Grilled shrimp with mango rice

I chose this recipe because the colorful picture caught my eye, and it sounded like a fun flavor combination. To get started, I prepared the marinade for the shrimp, which is a mixture of soy sauce, garlic, ginger, curry powder and cayenne. I put the shrimp into the marinade and got to work on the rice.

The rice is cooked in coconut milk and water – I went with brown basmati rice, which worked perfectly. After the rice is cooked, it gets tossed with diced mango, red pepper and shredded carrot.

The rice is finished off with lime juice and a combination of fresh herbs – green onion, cilantro and parsley. I know it sounds like a lot of ingredients, but you can cut everything up in advance and simply toss with the rice before serving. I also think you could get away with skipping one or two of the herbs if need be.

The shrimp get threaded onto skewers and grilled. They cook through very quickly, so keep a close eye on them.

For serving, the shrimp skewers are placed on a bed of the mango rice. The slight spiciness of the shrimp goes really well with the sweetness of the mango. I loved the tropical flavors in this dish.

Adobo pork tenderloin with grilled pineapple salsa

Some of the most unexpected ingredients come to life on the grill. Ever tried grilled lettuce? If you haven’t, you should; trust me on that one. In this recipe, pineapple is tossed on the grill to create a unique and delicious salsa for pork tenderloin.

The pork tenderloin is marinated in a mixture of lime juice, garlic and spices. While the pork marinates, the pineapple and some vegetables go onto the grill. The original recipe called for grilling the pineapple with red and yellow bell peppers, and left the red onion and jalapeno raw. I figured that I might as well throw everything onto the grill; I prefer cooked onion over raw onion anyways.

The pineapple only needs a few minutes to cook through – the grilling process really intensifies the flavor of the fruit.

Once the pineapple and vegetables are done, they’re coarsely chopped and mixed with lime juice and cilantro to create a salsa.

After the salsa is made, the pork goes onto the grill. I tend to cook pork until it’s just slightly pink on the inside.

The pork and pineapple salsa is a great flavor combination, but I could also see this salsa being great on chicken or fish.

Steak and artichoke mixed grill

By now, I’m sure all of you know that I don’t shy away from complicated recipes – but sometimes the simplest food can be the most delicious. The weather was beautiful this past weekend, so we took the opportunity to get started on the garden.


We also fired up the grill for the first time in months. I didn’t feel like spending hours in the kitchen, so I went simple. I picked up some nice looking new york strip steaks and some huge artichokes to toss on the grill. I seasoned the meat with steakhouse seasoning from Amazing Taste. I find that the easiest way to grill artichokes is to steam them first, that way you don’t have to worry about getting them cooked all the way through on the grill. I simply cut the cooked artichokes in half, and seasoned them with salt and pepper before letting them sit on the grill to get slightly charred.

Notice how many times I’ve said simple in this post? Well, I couldn’t resist un-simplifying things just a bit. I made some sauces to go with the steak and artichokes. For the meat, I made some Mesa Grill steak sauce. It literally takes 5 minutes to make, and I always have the ingredients on hand. For the artichokes, I made some hummus.

Even with the sauces, this was really quick and easy to make. Better yet, it didn’t create many dirty dishes, which makes my husband happy: since I do all the cooking, he does all the dishes.

Mediterranean chicken and vegetable kebabs

Grilling season is winding to a close, and I'm trying to make the most of the next few weeks. Tonight we grilled these mediterranean chicken and vegetable kebabs. The recipe is quite simple - chicken breast, fennel and zucchini are marinated in a combination of lemon juice, fresh oregano and olive oil. I added some lemon basil from my garden to the marinade. The chicken and vegetables are threaded onto skewers and grilled. Make sure to cut the fennel into thin wedges, otherwise it won't cook at the same rate as the chicken and zucchini.

Grilled and marinated squash

Almost every Sunday during the summer we fire up the grill. This summer, I have been cooking my way through Grilling for Life by Bobby Flay. This past week, I made marinated grilled summer squash. My grocery store had a sale on all varieties of summer squash, so I ended up with green zucchini, crookneck squash, white zucchini and green and yellow pattypan squash. The squash is cut lengthwise and seasoned with a little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper before going on the grill. After the squash comes off the grill, it's doused with a marinade of lemon juice and zest, olive oil, salt, pepper, crushed chile and fresh basil. I garnished this dish with a sprinkling of lemon basil, purple basil and cherry tomatoes from my garden.

Grilled salad

This recipe for grilled salad is actually really simple, it was the beautiful picture of it in Martha Stewart Living that caught my eye. It's just an assortment of vegetables, brushed with olive oil, seasoned with salt and pepper, and grilled. Prior to serving, the vegetables are topped with lemon juice and fresh thyme. I chose to use portobello mushrooms, zucchini, pattypan squash, japanese eggplants, radicchio, red onion and tomatoes for this recipe. It made for a delicious and healthy side dish.

Grilled asparagus with tarragon vinaigrette

Grilling season is finally here! This past fall, I bought the Grilling For Life cookbook by Bobby Flay. By the time I got the book, grilling season was basically over. I've been looking forward to warmer weather so that I can put my new book to good use.

This was a great asparagus recipe. The vinaigrette is a combination of white wine vinegar, fresh tarrgon, olive oil, cornichons, capers, and hard boiled egg yolks. The hard boiled egg yolks are blended together with the vinegar to make a rich and creamy dressing. The grilled asparagus is topped with chopped hard boiled eggs and tarragon.

Grilled lamb chops with oregano vinaigrette and radish tzatziki

This recipe is from Bobby Flay's Grilling for Life. I'm trying to make the most of what's left of this year's grilling season. Lamb chops (he calls for rib chops, I used shoulder chops) are simply seasoned with salt and pepper and seared on the grill. The hot lamb chops are topped with a vinaigrette of fresh oregano, garlic, red wine vinegar, honey, olive oil, salt and pepper. Radish tzatziki is a twist on an old favorite. The recipe uses ingredients that are fairly traditional, but instead of shredded cucumber, this sauce calls for finely grated radish. Make sure to squeeze all the moisture out of your radish before you put it in the sauce. I had no idea that so much bright pink juice would leak out of radishes when they're shredded! The combination of the smoky lamb, slightly sweet vinaigrette and tzatziki with the bite of radish was amazing. I will definitely be repeating this recipe in the near future.

Toasted israeli couscous with vegetables

I wanted to make something different that involved grilled vegetables, and this recipe seemed like just the thing. Grilled vegetables are combined with toasted israeli couscous and olives and tossed in a lemon balsamic vinaigrette. I did make a few changes to the recipe. I used pastina instead of israeli couscous because I already had it in the house. Also, the original recipe calls for grilled asparagus, but when I went to the store this week, asparagus was extremely expensive. I used extra zucchini instead. Also, I cut the amount of olive oil in the dressing way back, and used parsley instead of basil. This was really delicious - the grilled vegetables added a touch of smokiness, and the use of lemon zest in the dressing gives it a bright flavor. I bet other vegetables would be good in this too, like grilled eggplant or corn.

Grilled lamb chops with fig cascabel sauce

I saw Bobby Flay make this recipe on his show months ago, and I am just now getting around to trying it. To be honest, this sauce was kind of a pain to make. It was especially painful when the cascabel and chicken stock mixture boiled over onto my stove. I only used 2 cups of chicken stock instead of four. The end result was a thick, sweet and spicy sauce. On the plus side, the sauce is very flavorful, and it made enough for me to freeze the leftovers so that I don't have to go through this process again!

Grilled corn salad

I used this recipe from Ina Garten for this salad, with one modification. I grilled my corn instead of boiling it. The corn is mixed with red onion, cider vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper and basil. It was a nice combination of flavors, and very easy to make. The corn only took a few minutes on the grill, and the minimal amount of ingredients means that this dish comes together in no time.

Giada's family dinners - grilled lettuces

This week I'm featuring food from Giada's Family Dinners

This is a really simple recipe - belgian endive, radicchio and romaine lettuces are briefly grilled, chopped, and tossed with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. It's a nice change of pace and isn't much more work than a regular salad.

Grilled lettuces