Grilled BBQ Ribs with Chicken and Bacon Potato Salad

I'm loving working on summer recipes! I've never really spent much time grilling. I've always been intimidated by it. But I've manned up and now I'm queen of the grill! I take help from the grocery store when I can, such as using already marinated ribs in bbq sauce. Yep, that's right. Life is busy enough as it is. Don't worry about taking some help where you can get it. The potato salad is a twist on my Mother's classic potato salad. My husband loves it (I do too)! I made Arnie Palmer's to put the finishing touch on the meal.

Bon Appetit!

Grilled BBQ Ribs

Prepare ribs according to package directions. In my case, I was to grill for 15-20 minutes turning the ribs frequently.

Chicken and Bacon Potato Salad
2 cans (14 oz.) peeled potatoes, cubed
3 stalks of celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
8 slices bacon, diced and cooked
1 can chicken in water, drained and broken up
1 cup mayo
2-3 Tbsp yellow mustard (according to taste)
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley (optional)

In a small bowl mix mayo, mustard, paprika, salt and pepper together. Set aside.

In a large bowl gently toss together remaining ingredients.

Pour mayo mixture over salad and mix until well incorporated. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Arnie Palmer

1/2 iced tea

1/2 lemonade

Tilapia with Zucchini Salad

The greatest thing about tilapia, besides that it tastes great, is that it can be prepared so many different ways. It can be pan-fried, grilled, broiled or baked. It's light and flaky and doesn't leave you with the over-stuffed feeling after you've eaten it. I find it to be one of the best types of fish around. In this recipe, I've pan-fried it and served it with a fresh and crisp veggie salad. Sooooo good! Bon Appetit!

Zucchini Salad
1/2 medium zucchini, cut in half lengthwise, thinly sliced
1/4 red bell pepper, diced
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup matchstick carrots
1 tsp fresh chopped parsely
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 tsp grated fresh ginger root
1/2 tsp salt

In a medium bowl toss together zucchini, bell pepper, carrots, onions and parsely. In a jar shake honey, vinegar, ginger root and salt together. Pour over veggies and toss to coat evenly. Set aside.

Tilapia
2 Tbsp flour
1 tsp lemon pepper seasoning
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1 egg
4 tilapia fillets
4 Tbsp vegetable oil

In a pie plate, mix flour and lemon pepper seasoning. In a second pie plate, place bread crumbs. In a third pie plate, beat egg with a fork. 

Coat fillets in flour, then dip in egg, then coat with bread crumbs.

                                                                                      

 

                                                                     

In a large non-stick skillet, heat 2 Tbsp of the oil over medium high heat. Add two fillets; cook about 3 minutes and carefully turn fish over. Reduce heat to medium and cook about another 3 minutes. Repeat with remaining two fillets.

Serve topped with zucchini salad.

Chipotle Ranch Burgers served with Smokey Coleslaw

Say good-bye to plain burgers! These spicy 1/4 lb burgers pack a real punch and the crunch from the fresh coleslaw beats potato chips anyday. This meal is so simple to make, but the flavor you get makes you think you spent the whole day sweating over a hot stove. Mmm, mmm good is all I can say!

Hint: I buy chipotle peppers in adobo by the can. Once I open it, I put the rest in a plastic baggie. roll it up and freeze it. Then when I need some, I just open the bag and slice off what I need. For my heat preference, I usually slice off about 1/2 inch. I let it thaw in a small bowl and then finely chop it up.


Chipotle Ranch Burgers
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 Tbsp steak seasoning (I use McCormick's)
1 1/2 tsp garlic seasoning (I use a garlic and parsely seasoning)
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 packet ranch dressing mix (I use Hidden Valley Ranch dry dressing mix)
1 Tbsp chipotle in adobo finely chopped

In large mixing bowl combine all ingredients. Mix well to incoroprate the flavors but be careful not to overwork the meat. Divide meat into 6 equal portions and form into patties.

Place burgers on grill over medium heat. Grill until you see juices rise to top, flip burgers. Grill again until you see juices rise to top. Burgers are now completely cooked through. Remove from grill. Butter a hamburger bun and place burger on bun. Top burger with your favorite burger toppings. Hint: For a change and punch of flavor top with sliced avocado, sour cream, sharp cheddar cheese and salsa.

Smokey Coleslaw
1 bag (16 oz.) coleslaw mix
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup matchstick carrots
3 green onions, sliced
2 cups frozen corn niblets
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground cumin

Cook corn in microwave according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water.

In a large mixing bowl combine coleslaw, carrots, corn and onions. Toss together mixing well.

In measuring cup add oil, lime juice, salt and cumin. Mix well.

Pour over coleslaw mixture and toss to make sure everything is coated well. Cover and place in fridge for at least 1 hour before serving. Hint: This taste FANTABULOUS on the burgers as a topping.

Summertime Favorites Redone

Foodies...

Please forgive my neglect of The Nightly Dish. It's summer and I thought it would never arrive and now that it's here, I'm so very busy. Most of my meals have consisted of hot dogs, corn on the cob, salad, pasta salad and hamburgers. None of which require much work or thought let alone a recipe. But then I got to thinking that maybe some of you out there are looking for ways to spruce up those old summer stand by meals. So I've spent some time rethinking those summer meals and came up with a few ideas. We'll start with hamburgers and work our way through ribs, fish, shrimp, brats and hot dogs. I hope you'll enjoy them as much as I (and my hubby) do.

Bon Appetit!

Turkey & Spinach Enchiladas

I love enchiladas! Typically, these are made with ground beef, refried beans and tons of high fat cheese. I wanted to find a way to make them more lean so I use ground turkey and reduced fat cheese. By adding the spinach, not only does the flavor go up but so does the nutritional value. Using the ground turkey, spinach and reduced fat cheese lowers the fat intake by nearly half! So enjoy...have two!

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey
1 small onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 container low fat small curd cottage cheese (8 oz.), drained
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
8-10 yellow corn tortillas (you can use flour or whole wheat tortillas if you wish)
2 (10 oz.) cans mild enchilada sauce
1 pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained (you will need to squeeze out excess liquid)
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp ground cumin
Salt and Pepper to taste
EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
3 cups reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
low fat sour cream (optional)
sliced green onions (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large skillet fry ground turkey in a drizzle of EVOO. Add crushed red pepper flakes, ground cumin, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Make sure to crumble meat as you go. You want it to be as fine as possible.

When turkey is cooked, remove meat from pan and place in large mixing bowl. In the same pan, saute onions and garlic until soft. You may need to add another drizzle of EVOO.

While the onions and garlic are sauting, mix cottage cheese and parmesan cheese together in a medium mixing bowl.

To the onion mixture, add spinach and cook for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add to the meat in mixing bowl. Mix well.

Add cheese mixture making sure all is incorporated together well.

Warm tortillas in the microwave. If they are not warm, they become brittle and will be difficult to work with. Place meat mixture onto each tortilla and roll.

In a baking dish, pour 1/2 a can of enchilada sauce and spread evenly. Place enchiladas in pan. Pour the remaining 1 1/2 cans of enchilada sauce over the enchiladas. Cover with reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese. Bake for 35 minutes or until sauce is bubbly. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving. Serve with a dollap of sour cream and green onions.

Sorry! I didn't take a picture of the completed dish!

Grilled Ham and Smoked Gouda Sandwiches

Here's an adult twist on a grilled ham and cheese sandwich I know you're going to love. It couldn't be more simple. I've made this sandwich with Harvarti cheese and added smoked turkey. Be creative and come up with your own version of this all-american stand-by.

Ingredients
1 loaf focaccia bread
dijon mustard
smoked gouda cheese
deli ham
butter

Cut focaccia bread into four pieces (triangles). Then slice to create a top and bottom for the sandwich. Spread with dijon mustard.

Layer with cheese and ham. Spread top and bottom with liberal amounts of butter. Place in medium hot skillet. Cover, but keep an eye on it. Flip when bottom is golden brown. Do the same for the other side.

Serve and enjoy!

Homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs

Who doesn't love spaghetti and meatballs? I mean, come on, there's even a song about it. "On top of spaghetti all covered with cheese, I lost my poor meatball when somebody sneezed." I've played around with trying to make this recipe as simple as possible by using frozen meatballs and jarred sauce. Of course, then it's not homemade. I'm not knocking Prego or Ragu they serve their purpose well. But in this case, the flavor of the homemade sauce and the idea of meatballs swimming in it just doesn't get any better.

Meatballs
1 lb ground chuck
1/4 cup italian style bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp italian seasoning blend
1 egg

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a large bowl, mix all ingredients by hand. Roll  into 1" balls. Heat skillet over medium high heat, drizzle with EVOO (extra virgin olive oil). Fry meatballs until golden brown on all sides. Fry in batches making sure not to crowd the skillet. Transfer to a baking sheet and keep warm in oven.

Homemade Red Sauce

1/2 sweet onion, finely diced

2-3 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (28 oz.) crushed tomatoes

1/2 tsp italian seasoning blend

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp dried parsley

Splash of red wine (About a 1/4 cup, make sure to use a wine you like. DO NOT use cooking wine.)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Over medium low heat in the skillet that was used for meatballs, saute onions until soft. Add garlic, italian seasoning and wine. Let the wine reduce (almost evaporate). Add crushed tomatoes, brown sugar, parsley, salt and pepper. Let simmer.

In a large pot bring water to a boil. Add pasta and cook to desired doneness. (I cook mine al dente, about 9 minutes.) While past is cooking, transfer meatballs to sauce.

When spaghetti is done, drain and place in serving bowl. Add meatballs and sauce on top of spaghetti. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and serve family style with salad and garlic toast.

Italian Style BBQ Chicken Legs & Sweet Potato Fries with Chipotle Ranch Sauce

This BBQ sauce is so versatile. It doesn't just have to be used on chicken. It would taste fantastic on ribs or pork chops, even on burgers. And the fries are to die for! What's really great about them? They're not actually fried. That's right. They're baked. They are so packed full of flavor that I bet you won't even give regular fries a thought after you try them. Yes, they are that good and very easy to make.

Italian Style BBQ Chicken Legs
1 pkg chicken legs, 14 count
1 pkg panchetta, diced (you can use 6 slices of bacon if you prefer)
1/2 small sweet onion, finely diced
3 sprigs of fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 14 oz can tomato sauce
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp Italian seasoning blend
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. On a foil lined baking sheet, place chicken legs and sprinkle with 1 Tbsp of Italian seasoning and salt and pepper. Bake chicken for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a cast iron skillet saute panchetta over medium heat. Once the panchetta starts to brown, add onion and rosemary. Saute until onions become soft. Add tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, molasses, brown sugar, remaining Italian seasoning. If sauce needs it, add salt and pepper to taste. Lower heat on sauce and simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

Remove chicken from the oven and baste with BBQ sauce. Bake an additional 10 minutes.

Sweet Potato Fries with Chipotle Ranch Sauce

4-5 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into thick strips

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp ground black pepper

EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

2 Tbsp Southwestern Chipotle Seasoning (I use Mrs. Dash)

1 packet of ranch dressing seasoning

1 tub of sour cream (12 oz)

In a small bowl combine cumin, paprika, garlic powder, and black pepper. On a baking sheet lined with foil, place potatoes. Drizzle liberally with EVOO. Sprinkle seasonings over potatoes and toss well with your hands. Make sure every strip of potato is covered. Bake in 425 degree oven for 35-40 minutes. Toss potatoes with a spatula every 15 minutes.

In the sour cream tub, mix southwest chipotle seasoning and ranch seasoning. Mix well. Serve with potatoes.

Beer & Wine & Food

I've done a lot of reading and experimenting on cooking with beer and wine. My rule of thumb is to cook with what you like. When you add wine or beer to your cooking you are consentrating the flavors. So if you don't like pinot noir and you add it to your speghetti sauce, you aren't going to like the sauce.


When it comes to drinking beer and wine with your food, use the same rule. Drink what you like. Do certain beers or wine enhance the flavors of your food? The answer is yes. But again, if you don't like an ale and you pour a glass to have with your grilled steak, it's not going to do anything to your palate except make you crinkle your nose every time you take a sip.


It's really that simple. Eating is a full sensory experience. We should enjoy the taste, texture, smell and view of what we eat. If you've taken great care to prepare a meal, don't ruin it with bad choices.

Below are a couple of guidelines that I found very useful, hopefully you will too.

Bon Appetit!

Top Ten Guidelines For Pairing Food and Wine
(http://www.theworldwidewine.com/Wine_and_Food/wine-food-guidelines.php)

1. Match Flavor Intensity. Match delicate wines with delicate foods, and conversely match powerful wines with powerful foods. The Soave goes with the Poached Fish, and the Bordeaux with the Roast Game, and not vice versa.
2. Opposites Sometimes Attract. On occasion you may enjoy spicy foods such as Curries with sweet dessert wines. Personally I avoid applying this guideline too often.
3. Geography Reigns. When in doubt select wine and food from the same area. The soil and microclimate may have a similar effect on both the grapes and the food. For example, Hungarian Cabernet Sauvignon tastes of paprika, the national spice of Hungary.
4. What's Sauce For The Goose Is Sauce For The Wine. Pair powerful wines with powerful sauces, such as those produced by reduction, the boiling off of excess water. It's often wise to employ the same wine in the sauce and in the wine glasses. Subrule- If a wine isn't good enough to drink, it isn't good enough for your sauce.
5. Balance Sweetness. Avoid combinations in which the food is sweeter than the accompanying wine. Otherwise the wine may come off tasting thin.
6. Hot Weather Blues. Avoid highly alcoholic wines on hot sticky days. Either go with a beer or a low alcohol wine such as a German Riesling.
7. Balance Acidity. The food should never be more acidic than the accompanying wines. On the other hand, acidic wines such as Sauvignon Blanc tend to be food-friendly. So should we always drink acidic wines? I would say no.
8. Temperature Counts. If you really want to do it right, use an ice bucket to chill most reds for five minutes before serving. Increase this time to 15 minutes for red Beaujolais and to 15-25 minutes for most whites. If you can't be bothered with an ice bucket, don't forget the fridge. A relatively small difference in temperature can make a big difference in taste.
9. When In Doubt, Open A Champagne Bottle. If, like most of us, you can't justify champagne with most meals, choose a good sparkling wine such as a Spanish Cava. And don't forget Rule 5 (Balance Sweetness).
10. Drink Your Wines In The Right Sequence. If you are lucky enough to accompany a meal with several wines, increase your enjoyment by drinking them in the right order as suggested in the following guidelines. Drink dry before sweet, white before red, young before old, simple before complex, and light before heavy. What about the inevitable conflicts, for example most sweet wines are white and not red. Between wines cleanse your palate with water or a small piece of bread.

How to Pair Beer with Food
(http://www.ehow.com/how_4933983_pair-beer-food.html)
Step 1. The first thing to consider when pairing a frosty brew with your dinner is that neither the beer nor the food should upstage the other. Instead, attempt to create a harmony between the two, with each complimenting the other's flavors, textures and heartiness.  
Step 2. Similar to the red wine with red meat and white wine with fish and chicken school of thought, many prefer to pair dark, heavier beers with meats and lighter beers with fish, chicken and salads. While this doesn't hold true in all occasions, it's a good start to your first foray into pairing beer and food.
Step 3. Another consideration is to cut food's flavor with an appropriately balanced beer; for example, the acidity of highly hopped ales cuts through the richness of fattier foods like cheese or fried fish, whereas sweeter, malty beers can cut through the spiciness of Asian or Mexican dishes.
Step 4. Selecting beers and foods based on regional associations is also generally a good way to ensure a proper pairing. For instance, Mexican beers are often light and acidic, which naturally pairs well with spicy Mexican food, while Japanese lagers are a good compliment to sushi. Conveniently, most ethnic restaurants typically offer several traditional beers to make your pairings easy.
Step 5. These general guidelines will hopefully get you thinking the next time you're out to dinner, but when it's all said and done, beer and food are to be savored and enjoyed, whether together or separate. So if it tastes good to you, go for it.

Lemon Pepper Pork Tenderloin, Fried Leftover Potatoes & Spring Salad with Dijon Viniagrette

This is quite possibly one of the easiest dinners I have ever put together. The hardest part was putting the salad together. So simple, so delicious.


Lemon Pepper Pork Tenderloin

 1 1/2 lb pork tenderloin
Mrs. Dash Lemon Pepper Seasoning


Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a shallow baking dish place pork tenderloin. Sprinkle lemon pepper seasoning on all sides. Place in oven and bake for 35-40 minutes.

Remove tenderloin from baking dish and place it on a cutting board. It will need to rest for 5-10 minutes before you slice it. Tip: Allowing the meat to rest before you slice it, lets the juices redistribute keeping the meat tender and moist.

Fried Leftover Potatoes

4 leftover potatoes (Hint: Whenever I cook potatoes I make extra so I can use them in another dish.)

Mrs. Dash Basil & Garlic Seasoning

EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

In a cast iron skillet, heat a drizzle of EVOO over medium heat. Cube leftover potatoes and add to skillet. Sprinkle with basil and garlic seasoning. Fry potatoes until they get golden brown.

Spring Salad with Dijon Vinaigrette

1 head of Romaine lettuce, chopped

1/4 head of Iceberg lettuce, chopped

1/2 cup matchstick carrots

1/4 cup dried cranberries

2 tsp italian seasoning

1/4 EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar

1 tsp dijon style mustard

1 garlic clove, minced (Tip: I use a hand held grater to mince my garlic. You can also use a garlic press.)

pinch of salt and pepper

In a large bowl combine lettuces, carrots, cranberries, and italian seasoning and toss. 

In a mason jar, combine EVOO, vinegar, mustard, garlic, salt and pepper and shake well. Drizzle over salad.