It seems that the Fourth of July starts the summer events rolling.  Outdoor “get togethers” means getting the grill fired up.  Doesn’t grilling make everything taste better?   And I love that there is no kitchen clean up.   Here are a couple of ideas that are so simple and healthy. 

Grilled Salmon on a plank- follow the directions for the plank -which means an hour or so of soaking thus a little planning ahead.  I use cedar, but maple or alder wood is good too. 

Lay the salmon fillets on the plank; top with thinly sliced lemon, thinly sliced sweet onion and thyme sprigs.  Place on the grill and cook according to plank directions or about 15 minutes. I brush on a little Thai peanut sauce just before taking it off, but that is totally optional.   Serve with some grilled asparagus or green beans and maybe a green salad and you are all set with an easy, healthy meal.

                                                  

 

 Turkey Juicy Lucy-another easy and fun idea. This is one of our favorites that we have shared with you before, but it bears repeating!  See the directions for making on our recipe page or on our DVD.

                                               

For those of you who are vegetarians or for those of us that are just trying to eat a little more of a plant based diet, this recipe in the newspaper caught my eye.  I modified it slightly so I'm giving it a new name. 
For summer entertaining, I found this to be a good appetizer served with some garlic toast, but it could be a great lunch entree as well.  A trip to the farmer's market for some fresh asparagus and mushrooms and I was good to go. 
                                                   
4 ounces fresh asparagus, cut in bite sized pieces
3/4 cup fresh sliced mushrooms
1 1/2 cups canned white (or cannelini) beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt
Pepper
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Dressing:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 garlic clove, minced
2 teaspoons chopped rosemary
Salt
Pepper

Toss asparagus and mushroom in 1 tablespoon olive oil and place in a grill pan; grill about 4- 5 minutes.  Remove from grill and place in a bowl.  Add beans and cheese and toss slightly; season with salt and pepper to taste.
To make the dressing, whisk together oil, lemon juice, garlic  and rosemary; add salt and pepper to taste.  Stir dressing into salad and refrigerate.  Top with additional grated Parmesan cheese and serve with garlic toast.

We had a great time doing an FK cooking demo at Blue Condos in Minneapolis, MN.  The residents enjoyed the FK production of:  Roasted Red Pepper Hummus, Chicken with Tomato Salsa, Oven Roasted Winter Vegetables and Fruit Kabobs!  The residents were able to participate in some of the food prep and cooking, but they were also happy to watch Allison and I get our hands dirty…J

The night went with only a few kitchen blunders:  the sea salt shaker exploded into the winter vegetables (we added a few more potatoes to soak up the salt and added some extra vegetable broth), the food processor I brought wouldn’t work (even though it had just worked a week ago), the Blue kitchen wasn’t stocked with a vegetable peeler (Allison did great improvisation with a paring knife).  The beauty of cooking is that it doesn’t have to be perfect, sometimes you have to go with the flow and make the best of a situation.

Until next time,

*Mollie

Here is the recipe for the Roasted Red Pepper Hummus as promised to some of the residents @ Blue, enjoy!

Roasted Red Pepper and Garlic Hummus

1 can Garbanzo beans (+ liquid from can)

1 red bell pepper, roasted*

4 large garlic cloves, roasted**

¼ cup Tahini***

2 tablespoons olive oil

¼ cup lemon juice (~1 small lemon juiced)

½ teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon salt

Pepper to taste

Cayenne pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender; blend until smooth and creamy.  Add more salt/pepper to taste. 

Serve with crackers/baguette/pita bread or use it as a spread on sandwiches.

*Roasted Red Pepper

Cut red pepper into wide strips; remove seeds and trim edges.  Lay on cookie sheet coated with olive oil.  Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  Let cool completely or place directly under cold water to help remove skins. (It is not necessary that you remove skins but they can sometimes give a bitter taste, I usually remove them).

**Roasted Garlic

Cut top of garlic cloves off (the rough part on top) but leave the skins on and place in pan with red bell pepper or you can cover in tin foil.  Coat with olive oil.  Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  Let cool.  Once cool, you can pop out the cloves of garlic from their skins and put them into the blender.   Roasted garlic has a softer flavor than raw garlic, so you many want to use more that 4 cloves if you desire more of a garlic flavor. 

***Tahini is made from ground or hulled sesame seeds mixed with oil and ground into a paste, popular in Middle Eastern cuisine.  You can find in at most grocery or ethnic food stores or it is found in bulk at co-ops (that way you can just get what you need for the recipe).