Shrimp On The Barbie

I decided to make some shrimp kabobs on the grill yesterday (yeah, it was Mother's Day, and I still cooked...but I wanted to, so it's all good).

I didn't use a recipe, but just put together kabobs from whatever I could find in the fridge. The veggies are green pepper, chunks of yellow squash, onion and chunks of pineapple. I brushed both the shrimp and the veggies with this Ginger Dressing. I love it on salad, but to be honest, I couldn't taste it on the kabobs once the food was done. Next time I'll probably use some kind of an Italian dressing.

Because shrimp cooks so quickly, I skewered the vegetables separately and put them on the grill about 10 minutes ahead. I served the kabobs over orzo pasta (could use rice) with a side of steamed broccoli.

I was a little hesitant to post this, because on first taste, I thought it was a little bland and could have used a sauce of some kind. But with a sprinkle of salt and garlic powder, it perked right up, and the more I ate, the more I started wishing I'd made more!

Heat Wave

We had a one-day heat wave yesterday. It reached 55° here and most of the snow is gone. It was a grillin' day.

In addition to KC strip steaks, Spouse Guy grilled a couple of chicken breasts that will be used in another recipe this week and we decided to try the grilled asparagus that Dave likes to make. It was wonderful! (I apologize for the photo; it was getting dark and it's hard to get a good picture with night mode flash.)

He gave me a quick how-to lesson by e-mail. I hope he doesn't mind that I've posted the recipe here.


Grilled Asparagus a la Dave

1 pound fresh asparagus spears
1/2 stick butter
Granulated garlic (similar to coarse garlic powder)
Lemon-pepper seasoning
Ground black pepper

Wash and trim asparagus and place in a baking dish. Melt butter and either brush or pour butter over asparagus spears. Sprinkle with garlic, lemon-pepper seasoning and pepper to taste. Roll spears in pan to coat evenly.

Grill on a hot grill (gas or charcoal) turning 1/4 turn every minute or two, until desired tenderness is reached, 5 to 10 minutes. It's normal for asparagus to develop brown spots (as the natural sugars caramelize), but don't let it char. Serve hot.

Makes 4 servings (it should make 4 servings, but we love asparagus, so for us, only 2.)

'Rita Had A Little Lamb

And she liked it!

Until today, the only lamb I've had has been that pressed meat combination of seasoned lamb and beef that's used on gyro sandwiches. I really like it, but I wasn't sure if I'd like lamb "straight up". I've wanted to try it for a while, but it's expensive and I was hesitant to buy it, not knowing if I'd like it.

My curiosity got the best of me a couple of days ago when I found a package of two small lamb chops marked down as a manager's special at the local meat counter. Two chops is not enough for a meal for Spouse Guy and me, so we decided to grill them today (on the snowy back deck), along with some hamburgers that were already on the menu.

I threw together a red wine marinade and let them marinate for a couple of hours, then Spouse Guy grilled them for about 5 minutes on each side. I didn't use a recipe, but here are the approximations:

1/2 cup red wine
1/4 cup olive oil
1 T. minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1/2 teaspoon crushed rosemary leaves
1/4 teaspoon dry ground mustard
salt and pepper added just before grilling

The results? We were both surprised that the meat was very tender and milder in flavor than the gyro meat. We'd definitely eat lamb again, but probably only for special occasions because of the price.

Oh yeah, the hamburgers were really good, too!