The perfect holiday dish: Pomegranate and Mint Lamb Chops. The ruby-red Pomegranates and bright green mint combo make this really festive, don’t you agree?

The lamb rib chops I use in this recipe are  “Frenched.” Frenched means the meat is cut away from the end of the rib or chop so that part of the bone is visible. Not only does this make the chop look deliciously elegant, it also helps the meat cook evenly.

This Pomegranate and Mint Lamb Chop recipe is gluten-free and paleo-friendly… and incredibly easy to pull together. I used my Hamilton Beach® Stack & Snap™10 Cup Food Processor to make the marinade, which includes pomegranate syrup or molasses (which you can find at Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s or ethnic markets).

Here’s a link to this delicious recipe, perfect for this time of year… (or on the grill this summer!).

And just in case you missed it… here’s how to open a pomegranate, without staining everything in site!

Are you ready for a totally different spin on the backyard grilling experience?

This is it: Well Done Social Grill by Unikia. It’s a charcoal tabletop grill that lets you be your own grillmaster.

If you’ve ever eaten at a Korean barbecue restaurant where the grill is built right into the table, it’s a little like that. Meat and veggies are roasted right in front of you… except now you’re the chef!

I grill all the time, but I have to tell you, it’s so much more fun when everyone gets in on the act. GP used it when he had a few friends over and it was perfect, because each one of them fancies himself an “expert” at grilling. The Social BBQ Grill enables everyone to cook things to their own taste—and have a lot of laughs doing it.

Here’s how it works: you place the streamlined grill on a table and fill up the charcoal basket. When the coals a glowing ashen gray color, let everyone have a go at grilling the food.

It’s not complicated—that’s the beauty of it! And it’s nearly impossible NOT to talk with everyone as you’re grilling! This is interactive cooking at its best.

The Social Grill is made of carbon steel with a high heat resistant powder coating so it is perfectly safe for a wooden table. Unikia doesn’t recommend using it on a plastic table, but if you do, make sure you protect the surface with something heat proof underneath the grill.

The Social Grill is 35”x 8”x 11”, so you know it’s plenty big for 6 people to grill at the same time. It’s kind of heavy, though, so you might need someone to help you put it on the table (I did).

I’m so happy my pals at Unikia sent me this grill to try out because it’s  going to be a great addition to our outdoor party traditions. We’re having a house full of people for Lollapalooza this weekend, so I’m going to set it up and let everyone make their own s’mores and grilled fruit!

I can’t wait!
Here’s a video of the Social Grill in Action! Buy the Social Grill here!

The kids are on vacation but, hey, guess what? You’re not!

Big and little people still need to be fed, so why not make something quick and easy that can be thrown on the grill or in the oven like these Island Chicken Drumsticks?

Here’s what you do:

1. Buy one of those 12-packs of chicken legs (or more if you’re feeling particularly ambitious).
2. Prepare the dry rub from spices you probably already have in your pantry. You don’t need to follow my recipe… use what you have!
3. Heat up the grill or oven and in 20 minutes dinner will be ready.

If you DO make extra drummies, you’ll have something to feed the hungry horde for lunch tomorrow or a picnic dinner the day AFTER tomorrow. Perfect. Easy. Just like summer should be!

       Print this recipe.    

How do you like your steak… still mooing or like a piece of shoe leather?

At this time of year there are plenty of strange (and strangely wonderful) gadgets to boost your grilling mojo. Here’s one I really like: The SteakChamp.

The German-made SteakChamp is a high-precision steak thermometer that will help you cook your steak exactly the way you want it, either on the grill, in the oven or in a pan on the stove. The stainless steel probes come in four models to suit your temperature preference (rare, medium rare, medium and medium well), and are tuned to USDA temperatures guidelines.

But before I continue, may I digress a moment? The word “probe” has always bugged me. It reminds me of aliens, or something like that. Okay… back to the best tool for grilling the perfect steak, the SteakChamp.

Here’s how it works:

1. Remove your meat from the fridge about half an hour before cooking. The meat should be at least 1½-inches thick.
2. Select the SteakChamp probe (there’s that word again) for the level of doneness you want (rare, medium rare, etc.). Insert the SteakChamp into the center of the meat sideways, until it is completely inside the meat and only the end of the SteakChamp protrudes.
3. Sear both sides of the meat on high heat for 2 minutes.
4. Reduce the heat to medium. When the SteakChamp begins to double flash, remove the meat from the heat. Let the meat rest until the double flashing signal stops. Remove the SteakChamp and serve your perfect steak.

This is a great video to show you exactly how the SteakChamp works on a grill:

Visit the SteakChamp website to see how this gadget works on top of the stove and in the oven. You can find it at Sur la Table.  Follow the directions and you’ll be grilling like a champ all summer!