Dateline: June 28, 2021 Grilled Salmon, Broccolini, Corn, and Caprese Salad

Deciding what to pull out of the freezer is often a daunting task.  It means rooting down through the layers of animal bits saved for sausage making, the bag of kogi, diving under frozen rib racks and plumbing the depths of the very bottom of each freezer drawer.

Today's find was some lovely salmon steaks.  The weather was good, so the grill got fired up.  Just salt, pepper and olive oil on the salmon and broccoli.  Onto the hot grill went the corn first, followed by the broccolini and finally, the salmon.  A perfect dinner was had.  

The skin on the salmon was beautifully crisped and there were even grill marks on the flesh side to boot!

The caprese salad was using a lovely ripe beefsteak tomato and some fresh mozzarella with basil from the garden.  Summer is here!

 

 

 

 

Dateline: June 23, 2021 Grilled Lamb Chops and Veg

I was hoping that the day would be clear and bright so that I could grill comfortably.  My wish came true.

I fired up the grill and grilled the veggies first, then the chops.  It was so pleasant outside, we dined al fresco as well.

Nothing special here, just salt and pepper and olive oil. 

 

 

Dateline: June 21, 2021 Grilled Veggie Bowl

 

I felt a definite need for something other than meat and veg for dinner tonight.  I wanted the veg, but not the meat.  So I thought about this, and came up with this veggie bowl.  I raided the fridge and pulled out things that could easily be grilled and were flavorful. 

The fire was lit, the black rice, black quinoa, black lentil mix package was opened and I followed the directions for the stovetop.  The rice mixture cooked while the veg grilled.  

It was a delightful dinner.  The grain mix was hearty and the veggies offered a lovely contrast in texture and taste.  A good one to have in the rotation.

Dateline: June 15, 2021 Turkey Breast Roulade

I had 2.5 lb turkey breast in the fridge that needed to be cooked.  I didn't want to put the oven on, so I am trying roasting it on the grill.

Ingredients

2.5 - 3 lb turkey breast, skinless

1 onion, minced

5 cloves of garlic, minced

1 sprig of rosemary

5-6 sprigs thyme

handful of fresh sage leaves, whole

5-6 sage leaves, chopped

1 T calabrian pepper paste

1 T chopped fennel fronds

1 t fennel seeds, ground

1 T chopped parsley

2 collard leaves, stripped, blanched, and halved lengthwise

6 slices of bacon

salt and pepper

olive oil

butter

butchers twine

Method

1.  Put the turkey breast on a cutting board presentation side down.  Butterfly the turkey breast so that you can lay it out flat and pound it to a relatively uniform thickness.  

2.  In a small pan, bring some water to a boil and blanch the collard leaves, shock in cold water and then half lengthwise.

3.  In a small frying pan, heat some olive oil and butter and sautee the onions, when softened, add in the garlic, chopped sage leaves, and parsley.  Heat them through and continue to soften the onion and garlic, but do not brown.  Set aside to cool.

4.  In a spice grinder, grinder the fennel seeds with the fronds a little pinch of coarse salt, and add in the rosemary.  Grind to a paste, empty into a small bowl, add olive oil and the pepper paste.  Mix well.

5.  Set the cut turkey breast so that one of the long sides is nearest to you.  Salt and pepper the cut side.  

Smear on the fennel frond/seed mixture all over the cut side.  Next layer sage leaves all over that paste in a way that will enable each slice of the finished product to  have a ring of sage.  Then, over the sage leaves spread the onion/garlic mixture.  Over the onion mixture, place the collard leaves so that they over lap and cover the entire surface of the turkey breast.

6.  Starting from one long side, start to roll the breast onto itself, like a jelly roll and set on the cutting board seam side down.  Lay 4 slices of bacon down starting at one end of the roulade and then with the remaining 2 slices, cut them in half crosswise and finish the laying down to completely cover the top of the turkey roll.

7.  Using 5-6 lengths of butchers twine, tie up the roulade into a tight package.  

8.  Lay 2 lengths of plastic wrap out on the counter so that they over lap along their long sides.  Place the roulade near the long side edge that is closest to you and tightly roll up the roulade in the plastic.  Squeeze out the air, and twist the ends tightly and tie closed or use a twist tie.  Put on a sheet pan and place in the fridge until ready to cook.

9.  Remove plastic wrap when grill is heated to 350°F.  I was very impressed with mine, it held 350° on the nose for the entire cook time.  I have learned to build a fire that suits this particular grill!  Place roulade on the cooler part of the grill and close lid.  Check the temp at the thickest part after 45 minutes.  Rotate the roulade to ensure even cooking if necessary.  My roulade had a thicker end and a thinner end.  After 45 minutes, I rotated it to thicker end towards hotter part of the grill.  When roulade hits 170° in the absolute center of the roll, I considered it done.  I took the temp from both ends straight down the middle and then again from the outside into the middle only going 1/2 way and all three temps were in the done range.

10.  Remove to a plate and tent with foil.  Let rest 15 minutes.  Then carve into 1 inch rounds taking care to remove the strings!

steamed green beans and peas

slices of the roulade.

 

Dateline: June 14, 2021 Ribs, Corn and Salad

I had a rack of ribs from FD and left over grilled corn from the day before.....(grilled marinated shrimp, corn, asparagus, and salad).

It was a rainy afternoon, so no grilling.  I wanted a spicy rib with a touch of sweetness and a little acid.  This was a tough one to create a rub for, but I figured it out!

Rib Rub

1 T dark chili powder

1 T salt

1 T smoked paprika

1 T Swerve (this is a sugar substitute that is heat stable and measures 1-1 with regular sugar)

1 t ancho chili powder

1 t chipotle chili powder

1 t ground cumin

1 t ground coriander

2 t ground mustard

1/4 t ground allspice

1/4 t white pepper

1/2 t dried thyme

1/2 t ginger powder

1 t black pepper

Additional Ingredient, not in rub, but sprinkled on top of ribs before going into the oven.

~1/4 t Citric Acid or Sour Salt

Method

1.  Mix all ingredients together be sure to crush any lumps.  

2.  Remove membrane from the back side of the rack of ribs.  Use a table knife to start it and a paper towel to pull it back.  It should come off in 1 or 2 large sheets.

3.  Cut any lumps of fat from either surface.  In a pan, put the ribs meat side up.  Spray with cooking spray or rub with oil and generously apply rub.  It is called a rub, so gently rub it into the meat.  Do not neglect the bone edges.  Flip so bone side is up and repeat spray and rub.  The majority should be on the meaty surfaces.

4.  Flip so meat side is up.  Sprinkle ever so lightly some citric acid over the top of the rub.  This supplies an acidic quality, slight, that helps cut the fat of the ribs.   Put into a 350°F oven until an instant read thermometer reads 198-200° when inserted between bones, without touching bone.

5.  Slice into individual ribs, bet your bib out, and chow down. 

 

These were EXCEPTIONAL ribs.  Crunchy, spicy, slight acidic background.  Just delightful.  This was the first time I tried the citric acid on the ribs.  It will not be the last!

Dateline: June 10, 2021 ROTO-Q-360 and Rotisserie Chicken

I had a lovely little whole chicken in the fridge and some mushrooms that needed to be cooked.   I pulled out the ROTO-Q-360, and sliced the mushrooms up into thickish slices along with some onions.

But, I wanted chicken that had a sauce, all sticky and spicy on it.  Aha!  I will make a mustard, calabrian pepper, maple syrup glaze and cook it like that.

Glaze Ingredients

2 T prepared mustard, I used a spicy brown

2 T maple syrup, you could use honey or agave

1 T calabrian pepper paste

1/2 T salt

1/2 T pepper

olive oil

Method

1.  Set up grill to hold 400°F.  

2.  Mix everything in a small bowl, taste to see if it has enough salt.

3.  Insert rotisserie rod into chicken.  It helps if the chicken is already trussed.  This will keep the wings and legs close to the body so they don't burn or scrap the onions and mushrooms into the fire.

4.  Attach rod to body of the ROTO-Q-360 and slather the glaze on the upward facing sides.

5  Wind up the key at least 40 - 50 times.  You want the chicken to turn all the time it is on the grill.

6.  Rotate the chicken so you can get the glaze all over it.  If you have any remaining glaze save it to brush on the chicken about 1/2 way through the cooking.

7.  Slice mushrooms sort of thickish as well as the onions.  Place in a bowl and coat with olive oil and salt and pepper.

8.  Line bottom pan with foil.  Dump the mushrooms into the pan and insert under the chicken.  Let the chicken roll a complete turn around the spit to make sure that no mushrooms are in the way and cause the chicken to get stuck.

9.  Grill/Roast for about 45 minutes and open grill top to check on the progress.  Baste with the rest of any left over glaze.  Close lid and let go another 20-30 minutes.  Check with an instant read thermometer that the temp between leg and thigh is at least 165°F and the breast near the wing joint is also about 170-180°.  I personally like the leg/thigh to hit at least 170° to be sure that there is no blood at the joint.

I had a head of broccoli that I put on the grill after the chicken and mushrooms were done.  Along with the salad below it rounded out a lovely June meal.

 

Dateline: June 7, 2021 Clean out the fridge soup

I had quite a bit of produce that needed using and 2 cups of thawed homemade chicken stock....soup!  We had eaten a big lunch with our friend Jeri, and I thought a lighter dinner was in order.

Ingredients

1/2 head cauliflower, cut into smallish florets

1 pint cherry tomatoes

1 small onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic, smashed and chopped

1 large bunch tuscan kale, chopped into smallish                       pieces

1/4 small head of red cabbage, sliced thinly

3 mini bell peppers, cut into rings 

1/2 serrano pepper, halved and cut into slices

olive oil

2 cups chicken stock

2 cups water

2 ounces dry white wine

salt and pepper

2 T sherry vinegar

Method

1.  Heat Instant pot on saute, and when hot add olive oil and add, onions, bell peppers, and serrano pepper.  Add salt and pepper and saute until softened.

2.  Add in cherry tomatoes and cook until they start to pop.  Add cauliflower and stock with an equal amount of water.  Stir and add wine, taste, and add more salt if necessary.  Add greens and cabbage and stir, then hit cancel.

3.  Adjust Instant pot to pressure cook on low for 6 minutes.  Close the lid.  Allow to release pressure naturally for 2 minutes, then quick release the balance.  Open pot, stir, taste, add vinegar, stir again and taste.  

4.  To make this more hearty, add a can of beans in before the vinegar and saute for a few minutes until hot.  Add vinegar and adjust seasonings.

June 1, 2021 Risotto

We just returned from a relaxing weekend with friends in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.  Even though it rained 3 days straight, we managed to have a wonderful time.  We laughed, ate, drank, and slept. Dianne and Phil have 2 new puppies, Nora and Lou, and they are just wonderful bundles of fluff.  St Bernard puppies are adorable, but really HUGE!  We got acquainted with Elle, Claire and Jon's St Bernard and it was a weekend of fluffiness.

The drive back wasn't bad, it was pretty quick, with stops, just under 4 hours, biggest delays were once we hit Staten Island and Brooklyn. Smooth sailing before that!

After communing with our kitties, who were delighted to see us, we returned to the daily grind of life in Brooklyn!  Checking on the garden, watering the plants on the other terrace, removing weeds, planting new things, cleaning up after the cats and discovering more new toys.  Up until now, they have been very content with cardboard toilet rolls, balls of tin foil, and pieces of string.  I bought some catnip infused sticks that they are going ape for.  We have dubbed them, Senor Stick.  To distinguish it from Ropey.

Back to food, I lost myself for a second.  I used a recipe from NYTCooking for Shrimp and Pea Risotto

The recipe called for shrimp stock, and the shrimp I had were shelled, so I couldn't make the stock, but I used a mixture of homemade and boxed chicken stocks that turned out great.

The saffron gave the rice a lovely yellow sun-shine-y hue.

I also used frozen shrimp, so sue me, and it turned out quite nice.  The shrimp went into the pot just as the rice was almost finished cooking and I covered the pan and killed the heat.  Peas went in at the same time on top of the still frozen shrimp.  After 3 minutes, I uncovered the pan and flipped the shrimp over and recovered for another 3 minutes.  It was perfectly done.  The rice was firm, but not crunchy, the shrimp just cooked through and the green peas gave the yellow something to play against.

Dateline: May 23, 2021 Grilled Chicken and Broccolini with Rice

 FD delivered a lovely chicken that unfortunately had burst its bag and spilt chicken juice all over the inside of the bag!  Everything but the blueberries was salvaged.    

I spatchcocked the chicken, which is splitting it open and removing the backbone and pushing down on the breast keel bone and flattening the chicken as much as possible so that it cooks evenly.  

I made a marinade of fresh lemon, calabrian pepper paste, garlic, salt and olive oil.  I ground up these in a spice grinder and it made a lovely orange paste.  This was slathered all over the chicken in a plastic bag, sealed and put into the fridge until ready.

Fire got started and roaring hot, out came the chicken and the broccolini and the chicken went on first.  I deeply browned the bone side first, then flipped over and let the skin get burnished and crispy and then threw on the broccolini and got that just a little blackened and dinner was served with left over rice! 

Dateline: May 22, 2021 Rack of Lamb on the Grill

What to grill?  What to grill?  In rooting through the freezer I found a rack of lamb, problem solved!

I made a quick marinade of preserved lemon, some calabrian chilis, a fat clove of garlic, and olive oil.  This got blitzed up to make a lovely orange paste which was smeared all over the lamb.  Popped in a plastic bag and in the fridge.

I am into peeling asparagus these days.  It is easy to do, provides a lovely color when grilled and makes them tender.  I also decided to rice up a head of cauliflower that I had in the veggie bin and make steamed cauliflower rice with dinner.

Of course, I only thought to take a photo halfway through the meal,  D'oh.  So the photo is of the individual chops after grilling.  The one of the far left shows some of the crustiness that the grill provided on the fat cap and the one on the far right shows that I did a good job of keeping them rosy pink on the inside.!  Yeah, me!

Below are the remains of the asparagus and the riced cauliflower.  I used a box grater to shred it up rather than a food processor because I was lazy, but then did really like the texture of the finished product!

Asparagus were oiled and sprinkled with salt and pepper then lightly grilled.