Grilled Jerk Salmon

I love eating salmon, but it is easy to fall into ruts when making it.  I came up with this unusual application one day and really feel it worked well.  Do yourself a favor and make sure you are using good salmon.  A lot of discount grocers put out “fresh” salmon (or any other fish for that matter) that’s a whole lot less than fresh.  If stuck with this situation, buy the best looking frozen fish that you can.

When grilling salmon I really prefer using whole filets and leaving the skin on, if possible.  I think they hold up nicely and are a lot more fun to cook.   You can take the skin off afterwards if want.  I find the skin quite tasty.  Sheree thinks it’s vile.  I usually end up eating hers when she’s not looking.  Click here, try it and see what you think.

Spanakopita Quiche Cups

In our house, breakfast needs to be quick, easy, and healthy. These quiche cups are more technique than recipe. You can use any combination of meat, veg, and/or cheese. The left one in the picture shows a bacon and cheese quiche, and the spanakopita quiche is on the right. Spanakopita is a Greek dish with garlic, spinach, and feta. I thought it would be good to try those flavors in a quiche – and it was!

The best part? Take your leftover quiche and put them in a freezer bag and freeze. You can just reheat them in the microwave or toaster oven for a quick, filling breakfast before work or school. If you want to make sure the tops of the phyllo dough stay unbroken, put the bag into a plastic container before storing in the freezer. Otherwise, all the banging around in the freezer will knock the corners off your phyllo.

To read more about making quiche cups, or to see the recipe for making my spanakopita version, just click here.

Grilled Flank Steak with Chipotle Sauce

I’m a huge fan of porterhouse or rib eye cooked on the grill.  However, sometimes I find myself wanting to do something a little different. Or, I have a dish in mind that is more amalgamated than your traditional steakhouse offering.  My go-to steak for this: flank steak.

Flank steak is very popular in many parts of the world.  From arrachera in Spanish speaking lands, to Bavette in France, to stir fry in China; flank steak makes many a meal.

Unlike cuts of steak like loin, strip, and rib eye, which are on the back of the cow, flank is from the belly.  It has an intense beef flavor, but is tougher than many steaks.  To compensate for this it is critical that flank is cut across the grain at a 45 degree angle.  This is easier than it sounds.  Almost always, the grain of the flank steak runs the long way.  So position your knife going across the short way.  Next, instead of cutting straight up and down, position your knife at 45 degrees.  Cut as thin as possible.

As for grilling the flank steak, just cook to your desired doneness over high heat.

My recipe for this week is Grilled Flank Steak with Chipotle Sauce.  Inspired by watching a bit too much Bobby Flay, I add some mesclun-type greens and pickled red onion.  I think you’ll find it an interesting change of pace.

To view this recipe, just click here.

Drunken Beans

Summertime is here.  Time for cookouts, parties, and reunions.  Time to be asked to bring a covered dish.  What should you bring?  It needs to be easily transportable.  It needs to be able to set out at warmer temperatures without quickly becoming a hazard.  It needs to go over well with a wide array of people. It needs to be something that doesn’t stress you out and make you wish you weren’t going in the first place.  There’s a lot to consider.

Most of the potlucks I go to seem to have the usual suspects.  A plate of cookies, a plate of brownies, two different pasta salads, a taco dip, some kind of meaty concoction in a crock pot, and assorted bags of chips.  Not that there is anything wrong with these choices, but a change of direction could blow a little life into the party.

My recipe offering for this is drunken beans.  This dish is a classic of Mexican cooking with many variations.  My version is inspired by the writings of Rick Bayless along with some haunts in Mexico.  The dish is clean and aromatic, yet backed with a little bacon to round it out.  I find it goes great with grilled food and it will keep well at a potluck.

Click here to read more about drunken beans.