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Grilling got you down? Try one of these recipes from McCormick.

I can't tell you how sick I am of my grilling regime. Way too plain old Dick and Jane.

So "Master the Flame. Master the Flavor" McCormick's grilling slogan caught my eye as I need serious help especially with the 4th right around the corner. Yes, I would like to master the grill -- create something tasty.  The company offers up some great, easy-to-follow, recipes for steak, beef, burgers, pork and ribs, chicken, seafood and sides, all of them of course involving a shake or two of their spices.

Nutrition info and easy directions are included with each recipe. Rip and ride my friends...that's print and cook to all you non motorcycle riding friends. Better yet send these recipes to your phone so when you are in the store they are at your fingertips. Love it. Visit McCormick for all the details and fire up that grill.

Grills Aren't Just for Burgers Anymore

In my opinion, the best part about the grill is the ability to cook just about anything on it. I love grilling the traditional items, steaks and hot dogs and burgers, but I also love to grill vegetables, fish, even corn on the cob.

Salmon is one of those versatile fish that tastes great no matter what you do with it. Fresh or frozen, it works perfectly on the grill, in pieces about 1-inch thick. Allow the grill to get extra hot and you can cook the fish right on it, no aluminum foil necessary. Season or marinade as you want before cooking (I love teriyaki salmon). 

The best piece of advice I found when researching how to grill fish - or anything for that matter - correctly was to leave it alone. Don’t keep turning it over, because it will break. Sear the fillet on one side before you turn it, and this will also prevent sticking and give you those fancy grill marks. Bobby Flay demonstrates here.

And if it’s not perfect, so what? It’s fun to try, and summer meals are the perfect time to experiment. Add some grilled vegetables as a side dish and no one will notice your grill marks aren’t even. Slice up some zucchini, summer squash, mushrooms, onions, garlic and toss with olive oil. Pour into aluminum foil and place on the grill, or place your aluminum foil bundle into a grill pan. Cook until the vegetables are tender, and serve as a side dish to your fish. Enjoy on the deck or patio with a glass of white wine, and buy some extra charcoal. We’ll grill up some desserts later this week!

Spice up Scallops with Caramel Glaze

Fresh Maine sea scallops are my favorite treat when I head north for a long weekend. There’s just something so purely New England about them, and for me, scallops from anywhere else don’t compare.

 

I used to just broil them with butter or bake with bread crumbs or Romano cheese, but then I discovered how much you can really do with scallops. From salads to pan seared, from pasta dishes to even pizza recipes, there’s so much out there that I bet you haven’t tried when it comes to scallops -- I hadn’t, until I started getting creative. 

 

Paula Deen has a great recipe for Seared Sea Scallops with Caramel Glaze. About 12 large scallops serves four, so plan accordingly. 

 

The glaze is made from vegetable oil, corn syrup, butter, water and sugar in a small saucepan and spooned on top of the scallops after they are seared. I like to serve on a bed of baby lettuce.

 

Asparagus or green beans go wonderfully with this dish, and a nice risotto. Deen recommends green beans with almonds and caramelized onions, a simple dish that complements this recipe. Olive oil, butter and sugar are sauteed with onions, then add green beans and almonds. 

 

I hope you’re planning on heading up to Maine soon for the full seafood experience. Go hungry!

Try Your Lobster Diavolo Style

I love lobster, but I have to admit I dislike buying them live and cooking them. So I hit the fish store for lobster meat as needed to make my favorite - something with pasta.

 

Emeril Lagasse’s Lobster Fra Diavolo is a great choice for an easy, classy meal. You need one pound blanched lobster meat, claws and tails, from your favorite fish market (don’t forget to buy locally), and one cup of lobster stock.

 

The rest is standard pasta dish: one pound of either fettucine or linguine, tomato sauce (homemade if you have it, a garlicky brand if you’re buying), tomato paste, onion, shallots, garlic, red pepper, parsley, and basil leaves. 

 

Use your biggest and best saute pan for this recipe.

 

If you really want the taste to be unequaled, make your own lobster stock. You need three lobster shells, removed of the claw and tail meat (if you’re like me, you can purchase them already cooked). Boil in a stockpot with oil (I use olive oil, but the recipe recommends vegetable oil). Add tomatoes, celery, onions, a carrot, thyme, fennel, garlic, and other spices of choice, then boil for about four hours.

 

The taste it will add to your dish is phenomenal -- enjoy!

 

Who needs a plain old lobster when you can have Fra Diavolo?

Spring Cooking. Fresh Asparagus.

Spring is in the air! I’ll eat to that. This week, I’m looking for lighter recipes using fresh spring produce. Real Simple has a whole list of the perfect greens, as well as some fabulous recipes to utilize them to the best of their ability.

I love asparagus, so I decided to try the publication's barley risotto with asparagus and parmesan recipe.

While asparagus is available year round, early spring is the best season to buy it fresh. I like it best with thin, firm stalks, because I find it’s less apt to overcook and turn soggy. Bright green stalks with closed tips are the perfect bunch. 

For this recipe, you can use either vegetable or chicken broth. Warm 5 cups of your choice while sautéing onion -- Vidalia is a great choice here -- and garlic in a separate pan, in olive oil. Add 1 and 1/2 cups of barley to the onion and garlic, cook and stir for 2 minutes. Add 1 cup of dry white wine and allow the liquid to absorb, then add the warm broth. Add 1 pound of asparagus, cut in half, and cook until broth is absorbed. Serve with salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese.

Serve with salad and white wine, if you choose. Good as a main dish, or a complement to a light spring meal.

 

Who Needs Alfredo When You Have Goat Cheese Sauce?

We’ve talked about goat cheese as an appetizer and as part of breakfast, but some of you might want to make a fancy dinner this weekend with that leftover block. Here’s a good one: Penne with Goat Cheese, Kale, Olives, and Turkey, a’la Martha Stewart. The goat cheese provides a different style sauce - not nearly as thick as an Alfredo, but tastier than plain old primavera.

While cooking your pasta, saute 2 large shallots, garlic cloves as you desire (I like to up the ante with my garlic, but they recommend 3 cloves), salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes in olive oil for about three minutes. Add lemon zest and 1/4 cup white wine if desired and cook for another minute. Add about 1/2  bunch of kale, or 1/2 bag of spinach if you prefer, and cook until wilted. Stir in 2 cups shredded, cooked turkey and cook until hot. Then add your goat cheese in (6-7 ounces) and stir until creamy. Stir in pasta, Kalamata olives, 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, and sprinkle with Parmesan or Romano cheese as desired.

A vegetarian option would be tofu strips, or you can add more vegetables, such as peppers or squash if it’s in season.

Are you a goat cheese believer after trying any of this week’s recipes? Let us know! We’d love your recommendations on certain cheeses or cheese shops.

Add Some Flavoring to an Old Irish Favorite, Corned Beef and Cabbage.

We can’t have a St. Patrick’s Day celebration with Guinness and chocolate cheesecake until we have our meal, I guess. And we can’t have a St. Patrick’s Day meal without corned beef and cabbage.

I used to just throw my corned beef, cabbage, potatoes and spices in my slow-cooker and let it simmer all day, but this year I tried to find some variations on the recipe. This one looked interesting -- a new twist using Golden Delicious apples and an orange for flavoring.

You’ll need the traditional ingredients: corned beef brisket, a couple of celery stalks, an onion, a head of cabbage, 6 tablespoons of butter. In addition, get one large orange and  enough apples for a cup. You can use your own spices, or you can make pickling spice.

This one is done in the oven with a roasting pan and aluminum foil, with the brisket cooking for about four hours with the celery, orange, onion and spices. 45 minutes before it’s done, get a large pot and heat half your butter with 1/4 cup of water, and cook the cabbage and apples until soft.

Complete instructions here. Serve with Guinness, and remember you probably have to work in the morning.

Here are a few more recipes if you are interested. 

Now that the planning is done, I've just got to shop for a little decor.

Fashion Week Continued-- A recipe from Carolina Herrera's Kitchen

Who doesn’t love Carolina Herrera designs? From shoes to dresses to the funky new shorts in her spring collection, the lady is a master. And she’s not a slacker in the kitchen department either, as evident by her contribution to the aforementioned American Fashion Cookbook: 100 Designers Best Recipes.

Her Pommes Toupinel recipe is outstanding - and the best part is, for all you carb-wary folks out there, this clever dish contains some protein: a poached egg in the twice-baked potato.

So, to start, you need a good egg poacher and some foil to bake your potatoes. Start by baking your potatos as usual, while poaching your eggs. There’s also a fancy sauce for this one called Bechamel Sauce (2 tablespoons butter, 3 tablespoons flour and two cups of milk).

Prepare twice baked potatoes by mashing the insides with 1 cup of milk, 1/4 stick of butter, a pinch of salt, and a small amount of pepper and mix with finely ground Parmesan cheese. I added some shredded Asiago too, since I love cheese, and you can vary based on your faves. Save 1/2 cup of mashed potatoes.   Put mashed potatoes inside the potato shells, leaving room in the center for the poached egg. Place poached egg inside the potato filled with puree, and then season with salt and pepper.   Spoon a little Béchamel sauce over the potato and on top of that, add a little more of the mashed potatoes.  Top with your favorite cheese and broil in the oven for three minutes until the top is brown and crisp.

Instructions for the sauce can be found at BehindtheBurner by clicking HERE.

And there are good instructions for your poached eggs too, if need be. This is a great dinner - and almost as good as Carolina’s latest pair of shoes. Enjoy!

If you can’t make it to the Caribbean, cook like you’re there.

I don’t know about you, but after this long winter I’m about ready to pack my bathing suit and head off to some sunny, tropical island.

Since I can’t physically do that at the moment, I’ll have to settle for cooking (and drinking) Caribbean style. So grab your coat and fire up that poor, neglected grill for some chicken skewers with grilled mango, Real Simple style.

You’ll need wooden skewers, 10-12 inch, and six boneless, skinless chicken breasts. (If you’re looking for the vegetarian modification, tofu works great with this recipe. Two blocks should be plenty.) You’ll also need 3 ripe mangoes.

For the marinade: Mix 3/4 cup plain yogurt, 2 tablespoons lemon juice (lime works well too), minced garlic (I like a lot, but you can adjust the amount to your taste), 2 teaspoons sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, and pepper. Cut each breast into 3 or 4 long strips and add to the marinade, coating all the chicken. You can marinate for as little as 20 minutes or as long as overnight. Soak your skewers in warm water for ease of skewering, too.

When you’re ready to grill, spray cooking spray (olive oil works well too, if you’re not into cooking spray) on the grill and heat to medium-high. Peel and slice mangoes, and skewer your chicken. You can add onions too, if you like, or tomatoes to the skewer if you want spice it up a bit more. You’ll do the mangoes after the chicken is grilled. Place chicken or tofu diagonally on the grill, drop the lip and cook about 3-4 minutes per side. When the chicken is done, cook the mangoes on the grill, about 2 minutes per side. Serve and enjoy. Picture the beach while you eat. Next...beverages.

Forget the fancy restaurants. Valentine’s Day can be just as romantic at home.

I’ve never been a big fan of Valentine’s Day hoopla -- long waits at fancy restaurants, overpriced flowers, big crowds. I’m much more partial to a quiet, romantic evening at home with a fancy meal, some fun drinks and decadent desserts. This week, I’ll create an evening to rival the restaurants that will leave your sweetheart swooning.

Atmosphere is everything, so before you even start cooking, it’s worth it to take stock of your dining area. Clear yesterday’s mail off the table and place a centerpiece made of fresh flowers. Add some splashes of red or pink: Fancy napkins, candles, bowls of red jelly beans. You don’t have to spend a lot to make a good impression. Of course, your meal will be the main attraction.

I love lighter fare for holidays like this, mainly because my mother always taught me to save plenty of room for dessert. Sea bass is my favorite fancy fish, because there are so many different ways to prepare it. For a special occasion, I recommend Sea Bass alla Fiorentina. It’s simple, it’s tasty and you can add a variety of sides, and still have room for the good stuff.

This recipe calls for four 6-oz. pieces of sea bass, which you season, lightly coat with flour, and cook in a simple frying pan with olive oil. Garlic, crushed tomatoes, parsley and basil provide a simple but tasty garnish for the fish. The recipe works great with garlic roasted green beans and a nice sauteed red potato side dish.

Do you and your sweetie have a favorite Valentine’s Day dinner at home? Tell us about it here!