summertime eats

It's very exciting to me to have summertime here. I like to pretend that I'm living in California again and if I concentrate really hard, sometimes I think I even smell the ocean. So we are taking advantage of the summer like never before. Lots of picnics, grilling, playing outside, swimming, and pretty much anything that has to do with the outdoors. HF even has poison oak right now! Poor guy is itchy and blistery and is now taking some kind of a steroid. Poison Oak is a not-so-good thing about Summertime, but this is my new favorite time of the year for sure. I could definitely do without snow. On today's menu.

Nacho Libre-style corn at Chow.com. I never thought about using the husk as a handle. Pretty smart. Rolling it in the Cotija cheese isn't absolutely necessary, but a good 'n tasty idea.

*(note added later: I would only use 1/4 tsp. of cayenne, 1/4 to 1/2 tsp. of the salt, and half the garlic it calls for. It was pretty over-powering. Otherwise it was totally delicious)

Elote is the official name for the nacho libre-style corn. Here's a recipe from allrecipes.com

Sirloin Tip steak with yummy marinade that I posted previously. Tasty stuff.

Mini sweet peppers from Costco pictured above. I'd like more recipes to make with these, so if you know of any, please let me know. For now, we are eating them raw with ranch dip.

Fresh, ripe cantoloupe. Choosing, and storing melon at HGTV.

Thinking about making Strawberry Freezer Jam. I've never done anything like that before but I would like to. I've never even made homemade bread. (everytime my mom hear's me say that, she practically kills over, doesn't think she raised me right). I want to fill cute mini jars and containers, maybe give them as gifts. On the hunt for a healthy recipe. Every recipe I find has SO MUCH sugar. Suggestions and recipes welcome! One idea: Freezer Jam for Frances at Familyfun.com

food for thought

*photo: neo-enchiladas suizas from Chow.com

Neo-Enchiladas Suizas from Chow. These look so good and I love the idea of it being kind of like a burrito and an enchilada. I guess it would be like a smothered burrito.

Can you tell I like Mexican food? Gosh-darned Chicken Quesadillas from my husband cooks. Pretty much anything with avocado in it is worth trying I think.

Strawberry Milk from simply recipes.

Lemon Pound Cake from a cheeky blog. This looks really delicious and so easy to make.

Kid-Friendly wraps from Simply Recipes. There are so many variations to these recipes. I think we've all had the wagonwheels or pinwheels at a relief society function, but for kids, all you need are a couple of items rolled up inside and they are happy. Sometimes we do a thin layer of cream cheese with turkey and thinly-sliced cucumber. Do you have any other wrap ideas for kids?

Have you ever had the black and white cookie? It's the much beloved east-coast cookie. Well I haven't, but I'd like to. HF grew up eating them, and his mom raves about them. What's the big fuss? I'm curious. HF is supposed to bring me back some black and white cookies from his trip, but if he doesn't, I may be tempted to have them delivered from a New York City bakery, even if it costs $49.00!? Maybe I will have to make my own from a recipe found at epicurious. Then HF can tell me if it's identical or not to his precious New York cookie.

meat marinade

I don't remember where I got this, but it is a fabulous marinade for steak or other meat. We use it for steaks or kabobs. It's simple and quick to throw together. We grilled for our very first time on Saturday. We feel pretty cool. Since this is a new venture for us and we plan on doing it often, I picked up How To Grill Everything by Steven Raichlen. I've watched his cooking show a few times and am amazed at what he can do with a grill. Basically, you can grill anything and everything. The big debate was choosing if we wanted to get a charcoal or a gas grill. We both decided on charcoal because of the supposed taste, and we both have a fear of blowing ourselves up with the propane tank. (And don't forget about HF's fear of jump-starting a car in the rain.) It took us a million years to figure out how to use it and then to cook our food, but we did it! Anyway, here's the marinade recipe. We call it Yummy Marinade.

2 Tbsp. soy sauce
2 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. grated fresh ginger, or 1 tsp. ground
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp. hot red pepper flakes.

Mix all ingredients together then place in gallon zip-lock bag. Add meat and let marinate for desired amount of time, turning over once halfway through time to allow marinade to coat all sides of meat.

Happy grilling!

room for dessert?

This chocolate eclair dessert from allrecipes.com was pretty tasty, surprisingly. Everyone loved it and wanted more. We found that the longer you let it refrigerate, the better it tastes. The graham crackers get soft and it actually tastes more eclaire-like. Also, you could make this with chocolate pudding or chocolate graham crackers. If you're like me and think that frosting is yucky, you can leave it off. Kids can help make it as well. Daisy had fun helping me.

I also made my sister's turkey and green chile enchiladas (posted below). They were fabulous! I used chicken in place of turkey. HF took one pan to work with him and it was a hit, so if you are interested, my sister would love more feedback.