Exotic grilled items
Regina Murphy
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
The sun is staying out longer, the temperatures are moderating, and it’s time to dust off the grill (if you haven’t been using it all winter long).
Your grill is not just for the occasional chicken or rib rack. You can do all kinds of things on it, from vegetables to fish to desserts. Even pizza!
Connie Fairbanks, the former Emporian who wrote that lovely cookbook we talked about last year (“Scratch That”), sends me some great recipes every now and then. I have enjoyed grilled pizzas for many years, ever since one of my colleagues at Florida State first showed them off at a party. Connie likes grilled pizza, too, and has some excellent ideas for you, such as making smaller-sized crusts so that each person can dress their own pizza.
GRILLED PIZZA
& VARIATIONS
Fresh pizza dough, at room temperature, and divided in two to three smaller balls
Cornmeal
Tomato sauce
Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Provolone and Asiago cheese (grated)
Fresh Mozzarella, cut into rounds
Extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt
Toasted pine nuts
Artichoke hearts, drained, chunked
Baby arugula
Basil leaves
Ripe tomatoes, sliced thinly
Red/green/yellow peppers, roasted, peeled, sliced
One large red onion, thinly sliced and caramelized
Red pepper flakes or dried oregano, to taste for tomato sauce
Assorted mushrooms (cremini, shitake, button)
Here is Connie’s technique:
Preheat gas grill to medium heat, or allow charcoal to cool to medium. Arrange all of the pizza ingredients, except for the dough, into small bowls.
Place some cornmeal on a clean surface, and cover your hands with cornmeal so your hands won’t stick to the dough. Roll out the dough into a 1/4-inch thick round, about 8 to 10 inches in diameter.
Place the dough on the hot grill. Drizzle with olive oil, shut the grill lid and grill for several minutes. It will be bubbling on top, and brown on the bottom. It will be easy to turn when it is ready. If you have a pancake spatula, use it. Flip the pizza and place the toppings on the pizza.Cover the lid of the grill, and grill for several more minutes.
Remove pizza from the grill and place on a wooden cutting board. Drizzle lightly with olive oil, and sprinkle with sea salt. Cut into wedges and serve as an appetizer or main course.
Here are Connie’s combinations:
F White Pizza: Fontina, artichokes, pine nuts, and parmesan
F Mediterranean: tomato sauce, mozzarella, parmesan, and arugula at the end
F Pizza Margherita: tomato sauce, mozzarella rounds, tomato slices, parmesan, and basil at the end
F Roasted Vegetable Pizza: tomato sauce, onions, peppers, mozzarella, and parmesan
F Mushroom Pizza: Shitake, Cremini, white button, oyster, etc., thyme and sage, mozzarella and parmesan
Connie suggests that you ask your favorite pizza place if you can buy some dough from them if you don’t want to make your own. It’s very important to have all of the ingredients ready because the process goes fast. Use less cheese rather than more, and put the cheese on last to hold everything together. Fresh basil is a must! Experiment with the vegetables that you like. Enjoy!
VVV
The grill imparts a special flavor to foods, and smacks of an earlier time when cooking over actual fire was your only option. But you can grill so much more than a chunk of meat on a spit.
GRILLED TOMATOES & GREEN ONIONS
3 large slicing tomatoes
10 green onions
1/3 cup olive oil
1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
2 Tbsps. fresh basil, chopped
1 Tbsps. shallots, chopped
1/2 tsp. each salt and freshly ground pepper
1 sprig fresh basil or parsley
Firm tomatoes, even those that are slightly green, should be used for this recipe. They are less juicy and hold their shape better when grilled. Fresh basil is wonderful with tomatoes, but you could also use chopped tarragon or even parsley in the basting sauce.
Wash and slice the tomatoes into 1/2 to 3/4-inch slices. Trim the onions, removing dry outer layers and leaving at least four inches of the green tops.
Prepare a fire in a grill. Oil the grill rack or use a non-stick spray (but not over the open flame, please). Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, chopped basil, shallots, salt and pepper. Arrange the tomatoes and onions on the rack. Grill, turning them two or three times and brushing with the oil mixture, for about 5 minutes.
Transfer the tomatoes and onions to a platter and garnish with basil or parsley sprigs. I’d serve this with a few slices of fresh mozzarella as an appetizer
VVV
Dolmades are stuffed grape leaves, which are usually stuffed with rice and meat and steamed. This version uses goat cheese and couscous for a filling and calls for sautéing or grilling. How exotic is that? It makes a lot, so halve it if you want to. The goat cheese is an investment, so this is for special occasions.
GRILLED DOLMADES
1/2 jar of grape leaves (30-35 leaves)
1/4 cup of couscous
1/4 cup of boiling water
1 tsp. of ground cumin
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium tomato, peeled, seeded, cut in small cubes
1/8 cup of fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 Tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
30 thin slices of goat cheese, approx. 1 inch in diameter
Rinse the grape leaves well and separate. Place in a baking pan and cover with boiling water. Let sit until the water cools a little (about 8-10 minutes). Rinse well under cold running water and drain. Dry each leaf individually, and remove stem. Set cleaned leaves aside on absorbent paper towels.
In a large bowl, stir together the couscous, 1/4 cup of boiling water and cumin. Add salt and pepper to taste and allow to sit until the couscous softens, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, parsley, olive oil and lemon juice. Combine well and add more salt and pepper. The mixture should be slightly salty.
Place a grape leaf on a clean work surface, shiny side down. Place a piece of the cheese 1/2-inch above the point of the stem, and one teaspoon of the couscous mixture on top. Fold the bottom of the leaf up over the filling, fold the sides in, brushing with a little olive oil to help seal, and roll to form a small packet. Place seam side down and continue wiht the next one.
Brush the dolmades with olive oil. Grill, seam side up, for two minutes then gently turn them to seam side dow for two minutes. They should tsart to brown. Remove to a plate and serve warm. Delicious! The goat cheese holds it all together, and the saltiness along with the lemon juice and grape leaves give it a spark.
VVV
As long as it doesn’t fall through the grate I guess you can grill just about anything! Next week we’ll do a culinary celebration of May Day. For May 6, how about some recipes you can use to make breakfast for Mom? Or use in a graduation day brunch?
Send your recipes to 517 Merchant St. or murphysmenu@yahoo.com. Let’s get cooking!