Five More Days 'til Bobby Flay!

Sorry, Tea Drinker. But, at the end of this week, my eyes will be peeled for a sighting of the Grill Master, Bobby Flay. He is expected at the Aspen Food & Wine Classic. Truth be told, all wine aside, I will be in pursuit of another Bobby "How to Grill" cookbook. To my friends, I promise NOT to utter the following words to Chef Bobby: “ I am your biggest fan”. This was a rookie move I made a few years ago after spotting Chef Mario Batali dining with his wife at a local Aspen restaurant. Mario stared at me blankly, as my friends ran away mortified. I admit, I can be a bit star struck. This is what happens to mere mortals after Food Network sinks its teeth into you. Heck, ten years ago, I shared “fiddle faddle” and an alochol-doused banana smoothie with Mario and fellow Chefs at an after hour's party in Aspen. Who knew how famous these Chefs would become? I still crack up over that one.

So, today, in honor of my Bobby Week, we broke down and bought a One Touch Weber Charcoal grill. Our Weber Gas Grill will still remain a part of the family, but it’s now time to move back to the basics, and the art of grilling. The Tea Drinker is eagerly awaiting for me to hit the road to Aspen, so that he can experiment with baby back ribs. Until then, Grilled Turkey Burgers will have to suffice. Check out Bobby's featured recipes in the July issue of Food & Wine Magazine.

Grilled Turkey Burgers- simple, and delicious.

• 1 ½ pds. Ground turkey
• 1 Red onion, sliced
• Smoked Gouda cheese
• Hamburger Buns
• 3 TBSP Dijon mustard
• 2 TBSP whole grain mustard
• 1 TBSP prepared horseradish
• 1 TBSP honey

Directions
1. Light a grill. Brush the onion with oil and grill until charred and softened, about 5 minutes. Brush the cut sides of the buns with oil and grill until toasted, about 30 seconds. Set aside.
2. Form the ground turkey into four 1-inch-thick patties and brush with oil. Season with salt and pepper and grill over high heat, turning once, until nearly cooked through, about 10 minutes.

3. Top with the Gouda, close the grill and cook until the cheese is melted and the burgers are cooked through, about 1 minute longer.

4. In a small bowl, combine the mustards, horseradish and honey and spread on the bottom half of the buns. Top with the burgers and onions.
Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine

Grilled Passila & Anheim Peppers, stuffed with Monterey Jack Cheese

• 2 Large Peppers( Jalapeno, Anheim, or Passila)
• 1/2 cup of shredded cheese, such as Monterey Jack, Sharp Cheddar
• 1 tsp minced garlic
• 1 TBSP of chopped cilantro
• 2 slices of Bacon- you guessed it, I like to use Turkey bacon.

1. Take each pepper and create a slit along the top, scoop out seeds.
2. Mix together cheese, garlic, cilantro, salt and pepper, to taste
3. Stuff peppers with cheese mixture. Wrap a slice of bacon around pepper, and secure w/ tooth pick, if needed.
4. Light the grill. Takes about 4 minutes per side, until cheese is melted. Enjoy!
( from my archives)

We drank Behrens and Hitchcock’s 2003 “The Contender” with our burgers. Quite tasty. After dinner we moved on to Ghirardelli Intense Dark Espresso Escapes. Highly recommended. Then Tea Drinker settled in, grabbed the Food & Wine Magazine, and exclaimed “Bobby is using a Gas Grill in this photo!” … Ah, well…the fantasy was good while it lasted.

By the way, if I do run into Bobby next week while sipping a margarita at Jimmy’s , I will challenge him to a throwdown. Tequila has that effect on me. Stay tuned.