If you're on my deck...

... you have to talk like a pirate.

With perfect low heat and low humidity- a July rarity in Va- we set up the deck for a 2 person party. The music was loud enough, the beer was extra cold, and dinner was a partial redo of a previous failed attempt! I sent my hubs a text earlier in the day asking him to make grilled apples for me!  He is modest about his culinary ability and I am a kitchen hog- but I do love when he cooks for me.  He is set on grilling everything (a personal goal perhaps?!)  Apples (Granny Smiths)- while not the first thing that comes to mind when you fire up a grill- are pretty amazing when topped with goat cheese, agave nectar, and grill roasted pecans.  It could double as a dessert, but we started our party off perfectly with them. 

A few weeks ago we picked up beef marketed as "great for Kabobs"- they looked pretty... but they were so tough and chewy, we ended up with assorted grilled veggies for dinner. This time I went with beef tenderloin- finding a package that had 3 smaller steaks (each steak was roughly 3 ounces.) I cut them in to kabob sized pieces and marinated them in olive oil, garlic and splashes of Worcestershire- for maybe 30 minutes. I strung through peppers, onion, and baby portabellas, with a 2 pieces of beef on each skewer. They sat on a hot grill for just shy of 5 minutes and were grilled to perfection- no knife needed!  

We stayed up late, listened to music, and had way too much fun to be classified as "adults."

Corn with a C...

... not a K-that would be the 90's band who I listened to in high school... and for some reason had a crush on Munky... my poor, poor parents!

This corn is much quieter!

My main focus in the kitchen this summer has been to remove **as much** processed foods as I can- with exceptions! We are not a couple of hard charging purist who refuse ice cream... beer... wine.. or any other of life's lil' luxuries.  Our food philosophy is simple- if listed ingredients are unrecognizable we tend to stay away, and try to recreate a cleaner version using real and whole foods- tend to being the key words... we are human after all!  With that being said, this week was full of some extra tasty meals- created simply with fresh ingredients!

I grabbed a few ears of corn at the grocery store with every intention on grilling it as a side with dinner.  When I started out in the kitchen, I went a different route, mainly because I didn't feel like gnawing on a corn cob!  So with other veggies being chopped up, I let my corn boil for 10 minutes and then placed it on a hot grill- just long enough to get char marks around it!  I cut it from the cob and mixed it in a bowl with the following:

1/2 chopped red pepper
1/2 chopped green pepper
1 clove minced garlic
1 chopped jalapeno pepper
1/2 avocado
1/2 small red onion- grilled
drizzle of olive oil
salt and pepper

I mixed, tasted, and adjusted the salt and pepper.  It was so simple, so sweet, and gone so quick!  We paired it up next to a mixed green salad- with salsa instead of dressing ( I am IN LOVE with Costco's medium organic salsa.... pretty much the only reason I go there!) and spiced and sliced grilled chicken breasts. I know  I've done right when my guy closes his eyes and smiles after the first bite!

Squash coming out of your ears?!

With an abundance of summer squash from family and neighbors I took to my favorite search engine to find creative new ways to use our bounty!  The first recipe that caught my eye was from My Little Kitchen.  I tweaked it by using 1/2 cup  of bread crumbs, and 1/2 cup cornmeal- instead of the spelt bread crumbs.   I nixed the tomato sauce, but think it would have been a great addition! 

The second squash creation was a creamy summer squash soup- perfect even on a 90 degree day!  Into the Dutch oven (which feels out of place in summer cooking) went 1/2 of a white onion roughly chopped, 3 cloves of smashed garlic, 3 chopped up carrots, 3 large yellow squash- peeled and cubed- and about a TBSP olive oil.  Let it cook for 5 or so minutes until the squash is getting brown edges and the onion is getting soft.  Add 4 cups of chicken stock - or veggie, but I used what was available- 1/2 cup (or more!!!) white wine. We were out of cooking wine, so in went some Chardonnay!  Let it simmer until the carrots are soft- 10ish minutes...maybe?!.  Add mixture into blender or food processor in small batches- or you will end up with soup EVERYWHERE....trust me!  I whirl mine for a while... making it extra creamy!  Put it back in the Dutch oven on a low setting and add 1 cup milk- I use 1%.  To season the soup I add a variety of spices to taste.  It started with salt and pepper, tumeric, and chili seasoning.  After tasting, it needed cayenne pepper (a healthy dose!) and more salt. 

Now I'm waiting for the next batch of squash to come in.... if only my green thumb was as successful as my kitchen creations!

4th Festivities

Happy Fourth of July! True to form we spent the weekend at the grill- be it holiday or snow day we can usually be found grilling out!  Hubs sipped a Bells Lager, in the ever so patriotic American Amber Ale glass while grilling out some sliders and dogs.

I kicked off the evening with oven "Fried" green 'maters- they were dusted in cornmeal, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper. I lightly spritzed them with olive oil before cooking in a 400 degree oven.  They were totally edible!

With them we had peppers stuffed with goat and cream cheese, garlic, chili flakes (just a pinch) and hot sauce. These little beasts had a fiery kick for being as cute as they looked!  They went into the same oven as the tomatoes, for about 20 minutes. 

The pups enjoyed some quality deck time....

.... and hammed it up for the mama!!

After all was grilled we assembled the sliders- cut the hot dogs in half and topped them with everything from avocado, to pineapple...  Hubby made multiple types of sliders! The options were awesome..

a. the Texas slider with pepper jack cheese, and BBQ sauce

b.  bacon, blue with mushrooms and onions

There was no way to favor one over the other... so I had both!

Thank goodness they were bite size, we had to keep some room open for the grilled pineapple slices!

Our two person party ended up on the front porch, for the most amazing thunderstorm! The lightning was intense, and we were pretty insane for staying out in it!  How could we not chill out and enjoy the light show provided for us... I mean it is the 4th after all!

The gratuitous patriotic Flag shot between moments of a pitch black and an electric silver sky ..

Morning brought a groggy couple down for coffee and coffee initiated the conversation on today's list of  things to do...

1st up a RUN!  We took off for a relatively nearby park.  We haven't been to Poor Farm since the demolition of the beloved "flats" began...

So long sweet single track...

We managed to squeeze in a humid hour long, sweat inducing run! Most of the time we were laughing like children stomping through the puddles, jumping over downed branches- evidence of last nights intensity- and chasing each other through the twists and bends in the trail!

I'm most grateful for a long weekend with my dude, to close out a superb vacation!  Blessed to have amazing family and friends... and honored there are individuals who have given their lives to ensure my safety!

Knee Deep

After 7  sweet days on the beaches of Hatteras Island with my hubby's family and friends we returned home today with clear minds, full hearts, and a yearning to get back in the sand again!   The week was full of adventures with the pitties, grilling out, and craft beers!  Both pups enjoyed what we believe to be their first romp in the sand- in true pit bull fashion they attacked the crabs with a vengeance, kicked sand until their hearts content, and made their presence known in attempts to communicate with the waves. Our four legged fur babies had a blast! 



Predawn beach patrol- waiting for the sun!



setting up for the day

Whiskey contemplating what we are doing up so early...

pit bulls in the sand

waiting to chase people around the pool....

 So after a week of no guilt beach eating, flat morning runs, and mass consumption of hoppy brews we came home craving a light- grilled no doubt- dinner!  I'm passing on beers for water- blasphemy I know. My insatiable craving for seafood led us to munch on grilled oysters (WSL style) while working on rockfish- lightly seasoned with salt and pepper, and dusted with Austin's Awesome Seafood Seasoning.... A.A.S.S. blend from Austin's in Rodanthe.  Asparagus and roasted rutabaga "fries" held the veggie ground!  Rutabaga fries are a tasty alternative their potato counterparts- we roasted them for 35 minutes in a 400 degree oven (before setting the stove to a low broil for 3 minutes).

Oysters



Bay Rockfish and asparagus

We are off to enjoy grilled peaches with banana soft serve- aka vegan fro yo! So long double scoops of real ice cream!

He thinks he's funny...

...but I beg to differ! I mean who calls his very own wife out... publicly....on a blog... hehehe! I actually laughed -hard- reading Hubby's blog about tonight's dinner.  In all actuality I have missed food updates, but enjoyed the break (our painful internet service can be unbearable!). Work proved to be extra challenging February- April.... workouts slacked.... food photos ceased... It is with renewed vigor that recipe writing and me time has come back in full effect.  Before jumping into eats here's a quick recap of the past few months....

March- The windy month brought 2 family birthdays, desserts, and dinners galore!

April- hubs and I snuck away to South West Virginia to celebrate his birthday!


Birthday dinner- Crab stuffed flounder with asparagus and shrimp :)

  May- one of my oldest girlfriends celebrated her upcoming baby boy with a shower. Selecting food was so fun- having her super fabulous photographer sister take pics of them was even better! If you're in Seattle look her up-Jenny Hughes!

Shrimp Stuffed Mushrooms- Photo courtesy of Jenny Hughes

 I went with Pioneer Woman's stuffed mushroom recipe- but tweaked it by substituting shrimp for the sausage, and adding red peppers to the mix! They were pretty awesome!

Grilled Veggies and Caprese Skewers- Photo courtesy of Jenny Hughes

Olive oil coated veggies  made for an easy appetizer along mozzarella, basil, and tomato bites!

I promise we've been eating, drinking wine, switching from porters to IPA's, and slowly setting up our outdoor living space- now it's back to snapping photos of it all!

pt 3.... dinner

We used the fresh oysters as an appetizer. It has been a longtime goal of mine to get hubby to like oysters as much as I do.... after 6+ years I finally won!

Grilled Oysters

1/2 doz. fresh oysters- scrub the outside of the shells

2 Tbsp butter (I used Earth Balance)

2 cloves chopped garlic- extra chopped!

 

2-3 splashes hot sauce- I used Habenaro hot sauce

1 tsp tarragon

Put oysters shells on a hot grill. After 2 minutes they should start to open. Take off grill-carefully try not to spill the juices!  Pry open the oysters and scrape them loose.  Return oysters on the half shell to the grill. In a small sauce pan put butter through tarragon on the grill.  Grill for a 2-3 more minutes (depending on size of oysters, and preference).  Rub with butter and enjoy!

Applewood Smoked Salmon and Shrimp
1 lb piece of Scottish Salmon
1/2 lb fresh shrimp
salt and pepper

Soak wood chips in water for 30 minutes.  Fold a large piece of foil in half and place chips in center. Fold edges in (almost like a foil packet), leaving a opening in the top, for smoke to escape.  Carefully move- with help- the grill grates and place directly on flames.  I had to poke holes in the bottom of the foil pack to get the smokiness rolling quickly.  Close grill and give it time to get nice and smokey!

Season salmon with Sea salt and fresh pepper.  Place salmon skin side up on oiled grates.  Cook for 4-5 minutes. Flip and keep grilling until preferred doneness. I like my salmon somewhere between medium rare- medium.  The fish will just start to flake when pushed down.  Meanwhile grill shrimp until pink!  Applewood smoked shrimp are REALLY good- we've never had smoked shrimp before this!

Serve with grilled pineapple slices!!

Black Rice

1 3/4 cup water

1 cup black rice

salt and pepper

We picked this rice up a couple weeks ago at Nadolski's, but we hadn't had time to cook it yet.  It went PERFECT with the salmon, shrimp, and pineapples.  After all my mush rice experiences I took extra time to research cooking methods.  All were relatively the same, and simple enough.  Rinse rice. Bring water, with salt and pepper, to a boil, and then add rice. Cover and put heat on low.  Cook for 35 minutes. Remove rice from heat and let stand, covered, for 10 minutes before fluffing with a fork.  Black rice has a wonderful nutty flavor.  It has high fiber and antioxidant properties, and is a great source of protein!  It took a while to find it- and to remember to look for it! I definitely want to keep it on hand from now on.  Steve and I loved it!!