The Obvious Choice

On the suggestion of a good friend and the fact that I have many, many, many cookbooks, she suggested doing a blog wherein I cook a recipe from each cookbook...after thinking about this suggestion for a hot minute, I thought, how brilliant...then I thought, if I do this, then the recipes must consist of ones I have either never tried or wanted to try...the picture below only details some of the cookbooks I have accumulated over the years, either as gifts or purchased.

 I felt that there should be a rhymn and reason to the blog...should the recipe consist of only doing a main course or coupled with a dessert? Adjust to make it healthy or just follow the recipe as is? I feel that in doing this blog, I will make tweaks to the recipes; however, if it's a baking recipe for cakes, etc., I will follow that recipe to the letter.

As this is the first entry, I decided that (and considering how far I take this blog), it should evolve into incorporating various courses.

So, the first cookbook I'm using is the obvious choice:

Those who know me will say, "duh!" because of my fondness for grilling.…they may also say that I already have grilled everything and this is not even a challenge my grilling skills...maybe, but I have to try just to see what is in the cookbook that I want to try to grill.

First, I have to acknowledge my friends Beylah and Rose, for giving me this cookbook as a birthday gift, oh, maybe three years ago and I'm finally using it...but which recipe shall I use? Shall I grilled beef, chicken, pork, lamb or vegetables? The cookbook contains over 400 pages of a combination of recipes, a section for grilling for beginners as well as sections describing where the various cuts of meat comes from, cooking times and sauces and marinades. When it comes to recipes, people know that I generally incoporate bits and pieces from various recipes to have one recipe...I've decided to go with a spice rub instead of a marinade for the steak (if you clip the link on "steak", it take you to the recipe)...however, I am not making the chutney that is indicated in the recipe...however, I am making Panzanella (the link is to a recipe from Ina Garten).

Here are my ingredients for the steak rub and Panzanella:

For the rub, I used two ingredients not listed in the recipe from Weber: smoked paprika and granulated garlic...also, there was leftover spice rub to use for another occasion; possibly for grilling salmon or some other type of fish...I let the spices season the steak for a couple of hours...for the Panzanella, I'm also adding cilantro and heirloom tomatoes...I added some minced herbs consisting of oregano and rosemary...I've not had Panzanella since I was in Italy three years ago...the favours the I remember most is, well obviously, garlic, but also the taste of the Roma tomatoes and the dressing...Ina Garten's dressing uses champagne vinegar, I did not have this, so I used white wine vinegar with a touch of honey.

The BBQ grill I have uses charcoal and, if you have not grilled this way or tasted food cooked on a grill, try this method...I grew up having family BBQs using charcoal...but when I moved to Toronto and we purchased our first house, we had a propane BBQ grill which was fine; however, I longed for having a charcoal grill...when we moved into our new house, I insisted on getting a charcoal grill and even our friends look forward to having BBQs here...there is nothing like the smokiness that is infused into the meats from charcoal...I even "toasted" the bread for the salad on the grill.

 

The smoke from the grill is blowing in the wind...the other meats are lamb chops.

Well, Sunday dinner is ready and smells so good.

Ingredients FOR THE RUB: 
2 teaspoons paprika 
2 teaspoons chili powder 
1 teaspoon dried thyme 
1 teaspoon light brown sugar 
1 teaspoon kosher salt 
1 teaspoon freshly ground blackpepper 
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)
 
 Ingredients for Panzanella 
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1 small French bread or boule, cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2-inch thick
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 red onion, cut in 1/2 and thinly sliced
20 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped

Coarsely chopped cilantro 

Minced oregano and rosemary

For the vinaigrette:
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed.

For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together.

In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, basil, and minced herbs. Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.