Juicy, Herb Grilled Chicken
Please excuse my alien looking lemon. Still working to master food photography with an iPhone. If there are any camera companies out there willing to sponsor my food blogging endeavor, email me. I’ll give you my home address and happily take any SLR off your hands. If there are any weird men (or women) out there who plan to pose as a camera company, I’ll still give you my address. Because, I won’t know otherwise.
I will let you know this right now though. I have been doing Jillian Michael’s Fast Fix Kickboxing for about 6 weeks now. So, yeah, you better think twice. I may not be a professional kickboxer yet, but don’t say you weren’t warned. Also, I’ve gone to four heated power yoga classes so far, so I’m totally fearless at this point. AND, I’m not afraid of not smelling good.
So crazy person, think twice.
Phew. Can’t be too careful, right?
I am really hoping that all these meat recipes aren’t driving away my vegetarian friends. I have lots of fun recipes in the works, most of them only deal with animal milk or eggs.
But today, we talk dead chicken.
Grilled chicken breasts are usually the worst. Dry, stringy and coated with barbecue sauce from the jar. Nothing to write home about.
I’m still cooking the hoodie-ha out of Adam Perry Lang’s Serious Barbecue book. This chicken however, came from one of Adam’s visits to Good Morning America. You’ll need to set aside at least an hour to let the chicken brine. If you skip this step, you should just sell your grill and start buying Marie Calendar’s frozen dinners, because your taste buds must not dormant.
Brining is where the magic happens. It’s Disneyland for meat. The husband is tired and our computer is in our bedroom. I’ve gotta let him hit the hay. Which, by the way, is so hard for me to not say like this…”Haaaay!” I’m off to catch up on my Once Upon a Time (Sundays, ABC, friends) and read Mindy Kaling’s tweets. Goodnight!
*First note, now that we are in full grilling mode, I’m going to create a BBQ section of Food It Forward to keep all the recipes together.
**Last note, we used rosemary instead of marjoram in our version.
- 6-8 9-oz. skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- For brine/marinade
- 3 tbsp granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp sea salt or kosher salt
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp freshly ground pepper
- 2 tbsp grated or finely chopped red onion
- ½ tbsp chopped scallions
- 1 bunch fresh marjoram
- 1 bunch fresh thyme
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 4 cups of cold water
- For baste/glaze
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp grated lemon zest
- 2 tbsp chopped scallions
- 1 bunch fresh thyme, leaves only
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 2 tbsp grated or finely chopped garlic
- 2 tbsp grated or finely chopped shallots or sweet white onion
- Combine all the brine/marinade ingredients in a large bowl or resealable plastic bag. Mix and crush the ingredients with your hands, directly or through then bag, squeezing them to release the maximum flavor.
- Put the chicken in the brine, transfer to the refrigerator, and brine for at least 1 hour, and up to 24 hours.
- Preheat the BBQ to medium-high. Drain the chicken and dry with paper towels.
- Glisten the breasts with canola oil.
- Put a griddle on the grill, add the 1 tbsp butter, and let it melt. Add the chicken to the griddle, smooth side down, and cook, turning once or twice, for about 6 minutes to set the protein.
- Meanwhile, combine the baste/glaze ingredients in a foil pan or heatproof pan, set it on the grill, and stir occasionally to melt the butter.
- Continue, to cook, moving the chicken back and forth between the grill and the baste/glaze pan, turning to coat it, until the chicken is cooked through. It should register 160 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer.
- Transfer to a platter or cutting board.
- Bring the remaining baste/glaze to a boil, and pour over the chicken.
Spareribs. Man Food Done Right.
When I titled this post Man Food Done Right, I wasn’t really talking about the sweet potatoes in the photo, those are mine. My husband prefers his potatoes white and completely lacking in nutrients.
Well, guess what? I have another ridiculously complicated BBQ recipe for you. Hurray! Isn’t that just what you wanted? I’ll take the liberty of answering that for you. Yes! It is. Once you’ve gone multi-step grilling, you’ll never go back to slapping Costco frozen patties on a grill. We all know that the number one no-no in grilling is doing that thing, that thing where you press on the burgers to get some of the juices going. If you don’t know that, now you do. If you don’t know that, you also need to start watching Food Network. Unless it’s Rachael Ray. So over her.
So, we didn’t actually complete this entire recipe. By saying “we”, I am being nice. I’m not going to finish this paragraph. It’s Friday and I’m not looking to rain on any wedded bliss just yet. That’s what Mondays are for.
The ribs still turned out amazing at 80% compliance, so I can only imagine what 100% may taste like!
Get the grill going this weekend, friends! Happy Friday!
- 4 racks pork spareribs, about 3 pounds each
- Mustard Moisturizer
- 1⁄4 cup prepared yellow mustard
- 1⁄4 cup water
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- Seasoning Blend
- 6 tablespoons mild chile powder, preferably Chimayo, Ancho, or Hatch
- 3 tablespoons sweet paprika 3 tablespoons firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 11⁄2 teaspoons dry mustard
- 21⁄4 teaspoons garlic salt
- 21⁄4 teaspoons kosher salt
- 21⁄4 teaspoons coarsely ground fresh black pepper
- 3⁄4 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
- About 1 cup Apple Juice Spray
- Wrapping Mixture
- 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup honey 1⁄4 cup apple juice
- BBQ Sauce
- 1 cup APL BBQ Sauce, or your favorite BBQ sauce
- 1⁄4 cup water
- Preheat an indirect barbecue with a drip pan and fruitwood (preferably apple), a ceramic cooker with deflector plate and fruitwood (preferably apple), or a charcoal or gas grill with a box or packet of fruitwood (preferably apple) to 250°F.
- Combine all of the mustard moisturizer ingredients. Combine all of the seasoning blend ingredients. Rub a thin layer of the moisturizer on all sides of the racks and lightly sprinkle with the seasoning blend on all sides. The remaining seasoning blend will be used later in the cooking.
- Cooking Method
- If using a ceramic cooker, place the ribs an inch apart on a rib rack. They might need to be trimmed to fit the cooking surface so that the lid can close. If using a larger indirect or direct barbecue, no additional trimming is necessary. Place the ribs in the cooker, spraying with the apple juice spray every half hour after 2 hours of cooking. Cook for 4 hours.
- Meanwhile, combine the wrapping mixture ingredients.
- Tear off 8 sheets of heavy- duty aluminum foil. Working with 2 sheets of foil at a time, place a quarter of the wrapping mixture on the foil, top with a rack of ribs, meat side down, and wrap in the foil, crimping to seal. Wrap with the second sheet of foil. Repeat for the remaining 3 racks of ribs. If using a ceramic cooker, stack the packets on top of each other. If using a smoker, place the ribs on sheet pans for easier movement. Place the packets back in the cooker, meat side down, and cook for 11⁄2 hours, flipping halfway through.
- Remove the racks from the cooker and let the ribs rest in the foil packets for 20 minutes.
- Remove the ribs from the foil and dust lightly on both sides with additional seasoning blend. Place back in the cooker, meat side up, for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine the BBQ sauce and water.
- Remove the ribs from the cooker and brush with an even, but not too thick, layer of sauce. Place back in the cooker, meat side up, for 25 minutes to tighten up the glaze.
- Paint a cutting board with some of the remaining sauce.
- Remove the ribs from the cooker and place on the prepared cutting board, adding additional sauce as needed to cover, but not excessively coat. Spray twice with apple juice spray. Cut the ribs from the racks and dredge to coat the exposed sides with the remaining BBQ sauce.
- © 2009 APL Creative Inc from Serious Barbecue
Iced Mint Coffee
This morning, one of my college roommates posted on Facebook and mentioned Philz Iced Mint Mojito. This was not been the first time she mentioned drinking this style of iced coffee, but it most certainly was the last I could stand reading about it. I wanted one!
Jy is off from work today and offered me time away from the kids, so I could be able to drive and pick up my own coffee at the nearest Philz…28 miles away. If it was a straight shot into Berkeley, I would have gone. Between limited parking, afternoon traffic and a bit of laziness, I opted out.
Doesn’t mean I couldn’t try making my own, right?
I added some sprigs of mint to my spice grinder and loaded my glasses up with mint bits. You can use a pestal, or if you are half Meh-hee-cano like me, a moljacete. However you choose to smash your mint is your own personal beezwax.
There are two ways I currently and yes, snobbishly prefer my coffee. Numero uno is Armenian/Turkish/Greek/Middle Eastern style. The second is through a French Press.
For this drink, a press works perfectly. In addition to filling the bottom of the jar with ground beans, I included a hefty spoonful of coconut sugar. White tastes better, but coconut is less processed. Whatchoo gonna do?
This will be an amazing summer drink, friends. It’s over 80 degrees here today and I’m pretending it is June. Summer. Ahh. Swimming, more grilling, flip-flops, late night walks, day trips, beaches, kids home all day with me.
WHOAH. Reel that back in, sista. Let’s enjoy April while we can. Summer camps are pricey and I don’t have a job.
- strongly brewed coffee
- fresh mint
- sugar to taste
- cream to taste
- brew coffee extra strong – adding sugar to ground beans if desired
- crush mint leaves in glass
- fill glass with extra ice
- slowly pour coffee over mint/ice
- add sugar and cream as desired
Flour Tortillas
I have wanted to learn to make tortillas for as long as I can remember. My Great-Grandma (Nana) would roll out little Mexican slices of heaven all the time. Store bought tortillas can’t touch homemade with a ten foot rolling pin. They are two totally different beasts.
Here are the ingredients in Mission tortillas, the most popular brand around my neck of the woods.
Enriched Bleached Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Vegetable Shortening (Interesterified Soybean Oil, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil and/or Palm Oil), contains 2% or less of: Sugar, Salt, Leavening (Sodium Bicarbonate, Sodium Aluminum Sulfate, Corn Starch, Monocalcium Phosphate and/or Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Calcium Sulfate), Distilled Monoglycerides, Enzymes, Wheat Starch, Calcium Carbonate, Antioxidants (Tocopherols, Ascorbic Acid, Citric Acid), Cellulose Gum, Guar Gum, Calcium Propionate and Sorbic Acid (to preserve freshness), Dough Conditioners (Fumaric Acid, Sodium Metabisulfite and/or Mono- and Diglycerides).
Here are the ingredients in homemade flour tortillas.
- Flour
- NON-hydrogenated shortening (more on this in a second)
- water
- salt
What would you rather eat? Here’s the other fun part, homemade tortillas will cost you around $1.50 per dozen to make. When was the last time you bought a package of tortillas for $1.50?!
This is the shortening I used. There is only one ingredient, 100% palm oil. It’s not something you want to eat with a spoon, but it is light years beyond regular shortening. Honestly, if you want an even healthier tortilla, I would use lard. The real deal. There are plenty of resources out there that detail the benefits of using lard over butter or shortening. Pete Wells wrote a great article for Food & Wine if you are interested.
Here, by the way, is what is in Crisco:
SOYBEAN OIL, FULLY HYDROGENATED PALM OIL, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED PALM AND SOYBEAN OILS, MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, TBHQ AND CITRIC ACID (ANTIOXIDANTS).
Anything in your kitchen that is labeled with the words, “Partially Hydrogenated”, you want to toss in the trash. It doesn’t matter how much it cost you. When an oil in your food is partially hydrogenated, it has gone through a process which has changed its molecular structure and won’t be fully recognized by your body. It’s closer to a plastic in structure than oil. Hydrogenating oils helps keep a food product on the shelf longer. You know what else it does? It also scars the internal walls of your arteries.
So, go to a health food store and buy the shortening you see above, or get your self some good, clean animal fat. If you are a total nerd and want to learn more about lard, you might enjoy “Who Killed Lard” on NPR’s website.
Because you have read through all the boring stuff, I would like to reward you with some funnies. If you skipped down to this line, then you can’t see the funnies. Close your eyes and skip to the recipe, cheater.
- 12 oz. (2¾ cup) all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup non-hydrogenated shortening
- ¾ cup hot water
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- Instructions adapted from Rick Bayless
- Combine the flour, baking powder and fat in a large mixing bowl, working in the fat with your fingers, until completely incorporated. Dissolve the salt in the water, pour it over the dry ingredients and immediately work it in with a fork; the dough will be in large clumps. Scoop the dough onto your work surface and knead until smooth. It should be medium-stiff consistency — definitely not firm, but not quite as soft as most bread dough either.
- Divide the dough into 12 portions and roll each into a ball
- Roll and griddle-bake the tortillas. Heat an ungreased griddle or heavy skillet over medium to medium-high heat.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out a portion of the dough into an even 7-inch circle: Flatten a ball of dough, flour it, then roll forward and back across it; rotate a sixth of a turn and roll forward and back again; continue rotating and rolling until you reach a 7-inch circle, lightly flouring the tortilla and work surface from time to time.
- Lay the tortilla on the hot griddle (you should hear a faint sizzle and see an almost immediate bubbling across the surface). After 30 to 45 seconds, when there are browned splotches underneath, flip it over. Bake 30 to 45 seconds more, until the other side is browned; don’t overbake the tortilla or it will become crisp. Remove and wrap in a cloth napkin placed in a tortilla warmer. Roll and griddle-bake the remaining tortillas in the same manner and stacking them one on top of the other
Real Ranch Dressing – How I Got My Kid to Eat Salad
I got my kid to eat salad.
He called it scrumptious. He asked if he could have it for snack at school the next day. He was not drunk.
I am forever making my own salad dressing. It turns out to be just that, my own. My husband tolerates it and my kids won’t touch it. They all want ranch. They don’t want the greek yogurt ranch I keep trying to pull on them either. They want the bottled stuff, chemicals, gunk and all. It’s too bad they don’t do the shopping though.
—Insert evil laugh here—
This week however, the bottle has met it’s match. I pulled out my trusty Mom 100 Cookbook and found the best ever ranch recipe. No, like…ever. Like Taylor Swift ever…ever…ever. I’ve tried many dressings found via Pinterest and none come close. Ok, one caveat here. I didn’t have any sour cream on hand, so I used a full-fat plain yogurt.
Yes, I keep the whole milk variety of yogurt in my fridge.
There are fewer chemicals and no tang. It’s pure love. Sometimes, I even spend two bucks on a container of Noosa yoghurt.
Yeah, that stuff. It’s probably more like $2.79 and it’s a total special treat. It’s so fancy it needs an h. As in, yoghurt. Yeah, I know where the hurt is Noosa, it’s in my wallet.
I bought three today, thinking my kids would then love me forever. Max devoured most of it, the rest landed on the chair and his shirt. Dallas however (who was the one to ask me for his own in the past) decided he didn’t like the cover. He didn’t want it. Of course I had brought it to him after school and before we were going to spend the entire afternoon running errands. The poor ice pack didn’t stand a chance. Right now there is $2.79 worth of yogHurt in my trunk, dying a slow death.
I swear, my son is so lucky that…I don’t know how to finish that sentence. Let’s just say in my mom’s day, she would have had a slipper thrown at her.
- ⅔c buttermilk
- ½c mayonnaise
- ½c sour cream
- 1Tbs white wine vinegar
- 1Tbsp chopped fresh italian flat leaf parsley
- 1tsp Dijon mustard
- ¾tsp finely minced garlic or garlic powder
- ½tsp dried dill
- ½tsp dried thyme
- ⅛tsp sweet paprika
- salt and pepper
- Place the buttermilk, mayo, sour cream, vinegar, parsley, mustard, garlic, dill, thyme, and paprika in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Lower Fat Version: Sub ½c 1% greek yogurt for the sour cream
- Ranch Dip for Veggies: Reduce the buttermilk to ½c and increase both the mayo and sour cream to ⅔c each.
Apple Date Snack Bars
Don’t these snack bars look yummy? Have you noticed the influx of fake homemade style snacks in the granola bar section of stores? I have! These are so simple and quick, you’ll have no reason to buy the prepackaged variety. I found the recipe in my Whole Foods app and was really surprised just how yummy they turned out. I think experimenting with whole wheat and gluten free flours would be pretty fun.
- 5 Tablespoons butter
- ⅔ cup brown sugar
- 3 Tablespoons 2% milk
- ¾ teaspoons baking soda
- 1⅓ cup all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ cup walnut pieces
- ½ cup dried dates, pitted and chopped
- ½ cup apples, peeled and chopped
- 1 large egg
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 12 X 9 inch pan
- Cream the butter and brown sugar. Mix in the egg and milk. Stir in the apples.
- Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, mix thoroughly. Stir in the nuts and dates.
- Spread dough into greased pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before cutting into 2-inch square bars.
We enjoyed our Easter weekend and hope you did too, whether or not you celebrate. The kids are on a serious sugar come-down and these bars have been a sneaky way to help pull them out.
It feels strange to write so many posts that are just straight up about yummy food. What happened to the laughs of yore? I’ll tell you.
- Last week was Spring Break and having kids full time made me remember why I like coffee and date nights.
- I’ve been reformatting and working this blog and it has kind of killed all the humor in my brain.
- I’m so annoyed at Target for lowering their selection in almost all departments.
- The grumps have taken me over this morning after reading annoying Facebook posts.
- Basically all the first world problems you can think of that totally don’t matter are bothering me this morning.
Now that I am thinking about it, I know what’s up!!!!
I have been drinking tea instead of coffee the past two days. Here is how I just cheered myself up, I suggest you do the same!
Spice-Crusted Thick Rib Pork Chops
What’s that you say? You would like another complicated grilling recipe for the files? Sure! Let’s do it!
This dinner came to be for two reasons. The first, I have this amazing book I checked out from the library. I’ve put it up in my Amazon store in case you aren’t a library hound too. It’s Adam Perry Lang’s Serious Barbecue. There were, of course, multiple Bobby Flay books on the library shelf. What made me check this fat book out instead, was the review from Jamie Oliver.
Adam is the most inspiring barbecue chef in the world. – Jamie Oliver
Uh…ok. Sold!
I am so mad at myself for not taking a photo of my favorite part of this recipe. While grilling, you brush melted butter on to these pork chops with an herb brush. To create a brush, you wrap sprigs of thyme to a wooden spoon or dowel with twine. How fun is that! I promise to photograph the next fancy-pants herb brush!
The second reason we made this chops for dinner was because I’m so chickened and beefed out! Sometimes walking through the meat section of the grocery store just starts to ick me out. Hmm, which dead animal am I hungry for today? I usually walk away from the pork section, because I was once told that pigs are as smart as 3 year-old humans. How sad is that? Wilbur, Babe, those smart three little house-building pigs! Alas, I pulled the trigger and bought us some intelligent meat.
Usually pork is dry, dry, dry. These fat pork chops are wonderful and it’s mostly because of the brine. I’ve brined poultry before, why hadn’t I thought of brining pork? I only had 7 hours to let my chops soak, so I can only imagine how much more juicy they would be, had I let them soak for the suggested 12-24 hours.
Before sharing the recipe, I thought I’d break up all the text with a photo of Max. He was so proud to be allowed to use a knife for buttering his bread. We are on Spring Break here and I took the boys out to The Cheesecake Factory for lunch. Dallas wanted to know what the white things were. After explaining that they were cloth napkins, Dallas let me know that we were at a really fancy restaurant and he felt like Sofia the First.
- For the brine:
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons boiling water
- 4 cups apple cider
- 2 cups cool water
- ¼ cup kosher salt
- ¼ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- Six 1½-inch-thick pork rib chops (8 to 10 ounces each)
- For the seasoning blend:
- 2 tablespoons mild chili powder
- 2 tablespoons mustard powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic salt
- 1 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- For the dressing:
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 3 tablespoons coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 medium shallot, peeled and finely grated
- 1 small garlic clove, minced
- ¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 bunch thyme sprigs, tied together in a bundle
- Fleur de sel or kosher salt
- Finely ground black pepper
- In a large bowl, combine the red pepper flakes and boiling water. Let sit for 1 to 2 minutes to rehydrate the flakes. Add the cider, cool water, salt, brown sugar and garlic. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.
- Place the chops in an extra-large food-grade zip-close plastic bag (or divide between 2 large bags). Pour the brine over the chops, squeeze out any excess air, then seal the bag and refrigerate for at least 12 hours, or up to 1 day.
- When ready to cook, heat one grate of a well-oiled charcoal or gas grill to medium-high and the other to medium-low.
- To make the seasoning blend, in a small bowl mix together the chili powder, mustard powder, garlic salt, black pepper and cayenne. Set aside.
- To make the dressing, in a jar with a tight-fitting lid, combine the olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, honey, shallot and garlic. Shake well, then set aside.
- Remove the pork chops from the brine, letting any excess brine remain in the bag. Discard brine. Lightly pat dry the chops with paper towels. Sprinkle the seasoning blend evenly on all sides of the chops.Using your hands or a brush, evenly but lightly coat the chops with the canola oil.
- Place the chops on the medium-high grate, and grill with the lid open until they are well marked and lightly charred, about 3 minutes. Flip, still over medium-high, to a clean part of the grate, then grill with the lid open for another 3 minutes.
- Brush the chops with butter using the thyme bundle. Move to the medium-low grate and close the lid. Open the lid every few minutes, turning and moving the chops as needed.
- Cook until the desired doneness.
- Give the dressing a quick shake and drizzle about half on a clean plate or cutting board. Top with the chops and let rest for about 5 minutes.
- Cut the chops to separate the meat from the bone and slice the meat on a diagonal into ¼-inch slices, drizzling with the remaining dressing, and making sure all slices are coated. Sprinkle with fleur de sel and pepper.
Coffee – The Old Way
Just when I thought it had all been done, I learned about old school coffee. What you are looking at above is Armenian coffee. What makes it Armenian? It was made in a Jazzve, given to me by Lisa. Now, I know what you are thinking….
You KNOW Lisa Whelchel?
No, I don’t. Plus, I’m pretty sure she isn’t Armenian. I tried Googling her nationality and it turns out…she’s, American. Uh, ok. She doesn’t look Native, but whatevs.
I’m talking about the Lisa that I always talk about. You can read more about my wild, stripper-pal Lisa in the following posts. Fine, she’s not a stripper.
Lisa gave me a jazzve. Doesn’t that sound like a band name? You can read more about Jazzve’s at The Armenian Observer. Don’t everyone run over there at once, ok?
If you want the short answer, a jazzve is the most awesome little coffee pot that looks like it should hold creamer. It’s sturdy, it comes in all sizes and it makes coffee smooth and strong enough to kill.
Jazzve’s and all other coffee making pots of this sort are said to work better on gas stoves. But like they say in Kindergarten, “You get what you get, and you don’t throw a fit.”
You know what else they say?
First is worst. Second is best. Third is the one with the treasure chest. Fourth is the one with the hairy chest. Fifth is the one with the Barbie dress.
That’s changed since I was in school. I’m happy to see the word “turd” removed from the rhyme. Way to keep it classy 5 year olds!
Anyway, Lisa says that everyone argues over who created this way of coffee brewing first. I had seen a great Greek Coffee making video on YouTube and apparently, Turkish folks like to call it their own as well. All I can add is, I wish I invented it. It’s awesome!
Here’s what you’ll need to do, once you get your hands on a jazzve. (You can find a link in my amazon store!) You’ll want to use the smallest mugs you have and ideally end up using demitasse cups. (Again, check my amazon store)
- finely ground coffee
- sugar
- water
- Add 4 ounces of water for every cup you plan to brew, to the pot
- Add 1 heaping teaspoon (use your silverware, not a measuring spoon) for each 4 ounces of water you have added
- If you desire a sweetened coffee, add 1 teaspoon of sugar per 4 ounces of water
- Place your pot over a hot burner and wait a few seconds before stirring the contents
- Put the spoon down!
- Don’t walk away! Wait until you see little baby bubbles forming around the edges of the pot.
- As bubbles form, lift the pot from the heat to settle and then lower back down onto the heat again.
- Repeat until there is a nice set of foamy bubbles covering the coffee. The pot can QUICKLY bubble over, so be careful!
- Gently pour each cup full of coffee and get set for heaven.
Honey Garlic Glazed Tri-Tip
Are you searching for one of those recipes? You know, one of those, it’s gonna take up my whole day shopping and prepping type? One of those that turns your Sunday into a culinary adventure?
I’m gonna stop sugar-coating it and get real.
This recipe is a pain in the butt.
Aren’t the best ones always the biggest hassle-makers, though?
Now that we have our gifted Weber up and running (thanks again McCords!), we are officially opening our family’s grill for the season. I picked two cookbooks up at the library, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution (which I have checked out at least six times now) and Adam Perry Lang’s Serious Barbecue. I’ve mentioned before how Food Revolution is my favorite cookbook, I need to just break down and spend the money on my own copy already! Then again, garage sale season is creeping near and the library always has at least one on hand.
So yes, back to the pain in the bootay tri-tip recipe. It will blow your minds, friends. Tri-tip is tasty on it’s own, we know this. With the ridiculously elaborate four steps of Adam Perry Lang, it changes from tasty to “You better call your mom and tell her you love her, it’s so good you just might die,” delicious.
Check this out, you rub down the meat with a paste, then you season with a rub, then you oil it down. NOW you can finally start grilling, then you’ll be glazing each side before you lie the meat down in it’s fourth set of flavors on the cutting board. Not one step is overkill either. They all work so well together. And what do you think about the last step, the final dressing step? I have never thought of creating a dressing on a cutting board for my meat to lay on. Genius!
You are going to want to print this out and have it ready for summer, take my word!
- Flavor Paste:
- ¼ cup chile powder
- 1 T. Worcestershire
- 1 T. soy sauce
- 1 T. beef base, such as Better than Boullian
- 2 tri-tip steaks, 2-3 pounds each
- Seasoning Blend
- 1 T. garlic salt
- 1 T. lemon pepper
- 1 T. ground black pepper
- 1 t. cayenne pepper
- Honey Garlic Glaze
- 2 T. apple cider vinegar
- 1 t. crushed hot red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup apple juice
- ½ cup honey
- 1 T. Worcestershire
- 5 garlic cloves, peeled, halved and grated
- 4 T. unsalted butter
- ¼ cup canola or vegetable oil
- Finishing Dressing
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 T. finely chopped lemon zest
- 1 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice
- ¼ cup finely chopped chives
- salt
- Preheat one grate of a well-oiled charcoal or gas grill to high and another to low. Stir the flavor paste ingredients together and spread on all sides of the trip-tips. Combine all of the seasoning blend ingredients.
- Combine the vinegar and pepper flakes for the glaze in a container with a tight-fitting lid and let sit for 1-2 minutes for the flavors to develop. Add the apple juice,honey, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic to the container. Melt the butter and pour over the top. Shake to combine the glaze ingredients and set aside.
- Sprinkle the seasoning blend evenly on all sides of the tri-tips. Using your hands or a brush, evenly, but lightly, coat the tri-tips with canola oil.
- Place the tri-tips on the high temperature grate, keep the lid open, and do not move them until they are well marked and have a light char, 2-3 minutes. Flip, keep the lid open, and repeat on the second side. Move the meat to the low temperature grate, close the lid, and cook for 10 minutes.
- Give the glaze a quick shake and then brush the meat. Continue to brush with the glaze until desired doneness. 6 minutes for rare, 7 minutes for medium, and 9 minutes for well-done.
- Drizzle the olive oil on a cutting board. Add the zest, juice, chives, and fleur de sel. Top with the meat and let rest for 5 minutes. Slice the meat, against the grain, into ¼ inch slices, dredging them in the dressing.
I can’t wait to share with you my new favorite beverage that should be outlawed. Don’t worry, it’s just coffee, but it is an eye-twitch inducing mug of yum!
Lemon Vanilla Sugar Cookies
For all you baking volunteers out there, I have found the best sugar cookie recipe! I’ve been on my church’s baker list for a number of years now, which means I’ll get an email a few times a year, asking for some baked goods to be donated. I’ve made butter cookies in the past, but wanted something new for this go around. Whenever I need a no-fail recipe, I usually search through The Pioneer Woman’s site. While this is not a PW recipe, it came highly recommended by her, which was good enough for me!
I have made the original version of these cookies, which are vanilla-almond flavor and they turned out just as well. I’m sure you could have a great time playing around with different extracts. Lemon seemed to be a perfect touch for my Palm Sunday donation to church.
If you are looking to make some frosting or icing, royal or buttercream, I have a suggestion for you. Rather than killing yourself with those four bottles of food coloring that come in the McCormick box, head over to a craft or baking store. The Wilton icing colors are amazing. If you want violet, you add a drop of violet. You aren’t adding two drops of red, then one of blue, then wait, two more blue, then “Oh no”, maybe orange? Check out how much easier life can be…
- 3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 sticks (salted) butter, cold & cut into chunks (I use a grater for mine)
- 1 egg
- ¾ tsp pure vanilla extract
- ½ tsp lemon extract
- Preheat oven to 350.
- Combine the flour and baking powder, set aside. Cream the sugar and butter. Add the egg and extracts and mix. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat just until combined, scraping down the bowl, especially the bottom.
- The dough will be crumbly, so knead it together with your hands as you scoop it out of the bowl for rolling
- Roll on a floured surface to about ¼″ to 3/8″ thick, and cut into shapes. (Bridget suggests freezing them for 5 minutes, which I found to be helpful)
- Bake 10-12 minutes.
Hopefully you are enjoying your Saturday and not spending it running errands! Kim
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