Friends Food Family

Checklist for a Great Cook-Out

 

This weekend will be filled with friends, food and family. What better than to look at some of the great recipes covered in the past few months. If you have missed any, this would be the time to re-visit the site and try some new recipes at your summer cook-out.

Let's start with drinks. There is always beer and wine, but what about a Bourbon Annie, a Bacardi Mint Mojito or a Cilantro Infused Margarita (see story below from the monthly newsletter).

A friend of Jeff's was telling me about a great margarita she had created for a Cinco de Mayo party. It was a cilantro-infused tequila which she mixed with some sparkling grapefruit juice. This sounded very interesting and I pursued the conversation to find out exactly how she made it. She had chopped some cilantro and mixed it with some white tequila. After 24 hours she strained the mix and blended it with some Izze Sparkling Grapefruit Juice.

 

This weekend while we were preparing the guacamole, I decided to try this margarita concoction. I had about 2 cups of white tequila and mixed it with 1/4 cup of cilantro. I let it sit for an hour and then strained it. I mixed 1 shot of the tequila with 4 ounces of Izze Sparkling Grapefruit Juice (which I found at Brooks Pharmacy). I shook the mixture with ice, gave a squeeze of fresh lime and poured it into a salted margarita glass over ice. The taste was very different as the cilantro flavor comes through, but the grapefruit juice gave it just enough sweetness to make it smooth and clean tasting. I actually liked it so much, I saved some tequila and plan on heading home to enjoy a glass with the remainder of the guacamole. YUM!

 

Thank you, Janice McDonald, for the recipe and for that I name it the Cilantro-Infused Grapefruit Margarita by Janice!

Now for appetizers. You'll need Killer Guacamole for the salsa and chips, Ginger-Garlic Shrimp and Carrot Top Pesto to go with your cheese and crackers.

Then there are Great Steak Marinades, Apple Baked Bean Casserole, Red Skinned Potato Salad and Sausages, Peppers, Onions and Potatoes. 

For dessert, you definitely need Strawberry Shortcake, maybe some of Andria's Chocolate Chip Cookies, Chocolate Chip Brownies and don't forget the refreshing Pineapple Fruit Dip.

These are just a few of the tasty recipes available on Friends Food Family. Please visit our archives, which are categorized into food groups, to view more cook-out ideas.

Have a wonderful and safe 4th of July.

Basic Ingredients for Cooking

You've had a long day, all you want is dinner (and preferably someone to make it!), but you don't have the right ingredients. For years, I have tried to teach my daughter that if you have the basic food staples, you can cook anything. Here are some basics which will take you a long way with pretty much any recipe.

1. Herbs and Spices - Dried herbs and spices are great to have on hand. If you do anything in 2010, build yourself an herb garden. We grow basil, chive, flat leaf parsley, curly parsley, sage, cilantro, rosemary, thyme, oregano, marjoram, dill, tarragon and mint. (Note on mint: Grow in a separate container, it is invasive and will take over your garden. We planted ours in the center of flowers. See large gray pot above.) We were able to use our herbs all summer and well into the fall. These are dried herbs which you may use on a regular basis...

~ basil, thyme leaves, oregano, sage leaves, tarragon leaves, bay leaves, black pepper, red pepper (cayenne), red pepper flakes, parsley, onion powder, onion salt, garlic powder, rosemary, paprika, dill, salt (table salt, sea salt, kosher salt), cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and vanilla ~

2. Vegetables - Onions and garlic are a must. Second to that is carrots, celery, peppers and potatoes (red, yukon and sweet). We grow zucchini, summer squash, eggplant, cucumbers, tomatoes, garlic, green beans and peppers in our garden. Every once in a while, we will plant lettuce at the beginning or end of the season. If you have a summer garden, then you know how much better the food tastes.

3. Fruits - apples, pears, oranges, lemons and limes.

4. Canned goods - Canned tomatoes (crushed, sauce, diced and paste), beans (kidney beans, cannellini beans, northern whites), soups (cream of mushroom, tomato), chicken broth, beef broth, pineapple chunks, and mandarin oranges

5. Rice and pasta - Assortment- white rice, wild rice, arborio (for risotto), spaghetti, ziti, orzo.

6. Frozen - Peas, corn, spinach and broccoli, chicken breasts, ground beef, ground sausage.

7. Dry Ingredients - Flour, white sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, rolled oats, bread crumbs, chocolate chips, raisins, craisins

8. Oils, Vinegars and Wine - Olive oil, vegetable oil, canola oil, sesame oil, red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, white cooking wine, marsala cooking wine, white wine, red table wine, and soy sauce.

9. Assorted others - Milk, butter, orange juice, peanut butter, honey, eggs and of course, Hershey's chocolate syrup...just looking to see if you are paying attention.

Having these ingredients, within reach, makes meal planning easy for you or the person you get to cook!

Now that I have shared my list, what is a staple ingredient you can't live without?

(back, red pot) Dill in the center of purple wave, (large gray pot) eggplant with marigolds and (small green pot) ornamental chiles. 

Baking Tips - Oven Temperature and Timing

I was writing my past post and realized that two of the toughest parts of baking cookies (and any desserts for that matter) is oven temperature and timing. Over the years, I have owned 4 different ovens. Each had its own issues, one would cook too fast, one too slow, if I opened the oven door too much, they would begin to burn on one side because of the heat flow. Just when you thought you had it figured the oven temperature, part two kicks in, cooking them too long or not long enough. I thought I would share two helpful hints that will hopefully make baking a bit easier.

1. Determine the degree that works best for your oven.

I had one oven that at 350 degrees burned my cookies in 8 minutes, but at 6 minutes the cookies weren't done. I realized when I baked at 335 degrees, 8-10 minute cookies were perfect. In another oven, it baked too slow, the happy medium was 375 degrees. You know your oven, set it to the temperature that will give you the best results.

2. Use a timer.

If I read a recipe that suggests 8-10 minutes, my first batch is set for 6 minutes. It allows me to see what the cookie looks like and be able to determine whether it needs another 2 or 4 minutes. If you have an oven light, use that, too. The less you can open the oven door, the more consistently the cookies will bake. The last thing you want is burned cookies; it's a waste of time and ingredients. Plus it adds to the feeling of "I can't bake."

So, as you get ready to make your next batch of cookies, test your oven and use your timer. For the effort you put into baking, I want your cookies to look as GREAT as they taste.

Thanksgiving Discoveries...

First, I'd like to wish everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving. I wish I could have shared this discovery earlier but by the time we got our first turkey out of the oven at 8:30 PM and carved it at 10 PM, I was too tired to report the results.

Back a few weeks ago we caught the ending of the Cook's Country show on PBS. We have been subscribers of Cook's Magazine and have made a few of their recipes. They research recipes and create the best recipe usually from a group of trial recipes. The show was on cooking an old-fashioned roasted turkey with creamy garlic mashed potatoes. The turkey recipe was easy, basically a 12-14 pound turkey, 1 pound of salt pork and some cheese cloth. The full recipe can be found at www.cookscountrytv.com or by clicking http://tinyurl.com/yhvq7km.

Easy recipe, why not try it? It was worth the 15 minutes it took to get the turkey ready and into the oven. I think even my friend, Steve Ford, could make this...and he's a take-out guy!

At 10 PM, we realized we had made probably the best tasting turkey we had ever cooked. It was moist and very flavorful. If you saw what we went through for the 24 pound turkey we are cooking today (brining, stuffing, basting) you would die. And I hate to say it, I think our old fashioned roasted turkey will win hands down.

Happy Eating!