Happy Flag Day!

We had Erika and Gary and the Graves over for dinner to celebrate Flag Day. Earlier in the day I saw two bald eagles flying over Lake Washington, so I knew this was going to be a great flag day celebrations! It had been way too long since we'd seen Erika and Gary so it was nice to see them and hear about their wedding plans. We also had some good food. Here are the highlights:

These were delicious!
texas-rubbed and brined pork chops
Brine
4 cups apple cider
1 cup Morton kosher salt
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
2 bay leaves, crumbled
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon whole cloves
4 cups ice cubes or cold water
Meat
1 (4-5 pound) center-cut pork loin
2 to 4 tablespoons olive oil
Rub - Next time I might cut back on the salt and add something sweet...
1/4 cup Morton kosher salt
2 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Oak or apple wood chips, soaked
Combine the cider, salt, sugar, bay leaves, peppercorns and cloves in a large stockpot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook for about three minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the sugar and salt dissolve. Remove from heat and add the ice cubes or cold water (the ice cubes will cool the brine to room temperature faster).
Place the pork loin in a nonreactive pan or resealable plastic bag (brining bag) and cover with the brine. Cover pan or tightly close the bag and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours. If you are using an extra large resealable bag or brining bag, rotate the pork a few times to make sure all of the meat gets brined. Before roasting, remove the pork and pat dry with paper towels.
Meanwhile, make the rub by combining all of the spices and mixing well. You will not need all of the rub for this recipe. Store any leftover rub in a clean, airtight container.
If you are cooking on a charcoal grill, build the fire and sprinkle the wet wood chips over the gray-ashed briquettes just before putting the food on the grill.
Lightly brush pork with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with rub. Place pork directly on the cooking grate and cook for about 90 minutes or until an instant-read meat thermometer reaches 155°F. Remove pork from roasting pan. Let meat rest for 10 minutes.
Cut pork loin into thick (double-cut) chops and serve.

This salad was light and pretty, but a pain to make and as Charlie put it, "Only good if you REALLY like tomatoes." Maybe that's why I liked it...
cherry tomato and lemon salad
2 large lemons
1 tablespoon sugar
1 lb cherry or grape tomatoes (3 cups), halved or, if large, quartered
3 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Finely grate enough zest from 1 lemon to measure 2 teaspoons. Trim ends of both lemons, then stand lemons on a cut side and cut peel, including all white pith, from lemons with a sharp paring knife (discard peel). Cut segments free from membranes, then cut segments crosswise into 1/4-inch pieces. Toss lemon segments gently with sugar in a bowl.
Stir in remaining ingredients and zest, then let stand, covered, at room temperature 15 minutes (to allow flavors to develop).


This corn was good, but the butter was even better... I took a little of the extra butter and added honey to use on corn bread and it was my favorite part of the meal...
grilled corn with smoked paprika butter
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoons hot smoked paprika - I only had sweet smoked paprika and I don't know if I'd use the hot, because the sweet smoke taste was great
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/4 teaspoon sugar
Pinch of salt
10 ears of fresh corn, shucked
Blend butter, paprika, garlic, sugar, and salt in processor until smooth. Wrap paprika butter in plastic, forming 1 1/2-inch-diameter log. Refrigerate butter until very cold, about 2 hours. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.)
Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Working in batches, cook corn in large pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 5 minutes. Drain well. Grill corn until lightly browned in spots, turning occasionally, about 5 minutes. Serve corn hot with thick slices of paprika butter.

Not so "daily"...

I apologize for not being even close to daily, but I was in Baltimore for most of last week and there wasn't really anything blog worthy and then we went to Napa and it was very blog worthy, but I'm saving that post for when I have time to gather up the pictures.

In the meantime I have some new recipes. I made these two salads last night when we had the Oliver family over for dinner and they were a hit... very good and very summery (to make up for the lack of actual summer so far).

These are both originally from Bon Appetit - but I got them on Epicurious



cabbage and corn slaw with cilantro and orange dressing
1 Orange juice and zest
1/3 cup unseasoned rice vinegar
1 – 2 Tablespoons of light mayo
1 (8-ounce) bags coleslaw mix
2 cups of shredded purple cabbage
2 - 4 ears of fresh corn, shucked, kernels cut from cob
2 medium carrots, peeled, coarsely grated
1 medium red bell pepper, stemmed, cored, cut into thin strips
6 medium green onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

I changed some of these ingredients so I’m not 100% sure on the quantities, but basically I whisked together nearly equal parts mayo, vinegar and orange juice and added the zest and salt and pepper to taste so that I had a somewhat healthy very liquidy creamy dressing.

Combine slaw mix, corn kernels, carrots, red bell pepper strips, sliced green onions, and chopped cilantro in large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat. Season slaw to taste with salt and pepper. Let stand 15 minutes for flavors to blend. Toss again and serve.



creamy potato salad with lemon and fresh herbs
3 pounds baby red potatoes – the store only had purple so I used those and it tasted fine and looked interesting too – I think it would be perfect for a Husky tailgate party
3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
3/4 cup light mayonnaise
3 medium green onions, thinly sliced
1 celery stalk, cut into 1/3-inch cubes
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
11/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel

(FYI – I had some left over lemon herb dressing and I used it as a dip for veggies and it was excellent)

Bring potatoes to boil in large pot of water. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 17 minutes. Drain; let stand until cool enough to handle, about 20 minutes.

Cut potatoes into 3/4-inch pieces. Place 1 layer of potatoes in large bowl; sprinkle with some of vinegar and salt and pepper. Continue layering potatoes with vinegar, salt, and pepper. Add all remaining ingredients; toss. Season with salt and pepper. DO AHEAD Can be made 8 hours ahead. Cover and chill.

We also had BBQ Chicken. I used the Ancho & Molasses BBQ Rub with Love sauce that was on sale at Met Market. All the flavors look delicious and I'm going to try out a few of the other flavors... SO GOOD and easy too!

http://www.tomdouglas.com/products/sauces.html

First Dinner Party

Last night we had Joci, Jack and Karsin over for our first dinner party in the new house. Tragically poor Jeff had to work so we missed him, but Jack and Joci really represented the Besecker spirit so thankfully all was not lost and we ended up having a great time! We feasted on a menu courtesy of Rachel Ray (who I find annoying, but I have to admit she makes some pretty dynamite things on her show). This meal was delicious and easy, so I'm including the recipe here. The bean salad was by far my favorite and don't feel tempted to leave out the mint, it tastes fantastic in there!

Check out the dinner party photos and the recipe below:


The Grill in action!
I used my indoor grill for the first time when making this meal and I love it! It's easy to use, easy to clean and cooked everything up in a flash! Here's a link to that too:

http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/sku7749773/index.cfm?pkey=celtgrl&ckey=eltgrl


Dinner is served...


Karsin posing with my beautiful bouquet of peonies (my favorite!). Both Joci and Karsin were so thoughtful and brought me a bunch of peonies. To make it even better they brought coordinating colors so I ended up with the gorgeous, giant bouquet you see here. How lucky am I to have great friends and such a pretty bouquet?!

The recipe, as promised:

LEMON-GARLIC-HERB CHICKEN with GRILLED PROSCIUTTO WRAPPED ASPARAGUS and PESTO 3 BEAN SALAD (So GOOD!)
5 cloves garlic, peeled
Salt
1/4 to 1/3 pound fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 lemons, zested
1 teaspoon fennel seed
5 to 6 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves stripped and finely chopped
3 to 4 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves stripped and finely chopped
A handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/2 to 2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, divided
Black pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
1 pound asparagus spears
8 slices prosciutto
1 cup basil leaves, about 20 leaves
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves, 5 to 6 stems stripped of their leaves
A handful pine nuts, 3 to 4 tablespoons, lightly toasted and cooled
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, rinsed
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzo beans, rinsed

Heat grill or grill pan to medium-high.
Fill a small skillet with about 1-inch water and bring to a boil.

Grate the garlic onto acutting board and add a couple teaspoons salt, mash into paste with the flat of your knife.

Add salt to boiling water and cook green beans 1 minute then drain and cool under cold running water then reserve.

Reserve 1/5 of the pasted garlic, about 1 clove and add the rest to a shallow dish. To the garlic, add the lemon zest, fennel seed, chopped thyme, rosemary, parsley and about 1/4 to 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil and some black pepper. Stir with a fork to combine then add chicken pieces and coat evenly. Grill chicken 12 to 15 minutes until juices run clear.

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil.

Trim asparagus of tough ends. Add salt and the asparagus to the water and blanch for 2 minutes. Remove from the water and place into an ice water bath to cool. Once cooled, pat dry with paper towels, drizzle with a touch of extra-virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Divide the asparagus into 4 piles and roll 2 layered slices of prosciutto around each pile to form bundles. Grill 7 to 8 minutes until prosciutto is crisp and spears are tender.

Place basil and mint leaves in a food processor with the nuts. Add some salt and pepper and turn processor on. Stream in about 1/4 to 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil to form a thick pasty sauce. Transfer the sauce to a bowl. Stir in the reserved garlic paste and the grated cheese. Add the cooled green beans and the canned beans to the bowl and stir to combine. Adjust seasoning.

Remove chicken from the grill and squeeze the juice of 1 of the zested lemons down over the meat while still hot.

Serve 1 piece each chicken breast and thigh with an asparagus bundle and some bean salad alongside.