Grilling Spice Rub

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BBQ, beef, dinner, entree, fish, food, food prep, foodie, grill, grilling, lunch, porkchops, poultry, recipe, ribs, side dishes, spice, spice rub, steak, vegetables

Autumn has been in full swing and winter is just around the corner. Although my crockpot season has started our temps have been gorgeous so our grilling season hasn’t quite ended yet. Before I relent and stash the grill for the winter, I wanted to grill dinner one more time…

Whether using this on beef, poultry of vegetables, this grilling rub is fantastic all year-long.

Young Wifey’s Grilling Rub

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. smoked paprika, 2 Tbsp. dried parsley, 1 Tbsp. dried oregano, 4 tsp. hot chili powder, 2 tsp. ground coriander, 1 tsp. cumin, 2 tsp. fresh ground pink Himalayan salt, 1 tsp. fresh cracked tricolor black pepper, 1/2 tsp. ground mustard

Directions: Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight jar.

To Use:  Rub onto meat or vegetables with a small amount of olive oil. Allow meat to come to room temperature before grilling.

Usually our grill makes a reappearance in late February when I want to chase away the winter…

XOXO,
Young Wifey

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Summer Veggie Pasta

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dinner, food, foodie, light fare, lunch, pasta, postaday2011, recipe, side dishes, sugar snap peas, tomatoes, vegan, vegetarian, White Cat wine, zucchini

Everyone has their own favorite summer veggie pasta dish, the perfect light balance for a hot summer evening. Mine always varies depending on which fresh vegetables I harvest from my garden or purchase at the farmer’s market.

I prepared the linguini al dente according to package directions. Then, I sautéed a small minced shallot in White Cat wine (I also love cooking with Red Cat wine) and added fresh sugar snap peas, wedges tomatoes and sliced zucchini. I sprinkled in some dried basil (from a plant I harvested earlier this summer). Finally, I tossed the pasta into sautéed veggies and served with fresh grated pecorino romano.

White Cat Summer Veggie Pasta

This would be really excellent with shrimp… mmm… Too bad Hubster needs to eat too…

What fresh vegetables are in your summer veggie pasta dish this week?

Grilled Teriyaki Shrimp, Chicken & Zucchini Spears

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dinner, grilling, lunch, postaday2011, recipe, side dishes, teriyaki, teriyaki skewers

My kitchen isn’t unpacked enough for a full-fledged meal, so tonight’s dinner was something easy. I marinated chicken and shrimp (separate bowls) in teriyaki sauce & pineapple juice. I sliced zucchini into spears and rubbed them down with olive oil then I skewered the shrimp and let Hubster do the grilling. Once the zucchini was off the grill, I sprinkled it with fresh ground sea salt, fresh cracked black pepper and fresh grated parmesan cheese. Yum! It was Hubster’s first time grilling shrimp, so it was a little over done, but the chicken and zucchini were done perfectly!

Grilled Teriyaki Shrimp & Zucchini Spears

Colorful Caprese

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appetizer, basil, BBQ, bocconcini, ciliegine, cold food, dinner, entree, food, foodie, fresh mozzarella, fresh tomatoes, grape tomatoes, light fare, light lunch, lighter fare, lunch, mozzarella, mozzarella balls, picnic, postaday2011, pot luck, raw foods, recipe, salad, side dishes, tomatoes, vegetable, yellow tomatoes

Caprese is a summer classic, that’s why it’s my go to recipe. It’s always requested, but never the same. You can serve it sliced and stacked, as a kabob or cut and mixed as salad. At the beginning of the year, I served yellow tomato caprese for the teachers’ back-to-school. It seemed only fitting to use yellow tomatoes in my caprese for the end-of-the-year party today! So since I never serve anything exactly the same way twice, I’ll share my current variation. I halved golden grape tomatoes (first time I’ve found these at the store!!!), red grape tomatoes and the mozzarella balls (ciliegine). Then, I tossed them together with extra virgin olive oil, fresh chopped sweet basil, fresh ground sea salt, and fresh cracked black pepper. Just before serving I will drizzle with some balsamic vinegar.

Colorful Caprese

The hardest part is making sure the caprese is not devoured before leaving the house… with this dish, it’s not just Hubster, it’s also me!

Which summer dish do you prepare multiple variations?

Baked Tortellini

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baked pasta, dinner, entree, food, foodie, lunch, mozzarella, parmesan, pasta, postaday2011, recipe, side dishes, spinach, tomatoes, tortellini, vegetarian

I love tortellini, I love them in pasta salad, soup and even baked. I prefer them filled with cheese or spinach or both. Hubster prefers meat in his tortellini.
This time I made it my way…  (I needed to… in order to get through the last week of school).

Baked Tortellini

Ingredients: 
1 batch of homemade tortellini (or one package), 1 package spinach, 1 small shallot (diced), 2 Tbsp. butter, 1/2 pint heavy cream, 2 large tomatoes, 2 1/2 c. of grated parmesan cheese, 2 c. shredded mozzarella

Directions:
Preheat oven 350°F. Cook tortellini according to package directions. Chop tomatoes and set aside. Chop spinach and wilt. Mix spinach and tomatoes in with tortellini and 1 c. parmesan. Spread evenly into casserole dish. Brown shallot in butter. Add heavy cream and 1 1/2 c. parmesan cheese, stir until thickened. Pour cream sauce over pasta and sprinkle on mozzarella cheese. Bake for 35 minutes. Serve hot with garlic bread or garlic knots.

Do you have a favorite tortellini recipe?

Fresh Corn & Zucchini Salad

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barbacue, BBQ, corn, food, foodie, lunch, picnic, postaday2011, recipe, relish, salad, side dishes, vegetarian, zucchini

Summer is unofficially here… Grilling food is the main way to keep temperature cool indoors. Now just add the sun and salad side dishes.  Last year, my sister made a delicious corn salad for our 4th of July picnic. This isn’t the same dish, but it did inspire mine…

Fresh Corn & Zucchini Salad

Ingredients:
6 ears of corn (some yellow and some white), 2 zucchini, 1/4 c. fresh parsley, 1 bunch green onions, 2 tsp. Dijon mustard, 2 tsp. sugar, 1 tsp. cumin, 1/2 tsp. hot sauce, 1/2 c. vinegar, 1/2 c. vegetable oil, fresh ground sea salt, fresh cracked black pepper

Directions:
Cook corn and slice off ears. Peel and chop zucchini. Chop green onions and parsley. To make dressing, mix together mustard, sugar, cumin, hot sauce, vinegar, oil, salt and pepper. Mix ingredients together and keep chilled.

Next time I think I’ll add some red pepper to the mix.

What’s your favorite corn recipe?

Pepper Salad

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BBQ, bell pepper, food, food photography, foodie, jalapeño, lime, lunch, pepper, picnic, postaday2011, pot luck, recipe, salad, shallot, side dishes, summer, vegetarian

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!
I’m usually pretty patient and calm, but my internet service has really gotten to me these past few weeks. We had the company send someone out to look at the connection and hopefully we’re back on track. I’ve missed having my internet…

This weekend was Memorial Day weekend, the kick off to summer. Our weekend was filled with several barbecues and I wanted to share a few recipes that I made. Today is my pepper salad recipe, just as appeasing to the palette as they eyes. Hubster and my MIL were really hesitant about this salad, but I insisted that’s what I was taking. Turns out everyone found a different way to enjoy it. I ate mine as a side dish, one person mixed it in with his pasta salad, another put it on top of a burger, one on top of a hot dog. It enhanced anything to added it to…

Pepper Salad

Ingredients: 
1 green pepper, 1 red bell pepper, 1 yellow bell pepper, 1 orange bell pepper, 2 jalapeño peppers, 1 shallot, 1/4 c. vegetable oil, 1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard, 2 limes, fresh ground sea salt, fresh cracked black pepper

Directions:
Cut peppers and mince shallot, set aside in bowl. Whisk together oil, mustard, lime juice, lime zest, salt and pepper. Pour dressing over peppers and toss gently. Place in refrigerator and allow to set for several hours before serving.

*Bonus if you can get ahold of a purple bell pepper or white bell pepper.

What was on your plate this weekend??