Who doesn’t smile when a tall shake is in sight? Shakes are easy enough to make yourself at home. They're a perfect treat on a warm summer night, and they're even better as a dessert or treat when topped with a thin, crisp wafer cookie! The cost of a smile followed by a brain freeze? Priceless!
Tinto from the way that red wine is made. During wine production, the skins of red grapes tint the white must until it turns into a red color. That's why the Spanish refer to it as vino tinto—not vino rojo.
Summer has arrived; the sunshine is more than welcome. With Memorial Day almost here, there are bound to be many backyard grills sizzling. Need an idea beyond the burger? Try my home run BBQ Pork Slider.
What beverages should you serve with BBQ?
An excellent local microbrew may do just fine. But what wines go best with BBQ? Well, there is no absolute rule, drink what you enjoy. But, to keep it festive and refreshing, why not mix a light Rioja from Spain with a bit of fruit, fruit juice, and sugar or simple syrup. This is aka Sangria.
I was first courted by Rioja back in my college days. It's an inexpensive wine; it suited my palate and culinary school budget but greatly complements highly seasoned and flavorful foods. Maybe it wasn’t my budget at all. Perhaps I would like to say Rioja. Go ahead, say it, Ree-OH-ha. Again, Ree-OH-ha. Now say - would you like some Sangria made with Ree-OH-ha? See how much fun that was to say! But it's even more fun to drink!
Always use a good dry red wine like Rioja, naturally sweet fresh fruit, and flavorful juice. Feel free to use any variety of fresh fruits. You may have to adjust the sweetness according to your own preference and the sweetness of the fruit you use. A must is to macerate the fruit in the wine for 24 hours in the refrigerator and serve ice-cold.
Sangria
Makes 8 glasses
chefgeorgehirsch.com | George Hirsch Lifestyle
1 bottle Rioja dry red wine
1/3 cup brandy
1/3 cup Cointreau or Grand Marnier
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 sweet apple, diced
1 pear, diced
1 lemon, sliced into rounds
1 orange, sliced into rounds
1 lime, sliced into rounds
2 peaches, peeled, pitted, and diced
2-4 Tablespoons Turbinado sugar, Sugar in the Raw
Just before serving, add:
2 cups Strawberries, sliced
2 cups club soda; or lemon-lime soda
In a large glass container or sangria pitcher, combine all ingredients except strawberries and soda. Chill in the refrigerator overnight. Immediately before serving, stir the strawberries and club soda. Ladle or pour into chilled glasses and serve.
This Southern strawberry shortcake is baked in a black iron skillet, giving it a crunchy crust—the perfect foil for berries and sweetened whipped cream. Using cake flour will give the shortcake a lighter, more tender texture. If you have any strawberries left over, you may want to try my Rosé Sangria from George Hirsch Lifestyle.
Makes 6 - 8 servings
chefgeorgehirsch.com | George Hirsch Lifestyle
For the Cornbread:
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup cake flour or all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
2 eggs. lightly beaten
1/4 cup sweet butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the whipped cream:
1 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
2 pints mixed fresh strawberries and optional blueberries
1/2 pint fresh blueberries
Granulated sugar, if necessary
Strawberry Shortcake
Preheat oven or grill to medium temperature or 375 degrees F.
Combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Mix the milk, eggs, butter, vanilla, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until no particles of the dry ingredients remain. Do not over-mix.
Spoon the mixture into a well-greased, 8-inch, black iron skillet or cake pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool the cornbread for 5 minutes in the pan; remove and cool completely on a rack.
Beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Add the confectioners’ sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Wash the strawberries and pat them dry gently with a paper towel. Cut half of the strawberries into slices and leave the rest whole. If the berries are not sweet, toss with a small amount of granulated sugar.
Slice the cornbread in half horizontally. Spread the lower half with half the whipped cream and sliced strawberries and blueberries. Replace the top half and cover with the remaining whipped cream and berries.
Summer and muffins seem to go hand in hand, especially since blueberries are plentiful right now. Muffins bake fairly quickly with little prep.
Tip: Did you know? Tossing blueberries with flour before adding them to the batter will keep them from sinking to the bottom of the muffin during baking.
Blueberry Nut Muffins
Makes 10-12 muffins
chefgeorgehirsch.com | George Hirsch Lifestyle
For the topping:
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 Tablespoons nuts, walnuts, or pecans, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
1 Tablespoon sweet butter
In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nuts. Blend butter in with a fork until the mixture is crumb-like.
For the muffin mix:
1/2 cup sweet butter, room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon flour for coating blueberries, plus greasing muffin cups
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup pure cane granulated sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/2 cup milk
Grease a regular-size 12-cup muffin pan with butter and dust with flour, banging out excess flour, or use muffin cup liners.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
In a separate bowl, use a mixer to cream butter and sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add vanilla and orange zest to beaten eggs, then add eggs one at a time, mixing until eggs are absorbed.
With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture and milk in three stages, mixing until all are incorporated. Do not overmix.
Toss blueberries in a fine strainer with about one Tablespoon of flour to lightly coat. Using a rubber spatula, fold in 1 1/2 cups of the blueberries. With an ice cream scoop or large spoon, place batter into muffin cups filling each cup to three-quarters full. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of blueberries on top of the muffins and divide the crumb topping over the muffins.
Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the muffins are golden brown. Check the muffins halfway through and rotate if the oven temperature is uneven. Test with a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin; it should come out clean, or when touched lightly, the muffin should have a slight resistance to finger pressure.
Remove from oven and allow muffins to cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove muffins from pan.
Boils are also known as a Steam, Bake, Fish Fry, Potluck, Planks, or Seafood Barbecue. Here are a few kinds of boils I’ve either been privileged to attend in my travels or have had the pleasure of creating myself.
George Hirsch's Lobster Boil
New England - lobster steamed with beer, corn, sausage, and new potatoes
Montauk - mussels, clams, lobster, striped bass, duck quarters, LI Yukons, corn
Maryland or Chesapeake - blue crab, oysters, and clams steamed with beer, vinegar, and Old Bay cooked in a steamer basket served with crackers, corn, and slaw
Cajun & Creole Boil - shrimp, crab, crawfish, andouille sausage or kielbasa, small red new potatoes
Low Country or Frogmore Stew - usually just shrimp with smoked sausage & corn
Texan - crawfish, oysters, and good old Texan smoked brisket
Monterey - Dungeness crabs, shrimp, and artichokes when in season
Seattle - planked salmon & oysters
Types of seafood commonly used for a boil are typically shellfish, with shrimp being the most popular ingredient. Local availability, taste preferences, and imagination can rule your boil. You may consider Dungeness & blue claw crabs, shrimp, oysters, calamari, hard shell & razor clams, mussels, crawfish, Pacific salmon, or striped bass for your boil. Equipment: a large outdoor gas grill, cooker, or large pit with charcoal, as well as a large pot (size depends on the amount of seafood and the number of guests). 20-gallon stockpot, large paddle to stir, large wire strainer or skimmer to scoop, tongs, mallets, crackers, picks, picnic tables, No utensils––eat with your hands.
Summer Boil
Flavoring ingredients: onions, split heads of garlic, salt, lemons, beer, bay leaves, crab boil seasoning, cayenne pepper, hot sauce
George Hirsch's Lobster Boil
Serve: Remove seafood from the pot, drain well, and dump on picnic tables covered with newspaper, brown paper, or butcher paper with bowls of lemon wedges, melted butter, bottles of hot sauce, and good-quality pieces of bread. Beverages: Iced tubs of tall necks or keg beer (keep it local to your boil theme), tall necks of root beer, chilled rosé, iced tea, or lemonade.
George Hirsch's Lobster Boil
Preparing George’s East Coast Seafood Boil Recipe
My boil is a combination of New England, Maryland & Montauk and is easily prepared on the side burner of a gas grill. Change seafood according to your own taste and availability. Add snow peas for additional color and crunch.
Non-seafood additions to boil with cook times:
1 link per person smoked or Italian sausage, grilled & add to boil at the end
3 small red new potatoes per person, 15 minutes
1 ear of corn per person, 10 minutes
1/4 cup snow peas, 2-3 minutes
2 Tablespoons melted butter per person for dipping
Serve hot sauce on the side
To prepare Seafood Boil:
Add 2 cups of water, 2 bottles of beer, 1 head of fresh chopped garlic, 4 bay leaves, several sprigs of fresh parsley, 1 Tablespoon of black peppercorns, 1 Tablespoon of powdered garlic, 1 Tablespoon thyme, and 1/4 cup of paprika. If you like it spicy, add dried hot pepper flakes or chopped jalapeño. Bring the liquid to a boil.
Add seafood in stages for different cooking times:
Lobster 7 minutes for a 1-pound lobster + 1 minute for each additional 4 ounces
Blue Claw Crabs 5-7 minutes
Steamers or Littlenecks- 5-7 minutes or until opened
Shrimp (shell on) 4-5 minutes
Mussels 3-4 minutes or until opened
Separately, to boil lobsters:
Fill a large pot three-quarters full of cold water and cover.
A good rule of thumb is to allow 2 1/2 quarts of water for each lobster. Two or more lobsters will cook at the same time, provided the pot is large enough. When in doubt, use two pots.
Bring the water to a rapid boil.
Lobsters should be alive with the safety bands left on the claws. Drop the live lobsters one at a time head first, let the water boil again, and cover the pot. Now you will begin to time the cooking.
Allow 7 minutes for a one-pound lobster, and add 1 minute for every 4 ounces. A 1 1/2-pound lobster will cook in 9 minutes.
Lobsters will turn a bright red when cooked. Remove lobsters from the pot with a pair of tongs.
Allow at least 2- 1 pound lobsters per person since a 1-pound lobster offers only 4 ounces of meat.
George Hirsch's Lobster Boil
To Grill Lobsters:
Lobsters split and cleaned
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons seafood seasoning
6 cloves garlic, sliced
1/4 pound clarified or drawn butter
3 lemons, cut into wedges
Preheat grill to medium-high
Combine the olive oil, seafood seasoning, and garlic in a small bowl. Place the lobster on its back and brush it with some of the oil mixtures. Place the lobster on the grill, split side down, for 3 minutes. Brush with olive oil, turn, and cook until done, 5 to 6 minutes longer. A 1 1/2-pound lobster should cook in 9 minutes: 7 minutes for the first pound and 1 minute for each additional 4 ounces.
