If you are a fan of tomato soup, this smoky rendition will make you oh so happy!!

I love tomato soup. It’s just one of those comfort foods that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. I’ve been seeing all these “roasted” tomato soups on pinterest and I thought, “I’m going to grill the tomatoes to kick the flavor up a notch with the addition of smoke and char”. That is exactly what the grill does in this case, it adds flavor depth that you CANNOT achieve with your broiler. My husband said this recipe was a “plus one” which is his way of saying, “this is awesome, please make this again”.

I paired the soup with Crostini sandwiches held together with mini bambo skewers. This accomplishes two things 1) this makes it easy to dip the sandwiches into the soup, 2) the crostini (ie, toasted bread) can be served by themselves as croutons in the soup. The presentation on the crostini skewers adds visual pop and dimension to the plate, and it just looks cool and would be fun to serve to kids as its something different from your average sammy.

Ingredients:

These are so easy yet so good. Leftover Prime Rib really makes this sandwich but you can always buy roast beef from the deli.

What to do when you have a large amount of Prime Rib leftover? Make French Dip sammies of course! This is a quick and easy crowd pleaser that is suitable for a hearty lunch or dinner. If you don’t have prime rib in the house, you can always buy deli roast beef but it prime rib would be my first choice! This is one of those dishes that will make you look like a Culinary Goddess but is easy-peasy to make.

Ingredients:

• One baguette of French Bread or Sourdough, sliced length-wise
• 1 lb prime rib or roast beef, thinly sliced
• 8-10 slices provolone cheese
• 32 oz (1 qt) beef broth

Secretariat Dipping sauce (optional) or horseradish mayo (mayo with a little horseradish mixed in)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Slice the baguette in half lengthwise. Place the baguette on a cookie sheet lined with foil. Layer both sides with the provolone cheese. To the side of the baguette on the cookie sheet, put the roast beef on the foil so it can heat at the same time. Bake about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Let the baguette/cheese and meat roast in the oven until the cheese is melted. Meanwhile, heat the beef stock on the stove until hot.

Pull the baguette out of the oven and place on a cutting board. Place the meat evenly on the bottom baguette and place the other baguette on top. Slice into 3″ sandwiches and serve with a small single serving of beef broth per person. Serve with secretariat sauce or horseradish mayo.

Dinner is served and it took you less than 15 minutes!

Man oh man this burger is making my mouth water!

John Dawson is one of my BBQ BFFS, and when I saw this burger, I knew I had to add it to the “Tailgating 2.0″ line up. If you are looking for awesome BBQ and grilling recipes to feed your family, check out his site at www.patiodaddiobbq.com. Here’s John’s mouthwatering recipe, in his own words:

“Fair food always gives us a chance to indulge in some great barbecue that we don’t normally get to enjoy. This recipe is great twist on a classic: County Fair Onion Burgers. They’re easy to make and mouthwatering.  All you really need is a quarter-pounder grilled on a flattop, some cheese, a layer of sauteed onions, and some small buns! Perfect.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs Ground beef (80/20, please)
• 4 large Yellow sweet onions, chopped to 1/2″
• 1/4 cup Canola oil
• 16 slices American process cheese
• 8 Hamburger buns
• 1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 Tbsp Kosher salt
• 2 Tbsp Black pepper, ground fresh

Directions
Form the meat into eight equal-sized balls (1/4 lb each).

Flatten each ball of meat between wax paper to about 1/4″ thick and about 5″ in diameter.

Stack the wrapped burgers in a gallon zip-top bag and freeze until you’re ready to grill.

Heat a large heavy pan over medium-high heat, then add the oil.

Add the onions, and half of the salt and pepper, then saute until the onions are translucent and just starting to brown, about 15 minutes.

While the onions are cooking, start your grill and prepare for direct grilling at medium-high heat (350-375º).

Add the Worcestershire to the pan, stir well, and cook another minute.

Cover the pan, remove from the heat and set aside.

Season one side of the burgers with the remaining salt and pepper.

Grill each burger for about two minutes per side then top each with a slice of cheese, 1/4 cup of onions, another slice of cheese, and another 1/4 cup of onions.

Move the burgers to one side of the grill and quickly toast the buns on the other side.

Gently slide each burger onto a bun and serve with your side of choice. I served mine with slabs of grilled zucchini.”

Thanks for your awesome recipe John!

Now that's a Bristol Bash 'em Up Panini!

With football season in full swing, it’s time to kick off my Tailgating 2.0 Series and feature football certified recipes of my own, as well  as recipes from my fellow grill enthusiasts. This new series is sure to turn heads at your next tailgate and even make you a couple of new hungry friends.

Today I’m featuring delicious Bristol Bash ‘em Paninis, courtesy of Chris Grove from Nibble Me This. What’s great about this panini is that it’s an easy and tasty tailgating idea that will be the star of any tailgate.

Ingredients:

• Set up your grill for medium high heat.  Place the foil wrapped brick on the grill and allow it and the grate to preheat for about 10-15 minutes.
• Whisk together the Apple Pie Moonshine and the barbecue sauce.  The apple and cinnamon seem to enrich the flavors of the barbecue sauce while the “shine” gives it a twang or kick.  TIP:  For tailgating, do this at home and toss it in a cheap squirt bottle.
• Grill the onion slices for a few minutes per side until tender.
• Grill the pickle slices for about 2 minutes per side.  Yes….grill your pickles.  No, I’m serious.
• Assemble your sandwich as follows: chicken, bbq rub, bacon, Hi-octane bbq sauce, cheese, onions, pickles, second round of Hi-octane bbq sauce
• Cut the sandwich in half.  Place on the grill and top with the brick.  Grill for 45 seconds or long enough to toast the bottom.
• Flip, top with the brick and grill another 45 seconds.

Pair with a side and enjoy! Be sure to check out Chris’ site, NibbleMeThis for more mouthwatering recipes!

This sammy is sure to elevate your game at your next tailgate! - photo and recipe compliments of Chris Grove from NibbleMeThis.com

Serve these at your next tailgate and bring your gourmet game face!

I’m sure you’ve heard of “Wagyu” and “Kobe” beef and are wondering what the difference is. Wagyu is the breed of cow used to produce Kobe style beef. Called Kobe if raised in the Kobe region, Wagyu if raised out of the country.

According to wikipedia, Wagu refers to several breeds of cattle genetically predisposed to intense marbling and to producing a high percentage of oleaginous unsaturated fat. 

In other words, Wagu beef is extremely moist and juicy and once you’ve had your first taste of this succulent beef, it won’t be your last. I got my sliders from my friends over at Grand Western Steaks, who offer home delivery of their high quality, sterling silver meats. If you want to try Wagyu from a quality source, I recommend giving them a try. Plus, there’s no driving involved, quality meat comes straight to your door! Now that’s what I’m talking about!

In time for tailgating season, wagyu sliders are the perfect way to take your tailgate to the next level. Because sliders are small, they can easily be overcooked and dry out easily, which is why wagyu is the perfect choice. Their higher fat content keeps them moist and juicy.

Grilled peppers add nice flavor and visual pop to these sliders.

I paired mine with grilled mini peppers, chipotle gouda cheese, arugula, basil mayo, and squirt of sriracha. I used ciabatta rolls as my bread and it complemented them perfectly. The title “3 Pepper Sliders” refers to the layers of peppers in this recipe- grilled peppers, chipotle peppers in the cheese and a squirt of sriracha at the end (thai peppers).

The basil mayo is a nice touch- take half cup of light mayo and mix it with a handful of basil in the food processor. This adds a nice gourmet touch to the sliders and is super easy.

Ingredients:

• 6 wagyu sliders (enough for 2 people plus an extra)
• 6 Ciabatta rolls
• 4 slices, chipotle gouda (or cheese of your choice)
• 8 mini peppers, rinsed
• 1 cup arugula
• 1/2 cup basil mayo (see directions above)
• sriracha (or hot sauce of your choice)

Directions:

Prepare a grill to 350 degrees. Grill the sliders for 3 minutes each side. At the same time, grill the peppers until char marks form. Once you’ve flipped your slider, add the cheese.

Put the bread on indirect heat or the warming tray at the top and let it get crispy.

Tent the sliders for 10 minutes before serving.

Put together with the rest of your ingredients, including the pretty charred peppers, for a slider masterpiece! These sliders will take your next party or tailgate gourmet with minimal prep of fuss!

Smoked pork butt makes for fabulous pulled pork sliders, and would work well for tacos too. Pair with my spicy slaw and sweet potato fries for an extremely satisfying meal.

I admit, I’m an egghead. Earlier this year I finally made room on the patio for one more grill- the grill of all grills- the Big Green Egg. My first “smoke” on her was a pork butt, also know as a Boston Butt. I’m a Carolina girl transplanted down to Florida, so of course my first smoke would be a pork butt. If there was a state meat, much like there is a state flower, I believe for NC it would be the pork butt.

Cut the fat on the top into a cross hatch so the rub can get good and rubbed in.

I don’t even know why they even call it a pork “butt” as it comes from the shoulder area of the pig. This is a tough cut of meat that needs some serious low and slow to make it tender.

Your low and slow cook will last about 8 hours at 250 degrees. I used a mixture of peach/cherry wood for a fruity finish on the smoke.

A 6-8 lb pork butt will feed a crowd for some great pulled pork sandwiches. Or, put the pork on a tortilla paired with slaw for a pulled pork taco!! Paired with my cilantro lime coleslaw, a Mango Guava BBQ sauce and some sweet potato fries, and you have a meal that says “I’m sitting high on the hog!”

Ingredients:

• One 6-8 lb pork butt (think 1 hour per pound to smoke)
• Your favorite BBQ rub, I used John Henrys East Texas Chipotle Cherry. Here’s a good rub recipe if you don’t have one: A chipotle brown sugar rub.
• 2 tbsp Olive Oil
• 1 cup mango nectar or apple juice- for injecting the meat to keep it moist and juicy

Directions:

Prepare your grill to 250 degrees. Add wood chips of your choice to add smokiness.

Next, slice the fat layer on the top of the meat in a “cross hatch” direction so as to create cubes on top of the meat. (see picture). This is going to help get more rub “rubbed in” to the butt.

Next, inject the meat once liberally with the mango nectar or you can use apple juice or juice of your preference.

If someone tells you your butt looks juicy and moist, take it as a compliment!

On the egg, place the pork butt (fat side up) on the grates with a piece of foil underneath to catch the  juices. Make sure to also have the place setter in place as we are cooking indirect.

Baste with the BBQ sauce periodically as it is cooking. Smoke the meat for up to 8 hours or until the internal temp reaches 180 degrees. Then it is ready to be pulled. If you have the time, you can smoke longer at a lower temp- 225, but 250 worked fine for me.

Baste that butt!!

After you pull the meat off, let it rest under foil for 10 minutes. Then you are ready to “pull it” with a fork. You will shred the pork with a fork and it will be perfect for a sandwich or tortilla for pork sliders or tacos. I made sliders paired with my chipotle cilantro coleslaw and sweet potato fries.

Mango Guava BBQ Sauce:

Mango and Guava are 2 of my favorite tropical fruits I find down here in South Florida. This recipe is easy to make and accessible to anyone as it only uses mango nectar and guava jam that is easy to find at most grocery stores. It will give you a fruity hot finish to your sliders and a non-traditional spin on bbq sauce.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup mango nectar
• 1/4 cup guava preserves
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• t tablespoon lime zest
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1 jalapeno pepper, finely chopped with seeds
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger

Combine all ingredients in sauce pan and let simmer for 20 minutes. Serve with you sliders. Pair the sliders with my infamous, quite addictive chipotle cilantro coleslaw.

Wow, that's a beautiful butt!

Prep: 30 Minutes
Grill: 10 Minutes

Ingredients:

¼ cup reduced fat sour cream
½ tsp. grated lime peel
¼ tsp. lime juice

Slaw:
1 cup broccoli coleslaw mix
2 tbsp. finely chopped sweet red pepper
2 tbsp. finely chopped sweet onion
2 tbsp. minced fresh cilantro
2 tsp. finely chopped seeded jalapeno pepper
2 tsp. lime juice
1 tsp. sugar

Sliders:

4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
½ tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp chili powder
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp coarsely ground pepper
8 Hawaiian sweet rolls, split
8 small lettuce leaves
8 slices tomato

Directions:

1. In a small bowl, combine the sour cream, lime peel and lime juice. In another small bowl, combine the slaw ingredients. Chill the sauce and slaw until serving.
2. Cut each chicken breast in half widthwise; flatten to ½ inch thickness. Sprinkle with seasonings.
3. Moisten a paper towel with cooking oil; using long-handled tongs, lightly coat the grill rack. Grill chicken, covered, over medium heat or broil 4 inch from the heat for 4 to 7 minutes on each side or until no longer pink.
4. Grill rolls, cut sides down, for 30-60 seconds or until toasted. Serve chicken on rolls with lettuce tomatoes and slaw.

These Italian Sausage Grinders are great for feeding a crowd! They’re also kid friendly! There really is nothing you can’t do on the grill- including overstuffed italian sandwiches with rich melted cheese! I used McCormick Grillmates peppercorn and garlic marinade to add extra flavor to the grilled veggies and sausage. I also added a layer of flavor to the bread by brushing it with the marinade. Putting the italian sausage, roasted red peppers, fresh basil, provolone and veggies together makes for a satisfying meal on the grill! Enjoy!

Scott's cool blue cheese dip is the perfect compliment to spicy buffalo sliders.

For weeknight meals, I’m always searching for something fun and creative to make but without a lot of prep and cook time. Many of you know I spend a lot of time commuting from work so weekday lengthy recipes don’t work for me because we don’t like to eat at 10 o’ clock at night!
This recipe is great for others in the same boat. Many of my grilling clinic attendees have told me that “sliders” are perfect for kids because they are the perfect size and they don’t take a long time to cook on the grill. This tasty dish is appealing to adults and kids alike!

I used GameDay Eats Wing Sauce for this recipe! Tasty!

This recipe makes enough to serve 2 adults.
Ingredients:

• 1 packet chicken cutlets (ie: tenders)
• wing sauce or hot sauce (use mild wing sauce if you don’t like heat)- 1 1/2 cups or more (enough to coat chicken in bowl and reserve some for basting on grill afterwards)
• rolls (buns)
• sandwich dill pickles
• blue cheese dip (see recipe below)

Give the tenders a quick drizzle or olive oil, and a dash of salt and pepper. Add enough sauce to coat all the tenders in a medium-large size bowl. Let them marinate at least 15 minutes in the fridge.

Turn grill on to heat up while chicken is marinating; meanwhile- make Scott’s Blue Cheese Dip.

Scott’s Blue Cheese Dip:

• 12 oz. container sour cream
• 4 oz. container blue cheese (the better the cheese, the better the dip)
• 2 tblsp minced garlic
• 1 tbls spoon dry mustard
• lots of freshly ground black pepper and sea salt

Combine all ingredients and store in refrigerator.

Grill tenders on direct heat for 3 minutes per side or until thermometer reaches internal temp. of 165 degrees. Baste with additional wing sauce.

Serve tenders on buns with blue cheese dip, arugula, pickles and extra wing sauce. Serve with additional arugula in the side and blue cheese dip as the dressing.

On the table in less than 30 minutes!

While grilling, I toss coconuts in the pool for Haley and Connor to fetch.