Summer Grilling... skirt steak, roasted veggies, and crunchy baked potatoes

While I love to cook, I really love to be outside playing with my son and family.  Especially at the beach in the summer, who wants to be inside cooking?  Here is an easy and tasty way make a great dinner, while you play outside all day!

Today we picked up some skirt steak at Cromer's Montauk Market; looked beautiful, well as beautiful as raw meat can look I suppose.  I seasoned it with some crushed garlic, 4 cloves, sea salt, and fresh ground pepper.  Put it in a plastic bag and let it sit (in the fridge).   Have you ever had skirt steak?  It is one of my favorite cuts of meat...  if it is made right, that is - otherwise you might as well be eating your shoe (meaning tough as leather, yuck!)

In another plastic bag I put sliced mushrooms (bought them from the store that way, easy), one sliced vidalia  onion, 1 small yellow and 1 small green summer squash.  Added a little Italian Dressing, and put in the fridge.  (I usually make a little more than I need so I can make into another dish the next day)

And lastly, took some baking potatoes, washed them, poked them with a fork, rubbed them with a little olive oil, sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper, and wrapped them in tin foil.  Put them on the grill and let them sit all day - I love them this way, the skin gets really crunchy.  (I always make a few extra for the next day - split them in half, and put them on the grill - they crunch up great!)

Then I spent the day boogie boarding with my son - surf's up!

After a great day on the beach, we (meaning my husband) grilled the meat and the veggies to perfection! A delicious dinner!!!  Enjoy!

(Photos to come...  camera technical issues...)

Extending the Weekend... Sunday Night Cocktails with Friends

Doesn't the summer seem to fly by, especially the weekends?  One thing we have tried to do is something casual on a Sunday night to extend the weekend...  tonight, cocktails (and a nosh of course) with the neighbors.  

Soft cheese (Explorateur Triple Creme Cheese), Dalmatia Dried Fig Spread, baguette (to tear), and Pepperidge Farm Butterfly crackers (my son LOVES them!)  We served a chilled a pinot grigio - so light, a little tingly on the tongue, perfect for a warm summer night.  Actually, we ended up skipping dinner...  or rather, this was dinner!

Enjoy!

Photos to come...  promise!

Summer Night - Coffee Tauk and Gelato

Tonight we took a stroll into town, what a great way to end a summer day!  Our aim was multipurpose... linger the day, get some fresh air, walk off some of our delicious dinner, and of course, to get some wonderful gelato at Coffee Tauk (the new, great, much needed coffee shop in Montauk.  Get it?  Coffee in Montauk, Coffee Tauk - hee hee, I crack myself up).  If you are interested, you can find them on Facebook...  they even have free wifi, which I made use of today when Cablevision was having issues... but I digress.

Back to tonights obsession, gelato.  Did you know that gelato is healthier than ice cream?  This totally shocked me...  how could gelato, which tastes richer and creamier that high end ice cream be less fattening?  Well, it is, and let me explain more.  Ok, first I readily admit, an apple is a healthier option than both.  But that isn't really the point...  While neither gelato nor ice cream is a health food, gelato is better for two reasons:  1) less fat content and 2) less calories overall.  And for me, a smaller serving of gelato is needed to satisfy me - so I think that is a third reason, if we are keeping count.

We were wildly successful in our stroll...  we enjoyed our chocolate gelato sitting outside...  another night in paradise!

(Photos to come....)

Roasted Veggies en Croute

This is a family and friend favorite...  I love it because I use left over roasted veggies (any kind) some type of cheese (any that I have on hand - low fat mozzarella always a good choice), and Pepperidge Farm Frozen Puff Pastry (always have some on hand)...  this can be used as a great side dish or as an appetizer...

Defrost Puff Pastry:  I usually defrost one or two sheets.

Roll out, or unfold one sheet.  Place left over roasted veggies - this time I had eggplant and peppers.  I also added some baby spinach and slide mushrooms.  Then sprinkled on a little cheese (use as much as you like).  Fold the puff pastry around the veggies; trim off any extra (cut with a scissor).  If there is a special occasion, I make a decoration out of left over puff pastry (use a cookie cutter or a scissor).  Then bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  (Can be made ahead of time, stored in the fridge, and cooked prior to serving.  Bring to room temperature before putting in the oven.)

4th of July Flag Dessert - FoodNetwork Inspired

This 4th of July my sister-in-law was reading The Food Network Magazine, and said, "I think we need this dessert".

Our inspiration:  this months Food Network Magazine

This is the dessert I was aiming for...

I defrosted some Pepperidge Farm Puff Pastry.  I thought, well I couldn't find the cups, so I would use the sheets.  I would just roll them out and make cups.

Seems easy right...  do you see my mistake before I write it?  Puff Pastry...  it didn't keep it forms, but that is ok.

Here are my "cups" of puff pastry - maybe I should have gone to another store to find the cups?

I just made the best of it...  put the filling on top.

Drum roll....  ta da...  a yummy puff pastry flag cake!  Enjoy!

It's summer -- it must be cobbler time

A few years ago I had the privilege of attending a baking class in NYC (wish I could remember the place). In order to be proper chefs (for a day), we were given aprons and classic chef hats.

Now that we looked the part, we were divided into groups given a recipe and assigned to a master chef.

My recipe was for a berry cobbler...  hmmm, what is a cobbler?  I don't think I have had one, much less made one.  In this case it was a sweet dessert; berry filling put in a baking pan, then topped with an almost scone like topping, the key is that the topping is put on the filling by rounded tablespoon.  This way the topping looks like a cobble stone road...  well this is what our chef told us, and it sounded good to me.

We mixed, fruit and some other stuff together, then made the topping, assembled and baked.  So amazing...  In fact there was some topping left over and I took it home.  Why not, right?

That night we had an impromptu dinner party, 4 couples in total, we all knew one couple but not all.  Turns out we had a lot in common, and made quick friends.  After a delicious dinner,  I made a cobbler for dessert...  it was a HUGE hit!  Since that time, I have made cobblers on many occasions!  ...

This July 3rd seemed like a good time as any to have a cobbler...

First the filling...  using fresh summer fruit you can use half the sugar, also I use brown sugar instead of white processed sugar

Then the topping, I use half whole grain flower and half all purpose...

Pre bake...  going into the oven

Out of the oven!  Yummm!

So easy to make!  Enjoy!

Mako Dinner

Saturday of 4th of July weekend, we are in Montauk, NY.  There is a shark advisory this weekend from NJ to Maine (huh?)  In fact, a 12' shark was seen close to shore just off Hither Hills the end of June (that is right by us).  What to do?  Make the best of it...  called the local fish store, Gossman's (an institution in Montauk).  Asked if they have any fresh, local mako.  Yes, they do!  Just caught this morning.  Fish on (for dinner that is)!

My brother prepared the mako...  one of his famous concocktions, lemon, wasabi, paprika, onion, garlic...  could be more or less, not sure.  But I do know it will be good!  Then cover with foil; put in the bbq.

And drum roll please...  ta da...  cooked to perfection!  Yumm!
(We even has some left over - the next day we made mako salad, think tuna salad but with mako.  Added diced yellow pepper, red onion, and some taziki sauce (we were out of mayo).  Served on some flat pretzel and other crackers. So great!)

The rest of the meal included salad...

roasted peppers,





and wine.  What could be better?

Sustainable, crazy good food! Dinner at the Boathouse - Saugatuck Rowing Club, Westport, CT.

Happy 8th anniversary!  A grown up night out (yeah, admit it, all the parents of young children out there know what I am talking about)...  off to have dinner at the Boathouse at the Saugatuck Rowing Club...  it's all new at the restaurant and it's now open to the public (club membership not required).

The Boathouse is definitely "crazy good food".  Even better it is sustainable dining.  Notice the fresh lobster and fluke from Montauk, NY (a fishing mecca) and veggies from Long Island (yes, really veggies do grow on Long Island, but they didn't specify a location).  

We enjoyed a wonderful evening...  a table outside, sun set, and a wonderful Côtes du Rhône (red) - let the meal begin.




Appetizers of roasted oysters and a market vegetable contorno (basically a vegetable salad) started us off in a good, light direction.  Followed by chicken cooked 2 ways and homemade ravioli...  We were enjoying ourselves so much and the food was so delicious we forgot to take pictures. (Sorry!  Think this means we will have to go back, yes!)

Dessert was a homemade shortbread with blueberry compote topped with homemade vanilla ice cream.

And a tea pot to linger so the night wouldn't end, too quickly.  Then off to home...  

The Boathouse is "crazy good food", enjoy!