Surf-n-Turf and Grilled Celery

Peak grilling season is here in Minnesota! Our beloved Puerto Rico Char Broil grill would have never survived the move from San Diego to Minneapolis. We complained about that grill for years, but it was pretty reliable. You couldn’t touch it, as it’d fall over into a heap of rusty metal, but hey, it worked! We bought it in 2006, and it lasted 9 years of almost year-around grilling in Puerto Rico, Virginia and San Diego, so not bad for $300 🙂 So long Char Broil, hello Weber! Seth just purchased the corvette of grills a couple weeks ago now that we’re getting settled in MN, so we’ve been grilling every chance we get.

Last night we grilled surf-n-turf and celery (a random experiment). I had the biggest, fattest, most awesome hunk of sea bass with the skin on, Seth had an enormous T-bone, and grilled celery! We wrapped the sea bass in a foil boat with a little olive oil, salt, pepper and tons of fresh citrus slices-I used 1 grapefruit, 1 orange and 1 lemon – all fruit that needed to be used. Tip: fish with skin on is far more juicy and flavorful, and it falls right off after cooking, so don’t be scared of fish skin! Seth seasoned his steak with garlic, Lawry’s, salt and pepper. The flavor of the fish was extremely buttery.

I’ve never grilled celery, but I think you can grill just about anything, so, since it’d been in the fridge for a while we gave it go – man was it tasty and super easy! Wash the celery and trim the ends, toss in a bowl with olive oil, sea salt, pepper and garlic salt, then lay directly on the grill for approximately 12-15 minutes. When it came off the grill I sprinkled with just a little fresh sea salt before eating. It had great celery flavor, still crispy, less stringy, and a charred salty flavor. So good!

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Natural Air Freshener (Margaritas First!)

In the heat of the San Diego summer (is that a thing?) I’ve been making healthier margaritas with fresh citrus. Since I’m not composting (yet) I always have extra rinds from lemons/oranges/limes. This is one of my favorite uses for the rinds, because it doesn’t saturate your home with perfumes, thus less allergen-provoking.

Simply boil water in a medium to small-sized sauce pan, once boiling, add citrus rinds, 1-2 cinnamon sticks, and sprinkle with ground cinnamon. Let boil for 10-15 minutes, and then reduce to simmer. You can leave it on for as long as you’d like, just make sure you continue adding water as it evaporates. Your home will smell amazing 🙂 AND you’ll be having margaritas.photo 1 (3)photo 2 (3)photo 3

Orange Cilantro Sliders with Garlic Mash

When I have a stressful day, the first place I go, is the kitchen. I usually pour myself a glass of red wine and get creative; and all of my stress magically melts away. This past Wednesday, was one of those creative times. I made orange cilantro sliders with garlic mash, coconut broccoli slaw and Asian pear. A wonderful blend of citrusy, tropical flavors.

Orange Cilantro Sliders with Garlic Mash

  • Organic ground beef
  • 1/4 bunch of fresh cilantro
  • Zest of 1 orange, juice of 1/2 of 1 orange
  • 1/4 diced white onion
  • Sea salt/pepp
  • Roasted whole garlic cloves

The first thing I did was start the whole garlic cloves roasting in the oven. Once they were finished, I mashed the roasted garlic together for a burger topper. Mix all other ingredients together and form into slider size patties. Place in pan over medium heat and cook until done to your liking.

Coconut Broccoli Slaw

Melt oil in a saute pan and add bag of broccoli slaw. Let it cook over medium heat, continuing to stir until it cooks down, and sprinkle with coconut. Gently toss, and pair with burgers and a crisp sliced Asian pear.DSC_0432DSC_0420DSC_0424DSC_0425DSC_0431DSC_0436This dinner recipe can be seen on the Food Renegade’s Fight Back Friday for March 22nd!