Tomato & Basil Stuffed Pork with Balsamic Reduction

Barry the Basil plant has reached adolesence! He may not be big, but I did what I feel was adequate research into the harvesting of basil leaves and determined his time had come.

Feeling that his debut could be anything but ordinary (in other words, a marinara sauce with basil simply would not do), I conjured up this recipe based on the ingredients I had on hand... and the ingredients I love.

Fresh, summery tomatoes? Check.

Creamy, locally-produced feta? Check.

Apartment-grown basil? Check!

And then there's the balsamic vinegar... I don't know about you, but I cannot get enough of a good balsamic reduction. In fact, in the spirit of full-disclosure, I will say that it took everything I had in me not to lick this plate clean. (Finger-to-mouth swipes did the job quite well, so don't you worry; my restraint was due to the void of balsamic to lick!!)

The Edibles:

• 4 pork chops, flattened to 1/2-inch thickness
• Italian dressing, enough to coat the chops for marinading
• 1 tsp. choved garlic (about 1 clove)
• 1/4 white onion, finely diced
• 1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, diced into small peices
• 2 T. (about 4-6 leaves) fresh basil, finely diced
• 2 T. feta cheese
• 1 c. balsamic vinegar

The Making:

1. Marinate chops in a sealed plastic bag for at least 1 hour up to overnight. Flip bag whenever you think of it; massage the chops to get them super flavor-infused
2. Spray a small non-stick sauté pan with non-stick olive oil cooking spray. Place over medium heat; after 30 seconds over heat add chopped garlic. Heat for an additional 30 seconds, stirring with a spatula or wooden spoon. Add diced onion; cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add tomatoes, basil, and pepper and cook for an addition 30 seconds. Remove from heat. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes.
3. After cooling, add feta to onion-tomato-basil mix. Stir to incorporate.
4. Remove chops from plastic bag; discard mariande. Prepare each chop by placing about 1/4 cup of tomatoey mix in the center of each chop. Tie with butcher twine, using at least two pieces per chop (three if they're jumbo chops) to secure filling.
5. Grill stuffed chops over medium-high heat (375-400) for about 20-25 minutes. Check for done-ness at the 20 minute mark by slicing into a thick part of the chop.
6. While the pork cooks, place balsamic vinegar in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower heat to medium to medium-high. Allow vinegar to gently boil for about 20 minutes, or until the liquid has reduced by half. The vinegar will be quite viscous, thick, and stickly similar in thickness to acrylic paint.
7. Once chops are cooked, serve with a drizzle (or heavy-handed spoonful as we like it in this house) of your homemade balsamic reduction.

Teriyaki Turkey Burgers

If you have nightmares about smelly, dry turkey burgers, these burgers will turn your world upside-down. Jay has become the teriyaki burger master, and not only do these not smell funky, which a common characteristic of ground turkey, they are way way moist and simply "OMG!"-worthy!!

So where are the "good" pictures of these juicy bad-boys? I know; I know. The ones I've included barely do them justice. I find it hilarious that the only images I have are of them on the grill. Chalk it up to the fact that as soon as they're plated, all I want to do is dive in and enjoy the amazing the meat that just oozes teriyaki goodness. Seeing as we've made these twice in the past month, I have a feeling they'll make a more glamorous appearance in the near future.

The teriyaki we use is special, some might say, "veri veri" special. It's called Soy Vay Veri Veri Teriyaki and it rocks my socks off. If you feel like going all-out, top these burgers with some chopped mushrooms (I prefer portabellas for both in the burgers and on top) sauteed in a little bit of teriyaki. Jay likes his with swiss or meunster cheese, but I'm more of a plain ol' burger kinda gal.

The Stuff:

• medium bowl (for mixing your meat)
• grill (for gillin')

The Edibles:

• about 1 lb. ground turkey breast
• 3/4 c. teriyaki sauce
• 3/4 c. mushrooms, chopped
• 3/4 c. plain bread crumbs

The Making:

1. Preheat grill.
2. In a large bowl combine bread crumbs, mushrooms, and teriyaki sauce. Add turkey to the mixture and form into 5 patties, about 3/4" thick.
3. Place patties on grill, cover and cook on medium heat. Patties should take anywhere between 12-14 minutes to cook. Cut into a thicker patty to ensure that they are fully cooked and not pink.
4. Our favorite way to serve them? On a pretzel roll, topped with meunster cheese and 1/4 c. teriyaki-sauteed mushrooms.

Tequila-fied Grilled Mahi-Mahi with Cilantro Rice Pilaf

I love me some fish! Many of my favorite summertime meals involve fish with some sort of cilantro-infused salsa. I'll admit that I served this dish with some jarred store-brand mango-lime salsa simply because I had a craving. It wasn't necessary though, because the sauce for this fish is mighty flavorful.

I'll also admit that we had a bit of a mis-hap with the grill. (I say "we" because Jay was my Grill Master for this dish.) When grilling fish it's recommended that one oils the grates (you can do so by carefully using a towel drenched in oil gripped with some tongs--I researched it hard-core), but because our grill is technically not ours we chose to place the fish on an oiled tray that we shaped out of a large piece of aluminum foil. Despite our efforts, the grill never got hot enough. After 12 minutes, the fillets still did not appear done. Not to be left with an un-crispified fish, I pan seared the fillets in an oiled skillet over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes per side. The result? Well the pictures tell the story.

And as far as the flavor goes? You won't be disappointed. We weren't.

The Stuff:

• non-reactive bowl or bag for marinading
• grill (or apparently this can be done on a stove top with a skillet--who knew?!)
• small sauce pan (for the sauce)

The Edibles:

• 4 skinless mahi-mahi fillets, approximately 2 pounds
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 c. diced red onion (I used onion powder because we are presently onionless)
• 1/4 c. freshly squeezed lime juice (I used the juice of a fresh lime and supplemented with about 2 tablespoons lemon juice)
• 1/4 c. freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1 T. minced jalapeno
• 1/4 c. dark brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 c. tequila
• 1 T. olive oil
• 1/4 c. freshly chopped cilantro leaves

The Making:

1. Rub the fillets with kosher salt and set aside.
2. In a non-reactive bowl or plastic bag for marinating, combine the onion, lime juice, orange juice, jalapeno, sugar and tequila. Mix to dissolve the sugar, and add the fillets to the bowl or bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours, turning the fillets once after 1 hour.
3. Remove the fillets from the marinade and set it aside. Pat the fillets dry with paper towels and lightly coat with olive oil cooking spray.
4. Heat a grill to high and place the fillets over direct heat until they are just cooked through - opaque at the center but still moist, approximately 3 to 4 minutes per side.
5. While the fish is grilling, transfer the reserved marinade to a saucepan and heat until it is reduced to about 3/4 cup.
6. Using tongs, remove the fillets to serving plates and divide sauce equally among them. Top with the cilantro.

Rice Pilaf

The Stuff:

• medium sauce pan

Edibles:

• 1 T. butter
• 1/2 T. olive oil
• 1 garlic clove, minced (or the equivalent in jarred or powdered)
• a shake of onion powder
• 1 c. brown rice
• 1 T. lemon juice
• 1/4 c. frozen spinach
• 1/4 c. cilantro, chopped

The Making:

1. Heat a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add butter, olive oil, and garlic; cook 30 seconds, stirring to encourage the ingredients to cover the bottom of the pan.
2. Add rice; stir to ensure it is covered by butter and oil mixture. Cook over the heat for an additional 1 to 2 minutes, allowing the rice to toast a bit.
3. Add lemon juice, onion powder, and water. Bring to a boil; cover and simmer for the amount of time recommended in the instructions accompanying your rice. (Our was "10 Minute" rice, but some types require 20 to 30 minutes, so proceed as instructed.)
4. Once the rice has absorbed all of the water, allow it to stand 2 minutes. Add frozen spinach, and stir. I will often times add the spinach, recover the rice and allow it to sit for 5 minutes, after which it will have defrosted and make for easier encorporation in the pilaf.
5. Add cilantro and salt and pepper to taste.

Grilled Lobster Tails

Jay and I saw that fresh lobster tails were on sale and thought, "why not?!" I should mention that this shopping trip happened during the week that I was so overwhelmed with thesis work that Jay ventured to the store by himself. As we are two carless city-dwelling companions living a mile from the grocery store, he ventured on foot, armed with a duffel bag backpack. The bus is ridiculously unreliable, so he was forced to walk back with a backpack full of things I never would have purchased simply because of their weightiness. Yes, he did pick out some glorious lobsters, but I had to chuckle seeing that among the crackers and frozen pizza he lugged a large jar of pickles, some salsa, canned soup, potatoes, apples, a jar of pasta sauce... I could go on. Needless to say he was a bit sweaty.

Jay and I were in the mood for a dine-in surf-and-turf style meal, and this definitely satisfied our cravings without breaking the bank. You will see that I served this shellfish alongside a steak (actually, Bulgogi, because we love it so much), some broiled asparagus sprayed with olive oil cooking spray and sprinkled with garlic powder, sea salt, and pepper, as well as some sauteed mushrooms drizzled with teriyaki sauce. It was quite an eclectic plate; it was sort of an east meets Key West (for some reason lime and seafood always remind me of that island), but for us it worked. I think another fun combo would be a steak seasoned with mexican-style flavors (such as cumin, garlic, and oregano) and served with a fresh, lime-y salsa to really play up the citrus flavors in the lobster.

Confession: This was my first foray into cooking lobster. By no means do I think I have preparing lobster down-pat, but these were insanely delicious.

Second confession: Preparing the tails really gave me the willies. In fact, at one point I flipped out and ended up dropping the lobster in the sink. I thought it moved!

Third confession: In addition to the spices listed below, I also used a bit of Fisherman's Warf seasoning. (I know! I cheated!) This brand is available at Whole Foods, and their whole line is amazing. Recommended, but not necessary. Its ingredients include: salt, black pepper, parsley, garlic, white onion, lemon peel, green peppercorns, and green onion. You could just as easily add all of those ingredients and you're golden. In fact, based on the spices I used, this probably was completely unnecessary. Ha!

The Stuff:

• kitchen scissors, or sharp paring knife
• large stock pot
• a grill

The Edibles:

• 2 garlic gloves, smashed (or equivalent in jarred or powdered)
• 2 lobster tails
• olive oil cooking spray
• 2-3 T. lime juice
• garlic powder
• onion salt (or onion powder)
• oregano
• parsley
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 T. butter, melted (if desired)

The Making:

1. Fill large pot with water and garlic and bring to a boil. Warm grill.
2. Prepare lobster tails by placing on a cutting board or in a shallow bowl with the soft side of the shells facing up. Cut the tails in half lengthwise though the soft shells using the scissors or soft knife. I chose to break off the little side fins and completely remove the soft shell from the body. I suggest researching this before you try it for the first time, because I felt like my method was way harder than it should have been. (Again, it was my first time.)
3. Once the water has reached a boil, drop in prepared tails. Cook for 3 minutes, remove with tongs, and allow them to drain in a colander or on the cutting board for a minute or so. The lobster may not be fully cooked. It's okay, because you'll be grilling it!
4. Spray lobster soft-shell-side with olive oil cooking spray. Drizzle with lime juice and season to your heart's content with the suggested spices and any other seafood-specific spices you may have on hand.
5. Grill lobster with the hard-shell side down for 1-2 minutes. Turn over and grill an additional 2-3 minutes. Serve with melted butter, if desired.