Challenge Conquered – Grilled Cookies!

This one took a little trial and error, but the final results were soft, gooey, chocolaty, and delicious cookies, with just a hint of smoky grilled flavor.  If you’re looking to impress your guests with an off-the-beaten-path version of a dessert, give this recipe for grilled chocolate chip cookies a shot!

A note on the cookie recipe: This is the traditional Nestle Tollhouse cookie recipe on the back of chocolate chip bag.  I want to give credit where credit is due, and frankly don't think I could improve on this one.

Ingredients:

•    2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
•    1 teaspoon baking soda
•    1 teaspoon salt
•    1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
•    3/4 cup granulated sugar
•    3/4 cup packed brown sugar
•    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•    2 large eggs
•    2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
•    1 cup chopped nuts

Directions:

1. COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl.
2. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture.
3. Stir in morsels and nuts.
4. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased grilling grate.  TIP: The smaller the cookie, the better for grilling.  Otherwise, you get a charred bottom and an undercooked top.  In order to cook them over indirect heat, I’d put them on the ends of the grilling grate.  You’ll only be able to cook about eight small cookies at a time this way, so to complete the above recipe, you’ll need to cook these in several batches.

5.  Cook on grill, over indirect heat, for about 20 minutes (or until they reach your desired level of doneness – I like them on the softer side).  Remove and enjoy! 

If you like this recipe, please be sure to click on the links below to share it! And don’t forget to follow @youcangrillthat on Twitter!

Challenge Accepted! Grilled Pineapple.

I LOVE fresh pineapple, but I have to admit, I was always a little intimidated about cutting into one, so I never bought a whole one until this week.  What an idiot!  Cutting a pineapple is really easy, and totally worth it.

Sorry I didn’t take pictures as I was doing it, but bear with me, because it’s as simple as it sounds:

1.    Chop off the top and bottom.
2.    Cut off the peel by slicing along the sides.  Voila, it’s peeled.
3.    For easy grilling, slice it, and then cut out the center of each slice.  You can also just cut a few slices for dessert, then chop up the rest to eat over the next couple days.

Grilled pineapple over vanilla ice cream makes a great dessert.  Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

Pineapple slices
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon honey
Cinnamon

Directions:

1.    Melt butter and stir in brown sugar and honey, along with a sprinkle of cinnamon, to form a glaze.
2.    Brush both sides of pineapple slices with glaze.  Set aside remaining glaze.
3.    Grill pineapple over medium-high heat for about 3-4 minutes on each side.

4.    Serve over vanilla ice cream, with remaining glaze drizzled over the top.

If you like this recipe, please be sure to click on the links below to share it! And don’t forget to follow @youcangrillthat on Twitter!