Grilled Espresso Tri-Tip

Grilled Espresso Tri-Tip

I had never heard about a tri-tip roast befor moving to California. And even though I have seen the cut in the stores, I didn't know how to cook it. My dear neighbors changed that, when they invited us for a BBQ, and served tri-tip. Now tri-tip is on my cuts to buy. It is so good and flavorful. Now I have to get my neighbor's secret rub, to get the perfect tri-tip for summer.

The tri-tip is a cut from the bottom of the sirloin, and is a close cousin of the culotte roast. 

Since the tri-tip is a lean cut, you have to be careful not to over cook it, particularly when preparing the full roast. You don't want to cook it to more than medium. 

This time the tri-tip became a little more done, than I would have liked, but I still turned out great. The deep flavor of the coffee worked perfect with the spice from the pepper and the beef. 

Ingredients:

• 1 tri-tip roast
• 3 tablespoons finely ground espresso coffee beans
• 1 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Directions:

Combine espresso beans, brown sugar, garlic powder, black pepper, and chili powder. Rub mixture onto the roast and place in a large dish. Let the roast marinade covered, in the refrigerator for at least an hour. 

Preheat grill to medium heat (400℉/200℃).  

Remove roast from fridge and place on grill/BBQ, use indirect heat. Cook for 15-18 minutes turning occasionally. When done, remove from heat allow to sit for a few minutes before carving into  thin slices. 

Enjoy!

Pigs in a Blanket - Pølsehorn

Pigs in a Blanket - Pølsehorn

Pigs in a blanket aka pølsehorn is a favorite among kids and adults all over the world.  They are perfect for kids birthday parties or as an easy snack or lunch. You cant eat them cold, warm or hot with your choice of condiments. 

Ingredients:

10 German style Wieners 

Dough:

• 50 g live yeast (or 4 teaspoons dry yeast)
• 250 g water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 40 g butter (salted)
• 1 egg
• 425 g all-purpose flour
• 100 g spelt flour
• 1 egg for egg-wash 

Directions:

In a bowl combine warm water, milk, yeast and sugar. If you use dry yeast let the mixture stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. 

In the stand mixer bowl, whisk flours with salt. Add butter and mix it with a flat beater until the flour looks like crumbs. (Well the dough hook works too.) Stir in yeast mixture and egg until a dough forms. Knead the dough for 5-8 minutes on medium, (8-10 minutes if kneaded by hand), until smooth and elastic. 

Let the dough rise covered for 1 - 2 hours until doubled in bulk.

Cut the wieners in half. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Pour the dough onto a lightly floured workspace, fold the dough over 3-4 times and using dough scraper, divide the dough into 18-20 small balls. Gently roll each ball into a 11-inch/30 cm  rope, and wrap the dough around the half wiener. Squeeze the ends onto the rest of the dough, so it won't unroll when rising.

Cover the pigs loosely with a clean kitchen towel and let to rise in a warm place for one hour.

Preheat oven to 400℉/200℃ with rack in center. Beat an egg and brush some on top of pigs. Bake until tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Transfer to a rack to cool before serving.

Serve the pigs in a blanket with your favorite condiment. 

Enjoy!

This post has been submitted to YeastSpotting

The Danish version:

Ingredienser:

• 50 g gær (eller 4 tsk tørgær)
• 250 g vand, lunkent
• 1 tsk salt
• 2 spsk sukker 
• 3 spsk mælk
• 40 g saltet smør
• 1 æg
• 425 g hvedemel
• 100 g speltmel
• 1 æg, til pensling

Fremgangsmåde:

Bland det lunkne vand med mælk, gær og sukker. Hvis du bruger tørgær, så lad blandingen stå indtil det begynder at skumme.

I en røremaskine bland melene, salt og smør, indtil smørret er blandet ordentligt med melet, så det ligner krummer. Kom gærblandingen og ægget i. Rør indtil det er blevet til en dej. Ælt dejen i 5-8 minutter. (Ælt 8-10 minutter, hvis du gør det i hånden). Du skal ende op med en jævn og elastisk dej.

Lad dejen hæve tildækket i skålen i 1-2 timer, eller til den er doblet i størrelse.

Halvér pølserne., og kom bagepapir på et par bageplader.

Hæld dejen ud på et bord drysset med mel. Fold dejen 3-4 gange og del dejlen i 18-20 lige store stykker/boller. Rul bollerne ud til ca. 30 cm lange pølser, og sno dejen rundt om pølserne. Pres enderne ind i dejen, så snoningen ikke ruller op, når pølsehornene hæver.

Dæk pølsehornene med et rent viskestykke, og lad dem hæve i omkring 1 time.

Opvarm ovnen til 200℃. Pensel pølsehornene med det sammenpiskede æg, og bag dem i ca 15 minutter indtil de er gyldne og gennembagte.

Køl pølsehornene lidt af inden de serveres.

Server pølsehorn med sennep og ketchup.

Velbekomme!

Beer Can Chicken

Beer Can Chicken

Beer Can Chicken is one of the best ways to cook a chicken on the grill/BBQ. The chicken stays juicy, and you get the best crispy skin.

I use a poultry roaster instead of the beer can, since you do not know what’s in the color on the beer can, and if it will migrate into the roasting chicken.

Ingredients

• 1 whole chicken
• 2 tablespoons butter, room temperature 
• 2-4 tablespoons salt
• ½ teaspoon lemon pepper
• 1 lemon
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
• 2 cloves garlic

Directions:

Preheat your grill/BBQ to medium high heat, the chicken need to be cooked at indirect heat, meaning no flames or coal directly under the bird. 

Zest the lemon, and add it to the butter together with the thyme.

Remove neck and giblets from chicken and discard them. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Rub chicken lightly with salt inside and put the chopped up lemon inside too. Put the spiced butter in between the skin and chicken breast and drumsticks. Set aside.

Pour the wine into the poultry roaster  and put the garlic in there too. place the chicken on the stand. Rub a good amount salt all over the chicken. Transfer the chicken to the grill/BBQ.

Cook the bird for 50-65 minutes or until the thigh juice runs clear, when poked with a sharp knife. Remove the bird from grill/BBQ and let rest for 10 minutes before carving. (The center temperature should be 165℉ (75℃).

Enjoy!

Triple-Smoke Burger

Triple-smoke Burger

We are heading into the BBQ season, and this is one of my all-time favorite homemade burgers. The sweet onion, creamy avocado, salty bacon, the spicy chipotle sauce and patty, makes this burger perfect. This is a must try recipe for the summer BBQ's.

The 3 smokey elements in this burger is bacon, smoked paprika and chipotle. 

Serves 3

Ingredients:

Chipotle Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1 tablespoons minced chipotle in adobo, including some sauce

Burger Patty:

• 450 g (1 pound) ground beef chuck, not lean
• 2 teaspoons sweet smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoons minced chipotle in adobo, including some sauce
• 1 egg
• ¾ teaspoon salt 

Accompaniment:

• 6 bacon slices
• 1 large red onion
• 1 firm-ripe avocado
• olive oil, for brushing on onion 
• 3 hamburger buns (this time I used a store bought bun)
• lettuce 
• cilantro sprigs

Directions:

Working in batches cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat, turning occasionally, until crisp; transfer to paper towels to drain. (Or cook the bacon the way you are accustomed to.)

Cut the onion into ½-inch thick rounds, pierce them stuck with a metal skewer to keep the onion round together when you are grilling it. Brush both sides of the onion slices with olive oil, set aside.

Chipotle Sauce: 

Purée the chipotle in adobo sauce in a food processor or blender. Mix 1 tablespoon of the puréed chipotle with mayonnaise and sour cream in a small bowl, set aside.

Burger Patty:

Gently mix beef with 1 tablespoon chipotle, paprika, egg and salt until combined. Form into 3 patties, set aside. 

Peel and slice the avocado, rinse the lettuce and cilantro and toast the hamburger buns, so you are ready to put the burgers together.

Preheat the grill to medium heat. (Grill the onions and patties over direct heat.)

Oil grill rack before grilling the onions, turning over once, until softened and slightly charred, about 2 to 3 minutes total. Grill patties, covered only if using a gas grill, until they are well-done, about 5-6 minutes on each side.

Spread chipotle sauce on buns, and make burgers with lettuce, avocado, bacon, onion, and cilantro.

Enjoy!

And now the Danish version:

Triple-Smoke Burger

Ingredients:

Chipotle Sauce:

• 2 spsk mayonnaise
• 2 spsk creme fraiche
• 1 spsk chipotle in adobo sauce, husk at bruge saucen

Bøffen:

• 450 g hakket oksekød (ikke fedtfattigt) 
• 2 tsk røget paprika
• 1 spsk chipotle i adobo, husk at bruge saucen
• 1 æg
• ¾ tsk salt 

Diverse:

• 6 skiver bacon 
• 1 stort rødløg 
• 1 moden avocado
• oliven olie, til at pensle løget med 
• 3 burgerboller (Jeg brugte købe boller her)
• salat
• et par kviste frisk koriander

Fremgangsmåde:

Steg baconen til den er sprød, læg den stegte bacon på noget køkkenrulle for at suge det overskydende fedt. 

Skær løget i ca 1,25 cm tykke skiver. Spid løgskiverne med et grillspyd, læg skiven fladt på skærebrættet og pres forsigtigt spydet igennem alle ringene, så løget holder formen under stegningen. Pensel begge sider med olie.

Chipotle Sauce: 

Purer chipotle i adobo sauce'en i en mini blender og bland 1 spsk af det med mayonnaise og creme fraicheen i en lille skål.

Bøffen:

Bland kødet med chipotle, paprika, æg og salt sammen i en skål. Lav tre bøffer af kødet.

Skræl avocadoen, vask salaten og korianderen og varm eller rist bollerne, så du har alt klart, når du skal samle burgeren. 

Opvarm grillen til medium varme. Bøf og løg skal steges over direkte varme.

Kom olie på grillen og grill løgene, vend dem én gang. Grill dem til de bliver klare og lidt brunede, ca 2-3 minutter ialt.  Grill bøfferne, med lukket låg hvis du bruger en gasgrill, indtil de er gennemstegte, ca 5-6 minutter på hver side.

Smør chipotle saucen på bollerne, og saml burgeren med salat, bøf, løg, avocado og koriander.

Velbekommen.

Chicken with Rhubarb

Chicken with Rhubarb

You know it is spring when you can get fresh Rhubarb. The sweet and sour vegetable, (it's a vegetable, not a fruit, even though you use it like a fruit), is good in cakes, in jams but also in ´food. 

As a child we had the rhubarb picked straight from the plant, washed and dipped in some sugar to snack on. If you discount the sugar, rhubarb is a healthy snack. 

This chicken dish is sweet and sour, and the creamy sauce make this really good with pasta.

Serves 4.

Ingredient:

• 6 chicken thighs ( I use boneless skinless thigh filets)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon olive oil or butter
• ¾ cup (180 ml) whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon chicken base
• 2 tablespoons honey
• ½ teaspoon chili paste
• ¼ cup chives, chopped
• 300 g rhubarb, sliced

Directions:

Check the chicken thighs and remove any excess fat. Heat the olive oil and sear the chicken on both sides for about a minute. Place the chicken in an ovenproof dish.

In a bowl mix cream, honey, chicken base and chili paste. Sprinkle rhubarb and chives over the chicken and pour the cream mixture over it.

Roast the chicken in the oven for about 10-15 minutes. Serve the dish with rice or fettuccine pasta. I normally serve this dish on a bed of baby spinach. 

Source Arla.dk