GOOD TIME GRILLING

GOOD TIME GRILLING
By: Adele Forbes


AGAVE MARGARITAS
GRILLED HALIBUT with LEMON CAPER SAUCE
GRILLED CORN SALAD with LIME-N-HONEY DRESSING
ROCK SALT BAKED POTATOES
SPICY CHEESE LOAF
GUILT-FREE STRAWBERRY PIE


Summertime has come once again to our beautiful North Carolina mountains, and with it comes my favorite form of cooking~outdoor grilling. Carolina blue sky weather, wholesome food, and good friends are all you need to make it a day to remember. As soon as your guests begin to arrive, greet them with a refreshing margarita, upbeat music playing in the background, and the good times will surely roll over the occasion.


AGAVE MARGARITA


1/2 cup white tequila such as Patron or Blanco
1/4 cup agave syrup
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lime juice
kosher salt
lime slices


Place tequila, agave syrup and lime juice in a cocktail shaker over crushed ice and then shake it up baby! Pour into two lime and salt rimmed margarita glasses. Garnish with lime slices to serve.
Serves 2 


GRILLED HALIBUT with LEMON CAPER SAUCE


1 lb. fresh or frozen halibut fillets~1/2-inch thick
fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup capers
1/4 cup melted butter
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste


Place halibut fillets over a medium hot grill. Grill 3 to 4 minutes per side until done. Heat the lemon juice, capers and butter in a small pan until butter is melted. Season fillets with the salt and pepper, pour the sauce over fillets to serve. 


GRILLED CORN SALAD with LIME-N-HONEY DRESSING


2 ears fresh sweet corn
1 pint grape tomatoes (yellow ones if you can find them)
1 ripe avocado, peeled and cut in chunks
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro


Remove about three layers of the husks from the corn, leaving a thin layer of husks on the corn. Grill, turning as each side begins to turn brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Set aside to cool for a little while, then remove the husks. When cool, cut the corn off the cob, being sure to scrape the 'milk' from the cob as well. Add the tomatoes, avocado and cilantro, stir the mixture gently so as not to mash the avocado. Add the HONEY LIME DRESSING: 3 tablespoons fruity extra-virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon honey, juice of 1 lime, 1 clove minced garlic, sea salt, freshly ground pepper and a dash of cayenne pepper. Allow to rest for 10 to 15 minutes to allow flavors to mingle and marry. You'll be glad you did.


ROCK SALT BAKED POTATOES


Brush melted butter (not margarine) all over washed baking potatoes. Place on a baking sheet and dust with ground rock salt with salt facing up. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour or until nicely done. Serve with your favorite toppings~cheese, sour cream, bacon, green onions, ect.


SPICY CHEESE LOAF


2 1/3 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 cup warm (not hot) water
2 teaspoons dry yeast


Place ingredients in bread machine according to manufacturers directions. (I always put my wet ingredients in first and then the flour and the remaining ingredients.) 


GUILT-FREE STRAWBERRY PIE


1 small package sugar-free Cook and Serve Vanilla Pudding
2 cups water
1 small package sugar-free Strawberry Jell-O
4 cups sliced strawberries
Fat-Free Cool Whip


In saucepan, stir together pudding mix and water, heat to boil. Remove from heat and immediately add the Jell-O. Stir until dissolved, set pan aside and allow to come to room temperature. Place sliced strawberries in the bottom of a deep dish pie plate. Pour cooled mixture over the strawberries. Refrigerate until well chilled. Top with Fat-Free Cool Whip to serve. Serves 8


"Grilling means good times, good friends, and hopefully, great food."~Bobby Flay

SHE SELLS SEASHELL SALMON SALAD DOWN BY THE SEASHORE

Say "She sells seashell salmon salad down by the seashore" 3 times fast.......

We are blessed to have amazing friends in the beautiful state of Alaska who generously supplied us with some beautiful red, river-washed salmon. There's nothing else like it out there that I have ever seen. Thank you so very much, Eb & Lorie Pope.

So what is a girl to do with all of this salmon??? Salmon salad literally jumped through my mind.

Next, I baked a nice slab of it in the oven, just until done and then proceeded to shred it with a fork.

1 (1 lb.) box small seashell multi-grain pasta

2 cups flaked cooked salmon

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup chopped green pepper

1/4 cup chopped sweet onion

1/4 cup chopped icicle pickles

1/4 cup chopped bread & butter pickles

1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

1/4 tsp. each of salt and pepper

a sprinkle of sugar

a couple shakes of hot sauce

Cook pasta just to al dente. Do not over cook! Drain well and place in large bowl. Combine remaining ingredients mixing until blended; cover and allow to chill well. Serve on a bed of lettuce or on Club or Ritz crackers.

COOKS NOTE:

You may also cook the large seashell pasta and ladle the salad into the shells and serve on lettuce.

"I never met a salmon pasta salad that I did not like."~Adele Forbes

SALTY DOG FUDGE

The "Random House Dictionary" describes the word 'fudge' as: "a candy made of sugar, butter, milk, chocolate and flavoring".........I beg to differ with them as in my time I have made many different kinds of fudge and they certainly did not all contain chocolate. Not there's anything wrong with chocolate, my goodness, I have been a self-professed chocoholic for most of my life. When it comes to fudge though, I tend to prefer peanut butter without chocolate in it.

So naturally when a friend slid a copy of this recipe across the kitchen counter to me I had to try it. She said, "There's a secret ingredient", in a slow whisper, which turned out to be an entire sleeve of Saltine crackers.

My brain and tongue both immediately went to flapping....salty&sweet....sweet&salty....oooh Yes!

2 cups sugar
2 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup milk
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 sleeve Saltine crackers, crushed
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Bring sugar, butter and milk to a boil over medium heat, stirring.

When it comes to the actual boil, only let it boil for 1 minute and then remove it from the heat. Add remaining ingredients, stirring until well blended. Pour into a butter greased glass 8X8 baking dish. Refrigerate until well chilled then cut in pieces. 

'I never met a fudge of any description that I did not love!"~Adele Forbes

SOUTHWEST LAYERED CORNBREAD SALAD

In my profession I am always searching for new recipes that 'flip-my-trigger'; here is just such a creation. Lovely layers of my Mama Joe's cornbread stars with more layers of lettuce, corn, black beans, tomatoes, onion and shredded cheddar cheese.

You can make a cake of your favorite cornbread to use in this recipe or here is a link for Mama Joe's Cornbread...http://inmamajoesshadow.blogspot.com/2009/12/mama-joes-cornbread.html.....

1 cake of your favorite cornbread (you won't need all of it)
2 cups mayonnaise
1/2 cup 1000 Island dressing
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. salt

Crumble the cornbread, set aside. Mix the mayonnaise through the salt together. 

2 heads chopped Romaine lettuce
1 (14 oz.) can yellow corn, drained
1 (14 oz.) can black beans, rinsed and drained
6 to 8 Roma tomatoes, chopped
2/3 cup finely chopped onion, red or sweet
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

In a 4-qt. glass dish (a clear glass dish works best here so that you can see the pretty layers), place half of the lettuce, then top with half of the cornbread crumbs. Spread half of the mayonnaise mixture over the cornbread layer. Layer half each of the corn, beans, tomatoes, onions and cheese. Repeat layers with the remaining ingredients. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving.
Serves 6 to 8

“Her corn-cake, in all its varieties of hoe-cake, dodgers, muffins and other species too numerous to mention, was a sublime mystery to all less practised compounders.”
Harriet Beecher Stowe, 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' (1852)

MISSISSIPPI SIN

Every time I hear the word 'Mississippi', my mind drifts off to the fabulous appetizer that shares the same name, only with the word 'Sin' attached at the end.....oh yes.....that would be 'Mississippi Sin'. 

1 Mississippi~2 Mississippi~3 Mississippi...you'll need a round 1 lb. loaf of that good old sweet Hawaiian bread, 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, 8 oz. pkg. softened cream cheese, 1 1/2 cups sour cream, 1/2 cup chopped cooked ham, 1/3 cup chopped green chiles and 1/8 tsp. Worcestershire sauce.

Combine the shredded cheddar, cream cheese, sour cream, cooked ham, green chiles and Worcestershire sauce, stirring well. 

Cut a thin slice from the top of the loaf of bread; set aside. Using a gentle sawing motion, cut vertically to, but not through, bottom of loaf, 1/2-inch from edge. Lift out center of loaf; cut into 1-inch cubes and set aside.

Fill hollowed loaf with dip; cover with reserved top slice of bread loaf. Wrap with aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Serve with reserved cubes of bread, crackers and or chips. Whatever you like. We're not picky around here. If it's in front of us, we'll eat it!


"Women keep a special corner of their hearts for sins they have never committed." ~Cornelia Otis

LOW-CARB PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE SHAKE

In my illustrious time I have tried every diet on the planet, from the 'eat only bananas one day', 'nothing but meat the next', 'only tomatoes on the third day'; you have the picture now swirling around your brain.....scary isn't it? Then years back I went on a Low-Carb kick and lost 30 pounds. True confessions~it's the only way of eating that I can actually lose weight. I don't always stick with it but I always go back to it when my bathroom scale takes a leap forward. To each his own, 'they' say, this is my way. 

1 cup vanilla almond Silk milk
1/2 cup canned real pumpkin~not pumpkin pie filling
2 oz. cream cheese~no need to soften
2 Tbsp. Splenda~or other desirable no sugar sweetener
1 scoop vanilla whey protein
1 cup crushed ice

  Whirling, whirling, whirling....keep those blenders whirling..

I'll take the shake over the cake....only 6.5 grams of carbs...and I get 2 servings out of 1 shake so that leaves me with 3.25 grams of carbs per shake. Enjoy, it is highly luscious! 

"I never met a low~carb shake that I didn't like."~Adele Forbes

CHICKEN ENCHILADA PASTA

I have a confession to make...I AM ADDICTED TO PINTEREST! There, I finally admitted it. I feel so much better now. Alas, there is a bright spot to this latest addiction of mine and that is all of the wonderful recipes I have ran across while REPINING my little heart out. Here is a prime example of one of those recipes. 

Breasts from a rotisserie chicken~shredded
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 garlic cloves~minced
1 sweet onion~diced
1 red bell pepper~diced
1 (4oz.) can diced green chiles
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
20 oz. green salsa verde
1 (6oz.) can red enchilada sauce
2 cups shredded Colby/Jack cheese
1 up sour cream
whole wheat penne pasta~cooked and drained

Heat olive oil, cook onions, add garlic and red pepper, cook 3 to 5 minutes more. Add chicken, chiles, seasonings, salsa verde enchilada sauce. Allow to simmer 8 to 10 minutes, then add cheese, stir until melted. Toss in sour cream~DO NOT ALLOW IT TO BOIL~whatever you do! Cook it over low heat. Stir until well mixed. Add pasta to pot. Garnish if desired with additional toppings of avocado, black olives, green onions, sour cream and tomatoes.
Serves 6 to 8

"I never met a Chicken Enchilada of any description that I didn't love."~Adele Forbes