Smokinlicious® Wood Recipe Blog

There is no question that preparing foods to feed a crowd of holiday visitors can be stressful! But if your challenged by the lack of space in the kitchen, then I have a solution for making holiday grilled appetizers.

A grill is a cooking vessel, just like your oven. Unfortunately, this equipment tends to be forgotten after summer. Well, clean it off in Fall and Winter and gain valuable cooking space to end a stressful holiday season. Time to make holiday grilled appetizers.

Holiday Appetizers: Pick #1

Artichoke Stuffed Mushroom Caps

This is a super easy holiday appetizer that takes no time at all. Start by first heating a gas grill to 350 degrees F. A charcoal grill can be used as well but set up the coals on only one side targeting the same temperature as the gas grill. Now start the food prep.

Wash 30 medium to large mushrooms, patting them dry, and then removing the stems. Reserve the stems to be used in the filling mix. For the filling gather the following:

Ingredients:

For the Filling:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 14 ounce can of artichoke hearts, drained, rinsed, pat dry and chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small shallot, minced
• kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 1 cup grated parmesan
• ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped thyme
• 1 egg white
• Reserved mushroom stems
  

  Preparation:

  Start by chopping the mushroom stems, dice the shallots, and mince the garlic cloves. In goes the butter to a hot skillet, then all three prepared ingredients are added. Once cooked down, the white wine is added to the mixture. Continue cooking until the wine has evaporated.

  The aromatics are now ready for the rest of the filling ingredients. Add the chopped artichoke hearts, parmesan, bread crumbs, parsley, thyme, and egg white. Mix everything together until it binds well. Time to fill the cleaned mushroom caps. Using a teaspoon, fill each mushroom cap heaping the filling on top. There is enough filling to do 40-50 caps depending on the size of the mushrooms selected. Tip: extra cooked filling can also be serve on crackers or bread slices. Place the filled mushroom caps in a baking dish or on a sheet tray. Place the prepared dish on the grill grate, closing the lid and allow to cook for 20-30 minutes (check after 20 minutes – these should have a golden top when finished). Serve hot.

  What a flavorful nibble to serve guests visiting at the holidays. Best part, you can have the filling prepared ahead of time, even freeze, for those spontaneous visits. All the more reason to keep these ingredients handy all year round!

Shrimp and steak Kabob on the grill from our Guest blogger

Author Bio

Abigail Murphy is a Community Outreach at Lobster Anywhere, a mail-order seafood company based in New England.

Summer is fast approaching, and that means it’s time to dust off the grill and prepare it for delicious meals that can only be cooked and enjoyed outdoors. Long story short, grilling shrimp & steak kabobs are a great appetizer worth learning how to prepare and serve at this year’s summer parties—and even serve as the main dish, because who doesn’t want to have shrimp & steak kabobs during summer?

For one, kabobs are a versatile meal. Sure, you can get chicken, cherry tomatoes, and nothing else and call it a kabob, but you can add fruit, meat, and veggies to your liking. We’ll go with a fresh Maine shrimp and steak for our recipe because it’s a hearty combination of protein.

Yep, Maine shrimp is a fantastic summer seafood option. They come with a firm texture and sweet flavor and are very low in cholesterol and fat. You can sauté them with garlic and olive oil or use them in salads, soups, and casseroles.

Step 1 for Shrimp & Steak Kabobs: Prep the Steak

Timing is everything, so start prepping your items in advance. Cut the steak into 1-inch cubes and marinate in a ziplock bag or bowl with two tablespoons of olive oil, two tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce, one tablespoon of lemon juice, and pepper, and one teaspoon of garlic powder and dried oregano. Add a pinch of cayenne pepper. Let it sit for an hour.

Use any cut you prefer, as most people like to use sirloin steak because it has a less fat content and is usually a little cheaper. You can also use cilantro in this recipe because it goes well with seafood, but parsley would be a good substitute if you don’t like cilantro. You could also add other veggies like cherry tomatoes or red onion to the skewers if you want them.

Step 2: Move on to the Shrimp

While the steak is marinating, you can prepare the shrimp. After washing them thoroughly under running water, remove their heads and shells by pulling on the head until it pops off. Then peel away the shell from top to bottom. Rinse again to remove any additional covers and pat dry before cutting a small slit down the center vein on the backside of each shrimp. This will help keep them from curling up when they go onto the skewers.

The key to grilling shrimp is making sure they don’t stick to the grill grates and overcook them. We recommend adding just enough olive oil, so the shrimp are lightly coated without being saturated. Rub seasonings into the shrimp until they stick. This helps prevent the spices from falling off.

The shrimp in this meal can be used fresh or thawed from frozen, but either way should have the heads removed. Fresh shrimp is a little messier and will take more time to peel, but you should be able to find it prepared at most seafood markets.

What Type of Skewers Should I Use for Your Shrimp & Steak Kabobs?

When it comes to skewers, cooks typically use bamboo skewers. The only problem with bamboo skewers is that they need to be soaked in water before using, or they will burn. If you don’t want to deal with soaking them ahead of time, use metal skewers instead.

Step 3: Cooking Time

Next, cook the steak long enough to brown it on high heat. Then reduce the heat to low, simmer the steak, and add the shrimps later because they need less cooking time, and trust us, you don’t want to overcook shrimp.

You can assemble the Kabobs when the meat is “rare.” Alternate the items on skewers and grill or broil—brush kabobs with lemon basting sauce. Serve rice, or you can cook some corn on the cob.

Final Thoughts

And there you have it! If you’re looking for a fresh, fun meal to make on the grill, you can’t go wrong with these kabobs. The shrimp is spicy, while the steak is wonderfully juicy and flavorful. The great thing about this recipe is that it’s super simple and tastes fantastic. Plus, when grilling season starts in earnest, having recipes like this on hand will come in handy. Enjoy delicious shrimp & steak kabobs!

Smoky Cocktail Sauce is very easy to do by simply smoking the Tomatoes for the recipe!

GIVING AN EDGE TO SMOKY COCKTAIL SAUCE

You’ve seen me use the Orion Cooker before for cooking and smoking more traditional items. Now, see how I produced a great hot smoked tomato using a blend of Sugar Maple and Wild Cherry wood chips to bring subtle smoke flavor. Once smoked, I take the smoked tomato and produce a smoked tomato cocktail sauce that has so many uses.

Smoky Cocktail Sauce- Easy Hot Smoking

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Our gorgeous color on our Grilled Prime Rib with wood on the gas Grill- Yum!

GRILLED PRIME RIB THE ULTIMATE WITH WOOD

#smokinlicious

Yes, prime rib is expensive and likely the reason so many are fearful to take this cut of beef to the grill. I’m going to take away that fear and show you just how your grill will respect this cut and produce the tender, buttery, crusty outside roast you want.

Although there are different opinions on whether to make a roast with the ribs intact or removed, I am someone who prefers to cook with the ribs in. I’ll give you tips on doing a boneless version as well if that is your preference.

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Our Ember roasted peppers make an awesome Charred Pepper Dip

CHARRED PEPPER DIP

Summary:

A great smoked appetizers for your charred peppers recipes; our ember bed cooking of peppers provides great flavor. How to roast peppers in a grill, cooking on coals directly, cooking in embers, gas grill, charcoal grill, even cast iron skillet cooking will work for peppers. Try this charred pepper dip topping.

Peppers are one of those thick-skinned vegetables that release their ultimate flavor when they are introduced to hot coals. Many people think that you need special equipment to cook foods in hot coals but really, it’s as easy as having a disposable pan available and a grill. I’ll give you some options for roasting the peppers and then provide a great recipe to be used as a dip or topping that is quick and so easy.

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wood fired Seafood Bisque

With its French origin, bisque is known as a creamy, thick soup that originally was made with stock from various crustacean shells like lobster, crab and shrimp. Over the years, it has been simplified with many acceptable variations, one of which I will be using in my recipe.

What brings up the flavor of this seafood bisque recipe is my technique of wood-firing the seafood meats for an elevated taste. I’m going to give you a few methods of adding this flavor with some equipment choices. Then I’ll tell you how to use that great hearty seafood in an easy wood fired seafood bisque recipe that blends the creaminess with that bit of bold from the wood fire.

Wood Fired Seafood Bisque- Gas Grill Method

One of the benefits of using a gas grill is the heat level control and speed at which the grill can do what you want. For this method of grilling, I’ll use just two wood chunks from SmokinLicious® in the double filet size and place in a smoker box. Set the burners to medium on one side of the grill only and allow the wood chunks to begin to smoke (the smoker box is placed on the grill grate above the lit burners). Then place a grill-safe pan (I like to use disposable aluminum pans) containing your choice of seafood. I’m using mussels, shrimp, squid, and imitation crab or pollock. I place all these items in my pan with just a touch of oil and place the prepared pan on the unlit side of the grill. This will just take about 10 minutes to flavor the seafood. Remember, there is no need to fully cook all the items as we will finish that process in the soup pot. Once done, remove the seafood to a bowl.

Wood Fired Seafood Bisque- Stovetop Smoker Method

Stovetop smokers are perfect for the person who lives in a location that a grill isn’t possible, or who prefers to cook indoors but craves smoke flavor. I’m using a simple DIY stove top smoker you can make using a stockpot, foil, and a round roasting rack. You can find our step-by-step directive on this here.

SmokinLicious® offers a great assortment of wood chip sizing with recommendations specifically for stovetop smokers. I am using a custom blend of Grande Sapore® Wood Chips that includes Cherry, Alder, and Maple hardwoods.

Unlike the gas grill method, with this one, you will be infusing the seafood with direct heat and wood infusion by placing your cooking container directly on the roasting rack. Given the smaller size of the smoker area, you may need to wood-fire your seafood choices in batches.

Wood Fired Seafood Bisque- Chimney Starter Method

As I mentioned that this is a quick means of introducing wood flavor to seafood, you can use a chimney starter equipped with a small grill grate to do the actual smoking. This is the method I’ll be using for this recipe.

I simply fill a chimney starter with charcoal, place it on a cylinder block, and lite it. Once the coals have turned grey and no active flame is present, I place a small grill grate on the top of the chimney starter, then add my pan of seafood meat. This will take about the same time as the gas grill method – 10 minutes. Once ready, I remove the pan and set aside while I start the bisque base for the soup.

Making a Bisque

The ingredients you will need to make the bisque base are:

1 cup of butter (2 sticks or 226g)

1 small onion diced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

½ cup of all-purpose flour (65g)

2 tablespoons of tomato paste

2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning

2 teaspoons Old Bay seasoning

½ cup of white wine or sherry (59ml)

4 cups heavy cream (1 quart or 945ml)

4 cups whole milk (1 quart or 945ml)

1-1/2 pounds (680g) raw seafood of choice that has been wood-fired as noted above)

Start by melting the butter in a stockpot placed over medium-high heat. Once melted, add the flour and whisk together to begin the roux or thickening process. Add the onion and garlic next, whisking as you add each ingredient. Allow these to cook for about 30 seconds, then add the Cajun and Old Bay seasonings and tomato paste. Reduce the heat to medium at this point, as you continue to whisk everything together. Add the wine, whisking. Now time to add the final liquids. This will be done in small portions to keep the consistency and flavors blending. Start with 1 cup of the milk, whisking, then 1 cup of the cream. Stay vigilant with the whisking while you add the milk and cream to ensure binding. Once the bisque is made, add the bowl of previously wood fired seafood and reduce the heat to low. Heat completely through.Velvety Smooth Richness

For serving this creamy soup, I prefer to sprinkle each bowl with some fresh chopped parsley or cilantro. I also slice up some crusty bread like a great French baguette. That’s it! Super easy but flavors that appear as if this bisque took days to make.

Now you can enjoy a video tutorial on this recipe as we collaborated with our friends at Passing It On. Get the visual step-by-step directive on making this fabulous, rich bisque!

Tasting Notes:

Although you can use any crustacean, fish or seafood of your choice, the best options are: lobster, crab, clam, oyster, mussel, cod. Since this has a lot of fat content already in the soup base, it is best to avoid fattier fish like salmon.

What’s your favorite way to make seafood bisque?

Bringing you great recipes for all types of food ingredients to grill, ember cook, hot smoke, and cold smoke. We are always ready to give you ideas for specific foods so leave us a comment and subscribe for more great recipes, techniques, tips, and the science behind the flavor, that’s SmokinLicious®.

Wood Fired Lobster Tails Chili

Hot Seared Scallops

Charred Broccoli Soup

Smoked Squash

Purchase products:

Wood Chunks- Double and Single Filet

Wood Chips- Grande Sapore®

Dr. Smoke-loves the smoky taste of wood fired seafood bisque

Wood firing offers a grilled avocado guacamole treat that will excite taste buds! Your guests will be amazed with this simple but flavor rich recipe!

TRY THE KISS OF FIRE TO GUACAMOLE Click To Tweet

The single seeded berry, fleshy fruit we know as avocado is loaded with healthy fats, 4 grams of protein, and 975 milligrams of potassium which is nearly twice as much as a banana. With 18 of the amino acids recommend in daily consumption, you’ll want to include avocado in your diet.

We thought we would take this fruit favorite and add a flavor level for your avocado recipes by wood-firing the avocado. This simple step will bring all the nutritional benefits of the fruit with a bold new taste.

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Our Hearts of pleasure are filled with great Smoked chocolate! You or your favorite person must try Smoked Chocolate!

Imagine a puffed pastry filled with Smoked Chocolate and Nuts! Click To Tweet

Sometimes you need a special dessert or treat for that occasion that you want to express your love or appreciation. An anniversary, Valentine’s Day, Sweetest Day, or even as a thank you gesture. I have the perfect treat that is simple to make and allows you to customize the ingredients to fit the preferences of the recipient. I’ll give you my version of the Heart Puffs of Pleasure but know too, you can change the shape of this treat to any cookie cutter shape you find adorable to use. It all starts with adding a bit of smoky flavor to some of the filling ingredients so let’s start there.

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Our Art rendition of the steps in making the Smokey Jack Frost Cocktail

JACK FROST GOES SMOKEY- THE COCKTAIL!

Also known as the winter piña colada, the Jack Frost cocktail is perfect for introducing a little smoke flavor to. If you like sweet, smooth cocktails, then the Jack Frost is for you. I’ll give you the recipe and the easy technique for smoking the entire drink that you’ll enjoy sipping all winter long. Pick your favorite festive cocktail glass and let’s take Jack Frost to the smoky side.

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Our pastry horns in the over baking getting ready to be filled with our Smoked Ricotta Cheese we made in our tips blog

CINNAMON PASTRY HORN- SMOKED RICOTTA ON THE STOVE-TOP Click To Tweet

Have I got a great treat for you! Featuring smoked ricotta, I’m making a pastry horn filled with the sweetness of cinnamon infused smoked ricotta with a touch of crushed almond and shredded coconut. I have an easy method of making the puff pastry horns that don’t require purchased molds and helpful hints on filling these light, golden horns of goodness.

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