All Fired Up

Photography by Mark O. Ramirez

BLEU Restaurant & Lounge

Pepper Crusted Steak

Bleu Restaurant & Lounge

4 rib eye steaks, about ½ inch thick
0.5 ounces pink peppercorn
0.5 ounces white peppercorn
0.5 ounces black peppercorn

Salt to taste 
2 ounces of butter 
1 cup of demi glaze sauce

In a hot skillet, toast all 3 peppercorns, moving constantly for about a minute. Remove from the heat and place in a spice grinder, and grind peppercorns until powder consistency. In a different sauce pot place half of the peppercorns, add the demi glaze, and grind to a slow simmer for about 10 minutes to release the entire peppercorn flavor. Add 1 ounce of the butter
mixing until dissolved. Dry the steaks with a paper towel, place in a hot grill or skillet and cook to desired color. Removed from the grill and dust rest of the peppercorns, and evenly salt to taste. Place in a pre-heated oven at 350F to desired temperature. Remove from oven and served with the peppercorn sauce and preferred vegetables.

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SALUD!

at Whole Foods Market, Poplar Avenue

Grilled Panzanella Salad

SALUD! at Whole Foods Market, Poplar Avenue

Chimichurri:

½ cup flat-leaf parsley
¼ cup cilantro
½ cup oregano
2-3 cloves garlic
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

½ teaspoon cumin
Kosher or sea salt
Freshly ground pepper
Sugar, if needed

Salad:

1 demi-baguette, cut lengthwise
1-inch slices
olive oil, as needed

1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 red onion, cut into thick slices
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into wide planks
1 jalapeno, whole (optional)
½ cup feta cheese or queso blanco crumbled
6 slices peppered bacon, cooked & crumbled

(reserve 1 tablespoon bacon fat)

Prepare the salad:
Heat grill (or grill pan) over medium-high heat. Lightly brush bread slices with a small amount of olive oil and grill until golden brown on all sides. Remove to a cutting board and cut into 1-inch cubes and place in a large bowl.

Toss cherry tomatoes and peppers with a small amount of oil; brush both sides of the onion slices with oil and place on the grill. Cook until softened and charred; remove onions and peppers to a cutting board; tomatoes to a small bowl. Cut bell pepper and onion into a medium size dice; de-seed and mince the jalapeno, if using. Add to the bowl with the bread cubes and the bacon.

Make chimichurri sauce: reserve a couple of tablespoons of the herbs for garnish. Place all ingredients in a blender along with the reserved bacon fat and process until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper or sugar to taste.

Carefully toss the salad with a bit of the dressing to coat, then add in the tomatoes and feta. Finish with
remaining dressing and garnish with the reserved herbs.

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itta bena

Surf and Turf with Grilled Asparagus

ITTA BENA

1 8 ounce filet Mignon
1 6 to 8 ounce lobster tail
6 asparagus spears
Juice of one lemon

Lobster:
Using scissors, cut down the center of the top of the shell. Stop cutting at the tail fin. Gently pull the tail meat up through the slit and lay it over the shell. Baste lobster with garlic butter, squeeze fresh lemon juice over the top, and season with salt and pepper. Place tail on grill, meat side up. Cook for about 10 minutes covered. Remove from grill and allow to cool slightly. Remove the shell from the meat but keep tail fin in tact. When the filet is almost done, baste the tail with butter again and return to grill, meat side down. Finish cooking an additional 2 minutes or so. This will give the tail some char and lots of flavor.
Filet Mignon:
Season liberally with salt and pepper. Place on grill and cook to desired temperature. An average medium would have an internal temperature of around 135. Alternating cooking  covered and uncovered. When the filet is almost done baste it with garlic butter.
Asparagus:
Blanch asparagus in boiling water until slightly tender; cool. Marinate in garlic butter for at least 30 minutes. Grill for about 2 minutes or until softened and lightly charred.

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OWEN BRENNAN'S

Salmon with Dirty Rice and Baby Spinach

OWEN BRENNAN'S


Salmon:
Generously coat and 8 ounce salmon fillet with your preferred nonstick coating (Pam or olive oil), and salt and pepper to your liking. Place on your grill at a 45 degree angle for 3 minutes, then take your grill tongs and take it from \ direction to / direction, three minutes, then flip and repeat for the other side.The side started with should be face up as that will be the best looking side.
Dirty Rice:
One cup of rice is going to need 2 cups chicken stock. Under cook your rice slightly as you will still need to recook it when you make it into dirty rice. Add a handful of chopped tasso ham, a handful of sliced andouille sausage, classic Cajun trinity (handful of onion, green pepper, celery) and a touch of stewed tomatoes.
Baby Spinach:
Heat a skillet over medium heat. Take a generous handful of your baby spinach and place it in the skillet with about a tablespoon of butter, a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper. Stir your spinach around until it "wilts" then remove from the heat and place on top of your dirty rice.
Serve with your favorite hollandaise sauce.

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KOOKY CANUCK

Canadian Burger

Kooky Canuck

Brioche bun
8 ounce ground chuck
Sautéed red onions
BBQ sauce
Canadian bacon
Leaf lettuce, tomato slice, sliced pickles
Butter and toast bun. Pat ground chuck to your liking, and grill to 165 degrees. Assemble your burger and enjoy!

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ERLING JENSEN

Grilled Rack of Lamb

ERLING JENSEN

Marinade:

1 cup molasses
1/2 cup garlic
1/2 cup whole grain mustart

Marinade one rack of lamb for 24 hours. Preheat grill and add dehydrated pineapple to the wood chip and charcoal mixture. Place lamb rack directly on grill for 4 minutes each side. Allow resting time of 4 minutes and then slice.

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