I left Boston for the first time in months this weekend. MaidPro keeps a house in Maine that employees may use to “get away”, so I left on Friday for a couple days of fun and relaxation.
This weekend marked the first time we’ve fired up the grill since last summer. We went with the oldies but goodies: hot dogs, hamburgers (the burgers plumped up so much they were more spherical than patty-shaped), and chicken. Now, I don’t want to diminish the grandeur that was our first grill of summer, but I am going to need some new grilling ideas to keep it fresh!
I subscribe to our newsletter, The Tidy Times, which gave me some great ideas for Memorial Day grilling. I will definitely be doing the grilled fruit (grilled pineapple, pear, or canteloupe all sound amazing, just make sure to soak it in water for 20 minutes prior to grilling). And, if I feel ambitious, I may do the super cool herb marinade brush. Apparently you can tie together mint and rosemary with twine to make a brush, and then use it to slather your meat with marinade.
I took some time after I got back to do a little grill research of my own, and here are some really easy recipes I found on my beloved go-to-online-recipe-book: The Food Network
- Cuban sandwiches – I pulled this one out of the ol’ noggin. Years ago I watched Bobbly Flay stack ham and cheese inside a crusty bread. He then wrapped a brick in aluminum foil and placed it on top of the sandwich to weigh it down, effectively acting as a sandwich press. When he was done, it was crusty, melty, and looked delicious! (Other sandwiches that are great grilled are grilled brie and goat cheese with bacon and, duh, regular old grilled cheese)
- Grilled nachos. This requires a bit more prep if you are making the salsa from scratch, but stores have such a wide variety of authentic salsas, I don’t think anyone would notice or care if it was from the can!
- Pizza on the grill! This is so insanely easy, and is great to do with your kids. You can even let them roll out their own pizza (or just let them play with the flour). Make sure to gather a variety of toppings so every child can make their pizza special.
The great thing about grilling is that it can feed one person just as easily as it can feed 20. Plus, it is a low mess meal. Just scrape off the grill, wash a few plates (or none if you’re using paper plates), and you’re done!
If you have any great grilling tips, share them with me at [email protected]
Cheers to a great summer on the grill!
