Southwest-style Grilled Asparagus

Serves 2-4. Prep time 5 minutes. Cooking time 10-12 minutes.

Ingredients:

1 bunch asparagus
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
¼ tsp chili powder (more or less, to taste)
¼ tsp cumin
Salt, to taste
1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:

1.    Prep asparagus and place in large re-sealable bag. Combine and whisk all other ingredients, then pour over asparagus and toss to coat.

2.    Grill over direct heat for 10-12 minutes, turning once.

 
Try with southwestern grilled mahi mahi and corn on the cob.

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Southwestern Grilled Mahi Mahi with Grilled Lime Garnish

 
Serves 2. Prep time 10 minutes. Cooking time 12 minutes.

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh mahi mahi filet
1 lime, cut in half

Marinade:

½ cup olive oil
1 tsp chili powder
½ tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt
¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tbsp lemon juice

Directions:

1.    Combine all marinade ingredients. Pour over fish. Let sit 30 minutes.
2.    When coals are hot, place fish over direct heat. If the fish has the skin on, put it skin-side down. Cook, with lid on, for 5-6 minutes.

 
3.    Turn fish carefully, and place lime halves flesh-side down over direct heat. Cook another 5-6 minutes. Mahi mahi is ready when it flakes easily.

 
4.    Garnish with cilantro and grilled lime.

Goes great with southwestern grilled corn and the cob and asparagus.

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Pesto Grilled Shrimp

What’s better than grilled shrimp over pasta with pesto sauce? Pesto-marinated grilled shrimp over pasta with pesto sauce.

 
This one is super easy. Next time you make pesto sauce, make about a cup extra, use it to marinate the shrimp for a few hours, and then grill them. Then stir the shrimp into hot, wet pasta and the remaining pesto sauce (microwave the sauce for about a minute since it will have been sitting in the fridge). That’s it.

If you don’t already have a pesto recipe you like, here’s mine. This makes enough to marinate about 1 ½ pounds of shrimp and use the remaining with one pound of pasta.

Pesto Sauce

Ingredients:

4 cups fresh basil (or, since basil is pretty expensive, you can save a little money by using 2 cups of basil and two cups of spinach)
½ cup pine nuts
3 cloves garlic
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 cup olive oil
1 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

1.    In a food processor, puree basil, pine nuts, garlic, and half a cup of olive oil. Taste.
2.    Add salt, pepper, cheese, and remaining olive oil, and puree until smooth.

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Plank Grilled Salmon with Fresh Blackberry and Balsamic Sauce

Ingredients:

4 small pieces salmon or one large fillet.
1 tsp olive oil
Juice of half lemon
Salt and pepper, to taste
Salad – spring greens, spinach or mix (I used 50/50)
Optional: walnuts, shredded parmesan cheese, extra blackberries

Blackberry and Balsamic Sauce:

1 cup fresh blackberries, pureed
3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water



Directions:

1.    Soak wood planks in water for at least an hour, up to 24 hours. Use a large pan and hold the plank down with a full glass of water.

2.    Marinate salmon in olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper for 20-30 minutes.
3.    Once your charcoal is hot, place wood planks over direct heat for 15 minutes.
4.    While the plank is heating up, make the sauce. Puree the blackberries, and then combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes, then strain.
5.    Brush plank with oil, then place salmon, skin-side down, on plank.

6.    Cover grill and cook, without turning, for about 15 minutes for a large fillet, or 10 minutes if you’re using smaller cut pieces, until fish flakes in large chunks.
7.    Serve salmon over bed of greens, with nuts, blackberries and shredded cheese, and top with blackberry sauce. Enjoy!

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BBQ Pork (or Chicken) Leftover Edition: Crescent Rolls!

Wondering what to do leftover shredded BBQ pork or chicken? Try these delicious BBQ stuffed crescent rolls!

Ingredients:

One 8 oz. can (tin? Roll? I don’t know what to call those things) of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
Eight heaping spoonfuls of cold, shredded pork or chicken, with BBQ sauce

Directions:

1.    Preheat oven 375.
2.    Separate dough into triangles. Place spoonful of shredded pork or chicken at base of triangle, like so:

3.    Wrap dough around meat:

 
4.    Bake for 10-12 minutes, and enjoy!

Greek Yogurt Marinated Beer Can Chicken

Greek yogurt is a perfect marinade for chicken. Not only does it add great flavor, but it tenderizes the meat. The results are delicious.
So in my ongoing quest to find as many different ways to make beer can chicken as possible, I present to you: Greek Yogurt Marinated Beer Can Chicken.

Ingredients:

1 whole chicken
Salt
Pepper

Marinade:

1 cup Greek yogurt
1 tsp each: salt, pepper, oregano
1 tbsp: olive oil, lemon juice

Directions:

1.    Combine all marinade ingredients and stir.
2.    Remove chicken neck and giblets, rinse the chicken inside and out, and pat dry with paper towels.
3.    Coat chicken with marinade, cover and refrigerate overnight.

 
4.    Fill your chimney starter with charcoal and light. Soak some wood chunks or chips.
5.    While your coals are getting hot, drink half a can of beer (soda is fine too).
6.    Set up your grill for indirect cooking, with the coals and wood chunks in a ring along the outer edge of the grill, with the drip pan in the center.

 
7.    Remove chicken from marinade, and wipe off excess. Shove can with remaining beer into the cavity of the chicken, and place on the grill above the drip pan. Use the legs and the can to form a tripod to hold the chicken upright.

(Oh yes, that's right. Mrs. Grill That got me a beer can chicken holder for Christmas. It is awesome. You should get one too: Sur La Table Chicken Roaster (Google Affiliate Ad). Product placement!

8.    Place the lid on the grill. Smoke, covered, for approximately one hour and fifteen minutes. The chicken is ready with the temperature reaches 165 degrees in the breast and 180 degrees in the thigh. Juices should run clear and skin will be nice and crispy.

 
9.    Let chicken rest at least 10-15 minutes before carving.

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Pulled Pork Leftovers – Nachos!

Looking for something fun to do with leftover pulled pork? Make some nachos! These are guaranteed to be a huge hit at your next party.

There’s no recipe here; just get some tortilla chips and top with pulled pork and anything else you want on your nachos – salsa (here’s a great recipe using grilled corn), black beans, sour cream, cheese of course (you can really step it a notch with this recipe for queso blanco), etc. Get creative and enjoy.