Backyard Grilling -Memorial Day 2011

Ah... I am enjoying a peaceful, relaxing Memorial Day grilling in my back yard... I have a really sweet set up with my charcoal pit under the shade of a big pecan tree. I have a comfortable folding chair and am enjoying a cool refreshing beverage while pecking away on my laptop...!

There is a breeze, it's quiet. I am blessed...!

So what's on the menu today...? Grilled veggie shish ka bobs, veggie sausage, and Monica's famous homade potato salad. Oh yeah, and REAL Hebrew National All Beef hotdogs for Connor... Everyone else in the family is on a vegan diet....

Going Vegan about six months months ago has really put a dent in my back yard grilling. No more smoked meats for this family...! But I have decided to really become an expert in the art of grilling veggies this summer. I just love the smell of a charcoal grill.

We have discovered some really excellent veggie sausage. It makes absolutely GREAT hotdogs.

Although it is impossible for me to admit that I have tasted or prepared my last rack of baby back ribs... I can honestly say that I have not missed meat too much.

And I am definitely reaping the health benefits of a meatless diet for the past 6 months. As I compose this post I am looking at dropping under 200 lbs for the first time in ten years. I have lost close to 30 lbs in the past six months and havn't felt this good in a long time...!

Will be adding some photos later this evening...!

Happy Memorial Day...!

Monica's Borthday Dinner

Few things say I love You like a delicious home cooked meal. For my sweet wife's birthday this year I prepared for her one of her favorite dinners: Filet Mingon and grilled veggies.

Mmmm... It was delicious as I recall...! -Good Times, Good Memories...!

It's time for Smoked Ham...!

Here's a quick follow up from Thanksgiving... I ended up running short on time on the dressing so I used a mix... BAD MISTAKE.... I'll never do that again. There's nothing better than home made cornbread stuffing. I'll definitely plan ahead for Christmas...! But hey, the turkey was excellent... I definitely have my smoked turkey technique in good working order...!

OK... Today's kind of a slow day for me. I'm going to finally smoke that ham I bought for Thanksgiving. AND... I'm finally going to make that coleslaw recipe I blogged about awhile back...

I'll let you know how it came out tonight...!

Happy Thanksgiving...!

Hello Friends... Happy Thanksgiving...!

I decided not to make both a ham and a turkey today... I made sure I had Monica's blessing first, though...

I think I'll smoke the ham tomorrow or Saturday... When I cook the ham I want it to have the spotlight so I can really focus on detail and do a good job... I'm going to start brining it a little later this afternoon.

I had a little bit of a late start on the turkey. I didn;t have the temperature in the smoker right until about 10 AM so I'm a couple of hours behind schedule which will put our Thanksgiving dinner on the table at around 4:30 PM or so...

That's OK, we're 'grazing' so don't worry about us... -No one's going to go hungry around this house...

Elijah's been helping me with the Turkey this morning. That's been very fun. I want him to have fond memories of cooking with daddy...!

Everything's pretty much under control here...

I'm about to make some dressing and giblet gravy...

Now this is where my blogs pay off for me... -Last year's gravy and dressing were pretty good, and all I have to do is go back into my blog archives to find the recipe. I'll probably 'tweak' it a little and let you know it went later...

It's Turkey Time...

Actually, I'm making both a Turkey AND a Ham for tomorrow... Here's a blow by blow record of the 2008 Chadwell Family Thanksgiving...

Monica wanted a ham and Connor and I wanted turkey. I like ham too, and I've never smoked a ham before so this will be fun to prepare something different.

At 4 PM Wednesday I started brining the turkey... My brine consisted of filtered water, fajita seasoning, apple juice and ice. Apple juice and salt/pepper mixture make a great brine. The turkey is eleven and a half pounds... I'll start smoking it about 8 AM... We'd like to eat lunch around 2 or 2:30 PM and it takes about 30 minutes per pound if I can keep the smoker at 235 degrees.

The wood I'm using for my smoke is apple wood... -Perfect for poultry...

Since I'm a 'rookie' at smoking a ham, I'm going to start researching hams right now... (7:25 PM Wednesday)

...Wow...! There is an overwhelming amount of info on Smoking a ham...! One article I read said to 'cold' smoke it for several days... -That's not going to happen... I have no idea at all how I'm going to cook this ham...! (8:28 PM Wednesday)

Ribs and Chicken...

I haven't posted on this blog for awhile... -Just been too busy. The fact is, I haven't been BBQ-ing much lately, either. Well, tonight I'm going to end the 3 week BBQ draught....! It's 9 PM but I've fired up the smoker and I'm all set for at least a six hour vigil tonight.

I'm cooking two racks of ribs and two whole 5 lb chickens... That should take care of us for dinner tomorrow and/or Sunday afternoon...!

Actually, I did cook some chicken fajitas Wednesday for lunch... The meat was already seasoned and marinated from HEB.... And was surprisingly good...!

I still haven't made that coleslaw recipe yet...! Maybe I'll try that tomorrow.

As much as I enjoy briskett, I'm focusing on white meats, fish, and vegetables the rest of 2008 and into the new year...! I've actually got alot of briskett frozen in the freezer. That will tide me over for a while.

If anyone has any recipes or tips on grilling veggies I'm open to suggestions... I'll be researching this topic and posting my findings in the next few weeks so stay tuned...!

My ribs tonight are going to be seasoned with Fiesta fajita seasoning and I'm using the famous 3-2-1 method. That is my favorite cooking style and has produced consistently perfect ribs for me for about a year now...!

Ribs went in the smoker at 11 PM.... Connor and I are staying up late tonight watching Stargate Atlantis...

Big BBQ Weekend...

I spent a good deal of time cooking Saturday afternoon and early Sunday morning. For Saturday I prepared ribs, chicken and beef fajitas... The ribs came out very good... The chicken came out ok. But the beef fajitas were not so great... I definitely need to work on my marinating and tenderizing technique.

I really had a good time cooking. I hadn't cooked on the grill in weeks and weeks.

Although I really enjoy brisket and ribs very much I'm going to retire my recipes and focus on chicken, fish and veggies for a while. Monica is really pushing me to prepare healthier food and is afraid that we consume too much red meat for our own good....

I really do enjoy grilled veggies and am looking forward to improving my expertise in that area. I like grilled and smoked salmon, too and wouldn't mind eating that more.

I bombed on beef fajitas and am just going to admit it and move on...

OK, so next Sunday afternoon will be a grilled veggie extravaganza...!