Cool Cous Cous Salad

Summer salads: the perfect match for anything BBQ'd. Tonight I'm grilling up my Ribs and to go along side, I pulled together some fresh ingredients I had on hand. The result is a little something to cool the flames.

1 cup cous cous
1 cup water or stock

• bring liquid to a boil, add cous cous, stir, remove from heat and cover. After 5 minutes, fluff with a fork and refrigerate till cooled.

1/4 cup celery, diced small
1/2 cup cucumber, diced small
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in quarters
1/4 cup red onion, diced fine
1 cup chick peas (if canned, drained and rinsed)
1 clove garlic, minced
hand-full fresh dill, chopped
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp rice vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

• Once cous cous has cooled add the above ingredients, toss and taste. Adjust seasonings if needed.

Serve on a leaf of lettuce. Try something long and leafy like Red Leaf lettuce or Romaine because it is also firm.
OR
Try stuffing it into half a fresh pepper, cut lengthwise.

~ you're welcome ;o)

Homemade Margarine

Fat is fat. Not so. In this world of perpetual dieting, obesity epidemics and the subsequent rise in health awareness, understanding fat has never before been such a heavy subject. First of all fat is essential. It doesn't just pad our bones and roll over our jeans. Fat is needed for vitamin absorption and transportation through our bloodstream. It helps control blood functions such as clotting and pressure. And it is needed for exercise after carbohydrates have been burned. But not all fats are essential. In fact some are just down right bad, particularly when over consumed.

Trans fats are the latest lipids to be branded as bad. They are a double edged sword. Not only do they build bad cholesterol levels, causing coronary heart disease, but they lower good cholesterol. Saturated fats, in large quantities are also undesirable. Particularly palmitic acid, which occurs in high percentages, in common foods such as beef, butter, salmon and dark chocolate. However we do know that these foods also have beneficial qualities. Salmon also contains essential fatty acids. Dark chocolate has stress reducing antioxidants and beef is a valuable source of iron and protein. So what about butter? It tastes great and nothing substitutes it quite as well when it comes to baking and spreading. And taste is very important. Fat gives food flavour. Without it food can be bland or unbalanced. Often substitutions for fat include higher levels of salt, sugar and added chemicals and flavour enhancers. All of which are also bad if consumed in large quantities. And don't forget that your body needs fat to function. Restricting fat intake too much is not good either. Balance is essential.

The best fats to make a regular part of our balanced diet are known as essential fatty acids. They are our Omegas 3, 6 and 9, derived from linolenic and oleic acids. These fats are needed to support the cardiovascular, reproductive, immune and nervous systems and are found in a variety of nuts, seeds, fish, dark leafy greens and oils like flax, canola and virgin olive. EFA's, like most vitamins and nutrients, can be destroyed through excessive heat from cooking. To preserve their benefits take care when choosing and preparing EFA rich foods.

So here is one way to achieve a fat balance. Make your own margarine. A perfect blend of butter and omega rich oils. Feel free to flavour it with garlic and herbs or just a pinch of salt.

• 1/2lb butter, softened
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Start butter in the blender adding the oil slowly until fully incorporated.
Transfer to a food storage container and refrigerate.

Mediterranean Lamb Chops

I don't think I've ever met a lamb I didn't love. And I hope this recipe will find your own heart all a flutter.

Marinade (yield: enough for 4 chops)
1/8tsp salt and pepper
4 tbsp olive brine
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp rosemary

• marinate chops for 1 hour turning twice to ensure even marination.
• grill chops until medium rare- aprox 4 minutes a side depending on the thickness.
  
• top with grilled red peppers and red onions with sliced kalamata olives and crumbled feta cheese.
  

Turkey Burgers

The weather is warming which means it's time to turn off the oven and fire up the BBQ. Let's kick it off with a great burger. And there is none better than one made from scratch. It's not hard. All the ingredients go in one bowl. Then get your hands in there, mix it up and make some patties!

1 lb ground turkey

1 egg, beaten

2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp thyme, fresh, chopped
1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
1 tsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp onion or shallot, minced
2 tbsp celery, minced
4 mushrooms, minced
1/4 cup gouda, shredded
1/4 cup parmesan
1/4 cup bread crumbs or crushed crackers
1 tsp lemon juice

• form into patties of desired size and grill until done (juices should run clear)
  
• serve on a toasty bun with any of your favourite fixings.
• Since my BBQ is already hot, I'd grill some vegetables like peppers and zucchini. And more cheese never hurt.
  

Slow Cooked BBQ Baby Back Ribs

Yummy Stuff You'll Need

2 large pork back ribs
1 large half pan with rack(to keep your babies out of the steam bath)
tin foil
plastic wrap

~the steam bath
1 can dark ale
1 cup malt vinegar
1/2 cup water

~ ay there's the rub
1tsp each of:
cayenne pepper
black pepper
garlic salt
onion powder
mustard powder
Hungarian paprika
thyme
crushed bay leaves

~so saucy
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup malt vinegar
3 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp each of white pepper and salt
2 cloves minced garlic
2 tbsp minced onions (that means chop em up till you can't chop em no more....or use a grater)
2 tbsp butter

~ melt the butter in a sauce pan. Saute onions and garlic until onions are clear. Melt in sugar and honey. Then stir in the vinegar and Worcestershire. Bring to a soft boil, reduce and add remaining ingredients. Keep warm until ready to use or refrigerate for later use.

How ya do er up

OK so the key to this is time and patience. Never rush a good rib. So you may be a little bored waiting, but in the end your blood thirsty ways will be well fed. To start you need to mix the rub and then spread it across the top of your ribs. Be firm yet gentle. Then wrap em up good and tight in several layers of any old plastic wrap. Now let your ribs sweat it out (in the fridge of course) for at least 12 hrs.

When you're good and bored, pull them puppies out and preheat your oven to 275F. Pour the bath into the bottom of your half pan. Then set in the rack and lay the rubbed ribs on top. Wrap the top tightly with tin foil. Let your ribs steam for 2hrs. Now in the mean time, to keep up your interest, whip up a fresh batch of my BBQ sauce and get yer grill fired up good and hot. Remove your steamed ribs and lay them on the grill coated in BBQ sauce. The key here is not to cook them much further. At this point we're only searing them with sauce and building a bit of a char, so make sure the barby's good and hot. Remove, plate and scarf back with the same brand of dark ale you used in the bath.

You're welcome ;o)

Scalloped Potatoes with Peppers

There is always room for variation, especially when it comes to potatoes. The base of this recipe is the potatoes and the sauce, made of butter, oil, flour and milk. So feel free to change up the rest. Choose your own selection of seasonings and veg or omit them altogether and go cheese all the way. I'm always creating with the food I have on hand. Don't be afraid to do the same. I dare ya!

• 6 yukon gold potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
• 6 green onions, washed and sliced
• 1/2 large green bell pepper, washed and thinly sliced
• 1/2 large red bell pepper, washed and thinly sliced
• Coarse salt to taste
• Cracked black pepper to taste
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp mustard powder
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp all purpose flour
• 3 cups milk

1. Heat oven at 375F
2. Saute peppers and onion for 2 minutes or until bright.
3. Stir in flour until incorporated.
   
4. Add seasonings and milk and continue to stir until sauce is thick. Remove from heat.
5. In a bowl, combine mixture and potatoes well.
6. Transfer to a baking dish and cover.
7. Cook for 35 minutes. Remove cover and cook for another 15 minutes.

~You're welcome ;o)

Stuffed Tomatoes

Earl was looking for any easy appetizer to compliment his duck on the weekend. I haven't yet caught any specifics on how the duck is to be prepared but this appy is an easy one as was part of his request. Thought I'd post it in the mean time (pending more duck info) as I came across this pic last evening whilst doing some long overdue editing of my Christmas footage.

Stuff:cherry tomatoes, equal parts stilton and marscapone, mini shrimp (all as needed)

It: Slice the tops off the tomatoes. I used a baby spoon to scoop out the seeds (great tool...even if you don't happen to have a baby!) without disturbing the natural 'wall'. Blend the 2 cheeses together. Pipe* the mixture into one side of the tomato and place a shrimp on the other side. Done.

*I bought a cake piper with an assortment of tips at my local dollar store. Works like a dream...for a buck!