All contents (C) 2004, 2005, 2006 Michael Schlesinger
Sunday, June 20, 2004
A Weekend Made for Grilling
The weather on Saturday was spectacular – mild with no humidity. There was plenty of sunlight left when I got home from work, so I fired up the grill.
I had some chicken thighs and drumsticks in the fridge, so I made a quick rub with salt, pepper, oregano, garlic powder, rosemary and paprika – nothing fancy. I seasoned the chicken and threw it on the hot grill along with two potatoes cut in half lengthwise and roasted skin-side up.
No slow smoking, just straight grilling, and all was ready in about 45 minutes. I added some baby Brussels sprouts that had been nuked with salt and pepper and a little bit of butter, and we had dinner in the backyard with a pitcher of iced tea.
Sunday was just as beautiful, so I decided to grill bratwursts. Long before the fire needed to be made, I sliced four green peppers and three onions and threw them into a sauté pan.
I slow cooked these until they were soft and sweet. After about two hours over low heat, the peppers and onions were beautifully caramelized. The brats went on the grill and were turned every four or five minutes until they were done about 30 minutes later.
I heaped a mound of peppers and onions onto the center of two plates, laid a couple of brats across each, threw in a few leftover Brussels sprouts and added a squirt of mustard.
A couple of weeks ago I was in the mood for hot dogs and barbecue baked beans. Jane asked if there was chili to go on the dogs. There wasn't, but I developed a craving for it and decided to cook up a pot last weekend.
I diced two green peppers and one large yellow onion, and sautéed them with a tablespoon of butter. While the vegetables were cooking, I cut up two pounds of beef stew chunks into about 1.5-inch squares. When the vegetables were soft, I transferred them to a large pot, added the spices from Wick Fowler's Two Alarm Chili Kit, and let the mixture simmer softly while I browned the meat in a sauce pan.
I moved the meat to the pot and added one large can of crushed tomatoes and three cups of chicken stock. I let the pot simmer, uncovered, until it was reduced to about half. Then I added a large can of red beans and let it simmer another 30 minutes while I cooked up a box of elbow macaroni. (I was going to serve the chili Cincinnati-style but didn't have any spaghetti, so I improvised.)
I froze about a third of the chili for the next time I wanted to cook franks. For dinner, I served the chili over macaroni topped with cheese, diced red onion and a dollop of sour cream – it was excellent. Dinner for two, leftovers for four, and enough chili put away in the freezer for a dozen chili-cheese dogs in the near future.
November 2004 Thanksgiving
September 2004 Lasagna
Rice with Chicken and Sausage
August 2004 Chicken Noodle Casserole
Chicken Pot Pie
July 2004 Chicken w/Couscous
When I Don't Cook
Apple Smoked Chicken
June 2004 Grilled Chicken
Bratwurst
Chili
May 2004 Red Beans
Chicken Salad
Chicken Creole
I 'Cue, Too
(barbecue chicken}
April 2004 Roast Chicken Greek Shrimp
March 2004 Shrimp with Grits Scamorza Baked Ziti Oyster Dressing Stuffed Turkey Breast
February 2004 Shrimp Paprikas Chicken Paprikas Polenta
January 2004 Rosti Stock Roast Turkey