Grilled Caesar Salad

I know, sounds crazy, but grilling the romaine lettuce before chopping for this salad changes the taste entirely and lends the salad a smoky, earthy flavor that is out-of-this-world good. Try it!



2 romaine hearts, washed and halved lengthwise
olive oil
fresh-cracked pepper
kosher salt
prepared creamy-style Caesar dressing (from the refrigerated produce aisle--I like Lighthouse brand, personally)
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups prepared garlic croutons



Preheat grill to high heat. Brush olive oil along cut side of romaine hearts and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Place romaine hearts, cut side down, on grill and cook for 2-3 minutes, or until edges are charred and lettuce is only slightly wilted. Do not overcook!! You don't want lettuce to be a soggy mess, just lightly charred. Remove from grill and place cut side up on a cutting board to cool. Using a sharp knife, chop hearts coarsely and place in a salad bowl. Toss with 1-2 Tbsp. of dressing and place bowl into fridge to chill for 5 minutes. Remove from fridge and sprinkle with Parmesan and croutons. Serve immediately.

Tuscan-style Lemon Chicken

I recently served this at Brad's birthday party, to rave reviews. A great dish, it offers a lot of flavor to a cheap cut of meat, and is very easy to prepare. To reduce the grilling time and keep the meat moist, I start this in the oven and then transfer to the grill for the final few minutes to get that great grilled flavor. You can do this entirely on the grill, but you'll need to grill using an indirect heat method and watch the chicken vigilently to prevent flare-ups as the fat renders out.

I adapted this from an Ina Garten recipe--check out the original recipe in her cookbook, Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics.

SERVES 4

4 chicken leg quarters, separated (or use thighs, drumsticks, bone-in breasts or a combination thereof to equal 8 pieces)
Zest of one lemon

3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/3 cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice (you can use bottled, but the flavor just isn't the same)
1/3 cup olive oil
1-2 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary
fresh cracked black pepper
coarse salt (preferably coarse sea salt or kosher salt)
2 lemons, halved

Trim excess fat from chicken pieces, paying particular attention to the underside of the thigh pieces. (If you don't remove the excess fat now, you'll end up with major flare-ups on the grill later!)

Whisk together lemon zest, juice, garlic, rosemary, olive oil and black pepper in a small bowl. Place chicken pieces in a large gallon zipper bag, pour in marinade and seal. Shake chicken in bag to coat with marinade. Place entire bag, sealed, in a glass baking dish (to prevent a messy fridge in the event of a leak), and allow meat to marinade for 4 to 24 hours. (I like to do this the night before, while I'm already in the kitchen cooking).

After allowing time to marinade, open the bag and dump the entire contents, marinade and all, into the glass baking dish and arrange pieces in a single layer in the pan. Place pan of chicken in a 425 degree oven for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare grill for high-heat, direct-fire cooking. Oil grill surface. After removing chicken from oven, place pieces on grill and brown, allowing skin to crisp up. Stay close to the grill--skin-on chicken pieces have a tendency to flame up and burn in an instant!! Cook chicken, turning frequently, until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh registers 175 degrees. Remove to a platter, cover loosely with foil and allow chicken to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

While chicken rests, grill lemon halves by placing cut-side down on the grill. Cook until carmelized.

Sprinkle chicken liberally with coarse salt immediately before serving, placing a grilled lemon half on each plate alongside chicken. Squeeze juices from grilled lemons over the chicken.