LINGUINE WITH GRILLED CLAMS AND BACON

SERVES4 (MAIN COURSE)

• ACTIVE TIME:25 MIN
• START TO FINISH:45 MIN

• 1/2 lb sliced bacon, chopped
• 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 2 teaspoons hot red-pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 32 small (less than 2 inches wide) hard-shelled clams, scrubbed
• 3/4 lb linguine
• 1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

• EQUIPMENT:

  a 13- by 9- by 2-inch disposable foil pan

• Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over hot charcoal (high heat for gas), leaving about one third of grill free of coals (or, for a gas grill, shutting off one or two burners)
• Cook bacon in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat until crisp. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.
• Stir together oil, garlic, red-pepper flakes, and lemon juice in foil pan and put on grill over area with no coals.
• Grill clams on grill rack over coals, turning with tongs, until they open, 3 to 7 minutes, transferring as opened to foil pan and being careful not to spill their juices. (Discard any clams that remain unopened after 7 minutes.)
• Cook linguine in a pasta pot of well-salted boiling water until al dente, then drain.
• Toss pasta with bacon, parsley, contents of foil pan, and salt and pepper to taste.

COOKS’ NOTE:

Clams can be cooked on the stove with 2 Tbsp water in same skillet used to cook bacon; bring to a boil, covered, then cook, covered, stirring occasionally, until clams just open wide, 6 to 10 minutes (discard any clams that remain unopened after 10 minutes).

Spaghetti with Tomato, Mushrooms and Grilled Peppers

Ingredients: spaghetti, 1 onion, 250 grams mushrooms, 125 grams cherry tomatoes, 2 grilled peppers, 50 ml white wine, 1 tin diced tomatoes (400 ml), 1 cube stock, salt, pepper, grated cheese,

Number of persons: 2

Cook the spaghetti in boiling water with a little salt. Bake in hot oil 1 chopped onion to soft. Add 250 grams sliced mushrooms, 125 cherry tomatoes cut in quarters and 2 sliced grilled peppers again. Stir fry until the mushrooms are tender. Pour 50 ml white wine and let the alcohol evaporate. If the alcohol has evaporated add 1 tin diced tomato and 1 crumbled cube stock. Bring to taste with salt and pepper and let it all gently simmer for about 10 minutes. Serve with spaghetti and sprinkle grated cheese overit. Enjoy!

Oven-Baked Chicken Breast with Grilled Pepper and Ricotta

Ingredients: 2 chicken breasts, 1 grilled pepper, 125 grams ricotta, 100 grams bacon,

Number of persons: 2

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Cut 2 chicken breats open. Cut 1 grilled peppers very finely and put it in both chicken breasts. Put on it the ricotta. Fold the chicken breasts and enfold with slices bacon. Place the chicken breasts in an ovenproof dish. Place the ovenproof dish about 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven. We had a salad and potatoes with it.

GRILLED SEXTARINES

Grilled Nectarines reign supreme in the BBQ scene.

This is as close as you can get to grilling up sex appeal. Most grilling consists of men cooking meat for the pleasure of other men. That’s not gay. Right? But this little side dish/ breaks all the machismo boundaries and labels associated with backyard barbecues. You have the fire for the cavemen, the fruity fun for the ladies, and the sweetness for the kid in all of us. Plus these nectarines are so simple to make that you could develop quantum physic formulas simultaneously. You are running out of excuses not to make these sweet satisfactions for someone your sweet on. Best get down to the produce aisle then.

Step 2
Chop the nectarines in half and remove the pits. Brush the goop into the indentations of each nectarine half.

Step 3
Preheat the grill until it is hot. Set the filled nectarines on the grill, skin down. Grill until the bottoms char slightly and the fruit meat softens (approx 10 min). Remove from heat.

Serve solo, with other BBQ fare over a la mode.

Grilled Salmon with Peach-Bourbon Barbecue Sauce

This was a good one. Made a lot of sauce, but we stuck the leftovers in the freezer for future use. Since peaches aren’t quite yet in season here, we used a jar of peaches (for like, peach pie or something), so our sauce was probably a bit sweeter than it should have been.

Grilled Salmon with Peach-Bourbon Barbecue Sauce

Makes 4 servings. Recipe from Emeril.

INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup diced onions
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 serrano pepper, halved and thinly sliced
4 cups peeled, pitted, and diced peaches
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 to 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 tablespoons peach bourbon liqueur (recommended: Southern Comfort)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets, skinned
2 teaspoons olive oil
Cooked wild rice, for serving

DIRECTIONS
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and serrano (with the seeds) and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the peaches and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the ketchup, orange juice, zest, lemon juice, cider vinegar, and brown sugar and stir to combine. Bring mixture to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, or until thickened. Using an immersion blender or regular blender, puree the sauce until smooth. Strain the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl, pressing with a rubber spatula to extract all of the juices. Discard the solids. Stir the bourbon into the barbecue sauce and set aside until ready to use.

Preheat a grill to medium heat.

Brush the salmon on all sides with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place the fish on the grill and cook for about 2 minutes then turn the fish 45 degrees and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Turn the fish over and cook for an additional 2 minutes or until cooked through to the desired degree of doneness. During the last few minutes of cooking, brush the fish with the reserved peach sauce.

Serve the salmon over wild rice with the remaining warm Peach-Bourbon Barbecue Sauce.

Grilled Flank Steak with Shallot and Red Wine Sauce

If you watched the Next Food Network Star, this recipe is from Amy, the show’s winner. While I think that the sauce from our Burgundy Steak Salad is a bit richer, this is a good and fairly simple way to make a good steak.

The potatoes are fun too… thwak them with a rolling pin and drown them in olive oil and thyme. Mmmmm.

Grilled Flank Steak with Shallot and Red Wine Sauce with Cracked Potatoes

Makes 4 servings. Recipe from Amy Finley.

INGREDIENTS
For Potatoes:
12 small-medium Yukon potatoes
1/2 cup olive oil
2 sprigs fresh thyme, plus 1/2 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
Coarse salt and freshly cracked black pepper
1 clove garlic, sliced

4 shallots, sliced in thin rings
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup red wine
1 cup beef broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 (1 1/2 pound) piece flank steak
1 tablespoon cold butter, in small chunks

DIRECTIONS
Make potatoes: Using the rolling pin or a heavy pan, gently smack the potatoes, 1 potato at a time, until the skin begins to split, exposing the interior of the raw potato.

Over low heat, add the olive oil to a medium-sized heavy-bottomed saucepan, then add the potatoes and thyme sprigs and season generously with salt and pepper. Place the lid on the pan and allow to cook, undisturbed, shaking the pan every 5 minutes or so, until the bottoms of the potatoes are browned, about 10 to 12 minutes. (Check occasionally to make sure the potatoes aren’t browning too quickly and adjust heat accordingly.) Turn the potatoes to their second side, replace the lid, and continue cooking undisturbed a further 5 to 8 minutes.

Remove the lid and cook a further 2 to 3 minutes, for the condensation to evaporate. Remove the thyme sprigs and add the sliced garlic and chopped fresh thyme and cook until the garlic is caramelized and chewy, about 2 minutes. Serve hot.

For steak: In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, saute the shallots in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil until lightly caramelized, about 5 to 7 minutes. Raise the heat to high and add the red wine and reduce by half. Add the broth and reduce by half. Check for seasoning, and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Keep warm on low heat.

Brush the flank steak on both sides with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with the salt and pepper. Place on the center of grill and sear 5 to 8 minutes per side for rare to medium rare, testing by pressing the meat with a finger: The spongier the meat feels, the rarer it is cooked. Remove from the grill and allow to rest, very loosely tented with aluminum foil, 5 to 10 minutes, to allow the juices to reabsorb into the meat. Slice the flank steak on the diagonal and place on a large platter. Finish the sauce by swirling in the chunks of cold butter, then top the steak with some of the sauce and serve the rest on the side.

Indonesian-style Grilled Eggplant with Spicy Peanut Sauce

We had a bit of an eggplant fiasco a few weeks ago. Tried a new recipe that seemed promising, and it was the first time (ever?) that we’ve cooked something so bad that neither of us could eat it. Usually, when something isn’t great it’s just that, not great. But still edible at least. This, however, was not edible.

So the following week we decided that we needed some eggplant redemption. We needed to show that eggplant could be delicious (which we know it can) so we wouldn’t have that last bad taste to remember it by. And then we found this recipe.

While I do have to say that Taylor makes the best peanut sauce this side of Thailand, this sauce is a tough contender. I think it’s the fresh ground peanuts – instead of peanut butter – that put it over the top.

And don’t think you can save yourself some time by skipping the first step. Salting the eggplant is CRITICAL is it draws out the moisture aka bitterness in it. I think that is where the eggplant mess began, as that recipe didn’t seem to care that eggplant can be bitter as heck. So please, salt your eggplant, and let it hang out for a bit. You won’t regret it later.

Indonesian-style Grilled Eggplant with Spicy Peanut Sauce

Makes 4 servings. Recipe from Epicurious.

INGREDIENTS
1 eggplant (about 1 1/4 pounds), cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
1 garlic clove, minced
1 shallot, minced
a 2-inch-long fresh hot red chili, chopped fine (wear rubber gloves), or 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons Oriental sesame oil
1/4 cup ground roasted peanuts
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, or to taste
vegetable oil for brushing the eggplant

DIRECTIONS
Sprinkle the eggplant lightly with salt, let it drain in a colander for 30 minutes to 1 hour, then pat it dry.

In a small saucepan cook the garlic, the shallot, and the chili in the sesame oil over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened, add the peanuts, and cook the mixture, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the soy sauce, the sugar, the lemon juice, and 1 cup water, boil the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it is thickened slightly, and add salt and pepper to taste.

Brush the eggplant, patted dry, with the vegetable oil and grill it on an oiled rack set 5 to 6 inches over glowing coals, turning it, for 7 to 8 minutes, or until it is just cooked. Transfer the eggplant to a serving plate and spoon the peanut sauce over it. Serve with some fresh homemade pita, and enjoy.