Gotta Grill? Grill Once, Eat for a Week!

"I just don't have enough tiiiimmmeeee!" It's what I hear most often when it comes to eating healthfully. That doesn't mean going on a diet, it doesn't mean never going through fast food restaurants, it doesn't mean missing a meal with your family because you are going one directions and they are going 5 other directions. It means just what I said: Eating healthfully. This blog is about ONE WAY we can make it easier on ourselves to eat healthier when our lives seem out of control.

We make choices-at least 30 a day it seems-with regard to what we put into our mouth. I'm making a choice to sit on my computer and type this blog. I'm also grilling my vegetable for the week. Yep, the week. How many times have you said on your evening walks around the neighborhood "someone's grilling-I can smell it"? Why not do it all at one time? I've got the following on the heat right now:


Carrots-did you know you can grill them?
Red Bell Pepper
Green Bell Pepper
Onions
Garlic
Mushrooms
Beets

Some of these veggies will go with me tonight to a grilled dinner party. Some will go into a vegetarian pasta dish (hot) and some will go in a salad. This could be pureed and made into soup base or a sauce and they can also be toppings for pizza.

Here is the beauty of these veggies-they don't have to be prepped beautifully- a rough chop is all you need plus olive oil, salt and pepper. That's it. There is no need to dilute a beautiful ingredient with anything else. Trust me.

Next up on the grill today will be sweet potatoes (cut in rounds), corn and a test recipe of a Nutella and banana quesadillas. I'll also do chicken. Last week, I did enough chicken to feed 6 for a Memorial Day party and enough leftovers for the entire week. Where did that chicken go?
2 entree salads (chicken, cranberries, walnuts)
1 sandwich wrap
1 as is for my lunch protein
1 for baby food

Can I tell you how nice it was to open the fridge and see it all staring back at me? Yep, it took a bit of work and some extra time, but it is so well worth it. So many ingredients can be grilled-of course meat and other proteins-but think about pizzas, breads, desserts, fruits, side dishes (i.e. open up a can of beans, drain and wash, season and put in a pot on the grill-no need to fire up the stove top or the oven)

So does it take time? Yes. Does it take some planning? Yes. Does it take less time than I spend on my computer? Absolutely. Again, it's about choices. It doesn't have to be fancy-just good food for you and your family.

Gotta go check my grill---

Fire Up the Grill! 5 Minute Marinades for Summer

In the past week, I've been treated to two delicious-I-didn't-have-to-do-a-thing-home-cooked meals. Lucky me!

Both meals contained marinated and grilled meat. Since grilling season is upon us, I thought that two, basic marinade recipes to keep in our back pockets were in order. There is truly no need to buy pre-made marinades. Have you looked at the label on those? Check out the added sugars and salt the next time you pick one of those bottles and throw it into your cart. If you watch your salt and sugar intake, this is a great place for those ingredients to hide. Many people have no realization that these ingredients are added in large quantities at times. Same goes for salad dressings. All I'm saying is that it's SIMPLE and FAST to make your own marinade and odds are that you have many, if not all, of the ingredients at home right now! We're talking less than 5 minutes to whip these up.



Grilled Pork Tenderloin Marinade (2 loins)
1/4 c low sodium soy sauce
1/4 c bourbon or whiskey
2 T brown sugar
Whisk together and allow to marinade for at least 2 hours in the fridge.


Grilled Flank Steak Marinade (2 1/4 pounds of steak)
1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup olive oil
4 1/2 T honey
6 large garlic cloves, minced
3 T chopped fresh rosemary or 1 T dried
1 1/2 T coarsely ground pepper
1 1/2 t salt
Whisk together and allow meat to marinate for 2 hours in the fridge.

This particular recipe is on www.epicurious.com, but was actually created by Chef Richard Chamberlain of Chamberlain's Steak and Chop house in Dallas.

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup olive oil

4 1/2 tablespoons honey

6 large garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tablespoon dried

1 1/2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Grilled-Flank-Steak-with-Rosemary-731#ixzz0mMrSHZAN

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup olive oil

4 1/2 tablespoons honey

6 large garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tablespoon dried

1 1/2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Grilled-Flank-Steak-with-Rosemary-731#ixzz0mMrSHZAN

Yep, that's it!

It's easy to make homemade salad dressings, too. I love to do a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil with a good splash of red wine vinegar directly onto my salad. Add freshly ground pepper and a pinch of salt and toss. Any flavored vinegar will work-my newest addiction is white balsamic vinegar.

Tell me your favorite homemade marinades and salad dressings!

Many thanks to Cari and Rachelle for sharing their recipes with me! And, thanks for dinner!

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup olive oil

4 1/2 tablespoons honey

6 large garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tablespoon dried

1 1/2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Grilled-Flank-Steak-with-Rosemary-731#ixzz0mMoZp0kc

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup olive oil

4 1/2 tablespoons honey

6 large garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tablespoon dried

1 1/2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Grilled-Flank-Steak-with-Rosemary-731#ixzz0mMoZp0kc

Why Food Tastes Better When Someone Else Make It: A Case Study with Flank Steak

For some reason, food usually tastes better when someone else makes it for you. I'm not saying always-it certainly depends on the cook-but usually a fair assessment, I think. Recent events have spurred an outpouring of food and goodies here at our house and we are welcoming all of it with open arms. Case in point: My sister Amy's marinated flank steak recipe.


She'll tell you she inherited the recipe from her mother in law Sharon ( a great cook and baker in her own right, I might add). But in my mind, it's all Amy's recipe.

She'll tell you to get the flank steak at Costco (its the best for meat) and she'll tell you make the marinade a day in advance for maximum flavor, but that you can do it the day of if you are running low on time. She'll tell you to use an electric knife if you have it for the most thin of slices. She'll also tell you to make rice pilaf, fruit, salad and rolls to round out the meal. She'll tell you that this is one of the best things in her repertoire. I believe her!

Marinade for the flank steak:

1 cup of oil
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup chopped onions, diced very small
1/2 tsp cracked pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced very small

Mix all ingredients and pour over steak or use gallon zip-loc bags and put steak in with marinade. When marinating 2 flank steaks, double the marinade. Best to marinate the steak for 24 hours or more. You can marinade the steak and freeze it.


Sauce for flank steak:
1/2 to 3/4 stick of margarine or butter
2-3 large onions, sliced
4-6 T your favorite BBQ sauce

Melt butter or margarine in a sauce pan. Slice a few large onions and break up the slices and put them on the sauce pan in the butter. Cover and slowly let them soften. Pour 4 tablespoons of your favorite BBQ sauce in and mix. Cover and let cook for 15-20 minutes. Pour over meat.

Cook flank steak for about 8 minutes on each side depending upon your grill and your meat well-doneness! Slice thinly against the grain. Also great for steak fajitas or entree dinner salads.