Outside Summer Time!

Summer time is a favorite time of mine (hmmm, a poet and didn't know it, hahaha!).   Kicking up my feet and  relaxing on the deck or in the yard.  It's laid back, slow, and I feel like I don't have a care in the world.  A tall glass of freshly brewed iced tea, swinging on the swing and listening to the sounds of nothing is a happy thing in my book, the lazy days of Summer.  

During the Summer months I try to cook everything for every meal on the grill, why dirty up the kitchen and heat up the house when you don't have too.  My gears were turning on Friday night as to how I could do a whole breakfast on the grill. Was it a risky thing to do? I didn't care, because if it didn't come out right, we would just eat cereal.  But it did turn out and it was perfect!  Try it, you won't be sorry, it was fun too.  I love eating outside, relaxing, reading the morning newspaper and having a great breakfast on the weekends.

I got the bacon started in the cast iron frying pan.  Invest in a few, they are inexpensive and they work great on the grill.  You wouldn't want to put your good cookware on the gas the grill.  

In another cast iron frying pan, on the side burner of the grill, were the hash browns.  Cook them like you would do inside, a little oil in the pan, season with salt and pepper and that's all they need.  The cast iron frying pan puts a great crust on them, makes them crispy.

 On my lightly oiled griddle (this came with my grill), Texas Toast French Toast is grilling.

 They grilled up perfectly.

 Bring on the pure maple syrup, or flavored syrups I love them too, and what can I say DELICIOUS!  Do not be afraid of the grill, you can cook anything on that thing that you cook inside.  Next I will try baking on it, that ought to be interesting.  Stay tuned!

Sammies On The Grill, Because It's Summer!

OK, this is an easy dinner on the grill.  My family loves these sandwiches, they are easy to make and done on the grill of course, because it's Summer!

I use these marinated roasted peppers. WHY you might ask? Because they are the best darn jarred peppers around!

So this is the sandwich folks, I made four:

Whole grain artisan bread, brush each side lightly with olive oil.

Add two slices of sharp provolone cheese to each side of bread.

Roasted peppers on one side, add top to the bottom.

Grill until nice grill marks form, bread is toasted and cheese is melted.

Now if you want to go a little crazy, spread some pesto on that bread before adding the cheese, that elevates the flavor too!

 Awesome, easy, fast meal and tastes great too. ENJOY!

Pizza Express

We are big pizza eaters in my house, at least once a week we have pizza on the menu.  Everyone loves it and its satisfying, served with a salad it makes a nice meal.  I tried a new way of making pizza last night, I usually make my own dough and homemade pizza sauce, but I came up with a new express way of making pizza on the grill, and I have to tell you it was fantastic.  Taste just like a brick oven pizza, without the cost or giving up any of the flavor.  It was a hit with the family, they are my biggest critics, and if it passed them I know I will be making it again.

I used Brooklyn Bred Pizza Crusts.  BJ's as well as Costco sells these.  I also use them for pesto bread which is awesome!  Heat your grill and put them on to crisp up for about 5 minutes on each side.  Be careful and watch them so they don't burn, all grills are different.

My nice friend turned me on to this pizza sauce, it's the best and tastes great! After the crusts crisp up to your liking, add sauce......

A little fresh basil from the garden doesn't hurt.....

And this cheese blend I found at  BJ's, it's great and adds alot of different flavor to my pizzas.

And heeerrrre they are!  If the bottoms of your pizzas get too brown, turn the grill off and set the pizzas to the side, close the lid so the cheese melts.

My pizzas are all done and they look fabulous!

 I cut them across, you can get 5 - 6 slices from each crust, depending how big you cut them.

 Crispy crust on the bottom, just like brick oven pizza!  

Purple Babies

Well I am back!  I was cleaning the whole house after my new paint job in the kitchen, redecorating, and moving furniture around.  That is how I spent my Memorial Day weekend.  The downstairs is finally done, and now I will be working on the upstairs.  My son's room is getting painted today, and when my daughter goes overseas for the year for school, her bedroom and bath will be painted.  It will probably take me that long to get it done, I am not as young as I use to be. 

So now I am back to my old ways, cooking dinner every night.  It's summertime, all meals will be cooked outside, weather permitting.  I made these savory potato packets the other night for the grill.  And who ever thought we would be able to buy purple potatoes at the market?  The texture of these "purple babies" as I call them, is so smooth and flavorful.  

I used the steamable in the bag purple potatoes.  Tear off squares of foil, I made four packets. Cut the potatoes in quarters (I only used 1/2 the bag), divide potatoes onto each piece of foil.  Peel a Vidalia onion and cut in half, then slice thickly and divide on top of the potato packets.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper, 1/4 tsp of minced garlic (the jar kind is fine) drizzle with olive oil, top with a few springs of fresh thyme.  You could also use rosemary if you like.

 Fold them up tightly, onto the grill for 25 minutes and you have yourself some fantastic tasting "purple babies"!  Turn the potatoes as they are grilling.  Be careful opening the potatoes, they will be hot and steamy.

Grilling On The Inside

It's starting to get cold outside, and sad to say, we won't be able to use the grill until next year.  Everything tastes better on the grill, meat, chicken, fish and vegetables.  It was raining the other night, so I thought I would give the grill pan a try to grill up some steaks.  I melted 3 tablespoons of  butter in the pan and seasoned the steaks with salt and pepper, grilled for 7-8 minutes on each side and that was it.  I can't even tell you how awesome tasting these were!