Barbecue and Blue

It's barbecue season. 


Hooray!


I can't get enough time in the yard, smelling the flowers, smelling food sizzling on the grill. One of my favorite springing into summer meals is a grilled steak. I know I probably shouldn't eat too much read meat, but a facialist once told me that red meat is essential to supple skin. 


Granted, I also know I can find anything on the Internet to support a theory, so I went searching and found this article about how to keep skin glowing: 


B vitamins help to release energy from food for skin metabolism and have a role in keeping skin moist and smooth. 

Best sources: Milk, oily fish, poultry, red meat, offal, eggs, bananas, soya beans, wholegrains, wheatgerm, peanut butter, fortified breakfast cereals. [Read more]

Don't you love the Internet?


So I have a steak now and again to make sure my skin is glowing.  


That said, for a balanced diet, I also need my calcium [Say cheese!] and greens [For this meal/recipe: asparagus and mushrooms on arugula, but I've included a Brussel sprouts and blue cheese recipe, too].

Have a great cookout.

STEAK DINNER

2   6 oz. to 8 oz. steaks, cooked to your liking - [I like mine rare but I didn't remember to take a picture of mine; my husband likes his steak charred]

1-2 teaspoons paprika

2-4 ounces Gorgonzola or blue cheese

ARGULA, ASPARAGUS AND GRILLED MUSHROOMS

2 cups arugula, rinsed
6-8 spears asparagus
6-8 grilled mushrooms
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar


Baste asparagus and mushrooms with olive oil. Skewer and set on grill for 2 minutes; twist and grill 2 minutes more. Remove from heat and skewers. Slice the mushrooms. Serve the vegetables on top of the arugula. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar to taste.


In addition, if you'd like a side dish that is still "green," why not add Brussel sprouts? I know they're not everyone's favorite, probably because you had them as a kid and they weren't cooked properly. Brussel sprouts need to be tender. Cooking them in salted water makes the flavor stay inside. The smaller the Brussel sprout, the more tender, so choose wisely. I love them!

BRUSSEL SPROUTS AND BLUE

Ingredients:

12-16 Brussel sprouts

2 tablespoons leek tips, sliced

1 shallott, diced

2 tablespoons safflower oil

1 tablespoon white wine

2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (* I used Irish Cashel Blue)

1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Bring 2 cups of water to boil in saucepan. Add 1 teaspoon salt.

Trim off the ends of the Brussel sprouts, and boil the sprouts in boiling water for 4 minutes. Pour off the hot liquid, steam for another 4 minutes. Rinse and cool. Slice brussel sprouts in half. Set aside.

In a frying pan, heat the oil. Add the leeks tips and shallots. Add the white wine. Saute for about 2 minutes. Add the Brussel sprouts. Saute for about 5 minutes until the sprouts are browned and heated through.

Place on serving dish and sprinkle with blue cheese. {The cheese will melt.}

Here is a dessert recipe for your barbecue:

Cleo's Mocha Drops


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And if you need a good book to read while barbecuing, consider any of the new books coming out from my blog pals.

Wendy Watson's A Parfait Murder
Julie Hyzy's Grace Interrupted
Riley Adam's Finger Lickin' Dead

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BTW, just in case you want to order the second in A Cheese Shop Mystery series which came out May 3rd, click here: LOST AND FONDUE

If you'd like to read the first chapter, click here: SNEAK PEEK

If you'd like to see the book trailer, click here: BOOK TRAILER

And always smile and...say cheese.

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Last and yes, least, but for a bit of fun, a pal and I made a youtube movie for all those who "sell" anything. If you want to see a spoof of how to do what is called THE ELEVATOR PITCH, take a look...and leave a comment. CLICK THIS YOUTUBE LINK

A Tasty Morsel

The Long Quiche Goodbye comes out in twelve weeks!

Count 'em. Twelve!!!! [Can you tell I'm excited?]

I don’t have a ticker counter, something that will tick off the minutes and hours and help me countdown to liftoff, but twelve weeks feels important. It’s the length of a season.

To every season, turn, turn, turn…[the page].

To honor this twelve-week mark, I’ve posted a book trailer on YouTube. Click this link to VIEW TRAILER. I hope you'll take a look at this "tasty morsel" and share with friends. [If you click this link and leave a comment on my website, you'll be entered to win my next newsletter contest.] If you want to pre-order, there's a link on my website for that, as well.

In the meantime, I mention The Long Quiche Goodbye because in the story, Charlotte, the owner of The Cheese Shop, has twin eight-year-old nieces and they are the inspiration for this week's recipe.

Long story short, Charlotte's cousin Matthew needed someplace to stay, so he and the nieces moved in with Charlotte. Charlotte adores the girls and wants to make sure they start off each day with a healthy dose of love and a good meal. Feeding them something they like to eat helps!

Their favorite breakfast includes eggs and Zircles or Crisp Toasts. I've shared my Parmigiano Zircles recipe before on this blog, but not Crisp Toasts. What I love about these little gems is how versatile they are and how easy they are to prepare. They go with breakfast, lunch, dinner, salads, soups, or are tasty all on their own!

And you are the visionary. You get to decide which spice and how much of each spice goes into them.

CRISP TOASTS:

You'll need a baguette of bread, oil, balsamic vinegar, spices, salt and pepper.

For this batch, I sliced the baguette of bread thin. I set the slices on a cookie tray, then I brushed each piece with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

I seasoned with the twins' favorite spices: rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper.

Then I sprinkled with a generous amount of grated Parmigiano-Regiano. [You can also use shredded Parmesan].

Slide the cookie tray into a preheated 400 degree oven.

Bake 6-10 minutes, depending on your desire of crispiness.

Remove from oven and serve immediately with your favorite meal. They are crunch-in-your-mouth yummy.

Don't forget that they make a lovely addition to a cheese platter,

too.

Enjoy.

New April Contest!!!!

The first book in Riley's Memphis Barbeque series, Delicious and Suspicious, will be released July 6. [The same date as mine!] Though I'll be having a contest in June to celebrate, Riley is choosing NOW! Don't miss out!!!

Are you interested in winning Williams-Sonoma’s Ultimate Grilling Rub Collection? It’s easy to enter! Just send an email to [email protected] with

“Contest” in the subject line.

Really, really want to up your chances? You’ll get one extra entry if you follow us on Twitter, one extra if you subscribe to our posts (in the right hand sidebar under “Subscribe”), and one extra for becoming a follower (by clicking the “follow” button in the right hand column under our book covers and blog roll.) Just send us an extra email at [email protected] and let us know what you’ve signed up for. If you’re already a follower or subscriber, let us know that, too!

Last but not least, my next newsletter is coming out this week. Sign up to receive it by clicking this link: Avery's newsletter , read about my Cheese of the Month, and get a heads-up on future contests.

Best to all!

~Avery