5-Minute Side Dish

I had a really awesome girls-nite bbq party last night and I made the fastest and yummiest side dish. You must try it. It uses a few exciting ingredients, and because you really can't screw it up, this recipe is a great starting point to introduce these new items into your kitchen...

Spicy Mango Couscous Salad

• 1 jalepeno pepper
• 1 large (or two small) mangoes
• 2 or more green onions
• 1 box of plain couscous
• 1 fresh lime
• Olive Oil
• Garlic Salt

Prepare the couscous according to the box, or by adding one cup of dry couscous into 2 cups of boiling water, remove immediately from heat, add a splash of olive oil and garlic salt, and cover for a few minutes (it's done!). In the meantime, chop two or more green onions and set aside. Cut the jalepeno in half and pull out all the seeds (seeds are super spicy, not good for this recipe). Very finely chop a small amount of the jalepeno. At this point, you need to check and see how hot this pepper really is. Touch it to your tounge and decide for yourself. A little goes a long way so I usually use about 1/8 teaspoon (a pinch). Put this and the green onions into your covered and steaming couscous, and stir. The couscous will start to absorb the flavors of these ingredients.

Cutting a mango is kind of tricky. First, they are really slippery. But they also have this weird flat core, and they are hard to peel. So what I have found works best is to cut into the fruit like a pie. Cut about 8 sections to the core and then use your fingers to peel the skin down from each section. Once it's peeled, start chopping it from the core and leave somewhat large chunks. Add these to the mixture, stir, and put the salad into a bowl and into the fridge. It doesn't take long to cool down. When you are ready to serve, taste it for salt. And squeeze the lime over it for a little kick!!

Ummmm.... I need to mention also.... whatever you do, do NOT touch your eyes or go to the bathroom without very thoroughly washing your hands. :) Your leftover pepper can actually be chopped and frozen, or kept in the fridge for a few days to use in other things. Used in small amounts, it doesn't overwhelm recipes and actually adds some subtle spiciness to recipes and can be really awesome.

Turning Down the Heat

Congrats Jamie and Family for sweeping the fair contests! Woohoo!!! And she didn't mention that it was one of the hottest weeks we've seen here in the Valley. This week, completely tired of the 100+ degrees (and a horrible a/c), I decided to do a weeklong ban on cooking. With my stove, grill and oven off limits, what is there to make? I made some fantastic salads, sandwiches, got creative with leftovers, and overall had a fun time experimenting with cold options. One of my favorites-- instead of baking a dessert for the 4th of July, we had a fantastic fresh fruit salad with raspberries, plums, peaches and melon (all really sugary and sweet), and spooned large quantities of homemade whipped cream on top. To make it a little more classy, I added a splash of Grand Marinier in the whipped cream. Wow it was good. And not that bad for you either.

I also went very rustic one night for dinner, pulling out the old-school Italian sandwich idea and revamping it with a Napa flair. I bought a skinny baguette and fresh (in water) mozzerella, clipped some fresh tomatoes and basil, and made a really nice and basic sandwich. I mixed up a clove of minced garlic and a large amount of fresh chopped basil with some olive oil, salt, pepper and balsalmic and let it sit for a while. In the meantime, I thinly sliced the cheese and tomatoes and then tossed them in with the mixture. I let the whole thing marinate for a while and put it on bread. Wow so good. And really fresh flavors. Very filling and balanced meal - carbs, protein from the cheese, veges. Sometimes simple is a really good thing. In a smaller quantity this could easily be an appetizer, but why not make it a meal?

Family Sweep at the Grilling Contest!

Woo Hoo! Each one of us placed in our category yesterday, which was quite an accomplishment.

It was a hot day in Calistoga, at the Napa County Fair, and 25 dishes were entered. Dad was up first, and had a beautifully plated dish of Drilled Pork Tenderloin, garnished with grapes and rosemary.

How did he do it? First he froze tightly compacted pork tenderloins. He then used a 9/16 wood drill bit to carve a tunnel through the meat. Then, he par-cooked (that means halfway) some thick-sliced bacon sprinkled with brown sugar. He added some garlic, spices, olive oil and love, then marinated the stuffed tenderloin in yet more garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper for a day or two. Grill it over high heat for about 20 minutes, rest for a few more, then slice into the beautiful pieces you see to the right. And, he won second place in the Pork Category! Yay Dad!

For me, the day was finally here. A dish that I had tried, tweaked, and practiced over and over was finally to be put to the ultimate test, a grilling contest. The stakes were high; I was a past winner, I came from a culinarily-minded family and I had told everyone I knew I was doing it. To not garner some sort of victory would be a crushing, embarrassing blow. So, with some assembly assistance from Mom, quiet encouragement from the husband and lots of bacon fat, I was able to persevere.

The Deconstructed Beef Wellington was success due to a few last-minute factors. I knew that the key to awesome filet mignon was adding fat, so I fried up some bacon the day before and slathered the meat with the fat prior to grilling. I also used the tarragon horseradish cream as garnish (see post below), and the
great people at HALL Wines gave me a bottle of their spectacular Merlot to pour. I ended up winning first place in the Beef Category. Yay, Me!

Finally, it was Mom's turn, for her Grilled Lime Margarita. She and Dad sprinkled some fresh, thick-cut limes with Kosher salt, and grilled them over high heat on the barbecue. She also mixed up some home-made guacamole. To garnish her margaritas (which are a family secret, I'll ask if I can share), she placed the standard glasses on a plate. Two large leaves of endive were filled with the guacamole, and positioned next to the base of the glass. the grilled
limes were put on the rim of the glass, and garlic flowers were sprinkled on the plate below. The judges, who had been tasting 23 entries of fish, pork, game and beef all afternoon, were excited to have such a pretty, refreshing cocktail. Word spread around the grounds that this was an awesome margarita, and a line formed in front of our table for a sample. The crowd was quite impressed. So were the judges; Mom won third place in the Vegetarian category for her Grilled Lime Margarita. Yay, Mom!

None of us won best of show, as that honor went to a guy who actually has owned restaurants and has been a professional chef. BUT...we got what we came for: a ribbon in each category entered, and a fun day with family and friends!

(Sorry about the wonky photo placement; I'm still getting the hang of this thing!)

Practice, Practice

So, tonight I decided to practice the new garnish I wanted to do for the grilling contest. As you'll remember, I wanted to do the same flavor profile for the Deconstructed Beef Wellington, but I wanted to make it prettier. So, instead of using red wine to reduce the duxelle, I used white, and it was fabulous. I also layered it underneath the beef instead of on top. For the big garnish, I did a tarragon creme fraiche with horseradish. Sounds fancy, right? It's just a 1/3 horseradish, 2/3 sour cream mix to which I added a tablespoon of fresh chopped tarragon. I then used a spare tarragon sprig to top it, as you'll see in the photo. That was our dinner tonight, and it was quite yummy. More posts on the grilling contest to follow!

Lay Down the Smackdown!

Summertime, and the grilling gets competitive.
Two years ago, my Dad and I entered the BBQ Contest at the Napa County Fair in Calistoga. The entries are separated by meat type: I entered Spicy Shrimp (slathered in a spicy butter, covered with basil and wrapped with proscuitto) and my Dad entered his Sizzling Lamb Chops. We each won our own categories, and I won Best of Show (and a mini Webber Grill). We weren't able to enter last year, but have eagerly awaited this year's contest.
This year, I'm entering the Beef category, and will attempt a prettier, grilled version of the Deconstructed Beef Wellington from the Fancy Schmancy Dinner Party two weeks ago. Still mulling over the plating/garnish for this one. Ideas? Let me know!
Dad, however, will raise the bar with his Grilled Pork Tenderloin. And, Mom is going for the cuteness by entering the Vegetarian category with her Grilled Lime Margaritas.
I feel good about our entries, but am a bit nervous about the Best of Show prize. Honestly, I'll be happy as long as it goes to family, but anyone who knows me will tell you I'll have my game face on this Saturday. Wish me luck!