Summertime grilling

Not being a big fan of hot weather, there are a few things I do enjoy about the summer—not the least of which is grilling most of our meals.  In actuality, we are year ‘round grillers, but we truly step-up the game during the summer months.
Everything from chicken legs and hotdogs to beef filets and prime rib have been prepared on our grill.  I would like to expand my repertoire with regard to main dishes, but the accompanying dishes, as well. 
I’ve prepared the more obvious side dishes on the grill—corn on the cob, potatoes and vegies—but there are some many more opportunities to use the grill. 
I started thinking about this while I was preparing one of my family’s favorite appetizers last week—mango brie quesadillas (thank you, Stacy)—and committed to myself that I would start investigating the aisles at our local book store for grilling books.  (Yup—that means I’ll be buying yet another cookbook, but a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do.  Don’t be a hater—it’s for my family for heaven’s sake.)

Truth is, as I typed that my mind went to Barefoot Contessa and Giada De Laurentiis cookbooks already in my collection.  They probably have a few recipes in there, but I am pretty sure Bobby Flay or another grilling expert would have it all neatly packed into one volume.  Again, this will require some exploration.
In the meantime, I wanted to share the recipe I came-up with the other night.  I had thawed some chicken breasts, but did not have a marinade planned.  Since I had the mango standing by for the quesadillas, I decided to use them in the marinade.  I actually buy mango in a jar—the kind packed in juice—because it is quick and easy to use for morning smoothies. 
Looking in the fridge and realizing we are heading out of town for a few days, I decided I needed to use the remnants of an open yogurt container.  A mango yogurt marinade started to formulate in my mind.  It’s loosely based on a recipe I got from my friend’s, Brooke’s, sister, Lynn. I usually use plain yogurt for marinades, but all we had was vanilla Greek yogurt—again, for smoothies.  Here’s how it played-out:
for six boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 c. of yogurt
1/2 cup of mango juice (from jar)
1 T fresh lime juice
garlic (I had to use powdered because I was flat-out of fresh—if was okay, but it’ll never happen again.  I used about 1 t, but will use 2-3 minced cloves when I make it again.)
chopped cilantro, about 3 T
2 t curry powder
3 T olive oil
I allowed it to marinade for about 1 hour, but will allow more time the next time I make it.  I grilled over medium-low heat.  don’t ask me how long—as I rarely do it the same way twice.

Do you have any favorite grilling recipes? Will you share them with me, please.  I enjoy cookbook recipes, prepared by people in restaurant-worthy kitchens, but the best ones come from real people in their real kitchens.
Thanks for your indulgence.

A Cool Find

The weekend we went to visit my cousin, Stacy, we did a little shopping at an antique mall.  While I was astounded by the selection of items, I was equally astounded by the prices (it was located in Decatur—an Atlanta suburb).  Wow!  I think I’ll stick closer to home for the bargains!

One item we were willing to drop some high dollar coin on, however, was this:

Any ideas?

Well, if you were able to identify the case, you probably going through a similar phase of life as we are:

“middle aged* with the ability to travel”

*with a 20-something’s mentality

It is a mini liquor cabinet in a travel case . . .

 

I was really proud of myself when I found a different case (albeit empty) in the same shop—was already toting it around, claiming it as my own, when Darren said he had found a better one. 

“Do you even know what it is?” said my smug-little-self.

 

He said he did and instructed me to follow him.  So follow, I did—passing numerous booths with interesting content in an effort to humor him. 

Of course, he had found this one--complete with four stainless cups, two stainless shot glasses, a stir-spoon and a horn-look, bakelite handle bottle opener.

 

What a find! 

 

All of this made and brought to you by:

 

Note the fancy, schmancy snap

Bakelite is tricky—looks like the real thing (horn) doesn’t it?

Our drink du jour . . . an Old Fashioned made with Rye Whiskey.  Oh, and thanks to my cousin, we’re now Maraschino cherry snobs . . . only Luxardo will do!

We actually didn’t use the Orange bitters—we used Angostura® bitters.

Here’s the recipe I followed and we all agreed was the best we had (taking a reflective bow as I type this) :

2 oz bourbon whiskey
2 dashes Angostura® bitters
1 splash water
1 tsp sugar
1 maraschino cherry
1 orange wedge

Mix sugar, water and angostura bitters in an old-fashioned glass. Drop in a cherry and an orange wedge. Muddle into a paste using a muddler or the back end of a spoon. Pour in bourbon, fill with ice cubes, and stir.

Read more: Old Fashioned recipe http://www.drinksmixer.com/drink407.html#ixzz2Musfda4c

(Mixer’s notes:  I actually used Rye Whiskey—the one in the pic above—and only one slice of a Clementine orange.)

Well, I hope you don’t think less of me for this post!  Rest assured we “drink responsibly;” it’s one of the many reasons we love living within walking distance of our favorite restaurants.

thanks for your indulgence.

Cousins

I wrote this last weekend . . .

On the road again!  This time, we’re on our way to Atlanta to visit my cousin, Stacy.  Originally, this was to be another gymnastics weekend, but the meet was cancelled.  As my cousin had rearranged some other plans to accommodate us for the weekend, it would have been rude to cancel on her—of course, we had no qualms about cancelling Hannah, though—she stayed home with big sister.

Aren’t cousins great?

There is a post going around on Facebook about cousins being your first friends and knowing all about your family and this couldn’t be more true!

Mom is very good friends with her cousin, Sharon.  They spent some time together after Dad funeral service and you could just see how much they had missed each other.  They don’s see each other very frequently, but they’re still very good friends.

Growing-up I was very close with my cousin, Robin.  My mom and Aunt Billie would drive us back and forth all summer, we’d spend days/weeks together.  Back then, Stacy didn’t have much time for me; she’s a little older than me.  Robin is a little younger—between me and my sister, Nikki—in age.

Stacy and Robin

Anyhoo, like most things, age changes relations.  A few years seemed insurmountable in our youth, but now I think of us as all being “about the same age.”

When we moved to Richmond Hill, Georgia, Stace and her family moved to Atlanta—we were able to see them a couple times each year and we kept in touch much more regularly.  (Heck, I would hope for hurricane warnings so I had an excuse to make an unscheduled trip to Atlanta under the guise of “evacuation.”)

Since opening my business, I’ve been able to include a visit with her on all of my trips to the market—tightening our bonds with each trip.

I am able to see my other cousins less frequently, but am always grateful that when we do get together, we barely skip a beat.

Do you share similar relations?  Share this is you have the best cousins in the world . . .

thanks for your indulgence,