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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.

Celebrate the 4th of July So Sweetly With These Treats

Every party needs dessert. This summer, keep your guests engaged long after the grill is cooled off with some choice sweets. Transform a cupcake into a 4th of July tribute with Martha Stewart's Flag Cupcakes. Start with some patriotic cupcake wrappers to bake your treats in. Choose chocolate or vanilla cakes and top them off with some Swiss Meringue Buttercream frosting. This frosting is absolutely delicious and very simple, calling for sugar, egg whites, butter and vanilla extract. Top your cupcakes (you can have the kids help) and then turn them into flags with fun decorations. I like to use blueberries for stars, while Martha uses blue buttercream. Red licorice sticks are perfect for the stripes. This is a simple, fun, kid-friendly recipe that you can even freeze if you want to make ahead of time. If you want to make your dessert table stand out, set the cupcakes up in one of these fancy dessert stands. 

For the adults, strawberry shortcake trifle is a cool summer favorite. I like to make mine with strawberries and blueberries for that Memorial Day touch. Paula Deen's recipe on Food Network is my favorite - the custard is made with cream cheese, condensed milk and whipped topping - delicious! The glaze calls for sugar, strawberry Jell-O, water, fresh strawberries (and blueberries, if you choose). 

To assemble, start with a layer of angel food cake, followed by a layer of glaze, then a layer of custard. Layer this way until your bowl is full, and watch your guests enjoy. I guarantee you won't have any leftovers from this part of the meal!

Fourth of July? We Have an App For That!

Looking for something great to bring to that big Fourth of July cookout? We can hook you up with some great appetizers, like these fancy deviled eggs from behindtheburner.com. These are great because they have some different ingredients: cottage cheese and horseradish, specifically.  

You'll need 12 hard-boiled eggs, with yolks separated after they're cooked. Use your food processor to mix yolks with 1/3 cup cottage cheese, 1/4 cup mayonnaise, 3 tbsp scallions, 1 tbsp horseradish, 2 tsp mustard and 1/8 tsp salt. Blend and fill the eggs, topping with cayenne pepper or a sprig of parsley.  

Or, if you want to get fancy and bypass the normal cookout fare, try these ham and goat cheese canapes. Built on a French baguette, these are quick and easy appetizers that will get you a lot of fans. Combine 1 cup cooked, chopped ham with 2 tbsp goat cheese, 2 tbsp cream and Cayenne pepper to taste. Fry your pieces of bread with butter until brown, then top with the mixture and brown in the oven for a few minutes. Top with your favorite herb and off you go! 

Pack Your Picnic Basket. It's Summertime.

 What did you do over Memorial Day weekend? I always consider it the first weekend of summer so usually eat outdoors -- as many meals as possible. 

As a BBQ alternative, how about packing a good old-fashioned picnic basket, your family, and the dogs and head out to a state park?

Picnics are the perfect occasion to cheat a little, and The Food Network's Southern-Fried Memorial Day Picnic has the perfect party food to keep your picnic basket at the top of its game. 

Buttermilk Fried Chicken and Shrimp and Deviled Egg Salad Rolls are the main course, but there's plenty more in this basket. You'll want to choose a place where you can spend some time, because you'll never eat all this at once! I packed this picnic for a group of six and there was still food left over. 

For appetizers, French Onion Dip with your favorite chips or crackers and Parmesan Puff Pastry will keep your hunger at bay while you find the perfect spot. Pair those with some refreshing Cherry Cooler, an awesome combination of cherries, hibiscus tea, and sugar to keep your thirst quenched.

Polish off your fried chicken and sandwiches with a side of potato salad or broccoli slaw, then take a few minutes to digest. A hike will top this meal off nicely! The only thing missing is dessert - but that's okay. Surely there's an ice cream stand on your way home! Enjoy summer!

Spice it up With Three Bean and Beef Chili

There’s nothing like a good old-fashioned chili on a cooler evening, and we're getting them up North this week.

A traditional three bean and beef chili tastes wonderful after simmering in the crock pot all day. The Food Network offers a variety of recipes for beef, chicken and turkey chili, as well as vegetarian style. Ellie Krieger’s is pretty standard if you’re looking for a traditional pot of chili.

Hook up your crock pot with some olive oil and add your veggies - typically onions, peppers, garlic, and this recipe suggests adding carrots. Once they’ve softened, add your cumin. I like to add chili powder here for some added zip. Crumble your ground beef into the crock pot and add crushed tomatoes, water, a chipotle chili if you choose, and oregano, salt and pepper.

I like to add some crushed red pepper flakes to take the heat up a notch. Simmer this mixture, and then add in beans as you choose; this recipe recommends black beans, kidney beans and pinto beans. Simmer in the crock pot - the longer the better -- and serve with a dollop of sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese and sliced jalapenos on top, with tortilla chips on the side. Spicy! Keep that theme going a little longer and have a margarita to cool it off. 

Get Your Fiesta On! It's Margarita Time!

It’s Fiesta Week and I'm late so I'm celebrating Friday..

Cinco de Mayo is the best holiday, in my opinion -- gifts aren’t required, there’s always a party, and you get to eat as much Mexican food as you want without having to justify it. This week, we’ll plan a meal fit for any Cinco party. So let’s start with a Margarita!

Nowadays, Margaritas can take on many colors and flavors, but some diehards prefer the traditional, which on the Food Network is simply tequila, lime juice, simple syrup (sugar and water dissolved in a saucepan), orange liqueur, and some yummy lime-salt-sugar, (lime zest, salt and sugar blended).

If you prefer a fruitier, sweeter taste, I tried this blueberry-lime margarita for a get-together, and it was a huge hit. Simply blend frozen blueberries, blueberry syrup (the recipe calls for nectar but I didn’t have any on hand, and the syrup added some extra sweet), seltzer, frozen limeade, lime juice and tequila. Blend and serve with salt and a lime wedge. 

Another favorite is watermelon. This Emeril Lagasse recipe uses fresh watermelon in the blender -- exceptional! Orange flavored liqueur (Emeril recommends Grand Marnier or triple sec) also adds a distinct flavoring. 

And of course, you can substitute your favorite fruit in this recipe to make a strawberry, mango, pineapple, or pretty much any flavor margarita to add some fun to your gathering. So let’s get the party started!

 

Roasted Salmon: Keeping Mom Healthy and Happy

Keeping Mom’s taste buds happy doesn’t mean sacrificing her health. For a perfect Mother’s Day dinner, try some heart-healthy roasted salmon. It’s an easy fish to prepare, because it doesn’t take much to make it taste great. This recipe, courtesy of Martha Stewart, shows the fish’s classy side by immersing it in a white wine sauce for that fancy dinner. 

Roast the salmon in a pre-baked, 450-degree oven on a rimmed baking sheet or a baking dish. Prepare your sauce with a cup of dry white wine, flour, butter and chives on the stovetop. It’s quick and easy, but it will taste like you slaved over a hot stove all day!

Martha serves her roasted salmon with potatoes and mushrooms, which is delicious, but I like salmon with brown rice and asparagus. I mix onions and mushrooms with my rice and add a touch of Tamari sauce for flavor. My steamer is fast and efficient for my asparagus, and I like to chill it and serve with olive oil and a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese for something different. A PInot Grigio will top off this meal sufficiently.

As for Mom, she’ll enjoy -- even more so because she doesn’t have to cook!

Cook Some Love For Mom This Mother's Day

Since it’s a day to thank Mom, why not make her feel extra special with a fancy dish? Whether your mother is into breakfast, lunch or dinner, you can make her something that’s worth more than a night out in even the fanciest restaurant. 

 

And who better than Martha Stewart to come up with some fun way to say I love you? If your mom likes simple, Martha’s Heart-Shaped Egg in the Hole is a charming way to make an egg with toast stand out in her memory. 

A heart-shaped cookie cutter comes in handy here; if you don’t have one, do your best with a knife. Cut a heart shape out of her favorite bread. Use herb or regular butter on both sides of the toast and cook the bread in a skillet, then crack an egg into the hole and cook the way mom loves!

 

My mom happens to love crepes and blintzes, and I tried Martha’s blueberry blintzes to see if they would be something she would like. They’re fantastic, and if your mom doesn’t like blueberries try them with blackberries or strawberries. Save some time for this recipe -- with three parts, it’s somewhat time consuming, but completely worth it. Mom will feel loved. 

Good Luck Baked Right In - Traditional New Orleans King Cake

Since I’m a born and raised New Englander, I’m fascinated with the traditions surrounding New Orleans food, because they are so different from the ones I’m used to.

 

The King Cake especially struck my fancy. Technically, it’s a frosted cinnamon cake, sometimes with filling. But the novelty of it is delightful. The cake contains a plastic baby, and the person who finds the baby receives good luck and also brings the King Cake to the next King Cake party. Some cakes have a coin or some other trinket, but my friends always had the plastic baby, so that’s what I’m putting in mine. 

 

There’s a whole story behind the tradition, which dates back to 12th century France. Read more about it here.

Die-hard New Orleaners only have the cake leading up to Mardi Gras, but since I’m going to make one myself for a New Orleans-themed party I’m planning, I can justify making one out of season. 

The recipe is straightforward, but leave some time for the dough to rise. You might get an arm workout kneading the dough until it’s smooth, but it’s worth it. The traditional shape is an oval, but I’ve seen them shaped into a straight rope; whatever your preference. Emeril Lagasse offers another variation here. 

If you want to add a cream cheese filling, check this recipe out. Most importantly, be generous with the sugar crystals, and don’t forget to put the baby in before baking! 

The chicken or the egg? How about both? Easter Cupcakes!

My mother always said dessert was the best part of dinner. I remember meals as a kid when she would lean over and say, quietly of course, “Don’t finish your meal. Leave room for dessert.” A mantra I still live by today, so I’m starting Easter week recipes with dessert first. These Food Network chick and egg cupcakes are too adorable to pass up, so I’m breaking out my artsy self to try these. Don’t worry, they look more complicated than they are.

To make, you need:

1 vanilla cupcake

About 1/3 cup White Fluff Frosting

Green coconut grass

6 small candied malt balls (2 yellow, 2 pink, 2 white)

1 yellow chick peep

white Airhead candy

 The cupcakes are pretty basic (full recipe here); it's the decorating that will take time. Once they’re baked, frost with fluff frosting. Add your circle of coconut grass (shredded coconut and food coloring) on top. Place malted eggs on top of the grass and add your peep onto the center of the grass. Cut the white Airhead into a 1/2 oval shape; trim one side so it has a cracked egg jagged edge. Place egg next to chick.

I know, it seems like a lot of work, but seriously -- these are the cutest cupcakes ever made, at least for Easter. You may not even want to eat them, but you should get over that. Remember, dessert is the best part. Save room for two -- it’s a special day.