Grilled Onion Burgers and Garlic Butter Roasted Corn!

Here at the cottage, we love a good burger and we know just how to make them! First of all, they must be huge, at least a half pound each. And yes I've been known to eat the whole thing in one sitting. Hey, I work hard around here! Secondly, I love a good side with my burger, especially roasted corn. I was able to get this corn at Geary Jolley Produce on Saturday. I love it that my cottage is situated next door to a produce stand!

Let's get started!

Gently peel the shucks back on the corn and leave them attached. Remove all of the silks. 

Now there's two ways you can do this, the high road and the low road. I've taken both, depending on how tired (lazy) I am. 

The high road, for two ears of corn:

3 cloves roasted garlic (to roast the garlic, place the cloves, top ends trimmed, onto a several small layers of foil. Drizzle them with olive oil and place them into an oven preheated to 300 degrees. Roast for thirty minutes or until they're soft. When they've cooled, squeeze the softened garlic into a small bowl and mix with 1/3 stick of very soft, or slightly melted butter. Now spread this mixture onto the corn, covering every surface well.) Sprinkle with salt.

The low road, for two ears of corn:

Spread 1/3 of a stick of very soft or slightly melted butter onto the corn. Sprinkle with garlic salt. You have to cover the ears with butter and garlic salt. If you think you have too much, then it's probably just right!

See? I've 'lathered' mine! Guess I've told on myself. You don't see any photos of roasted garlic do you? That's right, I took the low road. Shame...

Now roll the corn up in foil. They're ready to go on the grill. On to the burgers!

Burger Team: (for two burgers)

One pound of ground chuck of venison, (we're using venison)

Worcestershire sauce-3 tablespoons

Salt-1/2 teaspoon

Garlic powder-1/2 teaspoon

Freshly ground black pepper-1/2 teaspoon

Place onion slices on top of burgers that you have already patted out. I use onions that I've sliced to about 1/3 inch thickness. You can slice them as thick or thin as you like. Press down on the onions and pat the burger up around the sides of the onions, so that they kind of sitting 'in' the middle. 

Pour the Worcestershire sauce onto the burgers before you season them. That will keep the sauce from floating the seasonings off of the burgers onto the plate. Experience talking here...

Heat the grill to medium high. Go ahead and put the corn on first, it needs to roast for about thirty minutes, unless you like yours really done. If so forty five minutes should be enough.

Place the burgers onto the heated grill, onion side up. We like ours on the rare side, so about five or six minutes per side does it for us. After you've flipped them and they've cooked on side number two, add the cheese to melt while they're still on the grill.

Hungry yet?

I really wish I would pay more attention while I'm taking pictures. Why in the world didn't I move the corn just a little more toward the dill pickles? Awesome burger though, and awesome bicolor corn!

From Clover Cottage...: Congratulations!

From Clover Cottage...: Congratulations!: Neshanne Dean!

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Grilled Italian Turkey Tenders!

This is JD, country man to the core. He shot a turkey yesterday morning for our dinner last night. It felt so "Little House On The Prairie" like. Or maybe Daniel Boone. Something, anyway it made for some good groceries! Marinated grilled Turkey tenders cooked on the grill. Fresh turkey is wonderful! For those of you who have had it, you know what I mean. For those of you who haven't, well, I'm sorry...

This is the breast meat JD got from the turkey. You can't get it any fresher!

For The Recipe:

1/2 turkey breast, bone removed and cut into tenders

1/2 bottle of Zesty Italian Salad Dressing

Note: I have no idea why this photo is turned like it is. In my folder and before downloading, it was right. Go figure.

Place the turkey breast in a plastic storage bag and add the dressing.

Thread the tenders onto skewers. This makes them easier to turn while grilling.

Heat the grill on low for five minutes and place the tenders on direct heat. Cook on first side for ten to twelve minutes. We like ours a little charred. Yes, I know that's not good for you...

Cook on the second side for another ten to twelve minutes, or until you have them like you want them. 

I served the tenders with homemade pear chutney. The sweetness of the chutney went wonderfully with the zestiness of the turkey. You could make this using chicken or turkey tenders purchased from your grocery store. Either way, this is a quick cook recipe, great for weeknights. Just put the chicken in the marinade before you leave for work in the morning and heat up the grill and you're ready to go!

Drawing On Friday!

I'll be giving away this cute metal watering can this Friday. If you would like a chance to win, just click the Facebook badge and like us on our Facebook page, that's all you have to do! Thanks and good luck!

From Clover Cottage...: Don't forget the give away!

From Clover Cottage...: Don't forget the give away!:

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Three Ingredient Homemade Rolls

So who knew you could make rolls with only three simple ingredients? 

I didn't until I found this recipe in a church cookbook that I received as a wedding present (the first wedding) more than thirty years ago. I can't begin to count the times I've served these rolls through the years, they're so easy and tasty! (And yes I went to the marriage rodeo one more time. Twice was enough for me. I'm all good!)

 Back to the rolls...

For the rolls:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

2 cups self-rising flour 

1 cup whole milk

3 tablespoons mayonnaise

Makes sixteen mini rolls or ten to twelve standard size rolls

Add the mayonnaise to the middle of the flour

Mix it in adding flour from the sides until it's completely incorporated into the flour

Add the milk to the middle of the bowl

Stir in the milk starting in the middle

Add the flour from the sides of the bowl, stirring with each addition of flour

Keep stirring in the flour until it's well mixed

Spoon into ungreased mini muffin pan

Bake for ten to twelve minutes or until slightly golden

Brush with melted butter while they're still warm. These are also wonderful served split and filled with my chicken salad recipe!

Blue Cheese Salad Dressing, revisited...

Why is it revisited? Because I posted it either on my CG's tasty bites blog or my Country Gal's Place website. I think...Anyway, it's also revisited because I'm extremely forgetful and didn't buy buttermilk at the grocery store. Or garlic for the steak marinade. Or cat litter, but that's for another blog. Back to revisiting. Since I didn't have buttermilk I had to make my own and you know what? I really was skeptical, but I absolutely could not tell the difference! It turned out mah-vel-ous! Know what else? I used to make a blue cheese dressing that I concocted that had at least ten ingredients. Then one day, years later, I remembered another dressing that I'd had somewhere along the road of life. It wasn't complex, I remembered that I could really taste the blue cheese. I remembered that it was a clean blue cheese dressing. Now where had I eaten it? It took a few days, but finally it came to me, it was the Roquefort dressing that my then, mother in law made. I dialed her up and got the low down on it. I couldn't believe it, only three ingredients. Just that simple. But as I tend to do, I tried to change it, make it better. If she used garlic salt, surely real garlic, chopped finely would make it even more wonderful, right? Wrong! The purist in me wanted to make it something it wasn't meant to be. Make it like hers, it really doesn't need to be messed with!

Make it ahead of time to let the flavors scrooch up and get to know each other. If you're a space cadet like me and forget half your grocery list, while you're actually looking at the list, scroll down for directions for homemade buttermilk...

The ingredients:

1/2 cup buttermilk 

4 tablespoons Duke's mayonnaise

2 1/2 ounces crumbled blue cheese (she used Roquefort, I've used Gorgonzola, Maytag and many others)

3/4 teaspoon garlic salt

or if you're like me and only have garlic powder, do it this way:

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Combine all of the ingredients and mix well, cover and refrigerate.

Thank you Dot!!!

Black and Blue Salad

I'm not a sirloin person. I'm a rib-eye gal all the way, but I'm telling you, this steak was spot on! The sirloin was less than three dollars while a rib-eye the same size was almost ten dollars. Yep the thrifty person in me couldn't pass it up, that bad boy was going home with me. I didn't have a plan for the meat when I purchased it. I knew in order for JD to eat it, I would have to make something by following these rules: a) it would have to be marinated to give it flavor b) it would have to be cooked rare, another reason for the marinade, to tenderize it c) because it was rare I would have to slice it thinly to serve it. I thought of several recipes I could use it in, but since I was so busy, it was going to be used for a large dinner salad. I could put it in the marinade, pop it in the fridge for the day and make the salad later. I really think letting the meat soak in the marinade for so long is why it turned out to be so delicious. You could even let it marinate overnight. The taste was rich with deep flavors and JD ate a huge portion of it. Okay the two of us ate the entire salad. It really was that good!

For the marinade:

1/2 cup red wine, I used cabernet

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, I apologize, I forgot real garlic at the store and I live in the sticks...

Oh, I almost forgot, the steak was crispy on the outside and I served it with blue cheese dressing. Hence the name, black and blue salad. Sorry... but it really was easy and delicious, and that's how we roll!

One pound of sirloin placed into a gallon storage bag

Mix all of the ingredients in a small bowl

Pour the marinade over the steak, seal the bag and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.

Heat the grill to high and cook for two minutes on each side. It was perfectly rare, just the way we like it. I realize not everyone likes rare steak, so adjust the grill heat and cooking time to suit your taste.

Thinly slice the steak and place it on top of any dinner salad.

I served it with blue cheese salad dressing and crusty bread. I'll post the recipe for the dressing too! This is a perfect dinner for busy days! Try it soon!

From Clover Cottage...: Give Away!!!

From Clover Cottage...: Give Away!!!: Follow the link to "From Clover Cottage", then click on the post titled 'Facebook', in the blog archive section,click the link to FB, like us and you'll be entered to win!

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Easy,Cheesy Coleslaw

I love a good pinto bean supper, and this one didn't disappoint! 

Ever had cheese in your coleslaw? My BFF mentioned that her mother made slaw this way once and I was intrigued. That was over thirty years ago and I'm still intruiged! It's wonderful! Of course when you think about it, adding cheese to anything is usually a good idea...

Ingredients for four servings:

1/2 small head cabbage

5 tablespoons Duke's mayonnaise

1/2 cup grated, sharp Cheddar cheese

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

 

Grate the cabbage into a medium bowl.

Add the remaining ingredients.

Mix until well blended.

I realize that this meal is the simplest of simple, but sometimes less truly is more...

Recipes for cornbread and pinto beans below.

Pinto Beans...

First of all, yes I do realize that I spelled 'cheesy' incorrectly on the chalkboard. Now on to business...

Sometimes you just need an old standby for dinner. Something that you could make blindfolded if you had to. That's me and pinto beans, we're buds. We have a history. We've been through this phase and that phase together. Kind of like me and mustard. We have a history too. It was a good day when I discovered that mustard is really good in pintos. Don't knock it till you try it! 

Anyway here's my recipe for them. Nothing earth shattering, just simple goodness that's easy on the purse. I start the night before I want to cook them and let them soak overnight.

Rinse the beans in cold water and drain several times until the water is clear. After the last rinse, cover them with water by two inches and cover. Let them stand overnight. The next morning drain the water and add fresh water to the pot, covering the beans by three inches. Cover the pot and cook on low to medium low. Stir them and check the water level in thirty minute intervals. After three hours of cooking, add fatback slices to the beans, stir and cover.I cook mine for six hours or more. We like them mushy, kind of a cross between soup and refried beans. That's just us.  

Not much really appetizing about raw fatback is there? 

This is perfect, scrumptious goodness going on in this pot. At least in our opinion. 

Local spring onions are a necessary accompaniment to pintos. And mustard. Sorry.

Creamy Parmesan Salad Dressing, Easy!

This one fills quite a few of the right categories, which always makes me happy. It's quick, easy, absolutely delicious and requires only a few ingredients. I buy Parmesan cheese, grate it and freeze it so I always have it on hand for this dressing. It also keeps in the fridge in an air tight container for up to four days. It can't miss!

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons Duke's mayonnaise (I should check into stock options with Duke's)

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Makes about 1/2 cup dressing

Add all of the ingredients to a cup or small bowl.

Whisk until all the ingredients are well blended. Chill for at least  thirty minutes to let the flavors come together in a happy delicious union! Serve over romaine lettuce or salad of your choice.
I told you it was easy...