New Treats for the Grill

It's easy to get into a routine and eat the same foods each week. In the spirit of grilling diversity, we're trying to add new items to our stable of grill friendly meals. I've posted about grilled portobellos before - this post is more about what went with the grilled portobellos. I get a weekly email from Whole Foods and they always have interesting recipe ideas. The latest edition had a recipe for portobello and pineapple grilled veggie burgers. I printed out the recipe, miraculously found almost the ingredients in our pantry, and got to work! Our burgers were served without buns (I think they were better that way!)

The teriyaki sauce was really tasty. I'd put it up against any bottled sauce at the store. When you can control the amount of salt in your sauces they always taste much better. For an easy meal, I served this on a nice green salad with carrots and green onions. No need for dressing - I just drizzled a little extra teriyaki on it.

I'll write up the teriyaki sauce here. For the full recipe and instructions, click on the link above. I marinated the pineapples and portobellos for about 30 minutes before grilling (we wanted to eat before 10 p.m.). Throw them on the grill and within a short amount of time you are ready to eat. Drizzle with extra sauce and enjoy!

Quick Homemade Teriyaki Sauce (courtesy of Whole Foods' recipe, with a few tweaks)

Juice from 1 (20-ounce) can pineapple rings
3 tablespoons tamari (or soy sauce)
2 tablespoons brown sugar (I only had dark)
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon grated ginger
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil (I didn't have any, so I added some toasted sesame seeds instead)
Canola oil
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Put 3/4 cup of the pineapple juice (save remaining for another use), soy sauce, sugar, garlic, ginger and sesame oil into a small bowl and whisk together to make a marinade

After you put the mushrooms and pineapples on the grill, drain the leftover marinade into a small saucepan
Bring to a boil over medium high heat
In a small bowl, stir together water and cornstarch
Then whisk the cornstarch mixture into the marinade in the saucepan and boil until thickened, about 1-2 minutes
Pour into a serving bowl
Serve with cooked mushrooms and pineapple

Summary:
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: Sauce - 5 minutes; Full meal - 10-15 minutes
Mixing bowl, bowl to marinate, small saucepan, serving bowl, spoon, whisk

We had more than enough sauce for our dinner. I put the extra in the fridge to save for another use. The next night we grilled some mahi-mahi and the sauce was delicious on top. On the side I made some snap peas and red peppers on the grill. I wrapped the veggies in a foil pack and seasoned them with ground ginger, garlic powder, and a little sesame oil. They only need about 5 minutes on the grill and they come out cooked with a nice crunch.

Fresh from the Garden - Pesto with Roasted Garlic

Our new basil plant is growing like crazy! Catching up a post from last week, this is a delicious pesto with roasted garlic. I tossed in some sauteed chicken breast and whole-wheat rotini for a healthy meal.

For the basil, I kept the ingredients simple. Fresh basil leaves, roasted garlic, olive oil, toasted pine nuts, salt and pepper. Put all except oil in the blender/food processor. Blend, slowly adding the oil so it emulsifies (gets completely blended). Here's a tip on quick roasted garlic. For those of you in Boston - it comes out just like what you get at Vinny T's!

Quick Roasted Garlic
2-3 cloves of garlic, not peeled
Olive oil
Salt

Heat oven to 400 degrees
Put a piece of foil on a baking sheet
Put garlic cloves on the baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt
Cook for about 20 minutes, turning the cloves about halfway through

Peel and either enjoy with bread or add to your favorite recipe

Long Weekend...Time for Breakfast!

I've got a few posts to catch up on from the long weekend. While I'm busy working on those, here are a few ideas for your next weekend breakfast at home. Brew your favorite coffee, get the paper (or put on a good movie) and whip up one of these quick recipes! Cheaper and faster than your favorite diner.

Breakfast Idea #1 - Honey Nut Waffles with Banana

Waffle mix
1 to 1.5 tbsp. of honey (we keep Jiffy baking mix around the house)
2 tbsp. of chopped walnuts
1 tsp. vanilla (or vanilla extract)
A sprinkle of cinnamon
1 banana, peeled and sliced into quarter-sized rounds

Prepare your favorite waffle mix according to the directions on the box
Gently mix in the honey, walnuts, vanilla, and cinnamon
Preheat your waffle iron
Pour in about 1/4 cup of the waffle batter
Place 3-4 banana slice on top of the batter and close
Cook according to your waffle iron directions

Keep waffles in a 200 degree oven until you are done cooking all of the batter
Serve with honey or maple syrup

Makes 6-7 waffles depending on the size of your waffle iron. You can also make pancakes this way - just prepare your batter according to the pancake recipe on your mix.

Breakfast Idea #2 - Goat Cheese Omelet

I had some leftover goat cheese from the Farmer's Market on Friday. I decided to make a nice omelet and throw in the goat cheese. The trick to getting this nice and fluffy is to whisk the eggs really well, and then not to disturb them in the non-stick skillet. Just lift the edges and let the uncooked eggs run underneath. When it looks just about set, either flip it or use a large spatula to gently flip it over. Turn of the heat and top with the goat cheese. After about a minute, fold it in half and slide out onto your plate. Better (and less greasy) than any omelet you'll get at your favorite breakfast joint.