Archives for June 2014

Grilled Chicken Tacos

June 25, 2014 by Dan 1 Comment

Grilled chicken tacos

With summer upon us and ye olde bbq dusted off, this week’s recipe is a delightful grilled chicken taco with lots of fresh fixin’s nestled in corn tortillas. This recipe takes a little extra effort, but it’s worth the wait – Let’s get cookin’!

Taco Seasoning:

1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
2 teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon dry Oregano, crushed
1/2 teaspoon Cumin
1/2 teaspoon granulated Garlic
1/2 teaspoon granulated Onion
1/2 teaspoon Paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground Black Pepper

Combine the spices and set aside. (Can be stored in a spice bottle for a long period of time to use with beef, ground beef, chicken, etc.)

Salsa:

6 Roma Tomatoes (3 of these will be roasted)
1 Green Bell Pepper (to be roasted)
1 Yellow Bell Pepper (to be roasted)
3 Jalapeno Peppers (2 of these will be roasted)
1 medium to large Onion (will be roasted)
4 cloves Garlic
1 Lime
Salt
Olive Oil

Salsa and BBQ’ing the veggies:

While your BBQ is heating. Halve and seed three roma tomatoes and both bell peppers. If you don’t want a really spicy salsa, also halve and seed your jalapeno peppers (otherwise, you just leave those seeds in there!). Peal the onion and cut into 8 to 12 wedges. When the bbq fire is hot, make a small pan out of heavy aluminum foil and place the three seeded tomatoes, both bell peppers, 2 jalapenos and your onion into the pan. Add a bit of olive oil to coat and prevent sticking, sprinkle with salt and place on a rack over your fire. Cook for about 10 minutes then turn everything over and cook for another 10 minutes or until the peppers are charred and the onion is mostly cooked (do not cook the onion or peppers to mush, just until a bit tender.)

While the peppers and onion are grilling cut up your remaining 3 tomatoes and place in a bowl. Finely dice your remaining jalapeno and add it to the tomatoes.

When the peppers and onions are cooked, set these aside in a bowl covered with food wrap for about 10 minutes, then remove any skin that has been loosened by the bbq process. Place the tomatoes and half the onion in a blender or food processor. Add one of the roasted jalapenos and the garlic. Blend until mostly smooth.

Take the remaining onion and the bell peppers and cut into about 1/4 inch pieces, place these in a bowl. Finely mince the remaining roasted jalapeno and add to the bowl. Then add the puree from above and stir gently, followed by the juice of one lime and stir. Add salt to taste. Let sit at least half an hour before assembling your tacos.

Note: this will get spicier as it sits.

Grilling the chicken:

2 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless Chicken Breast (boneless thighs would also work well)
Taco Seasoning (from recipe above)
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

Place one breast at a time into a ziplock bag and fold the end over (do not seal). Pound the chicken flatter with a meat mallet. This will help ensure more even cooking.

Sprinkle the chicken with your taco seasoning and place into a zip lock bag. Add the olive oil. Squeeze the air out of the bag and seal. Squeeze around so the oil covers all of the meat. Place in your refrigerator for at least 2 hours to overnight.

Grill over direct heat for 10 to 15 minutes per side (depending on how hot your fire is) until the chicken is done. Place on a plate and cover with foil for 10 minutes. Slice the chicken across the grain.

Almost there… Taco time!

Salsa
Grilled Chicken
Sour Cream
Tortillas
Shredded Cheddar Cheese (or Cotija would be good too!)
Lettuce
Fresh Cilantro

To assemble your tacos, heat your tortillas in a skillet, lightly brown but do not make crispy. Place a few pieces of chicken into the tortilla, add lettuce, salsa, cheddar cheese and sour cream. Sprinkle a little chopped, fresh cilantro over the top. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Luscious Lamb Burgers

June 18, 2014 by Ginger 2 Comments

Lamb Burger

Let’s just pause here a moment and look at that picture once more – salivating yet? We love lamb, and this yummy burger really hits the spot after a long day at work. Let’s get grilling with Burgers Part Deux!

For the burger, mix gently together:
1 lb ground lamb
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 Tablespoon dried basil
1/4 tsp dried rosemary
3/4 cup crumbled sheep’s feta (or goat feta); reserve additional feta to garnish the burger
Note: Overmixing the burger will destroy the yummy chunks of cheese crumbles so mix thoroughly, but gently.

For the Tzatziki dressing, mix together:
1 English cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
1 shallot minced fine
6 oz plain goat yogurt
Juice from 1/2 lemon
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Additional ingredients as desired: burger buns, sliced tomatos, butter lettuce, fries.

Grill burgers on your bbq, or fry in a pan in your kitchen. While they are cooking, warm your burger buns if you like them a little toasty, we used ciabatta rolls. When the burgers are done, “Accoutrements assemble!” We stacked our burger with lettuce, burger, tzatziki, tomato, and feta. But some crispy bacon is also a good addition or some French fried onions (they’re good on lots of things other than green beans!).

Enjoy!

Stuffed Burgers

June 11, 2014 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Stuffed Burger

They say that necessity is the mother of invention, we needed dinner, and this burger was the result. I had many of the ingredients on hand and a quick scan of Food Network recipes laid the groundwork for this dish. Let’s get grillin’!

This burger is best done in sections, so I’ve divided them up by the order to best use your time:

1.) Ingredients you’ll need in later burger assembly are baby spinach, prosciutto (or bacon), sliced tomato, crunchy onion rings, hamburger bun or roll.

2.) For the spread, mix together: 1 cup mayo, ½ cup pecorino, ~a dozen fresh basil leaves (finely chopped). Set aside.

3.) For the filling, mix together: 1 cup feta (we used sheep’s feta from Costco), ¾ cup chopped sun dried tomatoes (you can find these oil packed in jars in the Italian aisle at your grocery store. I wrap whatever amount I intend on using in paper towels and squeeze gently to remove the excess oil). Set aside.

4.) For the burgers, mix together: 2lbs hamburger (we used 93/7), 3 eggs slightly beaten, ½ cup Kellogg’s Corn Flake Crumbs (these are gluten free), 2 tsps each of Rosemary/Thyme/Basil, 1 tsp salt, pinch of ground pepper, 3 gloves minced garlic. Because these burgers will contain the filling you made earlier, you need to make two thin halves per burger, then gently encase filling in each (if you like feta, form about ~2 Tablespoons into a disk, if you don’t, use about 1 Tablespoon), and cook to desired doneness.

When the meat is done, add some of the Spread you made to each side of the bun, and begin to layer: spinach, meat, prosciutto, tomato and onion rings. This is a big burger, bite carefully.

Enjoy!

Bodacious Beef Stew

June 4, 2014 by Dan 1 Comment

Beef Stew

If you survived the 80s, you know life can get totally bodacious every now and again, like ‘fer sure! So tonight we bring you an awesomely good beef stew in a fresh sourdough bread bowl. Even Michelangelo, youngest of the TMNT clan, would give up his pizza for this!

Let’s get stewing:

2 lbs Beef (chuck roast works great)
1 cup Flour
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon ground Black Pepper

14.5 oz can Peeled, Cut Tomatoes
2 cups Red Wine
2 cups Beef Stock
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
1 sprig fresh Rosemary, chopped
2 lbs Potato
2 Carrots
1/2 lbs Green Beans
Olive Oil
Sourdough Bread Bowls (optional)

Heat a good sized pan over medium to medium high heat with a bit of olive oil.

While your pan is heating, cut the beef into bite sized pieces. Combine the flour, salt and pepper in a large zip lock bag. Add the beef to the bag and shake well so the meat is evenly floured. Remove from the bag, leaving any flour not stuck to the meat in the bag. Add the meat to your pan and brown, stirring periodically so it browns evenly on all sides.

When the meat is browned, add the can of tomatoes, 2 cups of red wine, 2 cups of beef stock, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce and the rosemary. Bring to a boil, turn down, cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

While the meat cooks, cut up your potatoes into bite sized pieces, slice your carrots and cut up your green beans. After the meat has simmered for at least 30 minutes, add the potatoes to the meat, cover and simmer another 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. Check to see if your potatoes are about cooked (they should be almost fork tender.) Now add the carrots and green beans, cover and simmer another 10 minutes or until the carrots and green beans are cooked to your liking. Add salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Enjoy!