Our summer '09 potato side dish staple

This year I made my grilled potatoes time and time again as a side dish to meals. I've even served these to company! So I finally decided to write down the recipe and document it for the blog!!!

The olive oil mixture is - in essence - what my mixture is for my breakfast homefries. But that's another recipe I need to write down one of these days.

I actually got the idea for these potatoes after my aunt cooked some on the grill with some olive oil on them. I decided to take things one step further and, as Emeril would say, "kick things up a notch." They are so delicious and easy. Microwaving the potatoes in advance cuts down on the cook time on the grill so things don't overcook. But in my opinion, you want to get a little grilled crust on these - it's amazing what a great taste grilling can give any sort of food!

I've made this recipe with white potatoes and red potatoes. There are merits to either type so I suggest them both equally if you are going to give these a try!

Robin’s Grilled Potatoes

4 medium sized potatoes (I’ve done this with both white & red potatoes, comes out great with either type)

3 – 4 tablespoons olive oil

1 ½ - 2 tablespoons yellow mustard

¼ teaspoon black pepper

Dash of salt

¼ teaspoon paprika

½ teaspoon garlic powder

Scrub potatoes clean, leaving skin on. Pierce each potato several times with a fork and place in microwave for 5-8 minutes or until potatoes are nearly fully cooked (time in microwave will depend on the size & type of potato you use). Let potatoes cool down a bit.

In the meantime, combine the remainder of ingredients in a small bowl.

When potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut each potato lengthwise down the middle. Coat each potato generously in olive oil mixture, saving any remaining mixture. Let potatoes “marinate” with mixture on for 10-15 minutes.

Preheat grill to medium heat. Place potatoes on grill, cut side down on grates for 3-4 minutes, then flip over (to skin side). While skin side is cooking, baste cut side of the potatoes with any remaining olive oil mixture. After 3-4 minutes, flip potatoes back over to cut side down on grill grates, baste skin side again if there is any remaining olive oil mixture. Close grill cover and cook for another 2-4 minutes until cut side of the potato is nice and crusty.

Grilling season may be winding down...

...but we're still "getting our grill on."

I watched Giada make this recipe on her show the week before last. It just sounded TOO good not to try, and also perfect timing. I'd just taken chicken breasts out of the freezer that morning to make in a couple of nights for dinner.

We loved this BBQ sauce. I wish I had made extra so I could bottle it or something! It was delicious and I can't wait to try it on steak!

Chicken or Steak with Balsamic BBQ Sauce

(from FoodNetwork.com)

For the Balsamic BBQ sauce:

1 cup balsamic vinegar

3/4 cup ketchup

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the chicken or steak:

4 pieces chicken (any combination of breast or leg-and-thigh pieces) or 4 pieces of New York strip or Club strip steak

Salt and freshly ground pepper

For the BBQ sauce:

Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan and stir until all the ingredients are incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Simmer over medium heat until reduced by 1/3, about 15 to 20 minutes.

For the chicken or steak:

Place a grill pan over medium heat or preheat a gas or charcoal grill. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Lightly coat with some of the BBQ sauce using a pastry brush. Place the meat on the grill. Place the remaining BBQ sauce, still in the small saucepan, over low heat or on the edge of a gas or charcoal grill and allow to gently simmer while the meat cooks.

Cook the chicken about 8 minutes per side. Cook the steaks starting at about 4 minutes per side until a meat thermometer reads the desired temperature, 120 degrees F for medium rare, 135 degrees F for medium (about 6 minutes per side), 155 degrees F for well done (about 9 minutes per side). Continually brush the meat with BBQ sauce every few minutes. Remove the meat from the grill and let rest for at least 5 minutes. Serve with the heated BBQ sauce alongside.

Alternately, the chicken can be baked in the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Place the chicken skin side up in a baking dish and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the baking dish from the oven and spoon the BBQ sauce all over the top of the chicken. Return the baking dish to the oven and bake for another 15 minutes.

Kabob time!

This past Labor Day weekend we had some very good friends over for an afternoon/evening of fun. It was just a small crowd of us (5 people) and I wanted to take advantage of the beautiful weather and definitely do something on the grill. It may be September but we grill here well into October as long s the weather cooperates!

I'd mentioned to my husband a couple weeks earlier how we hadn't done any kind of kabobs on the grill this season at all. When we made plans with our friends to come over this past weekend I looked at it as the perfect opportunity to have grilled kabobs. Any bigger of a crowd I'd question the amount of skewering time (I'd rather be socializing with our friends) but for that many people I could handle it!

I decided to do beef and chicken, alternating with green peppers, yellow summer squash, tomatoes, and onions. They were a thing of beauty and I will eventually have some really fantastic pictures of them for you as our good friend Matt has gotten into photography the past few months and was kind enough to take some before and after pictures for me.

I used two different marinades - a light one for the chicken, tomatoes, and squash and a little bolder flavored one for the beef, onions and peppers. It was a nice mix when all of the food was together. So here are the respective marinades I used, both courtesy of MyRecipes.com.


Chicken Vegetable Kabobs
(from MyRecipes.com)

4 skinned and boned chicken breast halves
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon garlic powder
8 (8-inch) wooden or metal skewers


Cut chicken into 2- x 1-inch strips.

Whisk together 1/4 cup white wine, orange juice, olive oil, and next 4 ingredients, reserving 1/4 cup for basting. Pour remaining marinade into a shallow dish or large heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag; add chicken strips. Cover or seal, and chill 2 hours, turning chicken occasionally.

Soak wooden skewers in water for 30 minutes to prevent burning.

Remove chicken from marinade, discarding marinade.

Thread chicken and vegetables onto 8 (8-inch) skewers.

Grill chicken, covered with grill lid, over medium-high heat (350° to 400°) 15 to 20 minutes or until done, turning occasionally and basting with reserved marinade.


Marinated Beef Kabobs with Vegetables
(from MyRecipes.com)

1 cup white wine vinegar
1 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 (3 1/2-pound) eye of round roast, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
12 small whole onions
1 pound large whole mushrooms
2 green bell peppers, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces


Stir together first 10 ingredients; reserve 1/2 cup marinade, and chill. Pour remaining marinade into a large heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag. Add meat cubes; seal and chill 8 hours. Drain, discarding marinade.

Thread meat and vegetables onto 12-inch skewers.

Grill, covered with grill lid, over medium-high heat 16 minutes, basting with reserved marinade and turning often

Way behind, once again

Well I'm just going to stop apologizing and just admit that yes, I made this recipe well over a month ago and am only blogging about it now....

This was a recipe shared by one of the lovely ladies on my Nest board. The ingredients sounded unique and I wasn't sold on it until one of the other ladies tried the recipe and LOVED it. Between a rave review and my curiousity I just had to try this.

And let me just say, I am SO glad I did! This is one fabulous marinade. My pork chops came out so juicy and tender and flavorful! Anyone who did not know the contents of the marinade would never guess coffee and molasses were two of the key ingredients! I highly recommend this one!

Molasses-Coffee Marinated Pork Chops

1 Cup cooled strong coffee
6 Ounces molasses
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 Cloves minced garlic
1 Teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 Teaspoon ground ginger
6 sprigs - 8 sprigs fresh thyme
1/2 Teaspoon black pepper
4 (1" thick each) bone in pork chop


Place all of the ingredients into a 1 gallon zip top bag, seal, and shake to combine. Place in the refrigerator to marinate for at least 2 hours or up to overnight.

Preheat grill to medium-high.

Remove the pork chops from the marinade. Transfer the marinade to a small saucepan and place over high heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-high, and boil gently, stirring often, until reduced to about 1/2 cup liquid, 12-15 minutes. Remove the thyme stems after the glaze has reduced.

Meanwhile, grill pork chops 3-4 minutes per side or until they reach an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Allow the pork chops to rest 4-5 minutes before serving with the glaze.

Steak - it's what was for dinner

I don't buy a lot of steak here, typically because it's pricier and also because red meat isn't the healthiest thing out there. But every now and again when it's on sale I'll buy us some nice hearty steaks.

Given that it's the summer time I of course wanted to grill these and am always looking for a new marinade recipe to try. This is an Applebee's copycat recipe that I do have to say came out great. The only thing I would change next time is to marinate it a bit longer. I had it marinating about 5 hours and I think I'd prefer to do it at least 8 hours or even overnight just so the steaks soaked up more of that delicious flavor.

Applebee’s Bourbon Street Steak

1/2 Cup steak sauce
1/4 Cup bourbon whiskey
1 Tablespoon honey
2 Teaspoon mustard
4 (10 oz. each) steak

Combine all the ingredients except the steaks in a baking dish or resealable plastic storage bag; mix well. Add the steaks; cover (or seal) and refrigerate for 2 hours, or overnight.

Preheat the grill to medium−high heat. Grill the steaks for 12-15 minutes, or until desired doneness, turning them over halfway through the grilling.

Grilin' & Chillin'

It's that time of year again - the nice weather is here and that means one thing. It's time to grill!!!

My husband and I officially broke out the grill again for the season this past weekend. Saturday night we had burgers, there is really nothing like burger hot off the grill!

Last night we had pork tenderloin on the grill and it was fabulous! I swear this must be one of the best marinades on the planet. I actually have used this recipe in the past, prior to my blogging days, and dug it back up out of the woodwork because I remembered it being so good.

The pork was tender, moist, and flavorful. The irony of it all? This recipe is from the Betty Crocker website!

Grilled Teriyaki Pork Tenderloin

(from BettyCrocker.com)

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons ketchup
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 pork tenderloins (about 3/4 pound each)


Mix all ingredients except pork. Place pork in resealable plastic food-storage bag or shallow glass or plastic dish. Pour marinade over pork; turn pork to coat with marinade. Seal bag or cover dish and refrigerate at least 8 hours but no longer than 24 hours, turning pork occasionally.

Brush grill rack with vegetable oil. If using charcoal grill, place drip pan directly under grilling area, and arrange coals around edge of firebox. Heat coals or gas grill for indirect heat.

Remove pork from marinade; reserve marinade. Cover and grill pork over drip pan or over unheated side of gas grill and 4 to 5 inches from medium heat 25 to 30 minutes, brushing occasionally with marinade and turning once, until pork is slightly pink in center. Cut pork across grain into thin slices.

Southwestern Lime Chicken

Every week I peruse my grocery store ads for the best deals but rarely look at much else. What do I mean?


Well, for instance, Stop & Shop has a weekly recipe in their advertisement, which I rarely pay attention to but for some reason last week, I did, and voila - we got a meal, and I got a new blog entry!

This recipe for Southwestern Lime Chicken was pretty tasty and a great twist on the typical grilled chicken. The flavors of the lime, cumin, and chili powder really melded together well and marinating the chicken breasts in yogurt really made them moist. Best part of it is this recipe is pretty darn healthy as well!

The only change I made to this recipe was marinating the chicken longer - about 40 minutes - instead of the suggested 10. 10 minutes just didn't seem like long enough. Either way I would not hesitate to make this again!

Southwestern Lime Chicken

1 medium lime
1 tsp minced fresh garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
½ tsp dried oregano leaves
½ cup nonfat plain yogurt, liquid drained
1lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, trimmed of fat and cut into 4oz pieces

Zest or grate lime and measure ½ teaspoon of lime zest. Squeeze lime and measure 2 tablespoons of lime juice.

In a shallow pie plate, mix lime peel and juice with garlic, cumin, pepper flakes, oregano, yogurt, and a ¼ teaspoon salt and black pepper. Mix well.

Flatten chicken breasts to an even thickness and pat dry with clean paper towels. With a large fork, poke each breast 4 to 5 times. Add chicken to yogurt and coat all surfaces with yogurt mixture. Marinate 10 minute (I marinated about 40 minutes).

Preheat grill or broiler. Place chicken on oiled rack and grill or broil 5 inches from heat for 4-5 minutes per side or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

*Gasp!* An update!

My lonely blog finally has an update. After 3 long weeks of absolutely no new entries I am, indeed, back - hopefully!

This Sunday I planned on making the recipe below - on the grill of course as the directions suggest. The meteorologists in the area predicted some rain, but scattered, I figured we'd make do with the possible rain forecast and still be able to use the grill. So I unthawed the pork, got the marinade going earlier in the day, and figured all would be well.

Yeah. It pretty much rained all day - and there was thunder, and lightning. It was really quite a joy. The grill option was definitely out. I mean my husband might as well just stand out there with a neon sign that says "Go ahead...strike me!" if he was going to go outside to cook on a stainless steel grill.

What was plan B? The oven, on my broiling rack - I cooked at 375 for about 10 minutes then turned the broiler on and cooked for about another 10 (which was probably a little too long) but I was desperate to try to get some fake grill marks on those suckers with my broiling rack so I turned them during the broiling process about 1/2 way through. By the way, my fake grilling mark goal didn't really work anyway!

Either way the final product was yummy and something out of the ordinary for us which was a nice change. Unfortunately I only had onions to thread on these skewers since I was too lazy to go get peppers and oh, my husband doesn't eat them anyway (he doesn't eat onions either, but that's ok because it means they were all for me!). I left out a few other items and obviously had to adapt the cooking instructions, but otherwise I really kept to this recipe pretty closely. Now I just can't wait to try it on the grill one day!

Speaking of the grill, don't forget about installment #3 of Recipe Remix - which is all about grilled favorites!

Thai Pork Satay
(from AllRecipes.com)






1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon ground coriander (I omitted)
1/8 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 pound pork tenderloin, cubed
1 (8 ounce) can water chestnuts, drained (I omitted)
1 medium green bell pepper, cut into 2 inch pieces
1 medium red bell pepper, cut into 2 inch pieces
1 small sweet onion, chopped


In a medium bowl, mix peanut butter, green onions, soy sauce, lemon juice, brown sugar, garlic, coriander, and cayenne pepper; add pork, and stir to coat. Cover, and marinate in the refrigerator at least 30 minutes.

Preheat grill for high heat. Thread marinated pork, water chestnuts, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, and sweet onion alternately onto skewers. Transfer remaining marinade to a small saucepan, bring to a boil, and cook for several minutes.

Lightly oil grate. Cook skewers for 10 minutes, or to desired doneness. Turn skewers while grilling to cook evenly, and brush with boiled marinade during last few minutes.

Grill + Salmon = Love!

Another week's gone by since I've made a blog entry. Free time right now is a hot commodity and one I can't seem to get my hands on. So here I am, catching up on things.

This past week we made some salmon on the grill, the reason we had salmon is actually a little humorous. I bribed my husband to come pick me up from work because I didn't feel like taking the bus home. Mind you, I only live 10 minutes from where I work but sometimes a little extra movitation to have him come pick me up doesn't hurt. Case in point, I promised him that if he did come get me we'd stop at the store and pick up some salmon to make for dinner. I was already prepared with a quick, easy grill recipe I found on myrecipes.com, yes, I'm a planner at heart.

My husband was excited he got to use the new jumbo turner I got him from Pampered Chef - it's perfect for fish. Me, I was excited to have some fish for dinner because let's face it, despite my "bribe" - I was really the one in the mood for salmon that night!

All in all, I was really happy with how this came out, the rub did not overpower the salmon at all and instead only enhanced its flavor. I served it along some couscous tossed in some olive oil, and some steamed carrots. This recipe is definitely a keeper!

Brown Sugar Grilled Salmon

(from myrecipes.com)

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup paprika

1/4 cup kosher salt

2 tablespoons dried thyme

1 (2-pound) salmon fillet, cut into portions

Combine first 4 ingredients. Rub spice mixture over all sides of salmon; let stand 10 minutes.
Grill salmon over medium-high heat 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Beer-soaked beef

On my local nest board, a lovely lady by the name of Gail recently shared this recipe with all of us. A few of us have already made and WOW...all I can say is that this is one tasty steak! I actually just used a London Broil cut (it was on sale) and it still came out super tender. DH grilled this so we followed the instructions at the end of this recipe. YUM! This marinaded for about 8 hours in my fridge and just came out perfect. Thanks, Gail!

Beer Soaked Beef

12 Ounce(s) beer (I used what we had on hand, which happend to be Miller Light)
2 Tablespoon(s) olive oil
1 Clove(s) peeled and smashed garlic
2 Tablespoon(s) fresh lemon juice
1 Tablespoon(s) dark brown sugar
1 Teaspoon(s) salt
1/8 Teaspoon(s) whole cloves
1 1/2 Pound(s) washed patted dry, 1" thick beef flank steak :

In a 9"X13" glass baking dish, combine beer, oil, garlic, lemon juice, sugar, salt and cloves; add steak. Cover dish and marinate in refrigerator, turning once or twice, at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours (I did 24 hours the first time I made it).

Place a grill pan in broiler; preheat broiler to high. Remove meat from marinade and broil about 3 1/2 minutes per side for medium rare, or longer until desired doneness.* Remove meat from broiler and place meat on a plate; loosely cover with aluminum foil and let stand for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, place grill pan on stovetop over high heat; carefully pour marinade onto grill pan. Bring to a boil (beer will foam) and cook until all alcohol burns off, about 5-7 minutes.

Slice steak thinly and serve with sauce. Yields about 4 ounces of steak per serving.

Notes
*You can also cook this recipe on the grill and reduce the sauce in a saucepan on the stove.

Pork Chops & Asparagus

Wayyyyyyy back, last July, I made my first post on this blog, complete with a picture of me holding a giant pork loin I'd gotten at the market. Sometimes these things are too good of a deal to pass up so I buy them every once in awhile and I'm stocked with pork in the freezer for quite some time. I "butcher" it myself at home - making chops, chunks for kabobs, etc.

Last night, I made stuffed pork chops courtesy of my latest giant pork loin purchase. I had cut 3 extra thick chops for just that purpose. I know typically a stuffed pork chop is a pork chop on the bone, but I figured a thick boneless chop would also do the trick.

I used Alton Brown's grilled pork chop brine recipe but made up my own stuffing - an apple and sausage combination. If you've ever watched Good Eats, you know Alton is a huge brine fan. I saw the particular episode where he made this brine and immediately saved it to my "recipe box" on foodnetwork.com. I'm so glad I finally got around to using it because my husband grilled these up and they came out great - moist, tender, and flavorful - which is sometimes difficult to do with pork, especially on the grill.

To accompany the stuffed chops I made asparagus "rafts" for the grill that are a Paula Deen recipe. My husband loves asparagus, I don't love it, but I do buy it to make for him sometimes. These were tasty, even for a non-lover of asparagus, but they were a bit troublesome to skewer! I'd seen the grilled asparagus raft concept in a few places but never really realized what pain-in-the-you-know-what spearing those suckers really are. I think next time I'll pass on skewering them and just have my husband throw them directly on the grill!

Stuffed Grilled Pork Chops
(from FoodNetwork.com)

4 double thick bone-in loin end pork chops
1 cup salt
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 tablespoon mustard powder
2 cups cider vinegar, heated
1 pound ice cubes

In a plastic container put the salt, sugar, peppercorns, and mustard powder. Add the hot vinegar and swirl to dissolve. Let mixture sit for 5 to 10 minutes to develop flavor. Add ice cubes and shake to melt most of the ice. Add chops and cover with brine. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

Remove chops from container and rinse. Cut horizontal pockets in each pork chop for stuffing (below). Stuff chops and secure closed with 2 to 3 toothpicks. Grill the chops on medium high heat for 6 minutes on each side.

Sausage & Apple Stuffing for Pork Chops

(from Me!)

3 sweet Italian sausages, casings removed

1 Granny Smith Apple, cored, peeled, and diced into small pieces

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon Italian Seasoning

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard

Combine all ingredients in small saute pan. Be sure to continually crumble sausage as it cooks with spatula. Cook until sausage is browned. Cool to room temperature before stuffing chops and securing them closed with toothpicks.

Grilled Asparagus with Lemon and Garlic

(from FoodNetwork.com)

1 pound asparagus
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon paprika
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Trim asparagus. In a small bowl, combine oil, garlic, zest and paprika and stir with a fork. Lay asparagus side by side and pierce on 2 wooden skewers to form a raft. Place rafts on the grill and brush with oil mixture. Cook to desired tenderness and season with salt and pepper.

Asian Sesame Sliders

Ahhhh....summertime....the smell of fresh summer air, birds chirping, sun shining, and burgers cooking away on the grill, drink of choice in your hand. Yes, that is my idea of a relaxing summer night.

To aid in the creation of said night, I was flexing my creative muscles while coming up with my recipe for Asian Sesame Sliders. I have been thinking of what I can do with a burger recipe that I can submit to Joelen's Burger Bonanza event.

At some point on the bus ride home from work last night it came to me - an Asian twist to a classic hamburger. I also had some buns in the house that were not a standard burger size, so how about sliders instead? And so they came to be....

Asian Sesame Sliders

About 3/4 - 1 lb lean ground beef

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

1 1/2 tablespoons peanut butter

1/2 teaspoon Chinese Five-Spice powder

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1 heaping teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds

3 tablespoons Lite soy sauce, plus extra for drizzling

Small sandwich buns

Spray grill with nonstick cooking spray. Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

Mix all ingredients in medium sized bowl by hand. Form into small patties, about 2 1/2 inchesi n diameter, place on grill. Cook for 10-15 minutes, being sure to flip them occassionally, until well done (if you want yours non-well done that is fine with me, just don't come crying to me when the e-coli comes to get ya!).

Meanwhile, toast buns on grill. Place cooked burger on bun and drizzle with soy sauce.

Recipe Remix: Grilled Breakfast Sandwich

It's Recipe Remix time again. This an entry into the second installment of mine and Danielle's adventure - this time the theme was breakfast. There were 6 different foods to choose from - pancakes, french toast, crepes, breakfast sandwiches, eggs benedict, or continental breakfast.

Me, I chose breakfast sandwich because I knew there were so many different ways I could "remix" a typical breakfast sandwich that you would get at a fast food chain. The hardest part was deciding on which direction I wanted to go with it. In the end I decided that I'd pay homage to my grill, yup, that's right, I made a breakfast sandwich on the grill.

Thomas's English Muffins are now making sandwich size "grillers" and that began my grilled breakfast sandwich inspiration. I knew eggs would be involved but, what else? Not ham, not sausauge, not bacon - they are all too predictable. So, I decided on Portuguese Chourico instead!

There is no true recipe for this, more of a method. As my pieces of chourico were grilling, I buttered the outside halves of my english muffins (I had multigrain ones). I actually used melted butter that I seasoned with some garlic powder and onion powder for some extra kick and let those grill away. I finally got to use the side burner of my grill and made the eggs over there (I chose to make the eggs overeasy, but really you could make them however you want). Meanwhile I added American cheese to one side of my muffins and spicy brown mustard. Once the chourico was nice and grilled up I placed it on top, along with the egg and top half of the muffin. The following resulted....

Oh and to add the the "remix" flair of this - we had it for dinner, not breakfast! Who says breakfast sandwiches are just for the morning hours??? Anyway, despite not having an actual recipe, the theme of my entry is it's not only different ingredients that can make a recipe new again, but it can also be the method, which in my case involved grilling!

We have gotten a ton of great entries this time around and are looking forward to posting the roundup sometime next week so keep an eye out for it!

Fun with the new grill...and leftovers!

I'm the kind of person that dreads letting any kind of food go to waste. I'm not afraid of leftovers or figuring out new ways to make them into something new. When I was kid, my mother had "leftover night" about once a week. I do something similar, or leftovers become lunch for another day, or if I have a lot of excess it goes in the freezer (as long as it's freezer friendly). Let's face it, food is expensive and not getting any cheaper in this economy so I try to always get enough bang for my buck.

This week's leftover challenge: grilled steak. Early last week I made a beef fried rice (complete with veggies and scrambled eggs) with some of the steak but I still had some left and decided to make some quesadillas with the rest on the grill. There's no recipe for this - you could put anything you really want in these. In fact I had a small piece of leftover chicken I diced to make one chicken quesadilla.

Since my steak was already grilled and seasoned I only put steak and cheddar cheese, with some grated pepper jack on these. Onions and peppers would be fabulous on these as well, at least as long as you don't have a onion & pepper hating husband like I do!

To make them, I just brushed olive oil on one side of a flour tortilla, and placed that side down on the grill. Working quickly I placed my steak and cheese over this tortilla, placed another on top, and then brushed the top of that flour tortilla with more olive oil. Then just flip once the cheese is melty and they are ready once you have the appropriate grill marks. Yum!

Beef...it's what was for dinner...

Sunday night we had my parents and my in-laws over for dinner. It is something we try to do every other month and always works well. Since my husband and I recently acquired our new grill all I want to do is use it of course! I went through websites and my new Semi-Homemade Grilling cookbook and finally settled on the fact that I wanted to make steaks...it was just a matter of choosing how I'd like to marinate them.

I finally settled on a red wine marinade from Semi-Homemade. The recipe called for T-Bone steaks but I just bought a few London Broils and cut them up (yes, I know London Broil refers to a cooking method, not a cut of steak, but that is what they call them in the store!).

The rest of the recipe calls for making a red wine butter which did not tickle my fancy at all so I didn't make it, but the marinade was great and the steaks were really tender considering the cut (yeah, I'll admit it, I can be cheap sometimes!). Since I had such large pieces of steak, I did increase all of the amounts of the ingredients since I had to marinate each steak in a separate bag but below I listed the original measurements.

Despite this being a Sandra Lee recipe (yes, flame away!) - I feel like Robin Miller this week. I may be cheap but I always over buy so we had/have quite a bit of beef leftover so Monday night I put it in a fried rice I made and tonight I think I'll be making some steak quesadillas!

Oh and those beautiful cross grill marks on the steaks? Thank Alton Brown for that. I was watching his show recently and he talked about how to get those grill marks so I made my husband do the same. Who doesn't want a purdy steak? Hehehe...

Red Wine Marinade for Steaks

(From Semi-Homemade Grilling 2)

1 1/2 cups red wine

4 1/2 teaspoons salt free garlic-herb seasoning

1 tablespoon Montreal Steak seasoning (I used a reduced sodium version)

Place steaks in a large zip-top bag. Add 1 1/2 cups red wine, the garlic herb seasoning, and steak seasoning. Squeeze air out of bag; seal. Gently massage bag to combine. Marinate in refrigerator for 2-4 hours.

Set up grill for direct cooking over high heat. Oil grate. Let steaks stand at room temperature for 20-30 minutes. Remove steaks from marinade; discard marinade. Place steaks on hot, oiled grill and cookf or 5-7 minutes per side (we needed more time since our steaks were larger and thicker). Transfer steaks to platter and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

The newest member of our (culinary) family

Behold.....the new Charboil....

Isn't he just the cutest grill you ever did see?

Ok, enough gushing, we bought this baby last week and could not wait to use it. Unfortunately weekend plans and weather prevented us from using it until a full week later after we brought it home. Finally Wednesday night arrived and the weather was perfect for some grilling.

I recently bought Sandra Lee's "Semi-Homemade Grilling 2" book. It has a lot of great recipes in it and I can't wait to use it more. DH had actually pointed out this particular pork recipe when I first bought the book a few weeks ago. Since the grill is his domain, he was actually interested in this cookbook which I thought was pretty impressive on its own!

I had bought a pork roast over the weekend and decided I would modify this recipe and make the roast on the grill instead of chops. The lore of brines and how wonderful they are always intrigued me but this being my first brine I am hooked! This pork roast came out incredibly moist, flavorful, juicy, and tender. I made minor measurement adjustments considering this was a roast and not 4 chops as Sandra's recipe was written for, and put it in the brine in the morning before I left for work, so it was in there a good 8 hours.

To go along with our lovely pork roast, I whipped up a Bobbly Flay recipe for Grilled Sweet Potato and Scallion salad to which I only made minor adjustments. Between the pork and this salad I was on a taste of summer overload and it's about time! I can't wait to do lots more grilling as the weather warms up!

Beer Brined Pork Roast
(Inspired by Sandra Lee's "Semi-Homemade Grilling 2")

1 3 - 3 1/2lb pork roast

For beer brine:

3/4 cup water
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1 (12oz) bottle lager style beer
2 1/4 tablespoons spicy brown mustard
2 teaspoons crushed garlic
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Place pork roast in large zip-top bag; set aside. For Beer Brine, in a small saucepan combine water, salt, sugar, and peppercorns. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer until sugar and salt are dissolved. Remove from heat. Stir in beer, mustard, garlic, and Worcestershire sauce. Pour over roast in bag. Squeeze out air from the bag and seal, and then gently massage bag to coat the roast. Marinate for 4-8 hours in refrigerator.

Set up grill for indirect cooking over medium heat. Oil grate when ready to cook. Let roast stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Remove roast from brine and pat dry with paper towels. Discard brine. Place roast on hot, oiled grill and cook for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours rotating roast about halfway through cooking. Serve hot.


Grilled Sweet Potato and Scallion Salad
(from FoodNetwork.com)

2 large sweet potatoes, par-cooked and cut into 1/2-inch slices
4 scallions
1/2 cup olive oil, divided
1 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoons honey
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Preheat grill to high. Brush potatoes and scallions with oil and arrange on grill. Grill potatoes for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until just tender. Grill scallions until softened and marked. Remove scallions from the grill and cut into thin slices.

In a large bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup olive oil, the mustard, vinegars, and honey. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add potatoes, scallions, and parsley and toss until potatoes are well coated. Transfer to a platter and serve

(picture of finished product above with pork)

Shameless Plug: Don't forget about Recipe Remix!!!!

Beer Can Chicken

It's a bird! It's a .....wait actually....it IS a bird....

It's a chicken! On a Beer Can! On our Grill!


So I was just kicking around on the computer and realized that had uploaded this picture a good 2 1/2 months ago - not long after I had started this blog - since I guess I was making some kind of attempt to take pictures of my creations. So there it is....Beer Can Chicken. Recipe below (the marinade is really my own concoction, but below I used Food Network's explanation on how to mount the chicken properly).

I have to say, this was extremely moist and I'll definitely do this again next summer. It's a great way to cook a whole chicken (which is usually pretty cheap) without heating up your whole house!


Beer Can Chicken

1 (4-pound) whole chicken
2 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
2 1/2 tablespoons Italian dressing
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
1 tablespoon seasoned meat tenderizer
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons Italian Seasoning
1 can beer

Remove neck and giblets from chicken and discard. Rinse chicken inside and out, and pat dry with paper towels.

Combine all ingreidents except chicken and beer. Rub chicken lightly inside and out with. Set aside.

Open beer can and either drink or discard half of the beer in the can. Place beer can on a solid surface.

Grabbing a chicken leg in each hand, place the bird cavity over the beer can. Transfer the bird-on-a-can to your grill and place in the center of the grate, balancing the bird on its 2 legs and the can.

Cook the chicken over medium-high, indirect heat (i.e. no coals or burners on directly under the bird), with the grill cover on, for approximately 1 1/2 hours or until the internal temperature registers 165 degrees F in the breast area and 180 degrees F in the thigh, or until the thigh juice runs clear when stabbed with a sharp knife.

Remove from grill and let rest for 10 minutes before carving.


Since I'm at it....this goes great with....(I'm glad I found this recipe on Kraft Foods since I made it a lot this past summer, my husband loves it!)

Grilled Potato Salad

2 lb. unpeeled small red potatoes, halved (about 6 cups)
1/3 cup water
1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/4 cup Italian Dressing, divided
1/4 cup Mayonnaise
3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Prehat grill to medium-high heat.

Place potatoes in 2-qt. microwaveable dish. Add water; cover with lid. Microwave on high for 8 minutes and drain. Add garlic and 2 tablespoons of the dressing, toss to coat.

Spray a large sheet of heavy-duty foil with cooking spray. Spoon potato mixture onto center of foil. Bring up foil sides. Double fold top and ends to seal packet, leaving room for heat circulation inside.

Grill for 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender, turning packet over after 10 min. Mix mayonnaise and remaining 2 tablespoons of dressing in large bowl. Add potatoes and parmesan cheese and toss lightly. Serve warm (leftovers still taste great cold!)

Sweet Lime & Soy Marinade

So I made this Sweet Lime & Soy Marinade last week....and then I forgot to post about it. I think I just need to get used to having this blog. I also intended on taking some kind of picture - either of the lovely bottle I put the marinade in or the pork I made using it, but I didn't so this is just a recipe...sorry, folks. I'll be better next time.

This was a very tasty marinade - I used it for pork chops that we grilled (gee, I wonder where I got the pork from??? hahaha). I marinated the chops for almost 24 hours. I also put a few tablespoons of it in a meatloaf I made this past weekend (along with other things) and it gave it a nice flavor.


Sweet Lime & Soy Marinade

1/4 cup soy sauce (I used light soy sauce)
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon seasoned meat tenderizer
1/2 chopped small green onion