The Popularity Of Pomegranate

In 2007, pomegranates hit their peak of popularity in the United States. A news article at the time reported that over 450 new pomegranate-based products were brought to market that year. Stores were flooded with pomegranate juice and every kind of pomegranate-flavored food. Even Jelly Belly got into the act with pomegranate-infused jelly beans and Burt’s Bees made pomegranate shampoo!

Today in 2018, pomegranates are still going strong, and pomegranate molasses is the current darling of the food world, appearing in many of the latest recipes in new cookbooks and on television cooking shows. This ingredient of Middle Eastern origins is simply pomegranate juice that’s been boiled down into a sweet/sour/tangy syrup. Pomegranate molasses can be used as a glaze on grilled meats, drizzled over roasted vegetables, substituted for vinegar in a salad dressing, mixed into hummus, and used in desserts and cocktails.

Pomegranate Molasses Glaze On Grilled Steaks

I recently listened to an episode of Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street Radio podcast in which a phone-in caller asked about using pomegranate molasses with cooked meat. While Kimball suggested brushing it on full-strength at the end of cooking, co-host Sara Moultin suggested making a mixture of pomegranate molasses, butter, Dijon mustard, and a little garlic.

I tried Moultin’s suggestion when grilling some Certified Angus Beef sirloin steaks. Moultin did not offer a recipe with measurements, so I just winged it as follows: Continue reading Pomegranate Molasses Glaze For Grilled Steaks →

Why make a skillet apple pie on the grill when they’re easy to make in the oven? One good reason is if the weather is hot and you don’t want to heat up the kitchen, then cooking everything outside on the grill—including dessert—makes a lot of sense.

This skillet apple pie recipe comes from Trisha Yearwood (yes, the country music Trisha Yearwood with a cooking program on Food Network). It’s easily made using store-bought pie filling and pie crust, and I will warn you it’s a bit on the sweet side. But we like it and I there’s a good chance you will, too.

Continue reading Skillet Apple Pie On The Grill →

Mike Lang from Another Pint Please posted a photo of planked meatballs on his blog and I thought I’d give it a try on my Weber Summit 450 gas grill.

Make your favorite meatball recipe, form into 2.5 oz balls, and bake or grill them to a food safe temp of 160°F. Continue reading Hickory Planked Meatballs With Marinara Sauce →

I’d eaten a flat iron steak in a restaurant but never grilled one at home. So while recently browsing the meat counter and noticing some impressive looking flat irons, I picked up one and grilled it on my Weber Summit 450 gas grill.

For those not familiar with this cut, the flat iron steak comes from the beef shoulder. It was identified in 2002 as a new retail cut by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association in partnership with the University of Nebraska and the University of Florida. This effort was undertaken to find lower-priced cuts that could be trimmed into steaks and roasts that were flavorful and tender but could be offered at a lower price than more popular cuts. Continue reading Flat Iron Steak: When Recipes Go Wrong →

The older I get, the more I forget. For example, I forgot that I took these photos of Caribbean Jerk marinated ribeye steaks back in September 2015…I just found them on my hard drive!

I also forgot the name of the guy who told me his favorite thing to grill was ribeye steaks marinated with Safeway Signature Select Caribbean Jerk Marinade.

Oh well. What I do remember is that these steaks were delicious!

Here’s what the marinade looked like in 2015. The label has changed since then. Continue reading Caribbean Jerk Ribeye Steaks →

Compound butter (a mixture of butter, herbs, and spices) is an excellent way to add flavor and moisture to any grilled steak or seafood, and it’s so easy to make.

Your family and friends will be impressed at the sight of a perfectly grilled steak or piece of fish with a disc of compound butter on top, melting slowly over the meat—and the flavor will blow-away their taste buds!

Components Of Compound Butter

Compound butter consists of a good quality softened butter and any of the following mixed in:

• Herbs (minced fine) and spices (freshly ground or cracked), e.g. garlic, onion, shallots, ginger, citrus zest, peppers, etc.
• Salt, to taste.
• Acid, often lemon juice or vinegar, to balance the flavors.
• Sweet, rarely used, but might include honey, agave, maple, etc.
• Exotic ingredients, rarely used, like black truffles.

Continue reading Compound Butter For Steaks & Seafood →

I’ll bet you’ve never grilled rhubarb. Well, I hadn’t either until recently when I listened to an interview with Tinky Weisblat, author of Love, Laughter, and Rhubarb. She was talking about the versatility of rhubarb as an ingredient in not only pies but cocktails, appetizers, and main courses, and at one point she mentioned that rhubarb can be grilled.

Who knew? I thought I’d give it a try.

Buy & Prepare The Rhubarb

This is what rhubarb looks like at my supermarket. It’s several individual stalks bound together with ties. They come in different sizes; I bought a small bundle of four stalks to experiment with. Continue reading Grilled Rhubarb →

A cedar-planked goat cheese appetizer is not the first thing that comes to mind when I think about a pre-meal snack. Those who know me know that I’m more likely to grab a handful of potato chips or a slice of cheddar cheese on a Ritz cracker than head for the grilled goat cheese.

But here it was, Mother’s Day 2018. Time to do something new and different. A cedar-planked goat cheese appetizer that looks great, tastes great, and is easy to prepare on the road at Mom & Dad’s house on their Weber Genesis 2 gas grill. Continue reading Cedar-Planked Goat Cheese Appetizer Three Ways →

Lately my wife has been grilling portobello mushrooms on our Weber Summit 450 gas grill. Here’s an example of one of her recent preparations.

Ingredients

Makes 2 servings. Double ingredients for 4 servings.

For the mushrooms:

• 2 portobello mushrooms, stems removed and brushed clean. (Save stems for another use.)

For the marinade:

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 2 teaspoons champagne vinegar
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• 1.5 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 0.5 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 0.5 teaspoon chopped cilantro

Continue reading Grilled Portobello Mushrooms On The Weber Gas Grill →