Grilling Sunday! Grilled Salted Cinnamon Sugar Apples

It's one of those wonderful days off from work when the sun is shining and your agenda is WIDE open! Chris and I decided to enjoy some lunch on the grill! In addition to our spread of grilled chicken and spicy potato wedges, I decided to bring a new twist: grilled salted cinnamon sugar apples! This really isn't a recipe per se. My inspiration came from watching the Giada at Home episode "California BBQ". Here Giada made fried apple and onion rings. I decided to make a version for the grill!

Needed:
Hot grill
Olive Oil Cooking Spray
3 Pink Lady apples, *sliced and cored (slice each apple into 5 rings and pat dry with paper towels.)
Salted Cinnamon Sugar, recipe follows

Spray apples with cooking spray and dip in Salted Cinnamon Sugar mixture. Place on hot grill for 3-4 minutes per side. Remove and enjoy!

Salted Cinnamon Sugar:
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.

Long Overdue!

I can't believe my last blog post was in December! It has been a long, busy winter for sure and I am so glad Spring is almost here! Chris has just 96 days left in his horrible Surgical Intern year. Things are looking up as we look to purchase our first home together and have more time to spend together once this year is over. (It ends in June.)
This weekend I got a reminder of how wonderful it is to spend time with Chris. He had FOUR ENTIRE DAYS OFF (unheard of)! We traveled to Chris' parents house in Amish County. When we were there we hiked in the snow and mud to look at a water fall near his parents' house. It was a lot of fun. I also helped prepare a Mexican dinner while visiting. Chris' mom asked that I teach her how to make my Mexican Rice. We served that with tacos and corn souffle. It turned out great! And it was really fun cooking dinner with my mother-in-law. Enjoy!


(Sorry about the picture. I took it with my cell phone!)


Original Mexican Rice Recipe (modified from www.cooking.com)

Olive Oil (enough to coat saucepan)

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1/2 cup chopped white onions

1/2 cup chopped green bell peppers

2 cups converted long-grain rice

1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes

2 tablespoons chipotle taco seasoning (recommended: Ortega)

4 cups chicken stock



**Chopped green onions

**Sour cream

In a medium saucepan (with lid), add garlic, onion, and pepper and cook until soft, about 3-5 minutes. Add rice and cook another 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add tomatoes, seasoning, and stock in saucepan and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Let stand covered for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve with green onions and sour cream as garnish.


Ashleigh’s version

In place of taco seasoning pack add:

2 teaspoons of chili powder.

Salt to taste (1 1/2 teaspoons of salt)

Pepper to taste (1/2 teaspoon black pepper)

1 teaspoon of ground cumin.

3/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 teaspoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves (or sub. cilantro spice)


(Note: On a hectic weeknight, you can also substitute a jar of your favorite chunky salsa and omit the chopping/cooking/adding of the white onion, green pepper, and tomatoes. :)

Adventures with Cabbage!

As a child, cabbage was one vegetable I was never exposed to. I may have tried it in cole slaw, but....what is "cooked cabbage"? A colleague at work overheard me say that I have never tasted cooked cabbage. She couldn't believe it and brought me a large head of cabbage from her garden. She provided me with a basic "recipe" and encouraged me to modify it to my taste. The result...delicious! Too bad Chris refuses to try it. Haha. He said it is "the look" that turns him off. Maybe one day he will be brave enough for a taste. ;) Here is how I prepared the cabbage:

Sauteed Cabbage

1 large head of green cabbage, chopped
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons minced onion
1/2 cup chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste

In a large skillet, combine butter, garlic, and onion. Heat on medium-high until the butter is melted. Add chicken stock and bring to a boil. Once mixture is boiling, add chopped cabbage. Saute for 20-25 minutes (until cabbage is tender), stirring every 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

**I also added some salt and pepper during the saute processes. Next time I will try it with less butter (I think 3/4 a stick would be plenty)