Grilled Corn On The Cob with Parsley and Garlic Brown Butter

Dear Curtis,

I sent my husband to the store for six fat ears of corn on the cob and he delivered.  I read through your recipe for Grilled Corn On The Cob with Parsley and Garlic Brown Butter and it seemed easy enough.  Full of motivation I proceeded to peel back the husk all the way, leaving it attached at the end. This was a little tricky and took a long time but I was still somewhat motivated to continue on with the recipe.

Twenty minutes later, I finished removing the silk and husking the corn. The husk was looking nicely arranged at the end of the cob. At this point I realized that my kitchen was a huge mess. Pieces of husk and cornsilk everywhere. Time for the corn to soak for an hour. Here is where I must ask you, what kind of object does one use to achieve this? I looked down at my six ears of fat corn with long husks hanging at the end and my mind went blank. Did I have anything big enough to hold all this?  Yes, but all the way in the back of my cabinet. It will take at least 10 minutes to dig it out. 

Beginning to get frustrated, I dig out everything in my cabinet looking for the pot big enough to hold the corn. Arrange the corn this way, doesn't fit.  Arrange the corn another way, doesn't fit. Smashed the corn into the container, threw on the lid, and threw a heavy cast iron pan on top to weight the lid down. Whatever, I say. It is what it is.

Blood rising, I had to clean the kitchen. Have you ever tried cleaning up cornsilk? It ain't easy, Curtis. Nearing a hissy fit I threw a stick of butter in the pan and proceeded making the brown butter sauce. I can do that. Easy enough. Butter melted, ingredients mixed in, and butter added back in fridge to harden up.

Finally the corn was done soaking and the butter was ready.  I must confess that I was totally over the corn by now. Who in their right mind works this hard to make a side dish? I felt like chucking the corn into the road, but I took it out to the grill. This is where the real fun began.

Husks everywhere, Curtis. Husks, everywhere. Too big for the grill, Curtis. The corn is almost impossible to turn. The husks are burning, Curtis. Why do I even have these husks on, Curtis? Do you know what burned husks do, Curtis? They turn into ash and disintegrate into one unbelievable mess. Why do you do this to me, Curtis? I thought we were friends.

I deem the corn charred and make my way back into the house. Wrestling with the brittle corn husks, I swear under my breath as I take pictures. Goodness sakes, Curtis. This corn is stressing me out. I'm starting to sweat and I hardly ever sweat, Curtis.

Frustrated beyond recognition I take a bite of the corn. It is delicious, Curtis. Almost worth all the frustration. Almost. The corn is sweet and juicy and the garlic butter is the perfect compliment to the corn. The squeeze of lemon adds just the right touch, brightening things up, and providing a fresh flavor. However, as I look down at my plate, the table, and the floor I notice burnt pieces of husk and ash.  Why, Curtis? Why do we need to leave the husk on the corn? Things would be so much easier if the husk was completely removed.

Thanks for the lesson, Curtis. It's been awhile since I learned a lesson the hard way. From this point on I will never, and I do mean never, leave the husks attached when I grill corn. Then I will truly be able to appreciate the deliciousness of this corn. Summer on a plate.

Sincerely,

Kim 

 

Grilled Corn On The Cob with Parsley and Garlic Brown Butter

Adapted from Curtis Stone Website

Serves 6

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

1/2 lemon, juiced

6 ears fresh yellow corn with husks attached

salt and black pepper, to taste

To make the brown butter: Place a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add the butter and cook for 5 minutes or until the butter melts and becomes golden brown, swirling the pan occasionally.

Remove from the heat, stir in the garlic. Set aside until the butter is almost cold, then add the parsley and lemon juice. Place the butter mixture in a bowl and chill until the mixture is cold and firm.

To grill the corn: Fold back the husks from the corn cobs and remove the corn silk (keep the husks attached to the cobs). Soak the corn in a large bowl of cold water for 1 hour.  Drain and pat the corn dry.

Prepare the barbecue for medium heat:  Tear a few corn husks into long strips. Gather the husks at the base of a corn cob and tie them with the husk strips to secure. Repeat with the remaining corn cobs.

Spread the garlic butter all over the corn kernels. Sprinkle the corn kernels with salt and pepper. Place the corn on the grill. Cover and cook, turning occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the corn is soft and juicy and the husks are lightly charred.

Theme: On The Barbie!

Hickory House Baked Beans

I love baked beans of every variety.  I love them out of a can....did I really just say that?  I love them made totally from scratch.  I also love them semi-homemade, which is what this recipe is. 

If you're in need of a good side dish for your upcoming Labor Day cookout try these Hickory House Baked Beans.  They take a little more effort than opening up a can of store-bought baked beans, but the nice thing is that they take on the flavors of your favorite barbecue sauce.  I added a little bit of dry mustard to mine, simply because I like to add dry mustard to all of my barbecue.  I also think you could replace the diced bell pepper with diced jalapeno for a little extra kick.  Flavor them your way!

Hickory House Baked Beans

Adapted from saveur.com

Serves 4-6

1/2 large red or green bell pepper (or maybe jalapeno)
2  15 oz. cans, drained cooked pinto or navy beans
1 cup of your favorite barbecue sauce
2 tbsp. dark brown sugar

1 tbsp. worcestershire

Optional:  1-2 teaspoons dry mustard or your favorite bbq seasoning

Preheat oven to 375º. Stem and seed bell pepper, cut into 1/4" pieces, and put into a 2-quart or 8" x 8" baking dish. Add beans, barbecue sauce, brown sugar, and 1/2 cup water to dish and mix well. Drizzle worcestershire sauce on top. Bake until top is glazed-looking and browned, the beans start to peek up from the liquid, and the liquid is bubbling vigorously around the edges, 45-60 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

Theme:  Outside of Mexico

Southern-Style Baked Beans, Pioneer Style

At my house, baked beans are somewhat like a condiment. We love them so much that we top our baked potatoes with them, spread them on our garlic toast, put them on a burger, and more. Baked beans compliment so many things, but they go best with pulled pork, which is what we had last night.

I've tried a couple different recipes for baked beans over the years and they have all been good recipes. Last night I made Pioneer Woman's Southern-Style Baked Beans, which are topped with bacon and baked in the oven for 2 hours. They were outstanding! I served them along with Tyler's pulled pork, baked potatoes, and garlic toast. The baked beans were the best part of the meal. We loved them. The sauce was thick and tangy with pieces of onion and green pepper running throughout. The bacon formed a crispy coating worth fighting over. This will be our new "go to" recipe for baked beans.

Quick Southern-Style Baked Beans-adapted from Pioneer Woman
**Serves up to 18- recipe is easily halved
8 slices bacon, halved
1 medium onion, cut into small dice
1/2 medium green pepper, cut into small dice
3 large cans (28 ounces each) pork and beans
3/4 cup barbecue sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup distilled or cider vinegar
2 teaspoons dry mustard or 2 tablespoons Dijon

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Fry bacon in large, deep sauté pan skillet until bacon has partially cooked and released about 1/4 cup drippings. Remove bacon from pan and drain on paper towels. Add onions and peppers to drippings in pan and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add beans and remaining ingredients bring to a simmer. (If skillet is not large enough, add beans and heat to a simmer then transfer to a large bowl and stir in remaining ingredients). Pour flavored beans into a greased 13-by 9-inch (or similar size) ovenproof pan. Top with bacon, then bake until beans are bubbly and sauce is the consistency of pancake syrup, about 2 hours. Let stand to thicken slightly and serve.

I am submitting this recipe to Foodie Fans of the Pioneer Woman, which is a new group that hosts bimonthly roundups of Ree's recipes. This time around we are making salad and vegetable dishes. Head on over there to see what everyone else is cooking up!

I Heart Cooking Clubs: Maple Ribs

This has been a busy week and I have been a real slacker in the kitchen. I was busy getting ready for our eighties themed party today at Lush. We were celebrating our one year anniversary and were lucky enough to have a DJ. The party was so much fun. We "walked like Egyptians", danced to "Walk This Way" by RUN DMC, rocked out to "I love rock and roll", and laughed hysterically when the theme song for Miami Vice started playing. It was a real blast from the past!!

There are a few requirements when dressing like the eighties. First and foremost, you must have leg warmers (neon pink if at all possible). Secondly, it is of the utmost importance to have the correct shade of blue eyeshadow. If you discover that you don't have the correct shade of blue eyeshadow, you must go to Walmart at midnight to rectify this situation! Of course, neon pink fishnet gloves are a must have and so are those completely obnoxious neon pink earrings. Lots of bangles are a must, and so are those jelly bracelets. And, last but not least, before you leave the house.....you must have at least one shoulder exposed and you better have BIG hair :D

Since it isn't the eighties anymore, be prepared to be gawked at by lots of folks who think you've absolutely lost your mind! It helps if you are already in a goofy mood like the person below in this photo.

Could those earrings be any bigger? Better yet, what am I doing in this picture?

I might be sorry I posted this, so let's move onto the food!

These maple ribs were a real easy recipe to prepare and we loved them! The recipe is supposed to be for ribs and chicken, but I didn't have bone-in, skin-on chicken so I didn't include it.

Maple Ribs - Nigella Express by Nigella Lawson
12 pork spareribs (I used one rack of baby back ribs)
12 chicken thighs, skin and bone still on
1 cup apple juice, as sharp as possible
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 star anise (I didn't include this)
1 cinnamon stick, halved (I didn't include this, hubby doesn't like cinnamon with meat)
6 unpeeled cloves garlic

Put the ribs and chicken pieces in a couple of large freezer bags or into a dish. Add all the remaining ingredients, squelching or tossing everything together well before sealing the bags or covering the dish. Leave to marinate in the fridge overnight or up to two days. Take the dish out of the fridge and preheat the oven to 400F. Pour the contents of the freezer bag into 1 or 2 roasting pans (making sure chicken is skin side up), place in the preheated oven, and cook for about 1-1/4 hours, by which time everything should be sticky and glossed chestnut brown.

Notes/Results: Absolutely delicious and a real keeper of a recipe. Nigella's version of ribs are much easier than my tried and true method. This will be my new go to recipe for ribs. They are sweet and sticky from the maple and the soy sauce adds an Asian flair. I marinated the ribs for 48 hours and they were fall off the bone tender. I think you might even be able to make the marinade in the roasting pan for easier clean up. Next time, I will be sure to include the chicken with the ribs. This maple flavorings make this a perfect crowd-pleaser or potluck dish for this time of year. Another winner by Nigella. I am liking her more and more every week!

Head on over to I Heart Cooking Clubs to see what everyone else cooked up this week. The theme was potluck, so there is sure to be something for everyone!!

Creative Thursdays: Pulled BBQ Chicken

Let me start by saying that you have to make this recipe!! In a total of 10 days, I have made this recipe twice!! I love when a recipe uses minimal ingredients, is super simple to throw together, and then yields a wonderful outcome. It really doesn't get any better! I owe a huge thank you to two wonderful food bloggers. Thank you to Lisaloo, of One Step at a Time, who first posted this recipe here. The ease of this recipe caught Monica's attention over at Lick the Bowl Good, and she posted the recipe on her blog here. I would like to give you both this award:
I chose this recipe for Creative Thursdays because it only uses two ingredients: frozen chicken breasts and barbecue sauce! Yes, I said frozen chicken!! Using the frozen chicken is great for people like me who always forget to thaw out meat for dinner the night before. I usually always have frozen chicken breasts in my freezer that I have bought in bulk and rewrapped. Barbecue sauce is another great staple around my house that I almost always have on hand. But, why stop there? I think this recipe would still work with many other sauces, both homemade and jarred. For instance, my husband and I both love chicken with buffalo sauce. Why not use buffalo sauce? I'm willing to bet there are a wide variety of sauces that would be perfect with this chicken. Why not try teriyaki, lemon pepper, honey mustard, salsa or even just plain chicken broth. Serve the chicken on a bun as a sandwich, or put it over rice or who knows what else. I think the possibilities are endless, and that's what makes this recipe so great!!

Pulled BBQ Chicken - adapted from Lisaloo at One Step at a Time & Monica of Lick the Bowl Good

4 frozen chicken breasts (I had boneless, skinless chicken breast)
1 - 18 oz bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce (make sure you love the flavor, whatever you chose)

Place the frozen chicken in the crockpot and top with sauce (making sure the sauce covers the chicken). Let cool on low in crockpot for 8-12 hours. Remove chicken from crockpot and let cool slightly before shredding. After shredding, return to pot and let cook another couple hours.

Notes: I have made this recipe twice now using jarred barbecue sauce. Each time I have let the chicken cook on low for around 8 hours. The chicken is very tender at this point and will break up easily or hold it's shape if removed with a spatula. Although I enjoy shredded chicken and pork, I prefer it to be in chunks. After it cools a bit I break the chicken breasts into chunks and serve on a roll or over rice. Yesterday I made some garlic bread, topped it with hot pepper cheese and put the chicken on the roll. It was really, really good!!

I can tell you that next time I will be experimenting with buffalo sauce and I will be sure to post my results. If I am successful with the buffalo sauce, then I can definitely see a lot of experiments with this recipe. It's what I would refer to as WIDE OPEN, which is also how I refer to my two year old : )

Be sure to check out both Lisaloo and Monica's sites above to see how they enjoyed the chicken. They both have wonderful blogs that you are either already enjoying or will enjoy in the future.

I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas for this recipe! I'm willing to bet that there are some great ideas using this concept!!

Enjoy : )

Baby Back Ribs & Memorial Day!

Happy Memorial Day!! I hope everyone enjoyed the long holiday weekend. Yesterday we celebrated with a barbecue feast. My supermarket had a sale on baby back ribs so I decided to buy some and give them a try. I have tried cooking ribs before and they have never turned out well so I was determined to give them a second try. We weren't sure what to expect, but they turned out fabulous! I found this recipe online. The ribs were a copycat recipe after the ribs served at Damon's. The sauce was a molasses-based sauce that had a hint of smoke. They were first baked in a covered dish at 350F for 50 minutes. When removed from the oven the ribs were covered in the sauce and baked uncovered for another 50 minutes, or until tender. When those ribs came out of the oven I could just tell they would be a hit! They looked just the way you want your ribs to look...sticky, gooey, and messy. My husband and I were so happy to know that we can cook ribs at home now. We are planning a trip back to the supermarket to buy more.

I served the ribs with a new recipe for coleslaw, baked beans, corn on the cob, baked potatoes, and toasted garlic bread . For dessert we had Frozen Lemonade Pie. I plan on posting the recipe for the pie tomorrow. It is one of my favorite desserts and it is super easy and quick to make.

This weekend marks the beginning of summer everywhere. Down here in Kentucky we ushered in summer with the normal hot, humid and muggy weather. The massive heat seems to come in all at once. It's that kind of unbearable heat that makes you say "it must be 100 degrees out here". The kind of heat that drives you inside to find that it is really only 80 degrees, but the humidity is 50%. Every year at the beginning of summer I am surprised again by the extreme heat and humidity that is the Kentucky summer. I always tell myself that I'll get use to it, but I don't guess I ever will. I've had too many summers in northern Ohio where I was born and raised. Those Ohio summers up by the lake are perfect for me. Moderate weather in the 80's, cool breezes blowing in from the lake, and slightly cool nights....I really miss those days : )

Tyler's Pulled Pork and Homemade Barbecue Sauce

Pulled pork is one of my favorite things to eat if it is done well. I first tried this recipe a couple months ago, but I only had a 2 pound pork shoulder and we didn't have that much pulled pork when it was all said and done. Ever since then I have had my eye out for a large pork shoulder/boston butt. I finally found a 4 pound pork shoulder at Whole Foods last week and I knew immediately that I wanted to make this recipe again.

This pulled pork begins by creating a simple and easy dry rub for the meat. It can marinate overnight, but can also marinate for as little as one hour. The dry rub are things that are typical pantry spices and nothing that I had to buy special. The meat cooks for 6 hours and is a dream to shred. In fact, I was able to shred it all in less than 5 minutes. The dry rub creates a wonderful flavor throughout the meat and carried over after shredding. It wouldn't be necessary to have any barbecue sauce with this pulled pork because it has a wonderful overall taste. However, I had all the ingredients on hand for Tyler's barbecue sauce, included in this recipe, so I decided to go all out. I am so glad that I did! I loved his barbecue sauce and again it is made from items that are usually in every pantry. It was easy to make and easily the best barbecue sauce around. It was sweet, tangy, and spicy and it is almost gone!! I'm wishing there was more of it because it would be nice on other things as well.

I attempted to make some sandwich buns from the King Arthur website and I am sad to report that they did not turn out. This was very upsetting to have pulled pork and no bread/buns. I have to say that I was very dissapointed with the King Arthur directions and recipe and probably will not use their website for future recipes. However, I must admit that their flour is the best and the only one you'll see in my pantry. The next day, I decided to use Tyler's recipe for Parker House Rolls, which was successful. I paired these sandwiches with the peach salad I had made the same day and the flavors were very complimentary.

Everything about this recipe makes it a total keeper! If you like barbecue foods and want to try pulled pork, please check this recipe out online at Food Network: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tylers-ultimate/pulled-pork-sandwich-recipe/index.html.