Dutch Oven and Salamander dreams

All the holiday cooking made me realize that I have one item in my kitchen I could not live without, that is my Dutch Oven by Le Creuset . It is quite large and easy to braise meats, create wonderful soups and roasted chicken to die for. I use this so much I bought another one for smaller creations. As I look around my kitchen I have a lot of gadgets and spatulas. Though funny, to my surprise I always found myself using my Wusthof Chef knife, Wusthof Santoku knife and my wooden spoon. Everything else is displayed beautifully but not really touched.

As you all know we cook a lot on the grill and smoker, one of the things I would love to have is a Salamander broiler by BlueStar. Being an avid griller this is a dream item, can you imagine the crispy chicken, beautiful grouper or even crab cakes! Wow I am making myself hungry. So this is going on my wish list. I hope my husband see's it.

+Authored by Shawna Williams

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Maple Smoked Pulled Chicken

My husband decided he wanted to try his hand at smoked pulled chicken for our Memorial Day cookout. He is already an expert at pulled pork so I was prepared for some really good pulled chicken.

As my youngest daughter would say it turned out to be the bomb.com! It was absolutely delicious with the maple, honey and barbecue sauce flavors melding together into the juiciest chicken you will ever taste. Served with his you can't get enough sweet smoked baked beans it was (as I would say) a to-die-for meal!

Pete's Smoked Sweet Baked Beans

My husband makes scrumptious baked beans on the smoker. In just a few simple steps he enhances the flavor of canned baked beans.You will love the sweetness of the additional brown sugar along with chunks of homemade smoked pork and the woody smoke flavor. They also become thick and creamy during the smoking process.

Stir Fried Rice with Grilled Teriyaki Shrimp and Pineapple

This past summer I was on a grilled shrimp and pineapple kick fixing them on skewers, combining them with grilled steak, baked potatoes, etc. However, I still like the standard Shrimp and Fried Rice so I decided I would just add my favorite grilled shrimp and pineapple to fried rice. It is such a quick, tasty, filling and easy main dish who wouldn't add this to their list of standard recipes to make for lunch and dinner.

Grilled Triple Decker Pork Burger

Double pork burger with ham and bacon

You can't beat a grilled ham slice topped with  pork burger, capped with bacon and a splash of BBQ Sauce = One Tasty Sandwich! On occasion we eat at a local restaurant that serves ham on their hamburgers. This is actually why we go to this restaurant just so my husband can have a hamburger with ham. So the other night he was begging me to make a hamburger with ham but I only had ground pork on hand which made me think that a triple "pork" burger might just be scrumptious. It was!

Brown Sugar Bacon-Wrapped Pineapple & Shrimp Kabobs

Brown Sugar Bacon-Wrapped Pineapple & 
Shrimp Kabobs

Who can resist pineapple and shrimp grilled together with a little sweet but yet spicy sauce, bacon and brown sugar. I couldn't decide if we wanted beef or shrimp kabobs so you know what indecisiveness does to a person -  it either freezes you from making a decision or prompts you to purchase both (which is usually what happens when shoe shopping but in this case it applied to food too). We enjoyed every bite of both!

Grilled Bacon wrapped Shrimp with a Hot Red Pepper Glaze

This recipe adds a combination of sweet heat with the saltiness of bacon. Wrap all that around your shrimp and your mouth just salivates. Ramping up my recipe I used my Hot Red Pepper Jelly for a glaze. This stuck like glue to the bacon and gave it a great glaze. If you have the chance this jelly is a must in your pantry/refrigerator. I served it with a side of Rainbow Orzo, done Risotto style.

Seared Ahi Tuna with a Pickled Cucumber Salad

Florida can be very hot and humid, therefore finding a light lunch is sometimes what you need when faced with a wall of humidity. One of my favorite places is the Tiki Bar down by the port. They have one of the best Seared Ahi Tunas, and of course with a nice Pinot Grigio I am in heaven. As usual I wanted to recreate their recipe. They serve it with a seaweed salad, which I love, but I  couldn't find a place that carries it. I decided on my Cucumber salad, such a great idea! It gave it just the tartness and sweetness needed, with a little Asian flavors drafted from the Ginger, Sesame oil and Soy Sauce. If it's a little hot for you, try this recipe, you will love the flavors.

Apricot Beer Can Chicken

My family loves beer can chicken on the grill or even in the oven. It is predictably delicious every time,easy to fix and great as left-overs. Sometimes we just fix it the traditional way which is a salt and pepper rub with beer infused steam and sometimes I experiment with the flavoring. This time I  went with an Apricot theme and it was absolutely wonderful and in fact, my favorite so far.

Smoked Warm Honey & Brown Sugar Glazed Baby Back Ribs

The most delicious sweet smoked fall off the bone ribs you will ever taste!

My husband, Pete, has a burning passion (no pun intended) for grilling and smoking meat.  He spends almost every evening from Spring through Fall creating different grilled and smoked meats.  This also means that we frequently have company during those months as he takes great joy in sharing his tasty dishes.

The first decent Spring day I officially hand over the spatula and whoohoo let the fun begin for me!  His passion leaves me free to do all kinds of "me things" plus more time to experiment with glazes and bake sinful goodies. We are sharing his recipe for Smoked Warm Honey and Brown Sugar Glazed Baby Back Ribs and hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

Curry up Rub for Baby Back Ribs

There is nothing like a good rub to enhance the flavor of your ribs. This rub, anyway in my family, doesn't even need a sauce. But I like mine sticky, I mean face painting sticky, where the napkins stick to your hands like you picked up a dozen Christmas trees. Oh, and the sauce has to be simple because after 3-4 hours of grilling the ribs, the smell will  drive you nuts and all you want is to just mop and eat. So enjoy this recipe this weekend with your family and friends.

Rotisserie Rib Roast with a Pesto Rub & Charddonay Smoked Sea Salt

 One of my favorite cuts of meat is a rib eye. Slap it on a plate when it's barely mooing and of course, with a great wine and I'm in heaven.

Grilled Bourbon Glazed Portobello Mushroom with a Mini Cheddar Jack Hamburger

What a conundrum Portobello burger or cheeseburger for lunch. I use to make high level decisions all day long and now I can't even make a choice on what to eat for lunch.   I guess this is what happens when you are retired.  So I decided to do both, portobello cap grilled with bourbon sauce and a mini cheddar jack hamburger on top.  How could I possibly go wrong?  Well I didn't and it was delicious which is why I am sharing.

Prosciutto wrapped Asparagus with a Balsamic Glaze

With everyone jonesin for the weather to warm up so you can get outside, I thought I would share one of my favorite recipes. It’s fresh and easy, and the best thing, you can grill it.

Grilled Chicken Legs with Bacon Flavored Salt

I have been curious about infused salts for a while, so when I was at a spice store I bought a few. The one I tried on my chicken legs was a Bacon Salt. Just opening the package made my eyes twitch. Ahhh the smell of Bacon.

Brined and Grilled Cornish Hens with a Garlic,Lemon Zest Rub

Wanted chicken the other night, but I was in the mood for something different.  I gazed at the turkey, then walked by the chicken and there in a little corner were the Cornish Hens. My Ah Ha moment.
The rescipe below is outstanding. My husband said, "he will never order these in a resturant because they will not stack up to the ones I cooked."
So lets get started....

Grilled Steak on a Wintery Night - Whiskey Steak Glaze

It snowed all last night and this morning.  This afternoon I was snow blowing the drive way and patio and then I spotted the grill looking totally snowed in and lonely on the deck. 

Grilled Bourbon Maple Pork Chops

Today is National Maple Syrup Day and we are fixing grilled maple bourbon pork chops tonight.