Welcome to Bobby Flay Everyday!

I am not an expert. I have never even taken a class. I have no formal training - but I love to grill. I love the food off the grill and I just like the idea, the fun and the relaxation of grilling. So naturally Bobby Flay is a hero. I have his books, I watch his shows and I try out his recipes. So my idea is to grill one of Bobby's grilling recommendations everyday and see how it goes. Bobby Flay Everyday!

The idea to grill and blog is not original. Julie Powell wrote a blog that became a book and then a movie when she cooked all 524 recipes from Julia Child's cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking. But this is not French Cooking - this is backyard, after work, tailgate, American male grilling. I grill outside in a man-cave in every kind of weather. There is no "grilling season" for me - its everyday, year-round. We will skip around through Bobby's books and TV shows and grill what we like. But grilling is more than food, its an experience - so we will also report on what music we listened to or what ball game was on while we were grilling. We will keep track of what we were drinking during the grilling and later with the food. I'll try to figure what went wrong when we fall short of Bobby's perfection and pass on any tips I know about or discover along the way. Maybe it will give others some ideas as well.

The photo is of me and two of my brother-in-laws roasting the Thanksgiving turkey on the grill last year. That's me on the far right. In real life I am a college professor and pilot. I have written 12 books, but they were all about flying - here we write about grilling. We write about Bobby Flay Everyday!

Sunday, January 31, 2010

San Francisco

Baking flatbread (pizza) on the grill is something I probably would not thought of on my own, but I must say it does work. This is Grilled Flatbread with Garlic-Rubbed Filet of Beef, White Bean Puree, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes from Boy Meets Grill page 34. I did use store-bought pizza dough, but Bobby gives us permission to do this on page 31, "If you are really pressed for time, you can even make these breads with purchased pizza dough." But the recipe to make your own dough is also in this book. Store-bought or not the crust turned out great. I rolled out the dough over the baking sheet with some non-stick butter spray underneath. I had the grill turned up about half way and as the dough began to bake it formed golden, odd shaped edges. I prepared everything is stages. I grilled the beef first after letting it set in a glaze of garlic and olive oil. I also roasted shallots, which I had never done before. After the steak came off the grill, I let it rest several minutes and then sliced it into thin strips. I did the same with the shallots when they were cool enough to handle. We did not have sun-dried tomatoes on hand, so we scraped the ice off the 4WD Jeep and made it to the store and back in the snow. The sun-dried tomatoes, shallots, steak strips went into a bowl with balsamic vinegar, and honey and mixed together. The steak was great, the tomatoes were great, the pizza crust was great - but I must admit that the White Bean Puree was not our favorite. It became a paste of white beans, garlic, thyme and lemon juice when mixed together in a processor. When the flatbread was on the grill and the crust about half baked, I spread the white bean puree like you would tomato based pizza sauce. Then over that came the steak, sun-dried and shallot mixture as the crust finished baking. I think the next time I do this, I will use a tomato base.

The weather did present me with a challenge before I got started. The grill was completely covered in ice. I pried the grill cover up with no problem, but the gas burner knobs were frozen stuck.
   
I could not get the knobs to turn, so I could not turn on the gas. I had to be resourceful, so I used about half a can of windshield deicer that I found in the garage and sprayed it around the knobs. It worked, but I'm pretty sure windshield deicer is toxic so I kept the grill hood down and hoped for the best. With the knobs free, the grill roared to life - and we didn't die from the deicer. 

What to Drink?  Guenoc's Victorian Claret from California's northern coast. Guenoc Valley is north of San Francisco, past Napa, beyond Calistoga - but worth the drive. Claret is like Cabernet, but deeper in color and bigger in flavor. This one was no exception. It's color was past red, past ruby. It was garnet and great. The wine from Northern California called for some music from there as well...

What was on? Dorothy downloaded a new playlist for me that she thought I would like. I did. It was Train. Train is a folk-rock band from San Francisco and the download we listened to was their fifth album which is titled Save Me San Francisco. Check them out at: http://www.trainline.com/us/home
Dorothy was right, this is great music and since I have been saved by San Francisco a few times myself, I was very grateful she picked it. I spent several 1970s summers in San Francisco. My father was offered a chance to teach at a seminary in the Bay Area, so we all just loaded up the Kingswood Estate Station Wagon and drove west. That time and that place had a big impact on us all. San Francisco has a way of accepting all comers. The city doesn't seem to have any sense of what normal is supposed to be. You can be freaky or straight-laced and the city doesn't seem to care. The city just moves on with no judgement. Who you are is good enough in San Francisco. While we were there we learned to accept and then embrace this new normal. We would go to the city and plunge into the crowd. One time as we were surrounded by hippies, tourists, gays, straights, street musicians, street ministers, street vendors and you name it, my father said "we are out here amongst 'em!" I think he meant that we were with people not exactly like us, but wasn't it cool. That was a good lesson for a teenager to learn. Years later I had two students, Sasha and Lance who were not what you would expect. Sasha and Lance never met, they were about ten years and two colleges apart. In my work, I teach airline pilots and airline pilots are supposed to have a certain look about them - clean cut, competent, confident. The look that should put passengers at ease. Sasha and Lance did not fit the mold. These guys were long-haired, bearded, blue jean wearing rebels. If you saw these guys board your airplane you would think they were off to a Woodstock reunion, and you probably would get off the airplane if you saw them enter the cockpit. But these guys didn't want to be anybody's airline pilot. They wanted something different and they worked just as hard to get what they wanted as any pilot bound for the airlines ever did. Today, Lance flies as co-pilot on the Hemisphere Dancer. That is Jimmy Buffett's airplane. That is right, long-haired Lance landed his perfect job. He flies around the Caribbean in a seaplane landing at mythical Margaritaville every night. Sasha runs his own flight school outside Denver, Colorado now. He is married, has kids, and is a business man -  more respectable than he ever figured he would be. I spoke at a conference in Denver a couple of years ago and Sasha showed up, eventually giving me a ride back to the airport. We sat in the airport bar before my flight was called and he said, I want to thank you for giving me a chance all those years ago. I didn't know what he meant really. He said, "a lot of other people saw me and saw a misfit, but you didn't treat me any differently than those 'normal' students. You let me be me." It was probably a lesson I learned in San Francisco. When we were "out there amongst 'em!"
Paul

And speaking of Margaritaville....


This is making the best of a snowy situation!

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Powerful Pasta

From Bobby Flay's television show Grill It! this is Italian Spiced Chicken with Dorothy's special pasta, gravy and shaved Parmesan. There is simply nothing better than Dorothy's pasta and gravy. I grew up calling it sauce, but don't call this tomato sauce - its gravy! The actual ingredients are a closely guarded family secret handed down through Dorothy's grandmother from Naples, Italy. The first time she made it for me - I was in love - and the pasta wasn't bad either. Once my sister, Suzanne, came over and asked Dorothy to show her how to make her Baked Ziti with the secret gravy. They spent most of an afternoon with Suzanne taking careful notes. With this new knowledge, Suzanne prepared the meal for a new boyfriend that she was trying to impress. It worked. Alan and Suzanne have been married twenty years now. I am telling you that this is some powerful pasta and this time it was a perfect match to the spices on the chicken of rosemary, oregano, basil, salt and ground black pepper. 


YouTube. Watch the first video introduction to Bobby Flay Everyday now on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqziQ7h42zo

Dessert? When I was outside chipping ice of the grill, Dorothy baked triple chocolate cookie bars.
 Weather Report.
It was snow all afternoon and sleet all night. We lost electric power for about two hours, but that did not stop the grill fires from burning! The best thing to do is stay in and grill it!

What to drink? Just as the snow storm began to hit, we made a dash over to Tim's Premium Wine and Spirits for a wine pairing. Tim gave this some thought. Ordinarily with Italian gravy you would want a really strong wine - Zinfandel or Syrah. But we were also having chicken, so he came up with a great compromise. The Francis Ford Coppola Pinot Noir. You must be careful with Pinot Noir. I said in a previous blog that I would not trust a $12 Pinot because the cheaper ones are thin and look like rusty water. In this situation, you do get what you pay for. The Coppola was about $20 and it came through. We visited the Coppola winery several years ago in Napa Valley. Yes, this is the same Francis Ford Coppola who is the movie director, most notably the Godfather. The winery was once the Inglenook Chateau but now is know as Rubicon Estate http://www.rubiconestate.com/flash.php. Downstairs is the tasting rooms, but we also wandered up the main staircase to the second floor and made a discovery. All the Academy Awards that Coppola won for the Godfather (one, two and three) are on display at the winery and so is the set of Vito Corleone's office. You have seen that office. The very first scene of the first move is in that office. I sat behind The Godfather's desk and said "why do you disrespect me in this way? I must make you an offer that you can't refuse." Then we tasted the wine. Both the wine and my performance were Oscar worthy.


What was on? Snow Patrol, what else? We saw Snow Patrol in concert last summer as the lead act with Coldplay. Usually you don't pay much attention to the warm-up band, but they were really good and should have someone else warming them up soon. They are a rock band, but the music is not overpowering to the point that you miss the message. There is a record snow fall outside my door. We need a Snow Patrol today so check them out at http://www.snowpatrol.com/
After dinner, and with the last of the Coppola, we watched - The Godfather - again. Dorothy interprets the customs in the movie for me. But there is one thing about the movie that is a little unsettling. Its a story of a family of Italian brothers and a sister. In the end its the brother-in-law that gets whacked. I'm the brother-in-law with Dorothy's Italian brothers - is it a coincidence that the Godfather is one of her favorite movies? 
Thank goodness for a hot grill on an icy day. 
"Leave the gun. Take the Canoli" 
Paulie

Friday, January 29, 2010

Dr. Wine

This is Grilled Cheese Quesadillas with Roasted Red Peppers and Yellow Tomato-Thyme Salsa from Boy Gets Grill page 52. We actually used Red, Yellow and Orange Peppers, because they were on sale for 10 for $10. But the real surprise turned out to be that Yellow-Thyme Salsa. To be honest, I really never heard of yellow tomatoes before, but when I looked in the supermarket - there they were. Bobby said that yellow tomatoes would be sweeter than regular red and he was right. It was almost like fruit. I grilled up the peppers in a grill basket using olive oil, salt and ground black pepper. I toasted the tortillas on the grill with a little butter spray then layered on the cheeses - Monterey Jack, Mozzarella and Parmesan. Before the cheese completely melted I piled on the roasted peppers. The photo shows it open face with some sliced tomatoes and fresh Mozzarella on the side. Dorothy added a top tortilla and sliced it into triangles, I scooped the yellow salsa on top and rolled it over like a burrito. This was a great flavor blend with hot and cool all at once. 

Several weeks ago I flew from Murfreesboro down to Sewanee, Tennessee and took that occasion to fly over the Monteagle Winery. The winery is located just off Interstate 24 up on a mountain ridge that sits about 1,000 feet higher than the surrounding area. 
The winery was brought back to life by a friend of mine, Dr. Tony Johnston. It is winter time so the grapevines have no leaves, but if you look carefully you will see the horizontal rows of vine trellis. Dorothy and I helped plant some of those grapevines! Tony earned his doctors degree from the University of Arkansas in Enology. Enology is the science and study of all aspects of wine. That's right he has a Ph.D in wine! Several blogs ago, I said that 95% of what I know about wine came from three people - Tony is one of those three and how cool is it to have a friend who is a Doctor of Wine? 
 
Dr. Tony Johnston, PhD. aka Dr. Wine


Last year we joined about a dozen other eager wine tasters at Tony's home to help him conduct some "wine research." But this was no joke. Tony told us all that we would be tasting two different wines and he gave us a rating sheet in which we wrote down characteristics of the wine's color, aroma and taste. Except for the color, the two wines could not have been more different. After we all filled out our rating sheets and decided which wine we liked best, Tony revealed the identity of each wine that he had kept concealed in separate bags. To our surprise both bags had bottles of the same wine! So why were they so completely different? Tony had aged one bottle at a cool temperature and the other bottle at a warmer temperature for several months. His research was all about discovering the optimum way to store and age the wine to protect and preserve it. It was impressive how different the same wine tasted. I will help Tony conduct research anytime he asks me! 


Tony now concentrates his time teaching his classes, which includes Wine Appreciation 101. Tony has also been active in promoting wine in Tennessee for several years. I know, you don't usually think of Tennessee as a wine growing region, but it may be time to change what you think. You may be surprised at the number and quality of wines from Tennessee. Check out the Tennessee Farm Winegrowers Association's website: http://www.tennesseewines.com/


Followers Wanted! I know that many of you have been reading Bobby Flay Everyday, because I have been getting many emails - especially from the Wine Country of California - about the recipes and grilling in the winter. So, please consider joining the blog as a "follower." If you are not exactly sure how to become a follower, I found a link to some very easy instructions: http://www.google.com/support/blogger/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=104226
So please become a Bobby Flay Everyday follower today - I promise to keep it interesting and keep it grilling!
Paul

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Quattro Formaggi


Bobby said that this hamburger could be called Quattro Formaggi, but its real name is Four-Cheese Burger from Bobby Flay's newest book of Burgers, Fries and Shakes page 42. I first tried to grill the perfect burger using all the burger techniques discussed in previous blog entries. When the burgers were about 80% done I put on a slice of sharp cheddar, then a slice of tomato, then Colby-Jack and finally American cheese over the top. I then covered the burgers with a basting cover to surround the burger and cheeses with direct heat - just look at all that cheese melting together around that tomato! I also grilled the burger buns and some steak fries plus the finishing touch - a layer of shaved Parmesan - the fourth cheese. Wow, this is a terrific burger. 


What was on? There is only one song that could possible go with a four-cheese cheeseburger...
Cheeseburger in paradise
Makin' the best of every virtue and vice
Worth every damn bit of sacrifice
To get a cheeseburger in paradise - Jimmy Buffett


What to drink? Today was a very special day. I got a package delivered from Sonoma, California. When I opened it it was like during the movie A Christmas Story, when Ralphie's father opened the MAJOR AWARD. I even said to Dorothy, "Fra-gee-lee!"  In the box was not a Leg Lamp - something better. Red Truck Wine merchandise! Winery Swag! The great folks at Red Truck had seen the review I wrote on this blog and sent me some free stuff.

Check it out - a Red Truck Wines ski cap for grilling outside in winter weather, a Red Truck Wine bottle opener, and a replica of the actual Red Truck Wine truck! A Major Award! I ran right over to Tim's Premium wines to show him the stuff and buy two more bottles - one Red Truck and one White Truck. That red is gone already - I aged it as long as it took to get back home to the grill. That blend of Sonoma Red was beyond perfect for the Quattro Formaggi. I strongly encourage you to get some Red Truck and you will discover your own Major Award. 


Try this idea. Get the Bottle Shock Experience for Valentine's Day. Bottle Shock is the name of a movie about how California wines received worldwide acclaim back in the 1970s. The movie Sideways was funny, but Bottle Shock is better because its based on a true story. Paul Kalemkiarian's Wine of the Month Club is offering a great deal. You can order Bottle Shock on DVD and also get a bottle of Chardonnay from Chateau Montelena - the wine that put California on the world wine map. Go to
http://www.wineofthemonthclub.com/product/bsp/wine-accessories to order. Then on Valentines Day, fire up the grill, open the wine and watch the movie. On February 15th you will be thanking me!


Cheeseburger, Red Truck and Bottle Shock in paradise!
Paul

Apple Butter Chops


This turned out to be the most surprising flavor combination of any recipe yet. You sort of know what to expect with chicken and beef, but molasses, mustard and apples on pork turned out to be better than expected. This is Bobby’s Molasses-Mustard Glazed Pork Chops with Apple Butter (page 166 of Grill It!). I started with the Apple Butter by mixing some onion, garlic and two peeled and chopped Granny Smith apples in a pan over the grill. I added brown sugar and cinnamon as it all simmered. When the apples were soft I took it off the fire and let it cool. In about 15 minutes I dumped the mixture into the processor with a stick of butter and let it whirl into a paste. The pork chops had the molasses and mustard glaze. Later when the pork chops came of the grill I topped the chops with the Apple Butter.

I really don’t like mustard that much as a stand alone, but blended with all these flavors, as I said it was the biggest surprise of any recipe so far.



What to drink? We pulled out the first of our Wine-of-the-Month Club selections. It was the Punti Ferrer Monte Blanco Cabernet from the central valley of Chili. We saw a difference in color the moment it was poured into the glass – it was more red-ruby than dark plum. The taste was big with fruit, but dry fruit, not sweet. There was a lot of tangy flavors in this meal, so this wine was a great balance. We have enjoyed wine from Chili for a long time. If you look a globe you will see that central Chili is the same distance south of the equator as California is north of the equator. In other words, they experience the same angles to the Sun and therefore will have very similar climates. Around the globe about 30 to 50 degrees either North or South Latitude is wine growing country. France, Italy, Australia, South Africa, Argentina, Spain and Tennessee are all in that zone. Tennessee has a wine region? Yes, but more on that later.


What was on? Flag. That’s right, the album by James Taylor that has only a semaphore flag as the cover. This is music from the distant past but for me it also has a story. When I was in college I let my sister, Suzanne, borrow my Flag album. This was an actual LP phonograph record, not a cassette or anything that came after. It took months to get it back from her, in fact I had to drive a good distance during a school break to pick it up. She was staying with family friends who lived on a farm at the far end of a long steep valley. I arrived to confiscate the Flag album just about the time it started to rain. Tom, the farm owner, said, “you should probably get going, because the road floods during these rains and you might get caught.” I didn’t leave immediately because another conversation began. I was holding the Flag album, when Tom took it from my hand and started looking it over. I inquired, “Are you familiar with Flag? It’s a great album.” He said, “No, I just have never seen an album that was worth more than your car.” Well its 2010 and it all seems ironic now. The car was a 1974 Chevy Vega that has been in the junkyard for at least 25 years. The Flag album is still in my collection and still just as good as ever. In the end, Flag did turn out to be more valuable than my car.

More grilling and less car stories to come.
Paul


Monday, January 25, 2010

Not Thanksgiving Turkey


From Bobby Flay's book, Boy Gets Grill (page 184) this is Herb-Rubbed Grilled Turkey. The actual recipe if for a "whole" turkey but that would have been too much food for a weeknight! So instead, I grilled a turkey roast. I used all the same ingredients for the Herb-Rub as I would have over the entire bird: parsley, garlic, thyme, rosemary, ancho chili power, jalapeno chilies, kosher salt and ground black pepper. We added brown rice and steamed beans and it became a Thanksgiving treat without the production and without the relatives.

Wisdom of the Grill. To roast anything on the grill, you must turn the grill into an oven using indirect heat. On a gas grill this means turning on the burners on just one side. Using charcoal you would stack the coals on just one side - this forms a hot side and a cool side of the grill. I placed this turkey roast on the cool side, closed the grill cover and let the grill do its work. Unlike an oven, you don't have a thermostat to set an exact temperature, like 350 degrees. So instead you keep an eye on the roast, trying not to open the grill cover but only a few times, and using a meat thermometer. I was going for an internal temperature of 165, but using indirect heat it took almost two hours. Now, I have always thought that patience, as a virtue, was way overrated. I do things fast, I switch interests fast, I make decisions fast - but sometimes (although I hate to admit it) slowing down is a good thing. That is where the grill comes in. The grill teaches patience. The grill - especially using indirect heat - forces you to slow down, relax, enjoy the moment. This is one of the reasons we love to grill in the first place. When you think of grilling you remember lazy summer afternoons with your family. You remember celebrations, Fourth of July, backyard birthday parties - grilling is the opposite of work. When you grill you must shift gears. The grill's time schedule, not your schedule, takes over. When you grill you are forced to let go of life's other time pressures and let the grill do its work on the food and on your soul.

Weather Report. Finally a break in the clouds. From the courtyard the moon could be seen through hazy clouds for the first time in about a week.

What was on? We needed some long-playing, smooth, calming music to match the long roasting time of the turkey. If that is the kind of music you need, you can't so much better than Alicia Keys. Her third album, As I Am, is made of 14 songs that all set the mood. When this album came out about two years ago it started as the number 1 album and ultimately won three grammy awards. This is some very good stuff - and even if you have not been a fan, you will still recognize many of the songs. Check her out at http://www.aliciakeys.com/us/home. Here is some little known Alicia Keys trivia (and for the life of me I don't know why or how I know this). You saw her for the first time on the Cosby Show when she was about eight years old. She was one of Rudy's friends who spent one afternoon with Dr. Huxtable.

More grilling and more lessons from the grill to come - but only if you slow down and listen.
Paul

Roasted Garlic


Grilled Chicken with Roasted Garlic-Oregano Vinaigrette and Grilled Fingerling Potatoes (from Grill It! page 68). The vinaigrette called for roasted garlic so I took a whole garlic clove and cut off the bottom. Then I wrapped the garlic, together with some olive oil in a square of foil, and roasted it during the first half of the first playoff game - about an hour. Once it was done and cool enough to handle the garlic itself just slipped out of the peel. I threw the roasted garlic into a processor with white wine vinegar, honey, red chili flakes and a bunch of fresh cut oregano. Once it was all chopped up, I added olive oil and kosher salt and let it just sit during the second half. Later, during the second playoff game, when the chicken and potatoes came off the grill, I drizzled the vinaigrette over it all. That roasted garlic together with the oregano and red pepper made the chicken savory but with a kick. 


Weather Report. I don't know if it will ever stop raining. My next door neighbor is building an arc.


What to drink? It was chicken with olive oil and spices so we paired the Blackstone Chardonnay from central California. The wine was cool and smooth. The chicken was hot and spicy so it was a great counter balance. A white wine but a great match even when it was cold outside.


What was on? They say that the enemy of my enemy is my friend. I guess that is why I was routing for the Jets and it looked pretty good for a while. I didn't know who to be for in the second game, so it was fortunate that it was a good game. I have never been a big Favre fan, but you gotta like an old guy getting pounded and getting back up. I have never been a big Saints fan, but you gotta love a team fighting for a city and going where they have never gone before - the Super Bowl. It would have been better if Favre had been playing for the Saints. It seemed he could have landed anywhere after leaving the Jets and Packers. But the Saints have a great QB already and he got the last laugh. In the end Favre was Favre. He threw the INT instead of sliding and kicking the game winning field goal. He did the same thing in the same game three years ago for the Packers. I have seen every Super Bowl since number I (actually the first Super Bowl was not called Super Bowl I. It was called the NFL-AFL Championship game), so I will watch this one as well, but since the enemy of my enemy is my friend, I will hope the Saints go marching.


There is a break in the rain forecasted - but not a break in the grilling streak!
Paul  

Sunday, January 24, 2010

From Mesa Grill




This is Spice-Crusted New York Strip Steaks with Mesa Grill Steak Sauce. It is right off the menu of Bobby Flay’s 5th Avenue (NYC) restaurant The Mesa Grill and from page 155 of the Mesa Grill Cookbook. We also prepared Twice-Baked Potatoes (page 193).  I am learning to grill spices right into a steak on the grill and it make a big difference. When you eat a really good steak house you often wonder how they get the flavor down in the meat and that is one of the reasons steak house steak can be better than backyard steak. One answer is the way the seasoning is applied and seared in on a really hot grill. You can have steak house results from your own grill if you use the right ingredients and practice. The potatoes were better than restaurant quality as well. I baked them first, then cut off the top of the potato long-ways. I scooped out the potato from the skins, but left the skins in tact so they looked like a dug-out canoe. I mashed the potatoes and seasoned them following Bobby’s instructions. Then I stuffed the potatoes back into the canoes, together with cheese and put them on the top rack of the grill to re-bake and melt the cheese.




New Wisdom of the Grill. While I was mixing the steak rub and trying to duplicate the Mesa Grill signature barbecue sauce it hit me. My knowledge of spices and especially of peppers has at least doubled in the last month as I follow Bobby Flay’s tastes. Paul Kalemkiarian of the Wine of the Month Club read this blog and asked, "Do you think you are getting the character of his (Bobby Flay's) cooking?" The answer is yes because I am learning to use new ingredients to enhance, not to overpower the food. Along the way I have added to the pantry some spices that before I never used, some I had never heard of. And, the most important revelation is that I can make these rubs and sauces myself. I don’t need “ready-made” spices that some company has combined for me and no doubt over charged me for a service I now do not need. I want to adjust the flavors to my own liking instead of shaking out a pre-packaged seasoning of someone else’s liking and definition. So I cleaned out the pantry. I got rid of all the “ready-made” stuff. Nobody is telling me how to do this any more.





Gone from the pantry





Replaced with the "real" stuff








For this Mesa Grill Spice-Crusted New York Strip, I combined the following dry ingredients: (Clockwise from the top) Oregano, Cumin, Paprika, Mustard, Ancho Chili, and Coriander. 
















I raided the refrigerator as well. I threw out all the “ready-made” barbecue sauces that accumulate since I make my own now.


Gone from the fridge






The Mesa Grill sauce is Ketchup, Horseradish, Honey, Dijon Mustard, Maple syrup, Worcestershire sauce, and Ancho Chili powder. 




Barbecue sauce NOT from a bottle






Bobby says (page 226 of the Mesa Grill Cookbook) that purists believe that a properly grilled steak does not need a sauce to make it great – the steak stands alone. Bobby says that he would agree to a point. That point is this steak sauce. I got the New York Strips from Tag’z Five Star Meat (see previous blog on Tag’z) so the cut of beef was the very best, but this sauce, used in moderation, did improve the steak to near perfection.

What to drink? I also went to Tim Mile’s Premium Wines and Spirits for a wine to match up with these spices. Tim has a “Wine of the Week” and this week his special was a perfect match. His recommendation was a red wine from Jumilla, Spain called Luzon. It was powerful. It had a spice of its own, but still fruity – perfect. If you get to go to Tim’s and Tag’z in the same day – then that is a pretty good day.

What was on? A really excellent group that proves great music has survived into the new millennium. The group: Maroon 5.  There first album, Songs about Jane is great. The second album, It Won’t be Soon Before Long, was almost as good.  Their third album is due out this year. I will definitely download it. Check them out at http://www.maroon5.com/home/

The learning and the grilling continues!
Paul

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Grilled Brunch



Bobby Flay says that “brunch is his weakness.” With this recipe I know why. This is Maple-Peach-Glazed Ham Steak from Boy Gets Grill (page 239). I prepared the glaze in less than five minutes and had the whole brunch prepared with 15 minutes. I fired up the grill and placed my cast iron skillet on one side of the grates. I grilled the ham steak on the other side, directly on the grates and poured the scrambled eggs into the skillet. While the eggs were cooking, I turned the ham and heavily brushed on the glaze. When the eggs were ready I put everything into the skillet together including some blueberry scones that had been warming on a higher level grill rack. One plate = one brunch.







The last time I had ham on the grill was Thanksgiving, so the ham brought back some memories. For the first time in many years we had both our grown children back home at the same time. Gabrielle lives near Atlanta and Ziggy near Dallas. They are both teachers. They are both really excellent teachers. They both grew up and became the terrific adults that Dorothy and I worked so hard for them to be. They are making a difference in the lives of others now – they don’t get enough credit – they don’t get enough money, but they are living their calling - most people can’t say that.

At Thanksgiving, Gabrielle brought her new boyfriend with her, Mason. As parents you are always a little leery of the new boyfriend, but guess what? This guy is a griller! Yes, he is green, inexperienced, but he understands the grill/heritage relationship and has budding talent. I had to admit, he knew his way around the grill. We watched the Thanksgiving Day football games while grilling the turkey and smoking the ham. We basted the turkey and glazed the ham for hours. When it was all ready, I removed the turkey and was about to take in the ham when Mason had an idea. Replace the grill grates and roll the ham across the grill so that the glaze would become crispy and caramelize before serving. It was genius. The best ham we ever had. The kids’ got talent for the grill and made a pretty good choice for a girlfriend too.

Having grown kids really is great. The fact that they are no longer young and living with us is balanced by the pride we have in them as adults. But as I dropped my son off at airport security for his flight home from Thanksgiving, I did have a flashback of dropping him off at the school bus stop. 

It was Ziggy who turned me on to Conan years ago. He said I should give this crazy guy a chance. I did and I got hooked. Now Conan is gone - treated unfairly in my view. I always chose Letterman over Leno, but switched from Letterman to Conan these past months. Now I am going back to Letterman. I won't watch Leno after this. We saw Jimmy Fallon in person last year at a comedy club and he was hilarious. Until Conan returns, Fallon is the best of the worst. Too bad that Bobby Flay doesn't have a late night show on the Food Network!

It's the weekend - almost time to light the grill again!

Paul

Friday, January 22, 2010

Trattoria Burger


This is the Trattoria Burger from Bobby Flay's Burgers, Fries & Shakes (page 65). Sometimes when we eat at an Italian Restaurant we will order a Caprese Salad and split it for an appetizer and since its so easy to fix we have it at home too. Buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and fresh basil is all it takes (add some olive oil and balsamic vinegar). When I saw that Bobby Flay had a hamburger recipe that incorporated the Caprese ingredients we had to try it. Besides grilling the burger to perfection the key here is melting the mozzarella all the way through - no partially melted cheese should ever be left on a burger. Those grilled steak fry wedges are also a Bobby recipe - page 91 of Burgers, Fries & Shakes. 


Wisdom of the Grill. Another grilling tip from Bobby made this burger perfect. As I said the cheese should be melted through - especially a soft cheese like mozzarella. I used to just place the cheese over a done burger and hope for the best. Sometimes the cheese would not melt very fast and the burger would get over done, it was a mess - then I read about the Basting Cover technique. When the burger is almost done you place the cheese on the burger and then place a cover over the entire burger while still on the grill. The cover could be a lid or a pan, but it has to be tall enough so that the cover never touches the burger and cheese. I have a gallon size pot that I have used on the grill for sauces - it probably was too tall, but it worked out. With the burger covered on the grill, the heat comes up through the grates but gets trapped around the burger by the cover. This melted the cheese quickly and evenly - and with perfect timing for the burger to be done. This simple trick turns backyard burned burgers into a meal worthy of the grill. 


What to drink? I went to Tim's Premium Wines store (see previous blog about Tim and his store). I told him I was grilling burgers. He said I have the perfect wine. He pulled out the Sacred Stone from the Pietra Santa Winery in Hollister, California. Tim was right again - red wine blends do go great with grilled beef and especially burgers. This one, (Sacred Stone Master's blend cask #05 to be exact) had big flavor - not thin, and was terrific with the caprese burger blend of spices. Learn more about the Sacred Stone at www.pietrasantawinery.com


What was on? Tapestry. The original version of Carole King's Tapestry pre-dates downloads, it pre-dates CDs, it even pre-dates cassettes and 8-track. When it first came out, I didn't have it. It seemed only the cool kids back then had albums - I had 45s. So it was later in life when I reached back for Tapestry. Every song is a classic and the message, pace, and strength of each song ebbs and flows like a well told story. The order in which songs follow on an album used to mean something. If you listened to the tracks out of order you miss the story. Now days we dissect an album, purchasing just the songs we want from the computer and then we can put them in any order we want. The record companies know that we are smorgasborging, so the order that the songs are listed no longer have any meaning. No full story is ever told. If you make a list of the ten most influential albums, Tapestry must be on that list. We were actually listening to Carole King because we successfully got pre-sale tickets to the James Taylor and Carole King reunion concert coming to Nashville in May. That should be quite a show and probably will be attended by folks who are mostly in my age group. The only reunion concert that would be better than this one would be James Taylor and Carly Simon - I would pay good money to hear Carly Simon. 


Weather Report. The rain continues to fall, but as long as Tim's wine store is open and the grill stays lit, we will keep going - there are plenty more Bobby Flay ideas.


Paul 

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Grill Storm


Storms came across the courtyard just as I was preparing the grill. The electricity went out once, but the grill fire kept going so I kept grilling in the rain. The result was Grilled Salmon with Crunchy Sweet Mustard Vinaigrette (page 146 of Boy Gets Grill). I was a little worried about placing the salmon right on the grill grates - I usually grill salmon on a cedar plank (see previous blog with that recipe). Bobby's instructions worked out great however. He said to first put the filet on the grill skin side down and leave it there long enough to form a crust. The crust then makes it possible to turn the filet once without having the delicate fish flake apart. That technique worked perfectly. The glaze on the salmon was made of white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, finely chopped shallots, honey, olive oil, salt and pepper. In the photo you can see the glaze and the shallots. You can also see my umbrella and rain hat.


Weather Report:





What to drink? We choose the Toasted Head Chardonnay from Woodbridge, California. It's called Toasted Head because they actually use a torch to char the outside of the barrel while the wine is inside aging. This infuses the oak, rustic, vanilla flavor right into the wine. It is definitely one of our favorites.  
Check them out at Toastedhead.com

What was on in the storm? Dorothy figures out a way to do a search inside our itunes file. She put in key words like rain, storm, etc. and within two seconds she had a rainy night playlist filled with a very eclectic mix. Here are just a few of the selections that we listened to while the lightning was flashing.
Umbrella by Rhianna
Downeaster Alexa by Billy Joel
Kaulana Kanekoe version of Somewhere over the Rainbow
Raining on Sunday by Keith Urban
Driven Rain by Paul McCartney
Storm by Lenny Kravitz
Spirit of the Storm by Kenny Chesney
This Tornado Loves You by Neko Case
and of course, I Love a Rainy Night by Eddie Rabbit


We saw Neko Case last summer when she and her band performed in Nashville. You really should hear her stuff if you have not already. http://www.nekocase.com/


A little storm never stops a true griller...it keeps pouring we keep grilling


Paul


Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Smooooth


In his book Boy Gets Grill, Bobby Flay wrote that he spent on summer experimenting with flavored butters. This was the (successful) result of one of these experiments - Grilled Ribeye Steak with Cilantro-Garlic Butter (page 220 of Boy Gets Grill). Sometimes you see resturants advertise "steak toppings" and they show piles of mushrooms or onions or tomato sauce slathered over their steaks. When I see that, I think they are just trying to cover up for a poor quality steak and that a really well grilled streak needs nothing else to make it great. The one exception I have found to this rule is butter, so I was really interested in trying this recipe. The butter is a mixture of garlic, chopped cilantro, line juice, salt and ground black pepper. After getting it all together, I set it out so the butter would warm to room temperature while I grilled the ribeyes. When the steaks came off the grill, I put a spoon of the butter right on the steak - but really that was just for the photo above. One of Bobby's best suggestions is to avoid just dumping cold butter on your steak, but instead brush it on both side of the steak. This allows the flavored butter to mix with the natural juices of the steak. The butter then becomes invisible (which is not good for a photo) but the flavors together are terrific - but the butter was the star of the show.


Dorothy selected both the wine and the music: Cabernet and Yacht Rock.


What to Drink? The Cabernet was from Hogue Cellars from the Columbia Valley of Washington State. We don't venture out of California very often, but when we do, we like Washington. Wines get a vanilla and oak flavor when they age in oak barrels. When wines are aged in stainless steel barrels it is to avoid the oak taste - like most white wines. The red wine, oak and flavored butter on the steak could not have been a better match. 


What was on? Yacht Rock is a genre of music that is partly a spoof. To be considered Yacht Rock it must be from the 1970's to early 1980's and must be smooth. The leader of all Yacht Rock tunes is Sailing by Christopher Cross.  Also in group is Kenny Loggins, Steve Windwood, Michael McDonald, England Dan & John Ford Coley, Steely Dan, and some Doobie Brothers (but no Hall & Oates). Yacht Rock was featured on Jimmy Fallon last year and there is even a TV show called Yacht Rock, but you can only watch it on YouTube. Check out episode 1 and "Hollywood Steve" will explain Yacht Rock better than I can:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMTI8vg7A5U


Sailing and Butter on Steak - smooooth!


Paul

Monday, January 18, 2010

Premium Wine






This is Butterflied Chicken with Rosemary-Lemon-Garlic Oil, Parmesan, and Black Pepper. Page 178 of Boy Gets Grill. I mixed up the marinade, made with olive oil, garlic, lemon zest, rosemary (from Dorothy’s herb garden), kosher salt and black pepper. I put the chicken and the marinade together in a gallon size re-sealable plastic bag and let it set in the frig all afternoon. I added coarsely ground black pepper and shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano after the chicken came off the grill.


We used Bobby’s method of preparing and grilling asparagus. The recipe is on page 12 of Grill It! Except we traded Feta cheese for the shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano since that was on the chicken.


Weather Report. This was the best weather day of 2010. I should have been over a wing or under a sail.


What to Drink? Bobby said that this was a classic Italian taste, so I wanted a classic Italian wine to go with it. For expert advice on wine I visited my friend, Tim Miles at Premium Wines and Spirits. When I came in the store, he had one question, “What’s for dinner?” I told him the ingredients and he was quickly around the counter and on his way to the perfect wine selection. Mike has never missed yet with a wine suggestion. He doesn’t try to sell you the most expensive bottle in the store, but he does try to sell you the best match for the best value. This time it was the 2007 Primitivo Petra from the heel of Italy’s boot. A region named Puglia.
Wine online? 





We first got to know Tim several years ago when Dorothy and I took an online wine tasting class. The class was offered by ed2go.com and taught by Linda Kissam. (http://www.kissam.net/) We never met Linda face to face, but the course was great. She introduced us to all the wine varietals (grapes) and gave as a homework assignment each week. That is where Tim comes in. We would take our homework sheet into Tim’s store and he would help us pick out the type of wines that Linda wanted us taste, compare and contrast that week. Ninety-five percent of what I know about wine has come from three people. Two of them are Tim and Linda.


Tim is a guy who really is passionate about his craft and works very hard. His passion has become his family business and as I have said here before, we must support our small business owners now more than ever. As you can see I like to work with experts who really care about what they are doing. They don’t just go to a job, they go to follow their dream. Tim’s dream can be found at




and please make a point to patronize at least one small business this week where ever you live – lets keep dreamers off the endangered species list. 







What was on? Shed a Little Light by James Taylor on MLK Day.






Let us turn our thoughts today


To Martin Luther King
And recognize that there are ties between us
All men and women
Living on the earth
Ties of hope and love
Sister and brotherhood
That we are bound together
In our desire to see the world become
A place in which our children
Can grow free and strong
We are bound together
By the task that stands before us
And the road that lies ahead
We are bound and we are bound




Paul