Now that summer is heating up, here is a very refreshing recipe to cool you down. Courtesy of Betelnut Pejiu Wu restaurant in San Francisco, this recipe for Chilled Watermelon Salad with Watermelon Granité is prefect for lazy afternoons in the backyard or patio during the upcoming summer months. Enjoy!

6 to 8 Servings

Time: 30 Minutes

INGREDIENTS:

DRESSING:
2 cups orange juice
2 limes, zested and juiced
10 mint leaves, roughly chopped
2 oranges, peeled and cubed

WATERMELON:
1 seedless watermelon (about 8-10 lb)

GRANITÉ:
Remaining watermelon
Sugar - only if needed

GARNISH:
Sea salt
Zest of lime
Zest of orange

INSTRUCTIONS:

DRESSING:
Blend the dressing until the mint is finely chopped.

WATERMELON:
1. Peel 1/2 seedless watermelon, cut into 3/4-inch cubes and chill.
2. Toss the watermelon cubes with the dressing and place it in a glass bowl.

GRANITÉ:
1. Peel and and place the remaining watermelon in a blender. Process until smooth.
2. Add sugar if needed.
3. Place in a bowl and freeze. Check every 15 mins and scrape with a fork. Granité is ready when it turns into an icy slush.

PRESENTATION:
1. Scoop the granité on top of the watermelon cubes.
2. Sprinkle with sea salt and garnish with the lime and orange zests.
3. Serve immediately.

Dad’s special day is coming up…are you prepared? Why not cook for him? This is a fantastic recipe for Coca-Cola Braised Pork Ribs from the San Francisco Edition courtesy of Luella. It might sound a bit strange, but, trust us, it is absolutely delicious! When the sugar burns away, the Coca-Cola lends the gravy a thick, chocolate flavor. The recipe is very easy-to-make and is a great way to serve up the perfect meal on Father’s Day. 86 Recipes is also a great gift idea for Dad as well…but, hurry up…time is running out!

Coca-Cola Braised Pork Ribs

6 to 8 Servings

Time: 2 Hrs, 30 Mins

INGREDIENTS:
8 lb pork ribs
Salt and pepper
2 liters of Coca-Cola
1 gal chicken stock

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Season ribs with salt and pepper.
2. In a deep, lightly oiled roasting pan, sear the meat on high heat until golden brown.
3. Remove the ribs from the pan and set aside.
4. With the pan still on high heat, pour 2 liters of Coke and reduce the liquid by 2/3.
5. Add chicken stock and bring to boil.
6. Place meat back into the liquid, cover and put in a 400°F oven for 2 hrs or until meat falls off the bone.
7. Rmove from the oven and let rest, preferably overnight.
8. When ready to serve, reheat in a 400°F oven until hot.
9. Remove meat from the pan, place remaining sauce on stove top at medium heat and reduce until syrupy.

The City of San Francisco plans to build a facility to turn its restaurants’ grease into biodiesel fuel.

The new plant will be build at the city’s Oceanside Sewage Treatment Plant and use brown grease collected from the city’s restaurants.  The idea is that the grease can be used to power motor vehicles, sewage treatment plants and the city’s heating and electrical needs.

This plan is similiar to the SFGreasecycle program, which already collects yellow grease-like fryer oil from restaurants to fuel the city’s vehicles, buses and fire trucks. 

Congrats to Chef Brian Landry of 86 Recipes Participant Galatoire’s for winning the Louisiana Seafood Cook-Off this past weekend.  Chef Landry will advance to the Great American Seafood Cook-Off in August.

The winning recipe was Sauteed Cobia with Louisiana Crab Butter. 

For a copy of the recipe see Judy Walker’s article at: http://blog.nola.com/judywalker/2008/05/galatoires_chef_wins_right_to.html

Enjoy!

T-2 days until the weekend…and in most parts of the country, the weather will be spectacular! Here is another great Memorial Day recipe to help you BBQ in style. This healthy recipe for Grilled Margarita-Marinated Chicken Breast can work in a lot of ways. You can serve the chicken breast whole in a sandwich, cube it for a kebab, or slice it and add to a salad (think avacado and jicama). Also, it is a fantastic pairing to another Memorial Day classic: the margarita… Enjoy!

Recipe from the New York Edition courtesy of Citrus Bar and Grill

Grilled Margarita-Marinated Chicken Breast

4 Servings
Time: 20 Mins (6 Hrs to marinate)

INGREDIENTS:
4 chicken breasts, pounded
1 cup fresh lime juice
1 cup tequila blanco
1 cup triple sec
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 jalapeño pepper, sliced
(remove the seeds for a milder marinade)
1 bunch fresh cilantro

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Mix all marinade ingredients in large nonmetal bowl.
2. Place pounded chicken breasts in the bowl and marinate for 6 hrs in the refrigerator.
3. Remove the chicken breasts from marinade and place on grill pan at medium heat.
4. Turn the breasts over when half cooked (about 4 mins each side).
5. Remove from pan and slice or cube.

We can’t wait for the weekend! Why?…Because Memorial Day Weekend is the official start to the BBQ season. So, if you will be in the backyard, at the beach, or on a rooftop, get ready to breakout your grills. 86 Recipes will provide some great recipe ideas for your weekend BBQs throughout the week, so be sure to check in…. The first recipe is from the New York Edition courtesy of Rain:

Thai-Style Grilled Steak with Lime Dipping Sauce

6 Servings

Time:
20 mins
3 hrs (to refrigerate)

INGREDIENTS:
Steak:
1 cup oyster sauce
1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1/4 cup minced garlic
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup coarse ground pepper
1 cup canola oil
(6) 10-oz sirloin steaks

Lime Dipping Sauce:
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup fish sauce
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbsp chili flakes
1 Tbsp minced shallots
1 tsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp chopped mint

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Mix all of the marinade ingredients together. Pour over steaks and let marinade at least 3 hrs in refrigerator. Drain.
2. Grill steaks to desired doneness.
3. Combine dipping sauce ingredients.

PRESENTATION:
Serve grilled steaks with Lime Dipping Sauce. Also serve with grilled vegetables and fresh market green salad.

We are looking forward to tonight’s NBA playoffs as the defending champs, San Antonio Spurs visit the Bayou and take on the upstart New Orleans Hornets in an enticing sudden-death Game 7. This is a classic matchup of Old vs. New as the veteran squad of Tim Duncan & Co. bring their 4 championship rings to Chris Paul and his team of young gunners…should be must-see TV. Inspired by this game, we at 86 Recipes take a look at both of these fantastic food towns. The Alamo City may boast some of the best Tex-Mex in world, but it also offers some delicous options in Barbeque and Soul Food. However, Tex-Mex is still the king, and, when you visit the Riverwalk, you definitely should sample some queso flameado, carne asada, chili relleno, menudo, enchiladas, and chalupas. Now, we all know that the Crescent City is the epicenter of creole standards such as gumbo, jambalaya, shrimp remoulade, beignets and the ever-so-tasty mufuletta. However, you can also find some other interesting offferenings in the Big Easy (yeah, we are going all out with city nicknames)…so, when you are exploring the French Quarter and its surroundings, try some Italian, Asian or Latin American. Do you have an opinion in the the San Antonio vs. New Orleans food debate? By the way, we are pulling for the Hornets tonight just because the Spurs need to share the wealth.

Inspired by this week’s episode of “Top Chef“, we have been obsessing over healthy and hearty lunch options. For all of you who have the epsiode on TiVo, DVR or even, old-school VHS tape, we won’t spoil the results…so you can keep reading. The elimination challenge dared the competitors to make “box lunches” for Chicago’s finest. From bison to faux “sushi”, the chefs’ lunches were diverse. Here at 86 Recipes, we feel that Westville’s Cast-Iron Turkey Burger from the New York Edition would blow away the competiton. However, unlike in the show, we recommend that you cook it fresh…avoid the microwave.

Cast-Iron Turkey Burger

4 Servings
Time: 30 Mins

INGREDIENTS:
2 lbs freshly ground turkey breast
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 large egg
Salt and pepper apply liberally
Olive oil
4 Portuguese or English muffins, halved
Cheese of your choice

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Put turkey, garlic, egg, salt and pepper in bowl, mix together lightly with your hands. Form 4 patties.
2. Heat pan or cast-iron skillet. Add 2 Tbsp of olive oil and be sure it covers all round.
3. When the oil is about smoking, place the burgers in pan, cook about 4 mins, flip the burgers for another 4 mins.
The burgers should have a browned crispy, crust when flipped.
4. Preheat oven to 450° F. Place the muffins on the top shelf of the oven, just on the rack.
5. Put in pan with burgers. Let cook for about 5 mins.
6. Place cheese on top of each burger, melt cheese. Put burgers on muffins.

It is Spring! The weather is warmer, the flowers are blooming and the farmer’s markets & gardens are filled with spring vegetables. Here is a wonderful recipe from the 86 Recipes San Francisco Editon that includes one of our favorite spring vegetables, the cauliflower.

Recipe courtesy of Executive Chef Roland Passot of La Folie

Chilled Cauliflower Soup

4 Servings

30: Mins

INGREDIENTS

1/2 stick unsalted butter
5-7 shallots
1 head cauliflower, in
small pieces
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper
1 cup chicken stock
(preferred) or vegetable
stock
1-1/2 cups cream

CAULIFLOWER SOUP

1. In medium pot, melt butter and
cook shallots on low, not letting
them brown.
2. When shallots are translucent,
add the cauliflower, salt, and
pepper.
3. Heat through and then add the
chicken stock.
4. When the cauliflower becomes
soft, add the cream and bring
to a boil.
5. Remove the soup from the
heat.
6. Blend, strain, and immediately
cool the soup in an ice bath.
Serve chilled.

Here is a fantastic recipe for Corned Beef Hash…perfect for a Mother’s Day brunch! This recipe is courtesy of LeRoy & Aurora Bautista at Refuel Cafe in Carrollton from the 86 Recipes New Orleans Editon.

Corned Beef Hash

4 Servings
Time: 30 Mins

INGREDIENTS

HASH AND EGGS
1 lb medium red potatoes, skin on, cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 tsp chopped fresh tarragon
1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 lb cooked corned beef, sliced into thin strips
Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper
8 large eggs (optional)

HASH AND EGGS
1 Preheat oven to 350°F.
2 Sauté potatoes in butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat, stirring, until lightly browned, about 3 mins. 3 Add onion, bell pepper, tarragon and parsley and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, about 3 mins.
4 Stir in corned beef. Add salt and pepper to taste and place into oven while preparing eggs.
5 In a separate nonstick skillet, prepare eggs to your desired doneness; sunny side up is recommended.

PRESENTATION
Remove hash from oven, distribute evenly on 4 plates, place two eggs atop each portion.