Caprese Salad - July 16, 2012

Ahh, yes.  Tomatoes.  Nick and I didn't grow ours like Jaime, but we've been eating our fair share just the same.  They are especially nice on hot days when I don't feel like turning on the oven or standing outside and grilling.  We have been enjoying this classic combination quite a bit lately.  Especially since we got a big bunch of basil in our CSA delivery, of which there is no picture this week, owing to the fact that heat makes me lazy. Plus,  we got a new refrigerator delivered last Thursday, which kind of threw me off schedule.  As soon as it was in and operational, I put all the vegetables in it as fast as I could without taking the time to photograph.  My apologies.

For this particular rendition of the Italian summer classic, I used cherry tomatoes, ciliegine mozzarella and a lot of fresh basil.  I dressed the bowl with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper.  Simple as pie.

Jerk Seafood Hobo Packs - April 1, 2012

Nick did these up on the grill a couple weekends ago.  This marks our first grill out of the 2012 season!  These seafood hobo packs are an old favorite of ours, but we rarely make them because you really need more than two people to enjoy the feast.  Luckily, my sister Nat has been crashing with us the past couple weeks, so we had an extra plate at the table.



I also made up a fresh green salad with some spinach and ramp greens, dressed simply with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  It was such a treat to enjoy some local greens!



The hobo packs are served up family style from a big bowl after just 10 to 15 minutes on the grill.  This is a perfect beach house rental meal, since all you need is some aluminum foil and access to fresh shell fish (those last three words are really difficult to say out loud).  No fancy cooking equipment is required, with the exception of the grill.  It's a good idea to have some crusty baguette on hand to sop up all of the delicious broth left in the bottom of the pile of mollusks.  That's the best part, after all.

Grilled Veggie Packet - July 20, 2011

Our last night without an oven and we chose to use the grill again. We had some burgers in the freezer so we threw them on. Instead of a salad this time we chose to make up a grill packet with some of our CSA veggies to serve alongside the burgers. We used green beans, summer squash and some baby onions, tossed everything with olive oil, salt and pepper and wrapped it up in aluminum foil. After five minutes on the grill it was ready. Nick stated that this could have been cooked longer. I'll say maybe, but not more than another minute. I thought the veggies were perfectly heated through, but still so fresh and crunchy. It was quite delicious, as were the burgers.

Appliances used: gas grill

This wraps up our Ovenless Dinner Club Challenge. 'What,' you say? 'But that's only five meals and you guys were without an oven for nine days.' I can feel your incredulousness. Well, we cheated. Nick and I were both out of town for the weekend, he in Madison (lucky boy) and me in Southern Minnesota visiting my parents and taking advantage of their pool (lucky me), so that's three dinners right there. The remaining night we apologetically ordered out. I told you, heat makes me lazy.

Smoked Trout and Green Bean Salad - July 18, 2011

Yes, it's another salad. That's what happens when it's 95 degrees out and one doesn't have a functioning kitchen range. I made this using some more of our saute greens, which weren't getting sauteed anytime soon, some fresh green beans and a can of smoked trout. The dressing is made up of the oil that the trout was packed in to add extra fishy deliciousness, along with some freshly squeezed lemon juice, some fresh lemon zest, salt and pepper. It was great, cool and crunchy. I don't know about you, Dinner Clubbers, but I get pretty lazy in the heat and this quick salad was a perfect Monday night dinner.

Appliances used: none

Grilled Beet Salad with Chevre and Toasted Hazelnuts - July 15, 2011

This meal utilized some baby beets that Nick and I had grilled the same night as the burgers and placed in the fridge to chill for a couple of days. We peeled them right before using them in this salad, which also included a bed of saute greens, some creamy chevre cheese and a pile of toasted hazelnuts. It was simple and very flavorful with the combination of the mustard greens, earthy beets, chevre and the richness of the toasted hazelnuts. We added a simple dressing of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Appliances used: gas grill, toaster oven

Grilled Cheeseburgers with Strawberry Salad - July 14, 2011

As I type up this much belated post, our oven and stove top is operational again. Huzzah! Actually, with the excessive heat and humidity we've had this last week here in Minnesota (119 degree heat index thanks to the tropical dew points), I can't say that I was itching to turn on my stove. Although some nights were almost too hot to stand outside and grill as well. But, that's just what we did for this meal. I made up some 1/5 lb patties with chopped scallions, salt and pepper to season. Nick grilled them and added some medium cheddar at just the right moment and we piled them on homemade buns (yes, I know I need an oven for those, but these were made earlier and stored in the freezer until needed) with some fresh baby romaine lettuce. I also made up a side salad with some of our salad greens plus some freshly picked strawberries and a balsamic vinaigrette.

Appliances used: gas grill, freezer

Chicken Salad Sandwiches - July 13, 2011

Our first 'ovenless' meal involves a chicken salad that I mixed up utilizing some grilled chicken thighs, chopped fennel stalks and slivered almonds. The dressing is Dijon mustard and mayonnaise and I seasoned it with salt and pepper. I thought about adding some fresh herbs, namely tarragon to bring out the anise flavor of the fennel, but after tasting it, I decided it was good without. We piled our chicken salad on some whole wheat bread and added some crunchy pieces of baby romaine lettuce. They were quite good and I didn't miss the oven or stove top at all in the preparation of the meal.

Appliances used: gas grill