It's Friday-- the end of a very long work week! I so miss not having the time to cook for my family, during the week. On the weekends, I am spending time in the kitchen trying out new recipes. However, I am hesitating to share some of these with you, because they involve an oven-- or are served nice and hot. I've been watching the weather, nationwide, and I see that so many of you are living in hot and humid conditions. Here I am, living on the beautiful Monterey Peninsula (California) where we are experiencing unusually cooler temps and lots of overcast skies. So, I'll save those recipes for a few weeks down the road when the summer heat has cooled down. Instead, I thought I'd post some tried & true recipes that my family and I have enjoyed from last summer. Just looking at these photos has inspired me to make these again. So, without further adieu, here's a roundup of recipes that I hope you'll enjoy:
Figs, Brie& Prosciutto on the grill-- such a simple and terrific appetizer. I'm on the lookout for fresh figs at my local Whole Foods!
Our garden tomatoes are just now turning bright red, and our basil is doing very well in our containers. I could eat Bruschetta every day, and never grow tired of it. This is one of my favorite snacks of all time!
Thawed puff pastry, cheese, fresh basil are the perfect appetizer (or light meal) for summer tomatoes. This Tomato Tart & Three Cheese Tart recipe was adapted from Ina Garten. So good!
Pineapple-Mango Salsa-- I love to serve this with grilled pork tenderloin or any kind of fish.
Antipasto Pasta Salad (Cook's Illustrated) - I particularly love the quick marinated mushrooms that are tossed into this salad. In fact, I could just eat a big bowl of these mushrooms! The creamy vinegar-based dressing, mixed with Italian cold cuts, cheese, roasted bell peppers and a few other pantry ingredients is perfect side dish or a summer meal on a hot day.
I have made this Raspberry Lemon Tart several times. The shortbread crust is the perfect vehicle for fresh summer raspberries. There is just enough lemon balance to the simple egg custard, that bakes to a nice chewy creamy center. You can use any kind of summer berries that you like.
Strawberry Cream Cake is a Cook's Illustrated success story. The cake is very easy to make. The frosting is a silky combination of real whipped cream and cream cheese. I'll show you how to make this beautiful tower with fresh summer strawberries.
This weekend, I plan to make this Apricot Cream Cake (Rahm Kuchen). This is an heirloom recipe from my Bavarian cousin. Her crust is out of this world! The topping has sour cream, heavy cream and a few other ingredients. This is not diet food, but it's a summer treat that's one of our very favorites.
The Monterey Peninsula's true summer is just now saying "hello" with blue skies and warmer temperatures-- in the high 60's. Tourists say it's way too cold here, but I tell them that the best time to visit our beautiful area is during the months of August through October. Still, air conditioning is something that we California Central Coast residents don't have in our homes-- it isn't really necessary. Our average temperatures tend to stay in the 70's. Every so often, we hit higher temperatures.... once, in a blue moon, we might hit triple digits. That makes headlines, because we are so spoiled with our coastal breezes! Feel free to come visit the Central Coast of California, so that you can escape the hot temperatures. However, since I live here, I work and can't play tourist very often. This weekend, I plan to fire up the grill and to enjoy the fresh summer produce from my own backyard-- the Salinas Valley!
If you click on the links to each recipe, you will find how to make these and a printable recipe.
I hope that many of you will find cooler temperatures and that you are enjoying your summer. For me, I'm enjoying the weekend that is to come!
Well, hello again! I'm preparing to shut down from a relaxing weekend and I wanted to post the cole slaw recipe that I made last weekend. There is a reason that I don't have a better photo of the finished salad. Last Saturday, just as I finished making the Pulled Pork sandwiches, and I was preparing to take photos.... the phone rang. My son (who has Type I Diabetes) was admitted to the hospital with complications from dangerously high blood sugar. Craig and I headed to the Emergency room, just as my son was admitted for an overnight stay. The doctors wanted to stabilize his blood sugar and to make sure his rapid heart beat would settle down. He's okay, now, but it gave all of us a reality check as to the risks and dangers of this incurable disease. Oh yeah, my birthday was just a few days before this event, so it was a busy week for certain!
So, while the finished photos aren't going to make the front cover of a foodie magazine, I can assure you that this cole slaw is one of my husband's favorite dishes that I make for him. As a little girl, I used to love the cole slaw that was served at Kentucky Fried Chicken-- we're talking decades ago, when KFC served those wonderful buns (and not the biscuits they serve today). At last, I can make a version that's as good-- actually better-- thanks to "Kittencal" at Recipezaar.com. Like many comfort foods, this is not low-fat. This slaw is mayonnaise based, has buttermilk, sugar, and some seasonings that are right on the money! Sometimes, you just have to enjoy these things, in moderation. I ate one serving of this, and my boys polished off the entire bowl. We begin with REAL mayonnaise. You need some half & half (yep, that's right). Start whisking....
Now, we add fresh lemon. Whisk some more. You need buttermilk...
I love buttermilk for baking or most any kind of recipe....it's so rich and silky...
Now we add fresh lemon juice and white wine vinegar -- whisk it together.
(why I photographed apple cider vinegar, I don't know... I used it for the BBQ sauce)... and now to add sugar. I cut back on the sugar, because I'll be tasting it so that it doesn't turn out too sweet. Start slow, and you can always add more.
..one teaspoon kosher salt, and some fresh cracked pepper
I've got some sliced green onion and celery seeds...
Now, we add a little garlic powder. Let's talk about the slaw-- this time, I used packaged slaw. It was on sale and this is a great shortcut. So, now I add the green onion and celery seeds (I used 1 teaspoon, because I think they can be a little too much in the flavor department). This dressing is really good. Sometimes I make it in a jar, so my husband can make small portions of slaw throughout his work week.
Add the dressing a little at a time, so you don't have soggy/soupy slaw!
It's best to make this a few hours before, so the flavors will develop.
VERDICT: This dressing has a perfect balance of lemon citrus, a little sugar sweet, some tart from the vinegar and a richness from the buttermilk. It's a little naughty in the calorie department, but it's a nice treat. It's way better than any cole slaw I've bought at a deli, or been served in most restaurants.
A printable recipe is at the bottom of this post
It's bedtime for Bonzo, so I bid adieu until next weekend. If I can, I'll try and post a recipe during the week. If any of you are on Facebook, would you "LIKE" my A Feast for the Eyes Fan Page? I pop in there more often, just to say hello-- and I'd love to keep in closer touch with so many of you. I miss not having the time to visit all of your blogs. If I haven't written to you, please forgive me. School starts very soon, and I am busy learning my new job position and getting ready for the "Busy Bus" to arrive.
Thanks for stopping by-- and I appreciate your comments and friendship.
Strap yourself in! This may turn out to be a long post, because I have a few recipes that are key components to make this very tasty summer meal. Just editing the photos made me long to have one more taste of this meal that we enjoyed last weekend. My work schedule has me so busy, that I have no choice but to become a "weekend blogger". At last, I can share what will be a very memorable learning experience and successful experiment!
I've made pulled pork a couple of times. One version was made in a slow cooker, with bottled BBQ sauce, it was fast and simple (I might blog that one during the winter). In 2004, I watched Emeril Lagasse make this very pulled pork recipe in the oven, with pretty good results-- still it was missing that wonderful smokiness that reminds my husband of his home state of Missouri. I really like Emeril's barbecue sauce, and I've made it a few times for other cuts of grilled meats. My husband loves pulled pork, and I wanted to make this recipe again, since it was tried & true. After weeks of overcast skies, and temperatures hovering in the mid-60's, we finally had a sunny and warm weekend. I decided that I would use the oven to make homemade sandwich buns, and I wondered if I was ready to attempt adapting this recipe for a Weber grill. I've read several articles on how to turn a Weber into a smoker, but I wasn't sure that I wanted to tend a Weber grill for several hours. It seemed so complicated!
I decided to see what Steven Raichlen had in this excellent cookbook that I bought a few years ago. This book gives step-by-step photos on how to grill just about anything. I asked Craig if he'd be willing to babysit the Weber grill, while I got busy making the cole slaw, barbecue sauce and rolls. Craig is a bit insecure about cooking, but he sat down and read the instructions on making North Carolina Style Pulled Pork (which uses more of a vinegar-based mop sauce. We prefer more of a tomato-based barbecue sauce, so I stuck with Emeril's recipe, but let this book show the two of us how to grill pulled pork. The process took about 4 hours, and I'm going to share with you how to prepare the grill, make the seasoning mix, the sauce and the end results. First, you need to make the rub:
(I will post the printable recipe to this seasoning at the very bottom of this page.) I make a batch of this seasoning for the rub, as part of the barbecue sauce components and the rest is perfect for Red Beans & Rice or any kind of creole dish you like. Why buy this, when you probably have all the spices on hand? You need paprika, kosher salt, black pepper, onion, powder, cayenne, dried oregano and dried thyme.
Whoops, I forgot to add the garlic powder! Set aside 2 tsp. of this seasoning mix for the barbecue sauce.
Measure about 4 tsp. of the seasoning, 1 Tablespoon of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of cayenne. Rub-a-dub-dub the pork (this piece weighed about 4 pounds). Store the remaining seasoning in an airtight container. Get the grill ready. NOTE: If you don't have a grill, I will give you instructions on ow to make this in an oven. It's printed on the recipe card at the very bottom of this page. Basically, you cover the pork with foil and roast it for several hours.
We never use lighter fluid. Ever. A charcoal chimney starter works very well, with just a bit of newspaper at the bottom. Light the briquettes and these looks ready to go! Craig has soaked some cherry wood chips (we have different flavors). Craig placed two foil pans in middle of the grill. The coals are placed on one side of the Weber.
A little wipe of vegetable oil and the grill is getting nice and hot.
Craig adds the chips on top of the charcoals, he places the pork on top of the foil pan(s) and closes the covers, with the vents about 3/4 open. Smoke! I start making the barbecue sauce:
Six cloves of garlic, minced...
You'll need paprika, dry mustard, kosher salt, crushed red pepper, black pepper and cayenne pepper...
...and the two teaspoons of the Creole Seasoning that we made for the pork rub...
"Mis en place" helps to make this sauce come together quickly. Here are the ingredients (above).
In a medium non-reactive saucepan set over medium-high heat, add the butter and, when melted, add the onions and cook until they are very soft, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, paprika, Essence, ground mustard, salt, crushed red pepper, black pepper, and cayenne pepper and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes, or until the tomato paste begins to brown.
Add the water, cider vinegar, and dark brown sugar, and stir to combine. NOTE: This sauce is very versatile-- add less vinegar, if that is your preference. Reduce the brown sugar, if you prefer less sweet. Add some, and you can always add more!
Reduce the heat to low and cook until the sauce has thickened and the flavors have come together, about 15 to 20 minutes. I love this sauce! At first, you might find the sauce is a bit acidic (provided you haven't reduced the cider vinegar). However, the heat starts to build on your tongue and I think it's perfect with pork. So, how's that pork looking one hour later?
You can see that the fat is starting to drip and there is a crust forming. There is no need to move the meat.
Craig adds a few more briquettes, and some chips and covers the meat again. This goes on every hour, by the way.
Three hours later... the smell is making us crazy with wanting to taste this.
I've made Creamy Cole Slaw (recipe will be coming on the next post)...
The moment of truth... Grillmaster "Craig" removes the pork 4 1/2 hours later...
Craig puts on protective gloves and pulls... it's hot!
See that red? That's from the smoke. The pork is very crusty on the outside...
Craig prefers using two forks to pull the pork... it's incredibly moist. That fat on the bottom is crunchy... it's full of flavor.
Craig and I are so pleased with the results. We are so ready to enjoy the pork. I already know I must make this again... soon...
I eat mine with pork, slaw and sauce. Craig likes his slaw on the side. It doesn't matter. It's just plain good-- off the hook good! Whether you make just the pork...or just the barbecue sauce... or both-- I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do. If you don't own a Weber, you can use the oven. My next attempt will be to make brisket, using this same technique. It so works!
All of these recipes are at the very bottom of this post. I'm so happy that Monterey, California is finally seeing sunshine and warmer weather. I feel for those of you who are living in sweltering heat. Come West! I do feel blessed.
I am very proud of my husband, who read the instructions and did a great job with the grill. See? Anyone can learn to cook!
had in this excellent cookbook that I bought a few years ago. This book gives step-by-step photos on how to grill just about anything. I asked Craig if he'd be willing to babysit the Weber grill, while I got busy making the cole slaw, barbecue sauce and rolls. Craig is a bit insecure about cooking, but he sat down and read the instructions on making North Carolina Style Pulled Pork (which uses more of a vinegar-based mop sauce. We prefer more of a tomato-based barbecue sauce, so I stuck with Emeril's recipe, but let this book show the two of us how to grill pulled pork. The process took about 4 hours, and I'm going to share with you how to prepare the grill, make the seasoning mix, the sauce and the end results. First, you need to make the rub:
works very well, with just a bit of newspaper at the bottom. Light the briquettes and these looks ready to go! Craig has soaked some cherry wood chips (we have different flavors). Craig placed two foil pans in middle of the grill. The coals are placed on one side of the Weber. 
