So these are the recipes from my BBQ this weekend:
Costal Cuisine Dry Rub
(good for seafood, chicken and vegetables, make in advance and store in an airtight container)
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp black powder
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp dried basil
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp dried tarragon (optional)
Costal Cedar Planked Salmon
1 filet of fresh salmon
3 tbsp Costal Cuisine Dry Rub or your favourite marinade
1 cedar grilling plank
Set salmon, skin side down on soaked plank. Season with Costal Cuisine rub or your favourite marinade.
Place plank on preheated grill with low to medium heat. Grill for 10-20 minutes with lid closed, until salmon flakes easily.
(For cedar planked chicken substitute boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Grill for 30 minutes or until juices run clear.
Red Pepper and Corn Relish (for on top of salmon)
2 tbsp plus 2 tsp coriander seeds
4 red bell peppers
4 tbsp olive oil
4 cups corn kernels (if fresh, from about 4 ears)
4 green onions, thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
¼ cup dry white wine
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp honey
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Toast coriander seeds in a small skillet over medium heat until aromatic, stirring frequently, about 2 minutes. Cool slightly. Crush in mortar with pestle.
Char bell peppers over gas flame or under broiler until blackened on all sides. Enclose in paper bag 10 minutes. Peel and seed peppers; cut into ½ inch pieces.
Heat 2 tbsp oil in large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add corn and green onions and sauté until corn begins to brown in spots, about 5 minutes.
Add garlic and thyme, sauté about 2 minutes.
Add wine and stir until liquid evaporates, about 1 minute.
Remove from heat and stir in bell peppers, lemon juice, honey and remaining 2 tbsp olive oil. Add 1 ½ tsp crushed coriander seeds.
Relish can be made 8 hours ahead: cover and refrigerate. Stir over medium heat until heated through before serving.
Stir in parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Ceviche
1 lb bay scallops
8 limes, juiced
2 tomatoes, diced
5 green onions, minced
2 stalks celery, sliced
½ green bell pepper, minced
½ cup chopped fresh parsley
1 ½ tbsp olive oil
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Rinse scallops and place in a medium bowl. Pour lime juice over the scallops. The scallops should be completely immersed in the lime juice. Chill the lime juice and scallops all day or overnight until the scallops are opaque (you cannot see through them).
Empty ½ of the lime juice from the bowl. Add remaining ingredients. Stir gently. Chill and for effect serve in fancy glasses with a slice of lime hanging over the rim.
Tuna Ceviche
2 lbs sushi-grade tuna, cut into ½ inch cubes
1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
½ cup cilantro, roughly chopped (plus a few leaves for garnish)
1 tbsp finely chopped ginger root
½ jalapeno, finely chopped
¾ cup coconut milk
4 scallions (or green onions), green part only, thinly sliced
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
½ tsp fish sauce
1 tbsp grated lemon zest
In a medium bowl, combine all of the ingredients except the cilantro garnish and chill for 2 hours. Salt to taste and garnish with cilantro leaves.
Grilled Vegetables
Marinade - mix all ingredients well, makes about 2 cups
1 cup olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp roasted garlic or roasted garlic puree
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup champagne vinegar
2 tsp Dijon or spicy brown mustard
Vegetables
4 Roma tomatoes, halved lengthwise
1 head fennel, trimmed and sliced ¼ inch thick, 8 slices
zucchini, thickly sliced
yellow squash, thickly sliced
10 medium asparagus
Red bell pepper, sliced into wedges
Yellow bell pepper, sliced into wedges
Shitake mushroom caps or quartered large mushrooms
Vidalia onion, thickly sliced
¼ cup toasted pine nuts
¼ cup asiago cheese
½ cup chiffonade basil
To cook vegetables (this is for a more “finished” veggie platter than I did the other night)
Marinade vegetables in about 1 ¼ cup of above marinade for 2 hours (approx)
Preheat grill
Cook vegetables on grill until tender, turning over as needed
Remove vegetables from grill, let come to room temperature
Arrange vegetables on large platter
Sprinkle with basil, pine nuts and asiago; drizzle with remaining marinade
Herb Marinated Back Yard Garden Salad
4 large tomatoes cut into ¾ inch chunks
½ red onion julienne
1 yellow or orange pepper julienne
1 red pepper julienne
1 jalapeno pepper, fine julienne
1 cucumber cut into quartered slices
½ cup basil chopped
¼ cup mint chopped
½ cup scallions (or green onions) chopped
4 tbsp chives, chopped
½ tbsp thyme chopped
(6 oz mixed greens of your choosing) - optional
For the dressing:
4 cloves garlic chopped
2/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp lemon zest
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
salt and pepper
Mix all dressing ingredients in a 2 qt bowl
Add produce and herbs to dressing, fold gently, let stand for 10 minutes
Adjust seasonings if needed
Optional: serve with greens of your choosing
Passion Fruit Sangria
2 bottles sweet white wine (Voniger, Muscat, Sweet Riesling, Gewurztraminer)
2 lemons cut into wedges
2 oranges cut into wedges
2 limes cut into wedges
4 cups passion fruit juice (I used guava since I couldn’t find passion fruit)
4 cups pineapple juice
2 cups ginger ale
2 kiwi fruit
Pour wine in the pitcher and squeeze the juice wedges from the lemon, orange and lime into the wine. Toss in the fruit wedges. Toss in the fruit wedges (leaving out seeds if possible) and add passion fruit juice and pineapple juice. Chill overnight. Add ginger ale and thinly sliced kiwi fruit just before serving.
Blood Orange Sangria
2 bottles fruity red wine
2 cups sliced strawberries
2 cups apple juice or cider
2/3 cup Triple Sec (orange flavored liqueur)
½ cup sugar
4 whole cloves
3 seedless oranges, each cut into 16 wedges
2 cinnamon sticks
1 lemon
1 lime
Combine all ingredients in a large pitcher and stir until sugar dissolves. Cover and chill 8 hours or overnight. Discard cloves and cinnamon sticks.
Frozen Blackberry-Lemon Chiffon Pie
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tbsp butter, melted
2 tbsp milk
Cooking spray
3 cups blackberries (fresh if available, but frozen work too)
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
¼ tsp salt
4 large egg whites (I use Egg Beaters)
1 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
6 tbsp water
Combine first 3 ingredients in a bowl, toss with a fork until moist. Press into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch springform pan coated with cooking spray.
Combine 3 cups blackberries and fresh lemon juice in a blender; process until smooth. Strain mixture through s sieve over a bowl. Discard solids.
Place salt and egg whites in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until foamy.
Combine sugar and water in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook, without stirring, until a thermometer registers 250 degrees.
Gradually pour the hot sugar into egg mixture, eating at medium speed, then at high speed, until stiff peaks form.
Gently fold in blackberry mixture; pour into prepared crust. Cover and freeze 8 hours or overnight. Let stand 5 minutes at room temperature before serving. Garnish with fresh blackberries and mint if desired.
(I didn’t make this one, but for those that said it sounded interesting…)
Pecan, Cranberry & Apricot Stuffed Apples
4 Rome or other baking apples
¼ cup pecans, finely chopped
¼ cup chopped dried cranberries and apricots
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
1 tbsp melted butter
¼ cup brown sugar
8 cinnamon sticks for garnish
Halve and remove cores from apples. Cut a small slice from the bottom of each half so that it can lie flat on the plank
Combine ingredients and spoon stuffing into each apple half. Garnish with cinnamon sticks. Place apples on soaked plank.
Grill for about 10 minutes on low heat until the apples are tender, but be careful not to overook.
Wonderful served with ice cream.
All the machines made me a bit nervous at first, but you get used to them quickly. I think this one was my favourite, the router. It's what helps make these nice rounded edges on things. Here I am learning how to use it the first night. That's Mary Anne, the instructor showing me what to do.
And here we are in our finished chairs! :) I'm so proud of us!
And here it is outside my front door. I want to paint "I made this chair" on it so that everyone looking at it knows that I made it!!! :) Have I said yet that I'm really proud of Ana and myself? 
I'm not really a tool-type girl...or at least I never thought I was. But now... I can see how you can get the woodworking bug.
