Category: Appetizers

BBQ’d Pork Satay

  • Servings: ”4-6″
  • Difficulty: ”easy”
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pork-satay

I have not posted anything in a while mainly because life has gotten in the way and if things work out my posts may be fewer and further between because I have been accepted into a Chef Training program that is operated through our local Adult Education institution and it is taught by a Red Seal Chef. The mere fact that, after going through the assessment process and being interviewed by the Chef, that I was accepted is a huge boost to my ego and that after the program is over I will be in a much better position to investigate opening my own little 35-40 seat Cafe with my daughter. 

With that being said, let me introduce you to my version of BBQ’d Pork Satay (Sate) and when I tell you this is a real “simple but tasty recipe for the grilling season and beyond”… trust me it is.

Here’s how we do this one.

Shopping List:

  • Two to three medium sized boneless Pork Sirloin Chops
  • Three tablespoons of Reese’s™ Peanut Butter Chocolate spread
  • Two to three tablespoons water
  • Eight to twelve Bamboo skewers (the number will depend on how big you make your pieces)

Putting it all together: 

  1. Soak the skewers in water for at least 45 minutes so that they will not burn on the grill
  2. Cut the Pork Sirloin Chops into bite sized pieces
  3. In a non reactive bowl mix the Reese’s™ spread and water until it has a smooth consistency
  4. In a large zip lock container or another suitable container with a tight fitting lid mix the pork and the peanut butter spread and refrigerate for at least an hour
  5. Thread the pork on the skewers and BBQ until the internal temperature has reached 165°
  6. Best when served with rice

There you have it…….. another “simple but tasty recipe for the grilling season and beyond”

Until next time……….

                    Bon Appetite

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BBQ’d Dr Pepper Beef Short Ribs

  • Servings: ”2-3″
  • Difficulty: ”easy”
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Dr Pepper BBQ'd short ribs

From the time I started this blog I have always maintained that I’m all about “simple but tasty recipes for the grilling season and beyond” and with this one I think I have hit the nail on the head not to mention that it is an “homage” recipe to a friend of mine who lives in arm pit nowhere Oklahoma (okay it’s really Rush Springs) and has constantly been after me to use Dr Pepper ™ in my cooking so this ones for Roxanne Markham.

Here’s how we do this one.

Shopping List:

  • One pound Korean style Short Ribs
  • One bottle Dr Pepper style BBQ sauce
  • Two green onions chopped
  • Two tbsp sesame seeds

Putting it all together:

  1. Place the short ribs in a large zip lock bag
  2. Add the BBQ sauce making sure to coat all the ribs
  3. Seal and place in the fridge for approximately an hour
  4. Heat your grill to medium
  5. Place the ribs on the grill and cook for ten minutes on each side
  6. Put the ribs on a platter and dust with the sesame seeds and green onions
  7. Serve with sides of your choice

There you have it another “simple but tasty recipe for the grilling season and beyond”

Until next time……….

                    Bon Appetit

 

Oyster soup

  • Servings: ”4″
  • Difficulty: ”easy”
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This is the first recipe under the category of Retro Recipes and it comes to us from the book “Perfect Cooking by Parkinson” that was printed in 1950 in the United Kingdom and was used by the Parkinson Stove Company as a way of promoting their new gas ranges. The book itself is approximately two inches thick and covers everything from how to properly set the table to the proper positioning of food in the oven. The process of going through this book should prove interesting.

I am going to post the recipes word for word from the book and I will even make one or two as I go along but please don’t expect this to be a Julie and Julia type of experience. Please also keep in mind that there are no pictures for these recipes.

Here’s how we do this one.

Ingredients:

  • 1 quart of fish stock or water
  • 2 doz. Portuguese Oysters. (or 1/2 pint tin)
  • 2 ozs flour
  • 1/2 pint milk
  • 2 teaspoonfuls anchovy sauce
  • 1 teaspoonful salt
  • 1/2 oz butter

Method:

– Beard the oysters and cook by putting in a strainer and pouring boiling water through. (if no stock is available, the beards, which are the dark parts of the oysters may be put into a saucepan, and simmered with one quart of water half-an-hour, together with a pinch of mace, salt and peppercorns, and strip of lemon peel). Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the flour, then the stock (strained and cooled). Boil five minutes. Add milk or cream. Stir in the oysters and anchovy sauce, and season to taste.

There you have it a “simple but tasty Retro Recipe for the grilling season and beyond.”

Until next time………..

                         Bon Appetit

Cheese stuffed cedar planked figs wrapped with Prosciutto

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I thought I would continue the “simple but tasty” apps path with another one I happen to have stolen from Chef Ted Readers dynamite BBQ book and the fact that this one uses a part of the noble pig, in this case Prosciutto, is no mere coincidence. Now to be honest I have never really eaten figs other than in Fig Newton cookies and I have not really seen them outside of an old movie or two where some Bedouin sheikh is lounging on an overstuffed pillow watching some dancing girls and munching on fresh figs but over the past few months I have started to see them being sold in more and more grocery stores and they reminded me of this particular recipe and so I thought I would pass it on to you…… oh and of course this is not the original recipe in Chef Ted’s book since I have tweaked it to my own tastes.

Ingredients:

Untreated 12 inch Cedar plank soaked overnight

1/2 cup creme de cassis

1 Tablespoon cracked black peppercorns

12 Medium to large fresh black or green figs, halved lengthwise

3/4 cup Goat cheese

3/4 cup crumbled Blue cheese

Four ounces sun dried tomatoes, chopped

1 green onion finely chopped

1/2 cup baby spinach, chopped

1 teaspoon chopped garlic

1 tablespoon fresh Sage, finally chopped

Salt and freshly ground pepper

12 thin slices Prosciutto

Liquid honey to drizzle (optional)

Putting it all together:

In a small flat shallow dish put the creme de cassis and sprinkle the cracked peppercorns on top

Add the figs, cut side down, and marinade for about an hour

While the figs are marinating soak the sun dried  tomatoes in hot water until they are reconstituted (about 20 minutes)—— there is nothing like biting into a rubbery piece of sun dried tomato…. well maybe there are a few things but that’s for another day.

Pre heat the BBQ to 450 degrees

In a medium bowl mix all the other ingredients, except the Prosciutto and honey.

Take one half of a fig and place a good amount of the cheese mix on it and then top with the other half and wrap in Prosciutto. Secure with a toothpick

Repeat until all the figs are stuffed and wrapped

Place the figs on a cedar plank and place in the BBQ for five to six minutes or until the cheese starts to ooze

Place on a platter and drizzle with honey if using it.

The great thing about this recipe is that the figs can be assembled a day in advance and brought out to come to room temperature for 30 minutes before grilling.

So there you have it another “simple but tasty recipe for the grilling season and beyond”

So until next time…………

                                                         Bon Appetit

 

Cedar Planked Bacon Wrapped Drumsticks

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Back in the day sitcoms usually had at least one episode when the husband came home from work and dropped the bombshell on his wife that “… the boss will be here in an hour for dinner” and the poor wife would spend the next half an hour trying to defrost and cook a roast in order to impress “the boss”. Now I don’t know if that still happens today and if it does I doubt it’s as funny as the sitcoms made it out to be but in the event that it does I would like to present this very “simple and tasty recipe” that I happened to find in one of my BBQ books that was written by Canada’s Master BBQ chef Ted Reader….. Cedar Planked Bacon Wrapped Chicken Drumsticks and you just have to know that if it includes bacon then it’s dynamite.

Here’s my spin on Chef Ted’s recipe……

Ingredients:

Two to three “cooking” cedar planks depending on the number of drumsticks

10 to 12 chicken drumsticks

A pound or two of smoked bacon (if two pounds is to much for the chicken well…… who cares? IT”S BACON!!!!!!!!)

Chicken dry rub (see dry rubs and marinades)

Putting it all together:

Soak the cedar planks in water for at least 45 minutes so that they won’t burn

Pre heat the grill to 350 degrees

Dust the drumsticks with the dry rub

Wrap in bacon

Place on the cedar planks

Cook on the BBQ until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 160 degrees

 

Serve this with your favorite side dish whether it is mac and cheese, grilled corn on the cob or red beans and rice. What ever side you choose the chicken will be the star of the show and people will rave about it forever and if they don’t then simply unfriend them on Facebook……. that’ll show them who’s boss and if the boss does happen to show up for dinner then he will think you have been cooking for days.

So there you have it another “simple but tasty recipe for the grilling season and beyond”

Until next time………..

                                                   Bon Appetite