Grilled Steak & Veggie Pesto Pasta

This was a fun & yummy recipe. I created shish kabobs for my hubby to grill... as he grilled them, I prepped the pesto & the pasta... Then we merged our separate pieces together & had a delish dinner!

<3 Lishie

Grilled Steak & Veggie Pesto Pasta

• 1 lb chuck eye steak, cubed into 2" pieces
• 1 large onion, diced into 1-2" pieces
• 1 red bell pepper, diced into 1-2" pieces
• 1 medium zucchini, diced into 1-2" pieces
• S & P
• 1 bag of noodles
• 1/4 C pesto (I made fresh)

BBQ skewers- soaked in water for 30 minutes prior to grilling

Create bbq shish kebobs placing 
steak/onion/pepper/zucchini. 
Again, steak/onion/pepper/zucchini...
Sprinkle well w/ S & P... Grill... till the meat is cooked well, turning the kabobs... about 8 minutes on each side.

While the kebobs are cooking... cook the noodles. When kebobs are finished, take steak & veg off of the skewers & toss steak, veg, pesto & pasta together. Serve w/ fresh shredded parmesan.

Grilled Kabobs

I have been sick for the last few days (no fun!) but am thankful for my support system. My hubby has been handling dinner very well, even wrapping up the food I am unable to eat! One night, he made these. They were pretty darn good. Apparently, the produce guy said that the new potatoes were awesome on kabobs on the grill. Always listen when someone who normally doesn't talk, gets excited because they want to TELL you something good! And he did. <3 Lishie

• Fully cooked chicken sausage with apple (Johnsonville now has them!) cut into bite-sized pieces

• new potatoes, skins left on, cleaned & halved or quartered

• bell peppers, cut in nice, square pieces (similar-size to the sausage & potatoes)

Soak the bamboo skewers in water for 30 minutes (prevents scorching), then assemble.

Grill!!!!!!

Grilled London Broil

Oh warm weather how we've missed you! Welcome back :) No complaints in our family since the grilling days are here. This is one of my hubby's favorites. I don't eat much meat at all because it is difficult for my system, so usually I'll just take a piece of his broil, the end, where it is most well done & gorge on sides & salads myself. But that piece is delicious! Yummmm... Happy 1st day of June everyone!

<3 Lishie

Grilled London Broil with Cracked Pepper 

• 2 London Broils
• 2 TBSp of olive oil

Dry Rub:

• 4 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 2 tsp. minced onion
• 2 tsp. garlic powder
• 2 tsp. fresh cracked pepper
• 2 tsp. paprika
• 2 tsp. cayenne pepper

Mix the dry rub ingredients in a bowl. Take the London Broils out of the refrigerator & allow it to rest/"warm" up about 15 minutes at room temperature... 

Massage the olive oil into both sides of each LB... Then coat generously with the dry rub pressing it gently into the meat . Grill London Broil for 5-10 minutes/side, until your preferred "wellness".
Enjoy!

Chicken, Pepper & Mushroom Tikka Kebabs & Cous Cous

We have a new grill at our home & I am ecstatic... My hubby has been grilling pretty well with it! I prep the food then he cooks it. I do the sides. Oh and desserts (But not in this post!) It was a teensy bit rainy tonight but that did not stop us. Oh no! And why? I also got a new cookbook- "Entice with Spice" by Shubhra Ramineni & I am in love!!! Tonight's dinner was inspired by one of Shubhra's recipes called Chicken & Bell Pepper Tikka Kebabs. This was delicious & a nice change from bbq sauce :)

I make my kabobs, so similar to hers but I add mushrooms for my hubby... And used Shubhra's marinade (with extra reserved for dipping):

Chicken, Pepper & Mushroom Tikka Kebabs 

• Grill Spray
• Package of skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes
• 1 lb. boneless Chicken breast or tenders, cut into 2" cubes
• 2-3 bell Peppers, sliced into 2" pieces (I used green, red & yellow)
• 1 Onion, sliced into 2" pieces
•  Handful white, button Mushrooms

Place the items on the skewers, alternating... I do onion/chicken/onion/pepper/onion/chicken/onion/mushroom/onion/chicken/onion/pepper...

Brush with the marinade (recipe below) & grill till the chicken is cooked well, turning the kabobs... about 8 minutes on each side.



Tikka Marinade

• 1 TBSp Garlic, minced
• Zest & juice 1 Lemon
• 1/2 tsp Coriander
• 1/4 tsp Tumeric
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp fresh cracked Pepper
• 3 TBSp Plain Yogurt

Whisk together all of the above ingredients.


*Lishie tip- Place a small amount of the marinade aside to use to dip the skewers!


As a side, I decided to make a quick cous cous:
Sauteed Pepper Cous Cous
2 TBSp Canola Oil
1/2 of a Bell Pepper, chopped, set aside from above (I used 1/4 yellow & 1/4 red)
1/4 of an Onion, chopped, also set aside from above
1 & 1/2 cups Cous Cous
2 cups Water


Heat the oil in a small sauce pan on Medium heat. Add the onion & pepper & saute until the onion is translucent & the pepper is soft but with some "bite" left. With a slotted spoon, remove it from the pan then drain the oil. Add the water into the pan & bring to a boil. Add the cous cous, shut off the heat & fluff/mix. Cover & set aside for 5 minutes to rest. Add in the sauteed pepper & onion & fluff the cous cous before serving.

And everything was cooked, cleaned & eaten with enough time for some after dinner crafting with G!

Happy Flag Day! 6*14*11
<3 Lish

Pineapple Upside Down Cake + Dinner's Balsamic BBQ Sauce

Ride-Side Up!!! Delish!

My wonderful Mother-in-Law, who never asks for anything, requested Pineapple Upside-Down Cake. I was so ecstatic I cannot tell you! As with all of my desserts, I made it from scratch, using this tried-but-true recipe from Betty Crocker: Betty Crocker Upside-Down Cake. 


I only changed a couple of small things... I used FRESH pineapple, which made the slices fresher, larger & have a "bite". An 8x8" Pan & I placed the maraschino cherries onto the cake AFTER it came out of the oven (for the nice coolness/cherry on top!). 


PLUS- butter was my starter of choice & I didn't measure out my brown sugar- I generously sprinkled it into the bottom of the pan so that there'd be that gorgeous, dark caramelization you see in the picture above! Yum, yum, yummmmmm. This cake is just sweet enough & perfect on a summer night. And it is so very easy to make- from scratch! Takes only a couple of minutes to put together, then finishes off in the oven...


& *Lishie tip? BBQ the leftover slices of pineapple.... THE.BEST.THING.EVER... The natural caramel of the pineapple when grilled is scrumptious!!!


 Speaking of Grilling...


With the days getting so warm, we'll be grilling a lot! Especially since we have a new grill- woohoo!!!! That means I'll be preparing the fixin's, sides, salads, sauces & dessert while my hubby grills... 


He grilled up some chicken today... & I made some yummy Balsamic BBQ sauce. Just go here for the recipe: Giada's Balsamic BBQ Sauce   


Ummm, have you entered my Melissa And Doug CONTEST yet? What are you waiting for?! Scoot, scoot... go do it! Thank you :)

Wingsday... Again. Grilled Buffalo Wingettes

Red Hot Wings!

So it is Wednesday again, i.e.- Wingsday... & I am trying once more to make a healthier.just.as.satisfying.version of my hubby's beloved deep fried Buffalo Wings. This is attempt #4 to make them an alternate way. I've baked, & I've broiled them & I made them as tenders dipped in flour on the skillet- Buffalo Chicken Fries.

This week it was Grilling time. And, again, I used a butter substitute. 

Hubby's verdict? And again, the sauce was still good despite the butter sub. He actually said he din't taste a difference! And he liked these the best.

Grilled Buffalo Wingettes 

Cooked Wings, without sauce

• Cooking Spray
• 3 lbs. Wingettes or wings
• S & P *Optional (did not use)

Sauce:

• 3 TBSp Butter Substitute, melted (Michael chose "I Can't Believe it's Not Butter")
• 1 TBSp Honey
• 1 cup Hot Sauce (I use Frank's Red Hot) 

In a large bowl, whisk together the sauce  ingredients & set aside. 

Spray the grill pan with cooking spray. Lay out the wingettes in one layer. Spray the chicken with cooking spray. Grill on each side for 10-12 minutes minutes or until the chicken is cooked.

When the wingettes are cooked, while still hot, toss them in the sauce then serve.

*Lishie tip- Serve with nice crusty bread to tone down the heat. Water just makes makes the sting burn worse!

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burgers

Grilled Portobello Mushroom Burgers

• 4 TBSp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 TBSp Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 TBSp chopped Basil
• 1 tsp Oregano
• S & P
• 2  Portobello caps
• Cooking Spray

Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, basil, oregano & S &P. Place the cleaned portobello caps in a large ziploc bag with the oil/vinegar mixture. Allow it to marinate for 10-15 minutes at room temperature.

When ready, heat the grill pan on Medium-high & spray it with cooking spray.  Grill each portobello side about 10 minutes. (If using cheese, when you flip the portobello cap, place cheese on the already-grilled side.)

I served them on rolls with sliced roasted red pepper, lettuce & tomato. If you want cheese, provolone or mozzarella would be delicious on these!

*Lishie tip- to clean mushrooms, take a damp towel & simply pat off any dirt. Do not immerse fungi ;) in water because they absorb like sponges. This is also the reason why you should not marinate for a long period of time! Only 15 minutes or less or the caps will be inundated with liquid.

Recipe Swap! Marinated Flank Steak

So this week's theme for the Recipe swap is Grilling. I love these swaps, they are so much fun. I gave a recipe I haven't blogged yet: Grilled Flank Steak with Mushrooms- THE 1st meal I ever made for my hubby when we started dating... & got this sort of similar one from my friend Gianna Marinated Flank Steak. We haven't been eating too much red meat lately at all for health's sake so this was a nice break.

Marinated Flank Steak 

I (Gianna) got this recipe from a friend and it's delicious!

(This is for 1 large steak, you may need to double or triple, depending on how many steaks you make.)

• 1/4 cup oil (I use olive)
• 3 Tbs. red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 Tbs. garlic powder
• 1 Tbs. minced onion (I sometimes use onion powder)
• 4 Tbs. Apricot Preserves (if you can't find that, you can use peach)

Whisk all ingredients in a bowl.  Put steak and marinade into a large zip lock bag.  Marinate for AT LEAST 3 hours...but it's best to do it over night....the longer it marinates the better for this recipe.    Make sure you toss the steak around the bag a bunch of times during the marinade process.

 

Get your grill as hot as you can and spray it with cooking spray.

 

Cook steak 3-4 minutes, then flip and do another 3-4 minutes.

Slice and serve!

Now because the recipe is from Gianna, this post, as her recipe, must be in comic sans font. No, really, it magically changed. It won't let me type in anything else now. ;-P 

I threw together the marinade last night... Using olive oil, red wine vinegar, LOW sodium soy sauce, 1-2 TBSp minced fresh garlic & onion & the apricot preserves (which I always have on hand for recipes- sweet & savory. It's a good pantry staple!) And mixed it all up into the Ziploc bag with the 1+ lb Flank steak & into the fridge.

I did not grill outside. Actually rarely do since I work then come home to cook & we live on the 2nd floor. Grilling outdoors is more of a weekend thing. Plus for the longest time, I had been a city apartment inhabitant. And A city resident's best friend? The grill pan! I absolutely love & cannot live with out mine- it's over 10 years old! It's the same pan I made the 1st meal for my hubby on. It's a square All-Clad. A-mazing! 

When I came home from work, I took the ziploc bag out & placed it on the counter top to come to room temperature. Then, along with hubby, took Gabriel outside for bubbles & sidewalk chalk time!  

Came inside, turned the burner on high, sprayed the pan with cooking spray, then seared the flank steak on both sides. I had the oven on making the side of roasted broccoli. I finished the steak off in the oven (we like it medium-well) by placing the entire grill pan in for 5 minutes.

Then I allowed the steak to rest on the cutting board for 10 minutes... Sliced & served with roasted broccoli & mushrooms. 

The steak was delicious!!! So much flavor from the marinade! I highly recommend it. We'll be making this on the grill too. It is easy & doesn't take a lot of time. Thank you so much, Gianna!