Summer Salad with Lime Vinaigrette Dressing

After spending the entire Fourth of July holiday weekend at the grill cooking up all kinds of meats, it was time to get back to some healthier eating. I picked up some tilapia and some crabmeat, but wanted to do something fun and different with it. I decided to add it to a fresh-tossed salad along with a home made lime vinaigrette dressing. Worked perfectly! The light and flavorful fish complemented the fresh-tossed red leaf lettuce, tomatoes, and olives, and the lime vinaigrette added the perfect summer zing.

Use this recipe as a basic template, and change it up to your liking. Not a fan of tilapia or crabmeat? Try some fresh cooked salmon. Not a fish fan? Go with chicken! Is romaine your favorite lettuce? Go for it! Looking to make it more of a meal? Fill a pita or a wrap with the salad!

Just stick with the lime vinaigrette….trust me.

SUMMER SALAD WITH LIME VINAIGRETTE DRESSING
adjust ingredients and amount to your liking 

1 head of romaine or red leaf lettuce, chopped
black olives
cherry tomatoes
fresh chopped red onion
Parmesan crusted tilapia (see recipe below)
1 can lump crab meat

Combine all  ingredients. Top with Lime Vinaigrette Dressing (recipe below), and a dusting of parmesan cheese.

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia
Lightly coat two pieces of tilapia with olive oil. Lightly coat each side with salt, pepper and parmesan cheese. Broil in oven until flaky.

Lime Vinaigrette Dressing
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon ground coriander
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

Stir all ingredients together.

Grilled Apples with Orange Mint Marinade

Before you close up your grill and start to bring out the fresh berries, ice cream and pies this July 4th, why not try grilling up some fruit? I’ve always had fun grilling up fresh fruits, such as bananas, pineapples and peaches. This year, I came across an amazing recipe that not only uses one of my favorite fruits, apples, it also gave me a chance to put some of my fresh grown mint to use. This recipe was very easy and only to about 6 minutes total on the grill. Be sure to leave a good 1-1.5 hours prior to grilling for the marinade to soak in. And don’t forgett the vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce for toppings!

GRILLED APPLES WITH MINT
(Courtesy of  COOKING LIGHT, October 2002) 

Ingredients:
2/3 cup fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 Granny Smith apples, cored and each cut crosswise into 4 (1/2-inch) slices
Cooking spray

Directions:
Combine first 6 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add apple slices; seal and marinate in refrigerator 1 to 2 hours, turning bag occasionally.

Prepare grill to medium-high heat.

Remove apple from bag, reserving marinade. Place apple slices on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 3 minutes on each side, turning and basting frequently with reserved marinade. Arrange apple slices on a platter; drizzle with any remaining marinade.

Grilled S’mores Sandwiches

Now that we are officially into the summer season, and the warm temperatures are quickly kicking in, it’s hard to not think about food that is prepared outdoors on a grill. For this post, my daughter Julianna and I will show you how to grill up one of our favorite summer desserts….grilled s’mores sandwiches! This is a very quick and easy alternative to the popular autumn fire roasted treat, using the same three classic ingredients (chocolate, marshmallows and graham crackers).

Instead of the traditional cooking method of roasting the marshmallows on a stick over an open fire, we are first going to stack all of the ingredients as a sandwich: one piece of chocolate and one marshmallow, sandwiched between two graham crackers. Next, you’ll want to wrap the sandwiches in aluminum foil, so they look like little tin bricks.

All that’s left is to carefully place the wrapped sandwiches on a heated grill for about 3 minutes. Carefully remove the wrapped sandwiches, and let them sit for a minute. Then remove the foil, being careful not to burn yourself with the melted marshmallow or chocolate. You’ll then have the gooiest, tastiest grilled dessert sandwich imaginable.

This works well on either a gas or charcoal grill. You can also do this in the oven any time of the year!

Burger-grilling Fun!

When it comes to grilling hamburgers, I’ve become a bit of a purist. An 80/20 mix of ground chuck (80% lean for more flavor), some salt and pepper, well-oiled grill grates, flipped once, cooked to medium. If I’m making turkey burgers, I’ll use a 90/10 mix and may add a packet of onion soup mix for a little more flavor. I used to add all kinds of spices and seasonings (Italian salad dressing was the go-to for me), but as I developed more of an interest in grilling, I have learned that less can be more. Let the burger speak for itself.

Of course, I also like to experiment when I get the chance. This past weekend, when we were having a family grill-out, an interesting idea came to mind. Now if you have kids, you know that a staple at all grill-outs and picnics are cheese curls. If there is anything less than a half of a bowl on the table, there is a crisis brewing. Since we had the oversized tub of cheese curls on hand, I started to think what would happen if I added ground cheese curls to the burger mixture? Adding cheese to a burger is a given. You can also add breadcrumbs for texture. Why not combine the two?

I crushed up about a half cup of cheese curls in the food processor to get a breadcrumb-like consistency, and folded it into the mix with the salt and pepper. The verdict…thumbs up! A half cup of the crumbs for a pound of meat offered just enough of a zing without overpowering the burger itself. If you are trying to kick up the zing even more, maybe try using nacho chips instead. Sure, I wouldn’t make this part of my regular burger routine, but for a fun get together, and to have something to talk about over a beer or two while standing around the grill, I say go for it! Just remember….only flip the burgers once.