It is that time of the year, time for corn! Like so many things, corn is super versatile and can be a star in any dish. Of all the variations on how to cook corn I wanted to talk about grilled corn. Grilling corn looks awesome and provides an amazing, complex flavor that is a great compliment for any meal.

Who doesn’t love perfectly charred, smokey sweet kernels of corn that pop in your mouth when you bite in? Oh, did I mention that we are putting the corn straight on the grill with the husk removed? Yes, this isn’t your Mama’s grilled corn after all.

I think this picture speaks for itself.

The application of this recipe is super simple:

Remove the corn from its husks.
Place corn on the grill with no oil or seasoning (we will fix this later) on medium to medium high heat. Allow the corn to get some char and color then rotate about a1/4 turn. Once you have charred all sides (about 4 quarter turns) you will be ready to move on.
Make a seasoning packet out of foil with enough space in the foil pouch to place the corn inside. You could use salt, pepper, butter, olive oil, paprika, a little chili pepper (if you want), and a little bit of brown sugar.
Place the charred corn in this packet and wrap it up tight. setting it aside for 10 minutes or so. You are actually finishing the corn by steaming it in the foil packet with the seasoning. As you are ready to serve, roll the corn in the melted seasoning mix until it is coated to make sure it has plenty of flavor.

Corn On!

Here is what you should achieve after about 15 minutes. May take a little longer depending on your grill and how much heat has been lost by checking on the corn.

That is it. You are done making some amazing corn! This will be a recipe you go to again and again.

How do you know the corn is ready to be pulled off the gril and wrapped in foil? The kernels will start to separate from each other a little bit and that is your clue it is time to wrap the corn in foil. Be sure not to cook the corn too long after you see the kernels pull away or you will have mushy corn and that could be your Mama’s corn.

Boom!

Okay, I hope you enjoy and soon we will be on to our next…….did you really think I would leave you without a finished plate?  If so, well then congratulations you have earned yourself more photos. If not, well, take better notes as home cooks can be creatures of habit, but I digress.

This photos is because, well, I enjoy a good steak. Want a refresher on  cooking steak essentials? Review the “Party on The Barbie” blog post.

Here is a finished plate. Now I am done. Oh, just one last thing, I am going to show you how to take this roasted corn to another level in a future post.

Rice, a staple food loved by many, but intimidating to many who try to make this soft, pillowy, starchy goodness. As strange as this may sound, rice was one of my most feared culinary enemies.

I had never tried to make it as all I had ever heard were horror stories of cooking on the stove top or in a rice cooker. Luckily for me, rice was always around when I wanted to have some and usually in large amounts. My best friend’s mom was Filipino and there was always rice, I mean always.

How I learned to cook rice is a two part story. The first is, once again, I ended up falling in love with someone who could make rice and it made me happy as a clam. A few years ago, I became pretty ill and rice became, well, a staple while I worked to get myself healthy again. One day when I wanted to have rice and I used all I had earlier in the day, it became clear I needed to learn how to make it. So, when my girlfriend returned home from work, she began to teach me how to make rice so I could support my rice habit. The best thing about this recipe is it is pretty simple and works every time. Although this is very basic recipe, rice can be used in any cuisine and with any cooking technique.

Here is the recipe:

2 c water
1 c rice
A pinch of salt

Bring two cups of water to a boil and add the salt.Add the rice when water reaches a boil and turn the heat down to medium low. You want a very steady, gentle simmer for the rice to cook evenly — a rice sauna! While the rice simmers stir ever 2-3 minutes so it does not stick to the bottom of the pan.

After most of the water has evaporated and absorbed by rice. You can easily recognize this point in the cooking process as the rice will be clearly exposed with a small amount of water in the pot. At this point, move rice to a cold burner and put a lid on the pot, leaving about a inch gap for steam to escape while the rice completes its cooking. After 10 minutes just fluff with a fork and serve.

*Note: We like our rice slightly al dente, which means there’s a slight bite to each individual rice kernel. If you like your rice a bit softer you may cook it a couple of extra minutes on the heat and let additional water absorb/evaporate before letting it cool. 

Done!

Here are a few photos to go along with this recipe:

You’ll see in the photo above the rice cooking at a gentle simmer. You will want the simmer to be a little more active than is visible here, but not a hard boil.

OK, this photo shows you the point where you will want to pull the rice off the heat and move the pot to cold burner, partially covered with a lid. As noted above, if you want your rice to be a little softer and a little less moist than our recipe, let the rice remain on the heat a couple extra minutes.

Just like that, you have cooked rice. So, we can all cross rice off the list of intimidating things to cook!

As I alluded, you will never look a store bought rotisserie chicken the same after you try this recipe. I believe that this will be a recipe you come back to time and time again.  Whether you make this chicken on a week night, special occasion, it won’t matter — it’s so delicious you just might dream about it!

Here is the your payoff:

The recipe am I using has been adapted from the Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken from Ina Garten. I have provided the full recipe via the link below.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/lemon-and-garlic-roast-chicken-recipe.html

Here’s how we rock this recipe with our changes:

• Don’t bother with the bacon. Originally, we were concerned about the bacon being used mostly for flavor and keeping the meat moist, but we wanted to know if the recipe could be done sans-bacon. Little did we know, that this would be the dream recipe. However, the bacon was giving us reason to reconsider. Although we had great success without the bacon, to make sure we were being fair to the recipe we made it with the bacon to see what would happen. Honestly, we noticed very little difference and it didn’t impact the flavor profile at all. So, for us, this wins without the bacon time again. As you can see, we love our bacon, so this isn’t a knock against our favorite smoked meat, just about what it brought to this party.

• As you can see from the photo included below, you don’t need to worry about tying the chicken legs together. It makes the presentation look really cool, but it is not necessary for a successfully roasted bird.

• Save the gravy train. As I have stated, this chicken has plenty of flavor and will be more than moist. Also, if you need a little extra sauce, spoon over a bit of the pan drippings over the chicken meat, as the flavor from the lemons will bring a much needed reprieve from the richness of this meat.

Lets look at a few photos that will help you with this bird:

Above,are the ingredients that you are going to use to stuff the cavity and below is what the cavity of your bird should look like. Layer as follows, half a head of garlic, 2 lemon quarters, fresh thyme and fresh rosemary, 2nd half the head of garlic, and last two quartered lemons. The peeled garlic cloves we will use later.

Okay, here is the chicken ready to go in the oven. Two important tips, you can go a little lighter on the paprika and that will help the skin of the chicken not be so dark as it cooks. Note: Make sure to place your oven rack on the lowest position in the oven before putting the chicken into the oven to roast.

While roasting, if you think the skin is getting too dark and you still have a lot of time left to go, cover the chicken with foil for the last 30 minutes or so. This will keep the skin from getting too dark. In order to keep the bird moist, pull the chicken out of the oven after roasting for 1 hr & 25 minutes to 1hr & 27 minutes. You are going to let this bird rest on a cooling rack (an oven mitt or you can put it on a cold burner if you don’t have a cooling rack) and it will finish cooking — otherwise known as carryover heat. So it is OK to pull the chicken out just a couple minutes early.

After you pull the bird from the oven, let the chicken rest for 15-20 minutes covered in foil to cool. Then you are ready to move it to a cutting board and slice. When you are ready to save your leftovers, remove the aromatics from the cavity as they can leave a funny flavor in the chicken once it’s been cooked.

Yes, we are on the grill with one of my favorite and most versatile ingredients around! Bell Peppers. Seriously, besides salads and fajitas you can do a lot with these beauties. Don’t believe me? Let’s get at it!

Roasted red peppers or any color that works for you.

Once the peppers obtain this level of char on the skin, pull them off the heat, place them in a bowl,  cover with foil, and wait. Why do this? Now that we have applied all this heat we are going to use the steam from the cooked peppers to help remove their skins. Trust me, otherwise it isn’t easy to remove the skins. Now, cover with plastic wrap and wait another 10 minutes or so.

You will then be able to peel the skins off the peppers. *Warning* the peppers will be super hot still, so protect your fingertips and use a fork to pull off the skins or just wait a little longer until the peppers are cool enough to handle.

Here are your finished roasted peppers. These are amazing on salads, sandwiches, a meat tray, tapenade, soups, and pastas. Did I say pasta?

After you have gotten all your peppers peeled, throw a few in a blender with a bit of half and half or milk, salt, pepper, a garlic clove or two, and a little liquid from the roasted peppers. Boom! You have just made a killer roasted pepper pasta sauce. Oh, I suppose you would like a photo of that too? Oh OK — here you are.

Roasted red pepper sauce complete.

This is fettuccine with roasted red pepper sauce, spinach, arugula, and a little sausage. Feel free to omit the sausage for a vegetarian version and this will still be amazing, I promise!

Alright, so there is roasted chicken, roasted rosemary potatoes, and some green beans that are still forthcoming. Preparing for Monday had to take precedence. Sad, I know. Alas, we are subject to having to do the responsible thing. So, there is that. I will hope to get that in soon.

Coming up for tonight….”Working my way back to the grill with that burning love inside.”

Steak, homemade roasted bell peppers, and a vegetable with a license to kill.

It will be a great one! Stay tuned!

One of the best things about a perfect Sunday morning is a great breakfast. It is a great way to enjoy any weekend. This pancake recipe is one of our favorite breakfast options,  it is super simple, customizable, and comes together quickly. 

I make a few adjustments to this recipe that make it work for us. I also have one little special ingredient that I will talk about later, which is a must in pancakes or french toast. Yes, I will cover that as well.  As always, make any changes that work for you. Food should be something that can be approachable no matter what you like or dislike.

The recipe has been adapted from the Joy of Cooking.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk or 1 cup
3 tablespoons butter, melted
2 eggs

Directions: Makes 16 3-inch pancakes

Whisk together in a large bowl the following items:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Combine in another bowl:
1 1/2 cups buttermilk 1 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
2 eggs
(1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract)

Mix the liquid quickly into the dry ingredients. Grease a skillet lightly with butter or oil and do so as needed between batches. The heat is correct when a few drops of cold water on the skillet bounce and sputter, not boiling or evaporating. Use 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. When bubbles appear on the surface on the pancake and the edges have browned, turn the cake and cook only until the second side is done.

Changes I make to the original recipe:

For me, these pancakes don’t need the suggested 3 tbsp of sugar. Usually once syrup is applied that can address the sweetness/sugar requirements for this recipe.

I like vanilla, but I’m more of a savory breakfast guy — so, I don’t think vanilla is needed here. But, if you want it, or that works for your family, then do it.

The amount of buttermilk is also adjusted as a result of the effect of being at sea level rather than an a higher elevation. I use 1 cup versus the 1 1/2 cups that is called for. If your batter looks too thick, you can always add a little more milk.

Okay, now, make sure no one is looking over your shoulder because I’m about to reveal my secret ingredient…ready?

Lemon zest. Yes, lemon zest. First of all, there is nothing more fragrant than freshly grated lemon zest. Think of what happens when you peel an orange and you get an intense flavor that wafts through the air. We are applying max flavor to these pancakes, which gives them a really pleasant citrus note.

You may want to add this tool to your kitchen collection. I use this tool all the time for grating hard cheese, shaving chocolate, and zesting fruit  — it is called a microplane grater and it is awesome. Have you ever seen a cooking show where the host is finishing up a pasta dish and suddenly it starts snowing cheese? Yup, that is the microplane grater. You can find one in practically any store with a kitchen section. If you want more information then I would recommend looking it up on Google.

OK, less typing, more cooking. Picture time!

Everyone in the pool at the pre-mix party.

Stirred, not shaken. Don’t overwork this batter, just make sure everything is incorporated together.

Butter makes pancakes better. If you have a cast iron pan, then use it. If not a heavy bottomed, non-stick pan will do nicely.

Two practically perfect pancakes.

Here is my breakfast. What are you having? OK, just kidding! Here is the finished product. Of course, bacon is optional, and eggs make a great substitute for bacon, truly the options are endless.

Here is another photo finish.

By the way did I mention that left over pancakes make a great toast substitute, sandwich bread, or just a great snack?  Maybe a breakfast sandwich? 😉  If you have a few left, I highly recommend it! Use your toaster to warm the pancakes through and re-crisp the edges if they get a little mushy from being in the fridge.

Here is  a little tease for what will be on the menu for this evening…

Tonight is a classic but super simple roasted chicken. After this you won’t ever look at a store bought rotisserie chicken the same again! The skin is seasoned and crispy, the meat is flavorful and moist, and this is something that you can put on the dinner table any night of the week. It is a perfect Sunday night dinner option that we will pair with some rosemary roasted red potatoes. What could be better?  Pair this with a good glass of wine, a beer, or any drink, and this will become a Table Fare showstopper.

Oh, I may have another breakfast post that will be forthcoming as well. 🙂

Ok, so we are going backwards here for a minute. As part of the Friday Conundrum I had decided to marinate some Halibut. As soon as I sat down on the couch after getting the fish marinating, I promptly fell asleep. Then, I couldn’t decide what to make as indicated by my previous post.

Fast forward to a few hours ago and it was time to use the Halibut.  Oh, before we get to that, because the marinade had citrus in it I pulled the fish out after a few hours to make sure I didn’t end up with ceviche. The recipe for the marinade is included below, it is part of a marinade that we usually use for sea bass.

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 cloves of garlic minced. Use more or less if you like.

We had about a 1 1/2 lb Halibut steak, but certainly you can use less.

Okay, here is the good news. This fish cooks up amazing and it looks awesome! Here is the proof.

Here is the fish right before it went into the pan. I dried it off with a paper towel to draw out the excess moisture to help achieve that great color. Also, hit it with a little salt and pepper right before it goes in the pan to help add more flavor as the halibut cooks.

I use butter and a little oil here to get this fish going. Again, channel your inner Julia Child if you think you need more butter. Typically I use about 3 tsp of oil and a small pat of butter. Okay, ready for more?

I suspect you know how we achieved this color. Lets review, don’t touch it!! Let it go (sorry for the Frozen reference). Leave it in the pan and let it get some color. I think I flipped it once and then got both edges.

Decided we needed a little green, nothing fancy really. There are a number of ways to cook asparagus. Ours is covered with water about 2/3 of the way up and salted heavily, which will help flavor the asparagus as they get tender. To check them you should be able to pierce them with a fork. You want a little resistance, otherwise the asparagus will be soft and mushy. OK, drain off the water and finish with a little oil, salt, and pepper.

This is your finished product.

• English Muffin, any bread will do if English muffins aren’t your thing. 
• Sausage, you can always use chicken sausage or a substitute a meat option of your choice.
• Eggs, I like scrambled eggs, but an over easy or fried egg would take this to another level.
• Cheese, in my opinion cheddar is better but any cheese will do. You could also go with a pepper jack, a smoked cheese, or mozzarella.  I prefer slicing it off the block myself, but do what makes sense for you.

Ready!

Sorry McBurger King, our is better!