Thu Mar 29, 2018
I had been a grass fed beef naysayer without really giving the stuff a chance until Wild Sky Beef sent a set of grass fed steaks to try out late last year. In my first foray into this lean meat, I lamented a bit the loss of the beef fat I so love, but also took note of the unique and heightened flavor of the meat itself. I had paired those ribeyes with a fresh lemon and herb butter sauce, but I felt like the slightly gamier character of the meat would have been better matched with a hearty, more savory sauce, like mushroom gravy. So when it came time to cook my next pair of steaks—this time going for the strip loins—I acted on my matchmaking instincts and I can happily say that it turned out to be a very harmonious union.
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Thu Mar 22, 2018
A few years back I received a set of grilling planks and took up this unique method of cooking directly on top of wood. I kept using that same batch of planks over and over again to make things like flounder with cilantro-lime butter, mustard-crusted pork tenderloin, meatloaf, and more, until the wood was so worn out it was rendered unusable. I've let planking fall to the wayside recently, but about a month ago, the folks at Wildwood Grilling sent me a care package filled to the brim with planks and wood wraps, and that ignited a stroke of new recipe ideas on how to use the subtle woodsy flavor planks impart, starting with these Greek-influenced planked zucchini boats.
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Thu Mar 8, 2018
Italian meatballs were the mother of all my meatball grilling efforts. That initial recipe was so good and successful, I've made meatballs a constant theme throughout the years, and while I've developed some other greats, I often return to that original Italian inspiration source. While I'm happy that I have a recipe that works over and over again, I had the idea to take these meatballs to the next level recently and stuff them with cheese, which ended up being an exercise in making an already good thing even better.
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Thu Dec 28, 2017
To date, I've steered pretty clear of grass fed beef. The main reason being is that my favorite part of a cow is fat, and grass fed beef is notoriously lean, making my main impetus for purchasing steaks nearly null and void. Still, I've heard good things, and constant meals of grass means the cattle are grazing on their natural diet, which I'm on board with. So when the folks at Wild Sky Beef made me an offer to try some of their grass fed beef, I let go of my hang ups and took them up on their deal and ended up with both ribeyes and strip steaks to use for recipes like this one that pairs grilled steak with a delicious brown butter and herb sauce.
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Thu Oct 12, 2017
What restaurant stops seating 45 minutes before closing? Well, if you're in Vancouver, the answer is just about all of them. After attending the usual equally awkward and fun conference party while in the Canadian city over the summer, my co-worker and I hightailed it to grab some soup dumplings at Dinesty Dumpling House, where I was also intrigued by a scallion pancake beef roll I had seen photos of. Arriving over thirty minutes before closing, we were informed seating was closed for the night, so we disappointingly made our way down Robson street, stopping at more restaurants of interest, only to be informed none would seat us, even though some of their closing times were above 45 minutes away. As we wondered what the hell was wrong with this city, we finally found a late night spot that could placate our hunger, but not in the way those Chinese goodies would have. I haven't forgotten that night, nor my desire for that beef roll, so decided I needed to make it for myself.
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