SPRING HAS SPRUNG! ENJOYING SEASONAL COOKING

Yeah grilling weather!

After a long, cold winter, we are really embracing the beautiful, warm weather. Like so many, we are anxious to get outside and soak up the sun. Any excuse to be outside will do - whether is is sitting at the sports fields, or at home bike riding, gardening, reading or cooking -- we are doing as much of it as possible outside. Oh yeah, for us, this warm weather effects our eating and cooking, and tends to mean grilling, sandwiches and salads!

I thought I'd share a few of our recent grilling successes with you.

On Saturday, we enjoyed grilled steaks, 

Caprese Salad, Greek Salad and smashed baby potatoes. For the potatoes, I steamed some new baby potatoes, once they were soft, I tossed with olive oil, kosher salt and pepper. Then, I laid them out on a foil-lined baking dish, took my potato masher and lightly smashed each one. I placed in a 400 degree oven until the tops got slightly browned and crispy. So delish!

On Sunday, we enjoyed pork ribs. I finally feel like I got our ribs right! I sprinkled the racks with little Montreal seasoning, wrapped tightly in foil and popped them in the oven (275 degrees) for 2 hours. They were tender and fragrant. Almost  good enough to eat right then... but we waited. We grilled the ribs to get a nice char on them, basting with bbq sauce at the end of the cooking time. The ribs were awesome!

We paired the ribs with corn on the cob (really sweet and delicious for the first of the season!) and a Greek salad again (we seem to be on a bit of a kick!).

Grilled sausages, peppers, onions and portobellos

Monday was once again another beautiful day. I cannot resist fresh fruits and veggies in the warm weather. And growing up, warm days often meant "wedges" (or heros, subs, hoagies, sandwiches, whatever you call them). One of my Dad's favorites was sausage and peppers, so with a nod to Dad, that is just what we did. I started off some Mild Italian pork sausage and chicken sausage with tomato and basil in the oven, then finished them off on the grill. 


I tossed a variety of veggies -- mini peppers, portobello mushrooms and onions with olive oil, kosher salt and pepper and added them to the grill. Once I took the veggies of the grill, I drizzled them with a little balsamic glaze. We paired the grilled sausages and veggies with kale salad and cole slaw.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

In honor of Mexican Independence AND Taco Tuesday, today we enjoyed a household-favorite  -- Honey Lime Shrimp Tacos. 
For the marinade, I combined about equal parts honey, lime juice (I squeezed 3 limes) and olive oil. To that, I add the zest of one lime, minced garlic and a splash of tequila. Then I add in handfuls of chopped cilantro. I always add in handfuls of chopped cilantro. I went a little heavier on the lime juice and a little lighter on the oil. If don't want to use tequila, you could use white wine or broth. I choose tequila. Place shrimp in marinade and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes. 

Marinating Honey Lime Shrimp

Take the shrimp out of the refrigerator and bring to room temperature. Heat a grill pan over med-high heat. No oil is needed because of the oil in the marinade. Cook the shrimp on one side until they start to curl and get opaque in the center and pink on the edges, then flip over and cook on the other side. They get a beautiful caramelized color from the honey, but you do need to watch them or they will burn. These are great with any taco fixings or over rice or salad. Today, we served them with soft and hard taco shells, guacamole, black bean and corn salsa and a salad. 

I find with cooking I go in spurts, so my recent successes have inspired me, but I do not know what is up next for the week. I have some zucchini and green beans in the house, so it will likely be something with them. 

What are you making this week? Hope you are enjoying a little warm weather eating!

My hubby's artsy grilling photo

Sunday is Football Day in our house this Fall. Youth football games at one o’clock, and the Patriots after that (so far it’s been on tape delay because the games have all conflicted with the 1 o’clock youth games). It has worked for us, though, because I have been able to throw a meal in the crockpot and have dinner waiting when we come in to sit down in front of the game. Last Sunday I tried a new recipe, and (as usual) I didn’t have all the ingredients handy, so I improvised. It made so much that we had some other folks from my son’s team come back and join us, and it was such a hit that my sons asked for it again for dinner on Monday night — and there was enough that they could.

Crockpot pork carnitas (Based on Slow Braised Carnitas from foodtv.com)

3 lbs lean boneless pork loin, roughly chopped
15 ozs red enchilada sauce
15 ozs beef broth
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 chipotle pepper, roughly chopped
4 green bell peppers, roughly chopped
4 plum tomatoes, roughly chopped
3 T vinegar
½ bunch fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped (even better if you have a friend to do this for you like I did)
hard and soft taco shells, salsa, guacamole, cheddar cheese, sour cream

Season pork with salt and pepper and sear in skillet until it has a nice golden crust. Place pork in crockpot with enchilada sauce, beef broth, onion, peppers, and tomatoes. Cover, and simmer on low for 6 hours or until pork is tender.

Stir in cilantro and serve with taco fixings.

I served a quick black beans and rice side dish with this. Nothing beats a quick side dish, and I like this one because of the easy proportions, so put this in your mental file (and the ingredients in your pantry) for a rushed night. It would work equally well as a main dish if you add in a sausage like kielbasa or chorizo.

Quick black beans and rice

1 can Rotel tomatoes with green chile peppers
1 can water
1 can rice
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
¼ c cilantro, roughly chopped

Add tomatoes, water, and rice in saucepan, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. At the end of 20 minutes, remove from heat, stir in black beans , and let sit covered for 5 minutes. Stir in cilantro and serve.

Can also be served as a cold rice salad.

P.S. The Patriots won!