1st BBQ of the summer

 

It’s finally June! And that means some nice weather (FINALLY) and it’s time to fire up the grill and start BBQ season! On the menu for the first BBQ of the season:

Soy-Balsamic Marinated Flat Iron Steak
Local Style Potato Salad
Grilled Pepper “Caprese” Salad
Roasted Broccoli and Sweet Potato Salad

Soy-Balsamic Marinade
Makes enough marinade for ~2lbs of meat, depending on the cut. The soy sauce, balsamic, and honey are in a 1:1:~1/3 ratio so you can easily adjust the recipe to make more/less marinade. Sesame oil has a strong flavor so start with less and you can always add more; same with the red pepper flakes.

1/4 cup+ 2 tbsp soy sauce
1/4 cup +2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp honey
1 tsp sesame oil
4 cloves garlic, rough chopped
1/2 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
chili flakes

– Whisk ingredients together. Combine with meat in a ziploc bag and marinate for at least 4-6 hours; ideally overnight

Local Style Potato Salad
~2 lbs yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1″ pieces
2 carrots, grated
1/4 onion, finely diced
1 cup frozen peas
2-3 stalks celery, finely diced

• Instead of celery I used the broccoli stems that I had left over from the broccoli and sweet potato salad

4-8 oz bacon, thinly sliced and cooked till crispy
2:1 ratio mayonnaise:plain yogurt
salt
pepper
garlic powder
cayenne

– Bring potatoes to a boil in lightly salted water; turn heat and simmer potatoes until for tender
– Remove potatoes from heat and drain. Return potatoes to the hot pot along with the onion, peas, and celery and stir together
– Transfer potatoes to a large mixing bowl and add carrots and bacon. Season with garlic powder, pepper, and cayenne
– Add mayonnaise and yogurt until potato salad is desired wetness. Season with salt. Serve cold or room temperature

Grilled Pepper “Caprese” Salad
roasted peppers, cut into ~1″ pieces

• Simply season the bell peppers with olive oil, salt and pepper, and then grill till tender

cherry tomatoes, grape tomatoes, heirloom tomatoes- halved, quartered, or cut into wedges depending on their size
basil, chiffonade
mozzarella, cut into chunks
salt
pepper
balsamic vinegar
olive oil

– Lightly salt the cut tomatoes and toss with the basil
– Once peppers are grilled add them to the tomatoes and add the mozzarella and toss. The heat from the peppers will warm the mozzarella and cause the tomatoes to release some of their juices
– Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and season with additional salt and pepper if needed. Serve warm or room temperature

Roasted Broccoli and Sweet Potato Salad
4 large heads broccoli cut into 1/2″-1″ florets
3-4 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2″ cubes
frozen pearl onions

• I had a 12oz bag and I used about 1/2 of it. Feel free to add more/less depending on whether you like onions

1/2 cup shredded, or grated, parmesan cheese
salt
pepper
garlic powder
olive oil

– Preheat oven to 425 degrees
– Toss broccoli with olive oil and season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Spread onto a baking sheet and roast till broccoli is tender; stir every once in a while so they don’t stick to the baking sheet
– Toss sweet potatoes and pearl onions with olive oil and season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Spread sweet potatoes onto a baking sheet and roast till tender. At the end, turn oven to broil to caramelize potatoes and onions
– Combine broccoli, sweet potatoes, and onions in a large mixing bowl and toss with parmesan cheese. Serve warm

*You could easily turn this salad into the star of a meal by adding quinoa and dried cranberries

Grill season is just getting started! I hope this gives you some ideas to get your grilling parties started! And remember you don’t need to be having a party to fire up the grill; cooking dinner for 2 is just as good a reason as any!

oatmeal yogurt pancakes

I love pancakes and am always looking for new, delicious recipes to try.  I recently found a recipe for oatmeal yogurt pancakes, spiced it up a little bit, and voila! These pancakes are a little on the denser side because of the oatmeal, but are super moist and delicious. They use plain greek yogurt, which gives them a buttermilk pancake taste without the buttermilk calories. 😉

Oatmeal Yogurt Pancakes w/ Blueberries and Chocolate chips (makes ~6 4″ pancakes)

1 cup plain greek yogurt

1 egg

2 tbsp oil (whatever’s your favorite- olive oil, grapeseed)

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup quick oats

1/2 cup flour

2-3 tablespoons sugar

• if you’re adding fruit or chocolate use 2 tbsp; if you’re making plain pancakes use 3 tbsp

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup blueberries (optional, I used fresh, but frozen would work, too)

1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces for cooking pancakes

– Whisk together egg, yogurt, oil, and vanilla

– Add oatmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt and stir well

– Fold in blueberries and chocolate chips

– Heat non-stick griddle or pan over medium-low heat with butter

– Using ~1/2 cup spoon batter onto pan and cook ~5 minutes until you can see small bubble burst through on the top side of the pancake

– Flip pancakes and cook for another 4-5 minutes. If you need to cook the pancakes in batches, keep them warm in the oven at 150-200 degrees

If you’ve added fruit and/or chocolate chips these pancakes are delicious on their own no butter or syrup needed!

Variations:

– Substitute the blueberries for chopped bananas

– Make the pancakes plain and garnish with fresh strawberries and whipped cream

– Cook peaches, apricots, apples, pear, or strawberries with a little bit of sugar and orange juice over medium heat for 5-10 minutes until fruit is just tender and serve over plain pancakes

– Use frozen mixed berries

as summer approaches…

Hi Everyone,

First of all I’d like to thank everyone who reads and likes my blog! Secondly, I’d like to apologize for the lack of posts lately 😦 As the weather starts to warm up I find myself eating a lot of salads, which unfortunately don’t make for very interesting posts. I do have a “share-worthy” dish every now and then, so subscribe to my blog and any updates will be sent to you! And you won’t have to worry about checking 😉

Happy Cooking!

shrimp “puttanesca” w/ creamy polenta

Polenta makes a great side dish for just about everything: fish, steak, chicken, pork, shellfish, and it’s definitely my go-to comfort food when I’m in a hurry. Here I serve the polenta with a saucy, brothy take on a shrimp “puttanesca”

Shrimp “Puttanesca” w/ Creamy Polenta

2 cups polenta
~5 cup chicken or vegetable broth
~1 cup half and half or heavy cream

• Rather than adding butter or cheese to my polenta, I like adding cream or half n’ half, which adds a great richness

shrimp

• I normally always have frozen shrimp in my freezer, and I just thaw what I think I’ll need. Also, because the shrimp are part of the sauce and not the star, feel free to use small shrimp

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp capers
1/2 cup Castelvetrano olives, roughly chopped (or other pitted olives)
1 cup artichoke hearts

• they normally come halved or quartered, you just want their size to kind of match the size of the other ingredients in the sauce

1 can sardines, rough chopped

• Rather than the traditional anchovies normally in puttanesca, I used sardines, which still add a slight “fishyness” but are a little subtler and not as salty. I used sardines I bought at an Asian store so they had a little soy sauce mixed in, too, but regular canned sardines work fine

1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable broth

– Bring stock and cream to a boil. Add polenta and bring back to a boil while whisking
– Once polenta comes to a boil, turn heat down to medium-low, season with salt and pepper, and continue to stir regularly so it doesn’t burn on the bottom.

– Season shrimp with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large skillet and once the oil starts to smoke add the shrimp
– Cook shrimp till begins to turn pink and then add the garlic. Cook shrimp a little under and remove from the pan and set aside; try to keep the garlic in the pan
– Deglaze pan with white wine, and add remaining ingredients-diced tomatoes with juice, broth, olives, capers, artichoke hearts, and sardines
– Heat ingredients through and adjust seasonings. Allow sauce to simmer for 10 minutes so flavors can meld. Return shrimp and any juice back to the pan just before serving

basil and panko crusted halibut, wheatberries w/ avocado and basil puree

 

Wheat berries w/ avocado and basil puree
If you wanted to have a vegetarian night just saute up some veggies (zucchini, squash, mushroom, onions, tomatoes) and serve with the wheat berries for a delicious, hearty meal!

2 cups uncooked wheat berries

• You can substitute the wheat berries for farro or brown rice, but don’t forget to alter the amount of liquid you use and the cooking time

2 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 1/2 cup water
4 medium-large ripe avocados
1/2 cup basil, rough chopped
1 lemon, zested and juiced
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

– Rinse wheat berries and drain. Add chicken stock and water to wheat berries and bring up to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 1 hr till almost all of the liquid is gone. Remove wheat berries and place in a mixing bowl; reserve any leftover liquid on the side
– In a food processor or blender, combine avocados, basil, lemon zest and juice and olive oil. Puree until smooth. If the puree is too thick add in some of the reserved liquid from the wheat berries. Season liberally with salt and pepper
– Spoon puree over wheat berries, reserving 1/4 cup of the puree for the fish

Basil and panko crusted halibut

6 halibut fillets

• If you’re portioning the halibut yourself, I normally do 6oz-7oz a person, so for 6 people you would need approx. 2 1/4- 2 1/2 lbs of fish

1/4 cup avocado and basil puree
3 tbsp butter, melted
1/2 tbsp garlic powder
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup panko
1 tbsp basil, finely chopped
salt and pepper
olive oil

– Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place baking tray in the oven to heat the tray
– While the tray is heating, mix together the butter, basil, garlic powder, bread crumbs, and panko in a small bowl
– Season the halibut with salt and pepper on both sides and spread the avocado and basil puree over the top of each fillet
– Spoon the bread crumb mixture on top of the puree and lightly press down
– Remove the baking tray from the oven, drizzle the tray with olive oil, and place halibut fillets on the tray, topping side up. Place a sheet of foil over the fish and bake for 10-15 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish
– Remove foil for the last few minutes so topping gets nice and brown; you can also turn the oven to broil to quickly brown the topping if you’re worried about the fish getting overcooked

island style tofu watercress salad

This super simple salad is a local favorite in Hawaii. Don’t be turned off by the smell of the fish sauce, because it really adds umami and depth of flavor to the salad. If you really want to make the salad authentic, add some mini dried shrimp!

Tofu Watercress Salad

1 16-oz (1 lb) block regular or firm tofu, cut into small cubes
1 pint (~10.5oz) cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1 bunch watercress, cut into 1″ segments
1/2 bunch cilantro, rough chopped
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp sesame oi
2 tbsp fish sauce (patis)
sriracha

– Rinse watercress and red onion under cold water to remove any dirt and crisp up the red onion. Drain well
– Combine watercress, red onion, tofu, and tomatoes in a large mixing bowl
– In a separate bowl, whisk together soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, fish sauce and sriracha to desired spiciness and pour over watercress
– Mix salad together and allow to sit for at least 30 minutes so all the flavors can blend

• The watercress will wilt and shrink, so if you want a greater proportion of watercress to other ingredients try using 2 bunches

 

 

quinoa tuna salad

Had some leftover cooked quinoa and asparagus in the fridge and what started as a cold salad soon turned into a warm salad. I also found sustainably caught canned tuna at Costco and had to try it. You could add so many ingredients to this salad and there really aren’t set amounts for things… so just have fun!

Quinoa Tuna Salad

~4 cups cooked quinoa
1 can white cannellini beans (white lima beans or northern beans would work)
asparagus, cut into 1-1 1/2″ segments
1 bell pepper, medium diced
1/2 red onion, small diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes in oil
~3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (not packed)
1 can tuna, broken into chunks
1/2 lemon, juiced (you most likely won’t need all the juice)
olive oil
salt and pepper

– Fluff quinoa in a large mixing bowl
– Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add red onion and garlic and cook until onions begin to soften and then add asparagus and bell peppers. Cook until just tender
– Add mixture to quinoa. Return pan to heat and add sun dried tomatoes, with their oil, and tuna. Season tuna with salt and pepper and add to quinoa mix
– Add parmesan cheese and mix everything together. Squeeze lemon juice over salad and drizzle with olive oil, remix, taste and adjust seasoning

can you find mochi? 🙂

herbed quinoa, pan-roasted halibut

 

Qunioa is one of those grains that have have become very popular lately because of it’s health benefits: it’s gluten free, high in fiber and protein (it’s actually a complete protein), and cholesterol-free, but it also has a great texture and taste, and can soak up other flavors quite well. Here I mix cooked quinoa with a herb “sauce” and serve it with some sauteed asparagus and pan- roasted halibut

Herbed Quinoa
This quinoa would also go great with other proteins such as chicken, fish, or steak, or just mix it with some tomatoes, cucumbers and feta for a take on a tabboulleh salad

4 cups cooked quinoa (about 2 cups uncooked)
1 bunch curly parley, roughly chopped
1 cup chopped basil
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 lemon, zested
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp chicken or vegetable broth
2 tsp soy sauce
salt and pepper
~1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted (optional)

• I just like the butter because it adds richness to the mouthfeel, but you can easily leave it out. If you’re mixing the quinoa into a cold salad, I would leave it out

– Combine herbs, garlic, lemon juice, chicken broth, and soy sauce in a food processor. Pulse till evenly mixed
– With food processor running, drizzle in olive oil and melted butter, scraping down the sides every so often, so it forms a smooth consistency. You want the texture to be quite loose- somewhere between a pesto and vinaigrette
– Season liberally with salt and pepper, as this is the only seasoning the quinoa will have on it
– If the quinoa is cold, re-heat before mixing the sauce onto it, otherwise the butter may solidify. Mix to coat quinoa evenly and serve

Pan Roasted Halibut with Brown-Butter Caper Pan Sauce(4 servings)
This sauce goes well with pretty much any white fish: rock fish, cod, halibut, swordfish..so just choose whatever looks freshest at the market

~2 lbs fish, or 4 fillets
1/4 cup butter
4 garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 cup white wine
chicken or vegetable broth
1/2 lemon
1 tbsp capers
olives (optional)

• Chopped up olives go great in this simple pan sauce if you have some on hand. I like using green castelvetrano olives if I have them, because they have a nice meaty texture and buttery taste and aren’t too briny

salt and pepper

– Season fish with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook fish as you normally would, but remove it from the pan a few minutes before it is done and set aside
– Add butter and smashed garlic to the pan and cook until butter is browned. Squeeze lemon juice into the pan and add wine to deglaze
– If the wine immediately evaporates add enough stock to form a sauce. Add in capers and chopped olives and adjust seasoning if necessary
-Return fish and any juices to the pan cook fish for another 2-3 minutes to finish them off before serving. Spoon sauce over fish

sexy salads

We’ve been on a salad kick so far this week and I figured with summer supposedly just around the corner, this would be a great time to share some of my favorite salads. The best part about salads is that they don’t have set recipes, you can add/remove/substitute ingredients with whatever you have on hand. Having said that, there are some combinations that I particularly like…None of them “feature” a protein, but if you have to have one, grilled chicken, shrimp, or steak normally work

Pesto, Sun-dried Tomato, and Feta (makes a hearty meal for 2 people)
Normally I like to make my own pesto, but Costco has great pre-made one that lasts for a while without turning brown, and makes a great salad dressing!

1/2-1 head romaine lettuce, thinly sliced
1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, diced or sliced, oil drained
grape tomatoes, halved
1 carrot, sliced
1/2 bell pepper, medium diced
1/2 cucumber, split lengthwise into quarters and then sliced
feta cheese and/or shredded parmesan (as much or as little as you want)
pesto! start with 2-3 tablespoons, toss the salad around and then decide if you’d like more
freshly ground pepper

*An equally delicious variation of this salad uses the same ingredients, minus the pesto, and instead of draining the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes, add it in with them and then drizzle the salad with balsamic vinegar. Parmesan cheese matches this version better than the feta

Mixed Greens, Almonds, Mandarin Orange, and Dried Cranberries
I used to order this salad several times a week from the salad bar when I was in college and it’s still one of my favorites

Mixed greens
carrots, shredded (or grated)
cucumber, split lengthwise into quarters and then sliced
grape tomatoes, halved
mandarin oranges, drained
toasted almonds, roughly chopped
dried cranberries
feta cheese
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
freshly ground pepper

– When I use balsamic vinegar in salads I tend to use mostly vinegar and just a little bit of oil, so I rarely pre-mix the two, but if you want to make sure you have the dressing just to your liking, simply whisk the olive oil and balsamic vinegar in a separate bowl before drizzling over the salad

Three-Bean, Blue Cheese, Tortilla Salad (makes enough salad for a 2 person meal)
I’m not a big fan of ranch dressing, but I love blue cheese dressing. I usually buy a store-made dressing, and a small block of blue cheese, and then I add extra blue cheese to my salads (since store-made ones never have enough cheese), because if I buy the large block from Costco I always end up with more blue cheese than I know what to do with. However, if you know you can use up that big block of cheese, then definitely buy it and make some homemade dressing!

1/2-1 head romaine lettuce, thinly sliced
1/2 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 can sweet corn, drained
grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cucumber, split lengthwise into quarters and then sliced
1 carrot, thinly sliced
1/2 bell pepper, medium diced
2-3 handfuls tortilla chips, crushed
Blue cheese dressing, store-bought or see recipe below

Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing
The ratio of mayonnaise:yogurt:heavy cream is 1:1:~1/4, so using that ratio you can shrink or multiply this recipe to fit your needs

1 cup mayonnaise
1 6-8oz container plain yogurt
~1/4 cup heavy cream (or half and half)

• The amount of cream you add can vary depending on how thick you want your dressing. If you’re using it more as a dip you may want to omit the cream all together and keep it really thick

2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp dry mustard
crumbled blue cheese- the amount is up to you
salt and pepper to taste

– Mix mayonnaise, yogurt, cream and seasoning together till smooth. Fold in blue cheese so it stays in nice big chunks
– Great on salads or as a dipping sauce

Strawberry, Bacon, Goat Cheese Spinach Salad

fresh spinach
strawberries, quartered

• blueberries work really well, too

red onion, cut into quarters and then thinly slice
grape tomatoes, halved
goat cheese, crumbled
toasted almonds, roughly chopped
bacon, thinly sliced and cooked till crispy

• When cooking the bacon, reserve bacon fat for dressing

balsamic vinegar
Worcestershire sauce (optional)
salt and pepper

– As I mentioned earlier, I tend to go heavy on the vinegar and add oil as an afterthought, which is the same thing I normally do here, but I use the bacon fat instead and add a dash of worcestershire. Yes, the bacon fat is indulgent, but it adds so much flavor! But you can always use olive oil

Here’s to looking forward to some hot, sunny days!
Panang Panang, Bali, 2011

back from an amazing trip to Montana

sorry there haven’t been any posts for the last week; took a roadtrip to Montana and here’s some of the highlights…

mochi chilling on the cabin porch                                   mist rolling in at sunset

BBQ brisket, smoked potato salad.       fueling up for the day: veggie frittata and bacon
fried catfish and hush puppies

snow shoeing and hiking with mochi while the guys went snowboarding
 
huckleberry and mayan chocolate ice cream                     huckleberry pie


blueberry granola buckwheat pancakes

glacier national park
 
glacier national park

last night BBQ feast- used the Coffee and Cocoa Rub from the flank steak post

delicious monster bagel sandwiches for the road! All you need is:
toasted bagels, bacon, cheese and meat of choice (we used swiss and muenster cheese and roasted turkey), avocado, tomato, lettuce, mayo, mustard..
and one hungry belly!

We had an amazing trip and can’t wait to go back!
In the meantime, look for some new recipes in the next few days as I settle back into reality and get back into my kitchen
Happy Belated Easter!