it's darn hot outside so that's our excuse for playing it cool in the comfort of the AC.

Saturday also means JBug has help in the kitchen and as a result it took all of 15 minutes total to get dinner on the table. I peeled the shrimp, Big Guy deveined 'em and tossed them in olive oil and lime juice while I put the salad together. He grilled these garlicky, lime beauties on the little red gas barbecue using the grill pans so we didn't need skewers, while I cleaned up the kitchen and before you knew it we were chowing down with limited fuss and almost no cleanup after. 

Other than the shrimp, the extra bonus on the plate was the giant avocado half, filled with some of the red pepper aioli we made the other day. I had every intention of making Anne Burrell's version of mussels but while "residential" mussel season is back on at least in Oregon, the commercial season has yet to begin so I was unable to find the gorgeous sweet meaty little bi-valves thus the shrimp substitution.

Oh well - it just means that as soon as mussel season opens, we'll be enjoying a bowl along with more of this fabulous aioli. The wait will be worth it - most definitely. 

Grilled Shrimp with Lime and Red Pepper Aioli (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Foodnetwork.com)

1 pound extra large shrimp, cleaned and deveined

1 scant teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

Juice of 1 lime or half a lemon (we used lime)

Toss cleaned shrimp with salt, pepper, olive oil and lime juice. Grill on a gas barbecue or roast in a pre-heated 400 oven until just opaque – approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Serve with aioli.

Spicy Red Pepper Aioli

1 large red pepper

2 egg yolks

2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons white vinegar

1 tablespoon Sambal Oelek or Thai Chili Garlic Sauce

1/2 teaspoon Sriracha (optional)

3/4 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup olive oil

Roast red pepper over a gas flame or under broiler until well blackened. Place in a zip bag or covered container and allow to steam for 10 minutes. Peel and remove seeds. Place pepper into food processor along with egg yolks, garlic, vinegars, sambal oelek and Sriracha. Process until very smooth. With motor running, add vegetable and olive oil very, very slowly, in a drizzle and process until very smooth and creamy. Refrigerate until serving. (Aioli will keep well refrigerated for 2 to 3 days). 

A year ago - Drowned Beef Sandwiches

Two year's ago - Rosti Potatoes

Big Beautiful Burgers Again

School's out on the best way to make burgers. There’s differing opinions as to how to prep the meat, whether it be ground beef, pork, veal, chicken, Italian sausage or any combination thereof.

Some just spice it up with grill seasoning and/or garlic powder, salt and pepper, and form it into patties (that’s how Big Guy does it). Then there’s decisions to be made as to the size and thickness of the patties, whether to stuff the cheese inside or put it on top and what kind of bun to use never mind whether to toast it, steam it or serve it naked out of the wrapper.  Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Personally, I don’t think there’s a wrong or a right way to make ‘em, I just know  I’d rather have a burger than a steak, although I live with a guy that begs to differ. Last night’s burger extravaganza included 80/20 ground beef mixed, combined with Italian bread crumbs, dry onion soup mix, various spices and an egg and water to bind and moisten because when I make ‘em, I like ‘em that way. I formed the patties into a thinner patty each consisting of a half cup of beefy goodness, then Big Guy took over.

He cooked them outside on a flat top grill and the patties ended up crispy, crunchy and yummy on the outside, moist and tender inside. Stacked in pairs on a grilled bun topped with mayo, blue cheese crumbles  and some of the bacon, onion and beer jam Big Guy cooked up a couple of days ago, it was enough to make the golden arches weep with envy.

In case you’re wondering, we’re prepping ourselves for the shock of leaving the lovely Oregon coast to return to the desert. Needless to say the euphoric moods enjoyed the past 3 weeks are a little less euphoric, in fact we’re all kinda’ quiet…down in the dumps if you really want to know the truth. We’ve had a blast visiting old haunts, walking the beaches and generally enjoying a place that’s really become our second home; however, yesterday was a day that needs to go down in history as a first!

You see, the owners of our lovely little Rose Cottage have a garden that just doesn’t quit and shared some fresh and I mean FRESH snow peas with us yesterday. If you’re a regular to this site, you’ll remember that Big Guy doesn’t do peas in any way, shape or form but yesterday he finally saw the light and ate a plateful, simply washed and uncooked. He says a guy'll eat anything if he's starving and I say maybe so, but why'd he look so darn happy while he was doing it if he didn't like it? Just sayin'. 

Beefy Onion Burgers (an original from JBug’s Kitchen)

2 pounds 80/20 ground beef

1 envelope dry onion soup mix (I used Lipton)

1/2 cup dried Italian flavored bread crumbs

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon Montreal grill seasoning

1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

1 egg

2/3 cup water

Combine ingredients together and form into patties, using a half cup per patty. Refrigerate for a minimum 30 minutes to blend flavors and firm up patties. Cook on a flat top grill until crispy outside and medium inside (about 3 minutes per side). Serve on warmed hamburger buns with toppings of your choice. Makes 10 thin patties.

 

Indian Spiced Chicken Burgers

We're kind of on a burger kick these days, no doubt because the one we had the other night at the Parish was darn near sinful. Anyway, we put some ground chicken on the shopping list yesterday because I was anxious to try a recipe I'd seen recently on myrecipes.com. 

I made a ton of changes because Big Guy and I like flavor with a capital "F", but before I tell you about it, I've got to brag about the screaming deal we got on our chicken. For some reason the already ground version was priced at a whopping $4.29 a pound, but right beside it in the cooler were several large packages of chicken breasts marked at $1.09 a pound so being the frugalists we are, Big Guy was volunteered to be the one to bone 'em and put them through our trusty Kitchen Aid's grinding attachment. The result - super cheap ground chicken as well as two huge paillards that we'll have later in the week, never mind the bones for stock. Bonus eh?

Oh, before I forget, while Big Guy was putting the chicken through the grinder, he also put the onion through as well as a slice of bread for crumbs, then we spiced up the ground meat with cayenne, curry, cumin, garam masala and minced fresh ginger along with salt and pepper and an egg to bind it.

Formed into good sized patties, they took about 15 minutes to cook on our little red grill outside and then the fun really began. Sprinkled with the juice of a lime as soon as they left the grill, we topped them with a greek yogurt/mint "schmear", mango chutney, and a thin slice of sweet onion, all on a bed of crisp fresh spinach, Garnished with cool cucumber slices, it might have been a touch of overkill. Ya think? Not bad for a pair of amateurs huh?

Indian Spiced Chicken Burgers (Inspired by Cooking Light via myrecipes.com)

1 pound ground chicken

2 green onions, minced

1-1/2 teaspoons garam masala

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon curry powder (optional)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 cup fresh bread crumbs

1/4 cup panko crumbs

1 large egg, beaten

1 tablespoon butter

Combine all ingredients together and form into patties. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum half an hour to blend flavors and bind ingredients. Spray grill with cooking spray and preheat over medium high. Cook patties for approximately 7 minutes on one side. Flip over, top each with a cube of butter, then cook for another 7 minutes or until done.

Juice of 1 lime

1/2 cup plain Greek style yogurt, mixed with 1-1/2 teaspoons chopped mint

Mango Chutney

Sliced sweet onions

Cucumber slices

Fresh spinach leaves

Hamburger buns

Sprinkle cooked chicken patties with lime juice as soon as they come off the grill. Place on a bed of lettuce on a grilled hamburger bun, and top with yogurt mixture, chutney, sweet onion, and cucumber.  Makes 4 servings.

 A year ago - Crazy Shrimp

Two year's ago - Mahi Mahi Tacos

BBQ Beef Chili

My apologies to my regular readers but there's nothing even close to being inspired coming from JBug's Kitchen at the moment. I'm trying to get the freezer contents down to a bare minimum so our house sitter doesn't have to worry about it next month in case the power goes out for any length of time as is normal during monsoon season. At least the freezer losses will be minimal.

One of my foraging finds was a 3 pound chunk of barbecued beef the Big Guy cooked up for our big party in May and since he's nutso about our chili created from leftover beef, he was a happy camper last night when he saw the big pot of red on the stove.

Hit the link and it'll take you to our original post, but in case you'd rather not read about chili created from leftovers that includes lots of onions, garlic, tomatoes, beef consomme and beer, never mind a good amount of barbecue sauce, I've re-posted the recipe below.  Just remember you can make a pot of this anytime you've leftover meat and that doesn't mean it has to be beef either. Try it with chicken, turkey or pork and I guarantee you'll be really happy with the outcome.

Incidentally, I added another can of tomatoes to the pot along with a little more beer because I had a lot more meat in this pot of chili than I usually do, never mind that I only had 1 can of beans in the pantry;  however, there were no complaints coming from the resident carnivore. None, nada, zilch...no siree!

The Ultimate Chili from Leftover Prime Rib from JBug’s Kitchen Antics inspired by Fine Cooking 

4 slices smoky bacon, diced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 large yellow onions, diced

4 large cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons mild chili powder

1 tablespoon hot New Mexico chili powder

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon ground Mexican oregano

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 - 12 ounce can lager beer

1 – 28 ounce can diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1/2 cup prepared barbecue sauce (I used Kraft original)

10 ounces of beef stock or a can of beef consomme'

1 or 2 pounds leftover prime rib roast, cut into half inch dice

2 cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed

Garnishes – cubed cheese, chopped sweet onion, pickled jalapeno, lime wedges

Heat a Dutch oven over medium low heat. Add olive oil and bacon, and cook stirring occasionally until bacon has released its fat and pieces are starting to crisp. Add onions and garlic and cook until onions are very soft – about 8 to 10 minutes. Add chili powders, cayenne, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper and cook stirring constantly for another 3 or 4 minutes. Add beef, tomatoes, tomato paste, barbecue sauce and beef stock. Bring to a boil, and then add beef. Lower to simmer and cook uncovered for 30 minutes. Add pinto beans and cook additional 15 minutes, stirring often. Serve with garnishes and a squeeze of lime. Serves 4 to 6.

A year ago - Cornbread with Pancetta and Beef and Chorizo Chili 

Two year's ago - Tres Leches

Grilled Spicy Citrus Chicken With Corn and Green Onions

We made this for the first time way back in 2009 on one of our beach vacations (see here) and I'm not quite sure why we haven't had it since except there's just so many things to cook, and so little time. 

If time is an issue for you, then chicken on the grill is a great solution. The only thing with this one is you need to be a little on the ball because it has to marinate a minimum of 4 hours ...but the longer the better. Best of all, the corn hangs out in the same marinade but a different zip bag, so not only is your main course taken care of, but so's the side dish. 

Serve it with a tossed salad or simple sliced tomatoes fresh from your garden and I'm pretty sure you won't hear anyone complaining. Actually it's so orangie, limey and garlicky delicious, I doubt you'll hear much of anything until the plate's empty.   Oh and a word from the unwise - for heaven's sake, double the marinade and throw in a bunch of extra corn because it's so special, you'll want more...and more...and more. 

Be sure to have your water bottle standing ready by the grill to take care of any flare-ups. Sure wish I'd listen to my own advice. I darn near lost all the hair on my chin again. Guess I'd better leave the grillin' to the Big Guy from now on!

Grilled Spicy Chicken with Corn and Green Onions (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Epicurious.com)

Marinade:

1/2 cup fresh lime juice

1/3 cup fresh orange juice

1/4 cup olive oil

2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper

8 large chicken thighs, with skin and bones

8 green onions

4 ears of corn, husked

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place lime juice, orange juice, olive oil, and hot pepper sauce into a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake to combine well.

Wash and dry chicken thighs well, and clean excess fat from them. Place chicken thighs into a large zip bag. Place corn and green onions into another large zip bag. Divide sliced garlic, cilantro and crushed red pepper between the two bags and divide prepared marinade between the two as well. Season contents of bags well with salt and pepper, close zippers and place into a large bowl or plastic container to catch any leaks. Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours, turning bags occasionally.

To cook – heat grill to medium hot. Remove chicken and vegetables from marinade and discard marinade. Grill chicken over direct heat until nicely browned – about 15 minutes, turning often, then move to indirect heat and finish cooking (approximately another 15 minutes or until juices run clear). Place corn and onions over direct heat (medium low) and cook covered for 6 to 10 minutes. Move corn and onions around often to prevent burning. Serve with slices of oranges and limes as garnish.  Makes 4 servings.

A year ago - Bacon and Blue Potato Salad

 

Pasta Salad with Grilled Sausage and Peppers

I'll admit saying a pasta salad is light is a bit of an oxymoron but this one truly is lighter than most. The idea came from our friends at Family Circle, a trustworthy source that's been in publication since way back in 1932. Imagine the changes they've seen in North American kitchens during that period of time?

Hit the link to see the official version of the recipe although as you'll see, I changed it somewhat to account for our love of stronger flavored food. Hey, isn't that what creative cooking's all about?

Made from grilled vegetables including red and green bell peppers and sweet onion, I added some mini yellow and orange sweet bell peppers too for more color - not that it needs it, just that I had 'em. I also switched out their recommended mild pork sausage links to include hot Italian sausage links that have an unbelievable flavor when cooked on a grill. Incidentally, I used the indirect method for that otherwise we'd have needed a fire extinguisher (not saying we almost didn't, so be careful, OK?)

I mixed in some sun dried tomatoes for their slightly sweet flavor, freshly grated parmesan cheese for more of an Italian twist and red pepper flakes for a touch of heat, and added the fresh basil directly to the salad instead of putting it in the dressing. Oh, I cut back on the amount of pasta too (radiatorre instead of fiori) so the salad had just a few less carbs than it would have otherwise.

The pasta's tossed with a light slightly sweet vinaigrette - unusual because of it's 1 to 1 oil to vinegar ratio which is likely the reason it has the illusion of being lighter; however, as you'll see, we topped our servings with a dollop of the herb aioli we had the other day. It was a perfect addition but not totally necessary.

While this salad is fine served cold, in my opinion it's best warm so don't sweat it if you haven't made it too far in advance, although you could cook the pasta in advance, mix it with the dressing and hold it in the fridge to add the other stuff hot off the grill. It's a lovely summer dinner along with a glass of wine, and it will be a super addition to the menu for your next buffet too. 

Pasta Salad with Grilled Sausage and Peppers (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Family Circle)

Dressing:

1/3 cup white wine vinegar

1/3 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon sugar

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

Combine ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake to mix well. Set aside.

Salad:

10 ounces pasta (I used radiator)

1 sweet onion, cut into half inch slices

2 red bell peppers, seeded and cut in quarters

1 green bell pepper, seeded and cut in quarters

4 mini sweet bell peppers, left intact

2 large links Hot Italian sausage

1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup fresh basil, coarsely chopped

Salt and coarse ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Cook pasta per package directions and drain well. While pasta is hot, mix with half the dressing and set aside. Grill onions and peppers on hot grill until charred on all sides – about 8 to 10 minutes. Coarsely chop into large pieces and add to pasta. Turn off heat on one side of the grill and reduce heat on the other side to medium. Place sausages on the side of the grill that has been turned off, cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until done, turning several times to prevent from burning. Cool sausage for 5 minutes, then slice into “coins” and add to pasta along with sun dried tomatoes and fresh basil. Toss in remaining vinaigrette. Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Garnish with parmesan cheese. Makes 4 to 6 servings. 

A year ago - Strawberry Daiquiri Frozen Yogurt

Two year's ago - Stromboli Mexicana

 

 

Flatbread with Lamb Sausage, Goat's Cheese and Basil Mint Aioli

There's nothing quite like making reservations instead of dinner every once in a while because it normally inspires me to try something I've never had before. After a recent evening at our new favorite restaurant, I figured I just HAD to come home and try out a new idea for flatbread. 

After checking out several sources, I used a recipe I found on myrecipes.com for the dough (hit the link and it'll take you right to it) but I even changed that up a tad. I mean I don't know about you, but I don't necessarily need to knead my dough by hand so I used my trusty Kitchenaid to do the job for me.  It was a breeze and ready in no time flat in no small part because our kitchen temperature is exactly what's called for when proofing dough (about 85 degrees). I know - just imagine what it would be if we didn't have the AC set for 74.

Anyway, only slightly different from my usual pizza dough, the flatbread doesn't have any oil in it which could account for it's extremely crisp and light texture. Rolled out on a floured board, it hit our medium hot outside gas grill and took mere minutes to cook on one side before being flipped over and ready to take on the toppings. 

Said toppings included purchased olive tapenade against the crisp crust, followed by sauteed ground lamb sausage made from very lean meat mixed with chopped mint, basil, cilantro, red onion, garlic and spices (recipe inspired by Rachael Ray's pita pockets, minus the yogurt and sour cream). On top of that went crumbled goat cheese, a little feta and some chopped roasted red peppers then it went back on the grill for a few minutes to brown the crust and melt the cheese, before the grand finale - a basil mint Aioli adapted from Foodnetwork.com.

The result - super crisp crust topped with the fresh Mediterranean flavors but I've got to admit it might need a little more work. Hit the links above to see my sources, but you'll have to hang in there for my complete version. I'm just going to have to perfect it before I pass the whole recipe along with the exception of the Aioli. It's the bomb! 

Incidentally, sorry I'm a little late today everyone - blame it on technical difficulties. The fact that the computer was at home and I wasn't made it technically impossible to write until now. LOL

Basil Mint Aioli (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Foodnetwork.com)

The addition of breadcrumbs to this aioli makes it pretty well fool proof, but you'd never even know they're in it. Honest!

3 tablespoons slightly stale breadcrumbs from 1 slice white bread, crusts removed

1 teaspoon white wine vinegar

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

3 large cloves garlic

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 egg yolks

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Dash fresh ground black pepper

Dash hot sauce

Small handful each fresh basil and mint

In a food processor, combine breadcrumbs, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, salt and egg yolks. Pulse until mixture is a fine paste. With motor running, add olive oil VERY slowly in a thin stream and mix to form an emulsion. Stop motor and add pepper, hot sauce and fresh herbs. Pulse until mixture is smooth and herbs have been chopped. Refrigerate until needed.

A year ago - Curried Lamb Samosa Pie 

Two year's ago - Tortellini with Roasted Cauliflower and Tomatoes

 

Grilled Ham Steak with Peaches and Marmalade Mustard Glaze

I don't know about you, but when we're cooking on the grill we usually think about having the "big four" - steak, burgers, chicken or ribs but there's a whole other forgotten part of the pig out there that's just waiting to knock your socks off. 

Ham steak is a lot more than just a great breakfast meat and this one was ready in about the same amount of time that it took to newk the potatoes. Rinsed and dried when it came out of the package, I brushed the steak with a mixture of marmalade, Dijon mustard, vegetable oil and a touch of fresh lemon juice, dusted it in coarse ground black pepper and Big Guy slapped it on a medium hot grill. Joined by some fresh peaches cut in half, pitted and brushed with the same glaze, it took less than 8 minutes until we were chowing down. That's got to be a record, even for us!

The flavor of the sweetly charred peaches marry beautifully with the salty ham and really the whole dinner received rave reviews from both of us. It's one of the rare times I had nothing negative to say about our dinner - yup I know I'm really picky and often critical of my own cooking. Not this time! 

If you're looking for a quick weeknight dinner solution, grill yourself up a ham steak and take a bow. It's a knock out fast and incredibly tasty dinner.  By the way, remember to spray the grill with some cooking spray before you fire it up. It'll make clean up a lot easier!

Grilled Ham Steak with Peaches and Marmalade Dijon Glaze (from JBug’s Kitchen adapted from Bon Appetit)

1 ham steak, approximately 1 pound

3 medium peaches

1/4 cup orange marmalade (I used kumquat)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1-1/2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Coarse ground black pepper

Spray grill with cooking spray and preheat on medium high. Rinse ham steak and dry well using paper towels. Cut peaches in half and remove pit (I left peel intact).

In a small bowl, mix together orange marmalade, vegetable oil, Dijon and lemon juice. Brush glaze over peaches and one side of ham steak. Sprinkle ham steak with coarse ground black pepper. Place peaches and ham steak glazed side down onto prepared grill and cook for 3 to 4 minutes until slightly charred. Brush all with remaining glaze and flip over. Cook additional 3 to 4 minutes until peaches are softened and ham is hot. Makes 4 servings. 

A year ago - Chicken Fried Steak

Two year's ago - Cornish Hens with Orange Pistachio Wild Rice Salad