Bison Flank Steak

It's almost the end of grilling season, and with all this rain, I don't feel like I have gotten everything out of it that I could. In July, I grilled nearly every dinner, but rainy August was definitely more of a mixed bag. I still had a few things left I needed to grill before it was too late, or too cold really. One of them was Bison. I am already a huge fan of the bison burger, but the past few times I have been at Whole Foods, I noticed they had other cuts, and that they looked tasty. My only other experience with bison, was brought back from a hunt, and it did not smell so great (it tasted fine though), so I was a little timid. One day, the boyfriend went to Whole Foods without me, and he came home with a beautiful bison flank steak. It was perfectly lean looking, and did not smell out all! Once it was grilled up, it tasted amazing, and I'm pretty sure you could serve it and no one would know they weren't eating beef. So, step outside your comfort zone, for a delicious and lean dinner!

Marinated Bison Flank Steak:
1/4 cup of red wine vinegar
2 tbsp of good balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp of Worcherstershire Sauce
1 tbsp of soy sauce
1 tsp of dijon mustard
2 garlic cloves, smashed
1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes
salt, pepper
1 bison flank steak, about 1 lb.
Olive oil

In a small bowl combine the vinegars, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, and mustard. Season a bison flank steak (or a beef one) with salt and pepper. Put in a plastic bag and pour in the vinegar mixture, add the red pepper flakes and garlic. Seal the bag and shake until the steak is coated. Refrigerate overnight. Pre-heat the grill. Remove the steak from the marinade and run with a little bit of oil. Cook for about 4 minutes on one side, and then flip and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, for medium rare. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. To serve, slice against the grain.

Happy Eating.

White Sangria

Today is an Eat, Knit, Grow first. I have a drink for you, the fun grown-up kind! I am not a big drinker at all, which is probably why there haven't been any cocktails on here yet, but on a hot day at a big BBQ, a glass of sangria sounds delicious and refreshing. This sangria was scoffed at by my Spanish pseudo family who was visiting for being made with white wine, because it's not really Sangria (they still drank it happily though). The other guests loved it for being not too sweet or fruity and perfectly refreshing. Plus as a bonus, once your glass is devoid of liquid, you can nibble on the delectable vodka soaked fruit. This is really the perfect drink for all these hot summer days!

White Sangria:
3 cups of orange flavored vodka
2 Plums
2 Apricots
2 Peaches
2 Gala apple
1/3 cup of sugar
4 bottles of white wine, Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc

Pour the vodka into a large bowl or pitcher. Chop the fruit into small square pieces and add it to the vodka, stirring so all fruit is coated. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for at least 1 hour, or refrigerate overnight. Stir sugar into the vodka and divide between two pitchers (or pour all into 1 big container). Add wine to vodka and stir. Serve over ice.

Happy Eating.

Quick Pulled Chicken Tostadas

Generally speaking, I have a really hard time delegating, in life and in the kitchen. I always feel like I'm cheating (in the kitchen, that is) if I don't make everything that can be made from scratch from scratch. I take pride in my work and I love knowing that I made everything I am eating, plus I love knowing every ingredient that is in what I ate 100%. However, sometimes, this is a lot of work, and sometimes, I just want something and I want it fast. So I swallow my pride and pick a quality version of a product, and enjoy it, even though I know I could have made it myself.

Pulled Chicken Tostadas:
2 Chicken Breasts
1/2 bottle of barbaque sauce (I like Bull's Eye Texas Style)
1/4 cup of water, plus more for boiling
1/2 tsp of salt
1 large Onion
6 small corn tortillas
1 tsp of canola oil
salt, pepper.

Pre-heat the grill. Bring a pot of water and 1/2 tsp of salt to a boil. Boil chicken until mostly cooked through, about 8 minutes. Drain water from the pot. Using 2 forks, shred the chicken. Add barbaque sauce and 1/4 cup of water to the pot, cook covered on low until ready to eat. Cut the onion into thick slices and rub with oil. Season the onion with salt and pepper and grill until charred and softened, about 8-10 minutes, flipping halfway through. Grill the tortillas for about 1 minute on each side, until crisp. Serve tortillas topped with pulled chicken and onions.

Happy Eating.

Daring Cooks Potato Salad

Blog-checking lines: Jami Sorrento was our June Daring Cooks hostess and she chose to challenge us to celebrate the humble spud by making a delicious and healthy potato salad. The Daring Cooks Potato Salad Challenge was sponsored by the nice people at the United States Potato Board, who awarded prizes to the top 3 most creative and healthy potato salads. A medium-size (5.3 ounce) potato has 110 calories, no fat, no cholesterol, no sodium and includes nearly half your daily value of vitamin C and has more potassium than a banana!

***This post won 3rd place in the Daring Cook's contest hosted by the United States Potato Board***

I could not have been more excited about this month's daring cooks challenge. I love potaotoes, and generally hate potato salad. The cold, creamy, mayoed up stuff hardly tastes like the glorious root vegetable that is it's chief ingredient. So as I was looking through diverse and mouthwatering potato salads in the daring kitchen, I realized, just becasue that thick mayo version is what I first think of when someone says potato salad, doesn't mean that is the only one. So I set out to make a completely delicious, non-creamy, warm potato salad, and the resulting recipe is simple, fresh, healthy and absolutely delicious.

Grilled Potato Salad:
4 medium-large red potatoes
1 bunch of asparagus
1 medium shallot
4 tsp of olive oil, divided
1 tsp dijon mustard
1 tbsp champangne vinegar
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes.
Plus additional salt and pepper

Chop potatoes into 1 inch chunks. Fill a pot with water and season with salt. Bring water to a boil and add potatoes. Cook until just tender, about 10 minutes. Let potatoes cool, or chill briefly, until they are around room temperature. Pre-heat the grill. Season potatoes with salt, pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon of red pepper flakes, add 2 teaspoons of olive oil and toss to coat. Cook the potatoes in a foil packet, or a vegetable basket on the grill until golden and cooked through. In the mean time, cut the ends off the asparagus and toss with 1 teaspoon of olive oil and salt and pepper. Place asaparagus on a vegetable griller, or directly on the grill and grill until slightly charred, about 8 minutes. Remove potatoes from grill and put in a large bowl. Chop cooked asparagus into 1 inch pieces and add to the bowl as well. Whisk together the remaining teaspoon of olive oil, the mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Pour the dressing over the warm potatoes and asparagus and toss to coat. Serve warm.

Happy Eating

BBQ Pork Spare Ribs

It's football playoff season, and even though my beloved Eagles lost, while I was freezing my little tush off at the game, I might add, there is still plenty to see. And seeing is eating (and drinking). So for long cold Sundays spent watching football, we need some good, messy game eats. How about some ridiculously large BBQ pork spare ribs? Yes, please. Ribs are so easy to make at home, I surprised I never thought of doing it before. Just remember the one cardinal rule, SLOW AND LOW, and your ribs will turn out tender, juicy, and succulent. So grab a bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce (or make your own, recipe at the bottom) and cozy up for a few hours while the wonderful smell of barbecue wafts threw your house.



Pork Spare Ribs:
6 lbs of Pork spare ribs (2 slabs)
3 tbsp of brown sugar
1/2 tsp of salt
1 1/2 tsp celery salt
1 tsp of pepper
1 tsp of paprika
1 tsp of cumin
1 tsp of chili powder
2 tsp of onion powder
1/2 cup of Barbecue Sauce (recipe follows), plus more for serving

In a small bowl mix together the sugar and all the seasonings. Rub the ribs with the spice mixture on both sides. Wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour, preferably longer, up to overnight. Position the oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and pre-heat the oven to 300 degrees. Line two baking sheets with tin foil and place a slab of ribs on each sheet, bonier side down. Put sheets in the oven and cook for 1 hour, then flip the baking sheets (upper to lower, lower to upper), bake an additional hour. Flip the ribs again, and brush each rack with barbecue sauce. Cook an additional 30 minutes. Ribs will be tender and very easy to cut into individual ribs. Serve with additional sauce on the side, and keep second (and third) helpings of ribs in the oven while you are eating.



Roasted Chile Barbecue Sauce:
2 anaheim chilis
2 jalapeños
1 1/2 cups of tomato puree
1 cup of ketchup
3 cloves of garlic
1 tbsp of Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup of white wine vinegar
1 heaping tbsp of tomato paste
1/2 cup of molasses
1/4 tsp of salt

Pre-heat the broiler. Wash the peppers and pat dry. Place on a foil lined baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Broil until skins are charred and peppers are fragrant, about 4 minutes each side. Let peppers cool down. In a small pot over bring tomato puree and ketchup to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Meanwhile, peel the charred skin off the peppers and slice off tops (discard seeds if desired). Put peppers and garlic in a food processor or blender and pulse until the mixture is pureed. Add to the tomato mixture. Add in remaining ingredients and bring to a boil again. Cover and reduce heat to low. Allow to simmer covered for 2 hours or longer.



They are so delicious I had to throw in one last pic.

Happy Eating.