Announcing Sugar High Fridays - Fruit & Nut

Ok, Summer is here, and so is the time to whip up some cool and refreshing desserts! This month, Fun and Food is proud to host the SHF June 2009, with the theme of "Fruit & Nut" Sugar High Fridays, or SHF, was started by Jennifer a long time ago, and has been passing through hosts and roundups for some wonderful sweet delicacies. Fran just finished posting about the Gluten-free SHF Roundup, and now its my turn! This time, I ask you to get creative with your summer fruits, combine them with nuts, and whip up something equally delicious, then send it right over. But first things first, so take a moment to check out some basic rules:

Rules for Participation:

1. You can make any dessert you want, as long as it contains 1 Fruit and 1 Nut at the least.

2. Send your entries to funandfood@gmail.com with subject line SHF-June, and please include a link back to this announcement or homepage. Please send your entries in English only, or with a link to the page which has English translation on your blog. Re-size your pictures to 200x200px. The deadline for sending in your entries is June 25th 2009.

3. Archived posts are allowed, but only if they are republished during the event period. Also, please limit upto a maximum of 2 entries per blog.

4. The roundup will be posted on the last Friday of June (26th June), so come back and make sure your entry is a part of the mega-roundup.

5. Non-Bloggers are welcome to email me their recipes, and I'll surely include them in the roundup as well.

So what are you waiting for? This one should be simple, and outright fun, for home-cooks and chiseled cooks alike! Beat the Summer heat by making cool desserts, or go for the traditional baked goodies. Whatever you choose, make sure its "High on Sugar" and send it right in! I look forward to all your wonderful entries!

Eric Nernberg is back at the Union Grill in Pittsburgh!

If you have lived in Pittsburgh for some time, then I'm sure you must have hear of Union Grill, the famous restaurant that owes its charm and eclectic food to Eric Nernberg, the face behind this eatery. Established in 1994, the Union Grill has been inviting food-lovers with variant tastes, catering to their different culinary needs. Well known for large servings of delicious meals made from scratch, the Union Grill has thrived under Chef Jim Dillon. The Half Price Happy Hour, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. every day, and the $10 wine list are just a few of the things that have been drawing crowds to this popular Pittsburgh based restaurant.


However, in2003, Eric decided to leave the reigns of the restaurant in the hands of his elite staff, and head East towards Thailand, to try something new. Here he opened up his culinary forte to welcome not just the people of Thailand, but also the US Marines to the advent of good food. His new venture thrived for 6 years, but Eric always missed Union Grill, which was his alma mater, and also his prodigy. SO he decided to pack things up in Thailand for good, and return back to what he loved the most!

Now, Eric Nernberg is back in Pittsburgh, and with his new experience globe-trotting through the east, he aims to expand the food creation at Union Grill. Besides serving what his customers have loved the most, he plans to renovate and expand the Union Grill to appeal to current crowds and to draw even more clientele. If ou are planning to be in Pittsburgh anytime oon, do take a day to stop by the new and improved Union Grill to see what surprises the founder holds in store for you!

BBQ & Grilling Tips - Perfect for Memorial Day

As we approach summer, its time to get out your barbecue grills and start having some fun with them, especially around Memorial day weekend! Whether its camping or just a backyard bbq, there is always a thrill attached to grilling; in fact we absolutely love it! But as easy as it sounds, grilling is not everyone's forte. I am sure all of you must have had some good and bad experiences with barbecues; it serves to be one of the best events for a pot luck, meeting with friends, chilling out and having fun. A few simple pointers go a long way in making a bbq successful. I'd like to share with you some common tips and techniques about grilling, what bbq grills work best, what food to grill and how to make sure you are doing it right, followed by a beautiful Memorial Day BBQ Menu to get you going!

I'm no expert at bbq, but we've had our fair share of grilling, and it has taught me a few tricks that will make an outdoor barbecue less stressful and more fun. If you are interested in knowing how bbq attained such a craze in US, here's a brief history about how bbq's originated. The first step, of course, is to buy a bbq-grill, and though there is a wide variety of products available to suit your style, I love the charcoal grill, especially for small-scale grilling.

Buying a Grill: Though charcoal grills are still most widely used, I'd recommend a Gas or an Electric Grill (especially for first-timers) as they are the easiest to use and produce nice results. They burn hot enough to make distinct "char" marks and add the smokey flavor to your food. If you have to use charcoal, for picnics or camping, try to avoid the self-igniting briquettes. Though easy to burn, they can give the food a petroleum flavor.

Basic Tips & Techniques: Grilling is a lot of fun, but not everyone can manage a great job the first time. Here are some general techniques to help you in your outdoor grilling venture.

1. Prepare the fire a half hour or more before grilling. For quick lighting, use a chimney starter with crumpled newspaper in the bottom and briquets or charcoal above. Or stack the charcoal in a pyramid shape and light with a liquid or electric starter.

2. First make sure that the grill is medium-hot. For most of the grilling recipes, the fire should be medium-hot with a single, even layer of coals lightly covered with grey ash. Less heat, and there'll be no "smoky " falvor to your food, too much high heat, and you'll practically burn and blacken your food! Also, adding a handful of aromatic wood chips such as mesquite, hickory, alder, or fruitwood chips over the coals can add whole new dimension of flavor to your food.

3. Make sure to clean the grill with a wire brush, and remove any previous residue food bits from the grill, before putting anything new onto it. Any burnt food chunks sticking to your main entree can so kill the taste!

4. Place the food item to be grilled on the clean grill. Be sure to put the presentation side down first on the grill in order to utilize the intense initial heat which guarantees the beautiful "grill marks" on the side that is visible on serving.

5. As the item cooks, move it around slowly so that it does not burn, and turn it over when it is cooked half-way. This is where the art of grilling comes in. The goal to perfect grilling is to give the item delicious dark brown (not black) grill marks on both sides and remove it from the heat without overcooking it.

6. To reduce the chance of overbrowning, apply tomato- based sauces or those containing sugar or other sweeteners only during last 20 to 30 minutes of grilling. For grilling paneer, do not marinade for more than 20 mins before grilling or it will turn out soggy.

7. Try to space food so that it does not stick to each other and also shift items from the center of the hot grill over to the sides as you keep placing new food in the center. Closing the lid speeds up the cooking time and increases the smoky flavor, but also increases the likelihood of a small fire, so be careful. And remember to open the small air vent on the top of the grill if you decide to close the lid.

8. Use a pair of gloves and tongs to remove hot food from the grill to prevent yourself and your guests from getting burnt.

9. Position your grill according to the direction of the wind so that coal burns quickly and at the same time, your guests don't have to put up with the heat! A corner of the backyard is not always the best spot; wind governs where you place your grill!

10. Last but not the least, be prepared! Keep a suppy of charcoal and igniter fluid handy so you don't have to run in the middle of the bbq to get more coal. Once it loses heat, its very hard to bring it back to the right temperature again. Also, keep a first-aid kit handy for accidents and burns, especially with children around. Try to maintain a safe distance between the grill and the serving area to prevent random accidents.

Direct & Indirect Cooking
There are two methods to grill food over a gas, wood, charcoal, or infrared - direct or indirect cooking. based on what you are cooking, you should choose the method that the recipe demands.

With the direct heat method, the food item is placed directly over the flame or coals. This method exposes the food item to very hot temperatures, often in excess of 500F or 900F for infrared grills. This is the fastest way to cook food items on a grill. The food items are cooked by the flames and radiant heat coming from the heat source of the grill.This method is ideal for grilling steaks, hamburgers, hot dogs, sausage, pork chops and skewers. All veggie and fruit skewers use this method. The food items must be carefully monitored so as to not burn them.

With the indirect heat method, you place the food item so that it is not directly over flames or coals. This is done by having the fire or coals on only one section of the grill and placing the food items on the other side. In a charcoal grill, it is best to place a foil pan of water under the food to keep it from drying out. This method is best for large cuts of meat or bone-in poultry. It allows the food to cook all the way through without burning or charring on the outside of the meat.

Best Items to Grill

Vegetables: Capsicum, Potatoes, Onions, Corn, Eggplant, Zucchini
Fruits: Pears, Pineapples, Apples, Grapes, Apricots, Plums,Peaches
Meat: Steak, Chicken, Fish, Sausage

I hope this article can help some amateurs like me to host a successful barbecue event, or at least enjoy the experience of grilling. Once you master it, grilling can be wonderful and addictive! Use these basic tips and techniques to make your outdoor grilling & bbq a fun and relaxing event this summer!

Memorial Day Vegetarian BBQ Recipes:
Paneer Tikka with Mango Dressing
Grilled Pesto Burgers
Grilled Asparagus Salad
Grilled Peaches with Chipotle Raspberry Sauce

Raspberry Coconut Breakfast Cake

Summer is the season for fresh Berries, and what better way to get the antioxidants into your system than by beginning your weekend with a slice of this delicious Raspberry Coconut Breakfast Cake! Actually, I was tempted by seeing the IHOP commercials about the Strawberry Festival that's going on, but it looked like way too many calories to indulge in. So to satisfy my sweet tooth, I thought of baking something that's not too unhealthy, and can pacify my cravings too. Thus was born this Raspberry Breakfast Cake - baked with fresh raspberries, almonds, coconut, a bit of vanilla, and coconut milk, it is a perfect way to enjoy a summer morning with a cup of hot coffee, as you plan how to spend the weekend with your family. Off this goes to Meeta's Mingle, celebrating Spring Cakes this season.

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1-3/4 cup sugar
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1/4 cup slivered almonds (optional)
3/4 cup chopped or whole raspberries

Method
Lightly coat a 10-11 inch round cake pan or a regular Loaf pan with cooking spray, and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Sift the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a small bowl. Set aside. Mix the coconut flakes with the coconut milk and vanilla essence, whisk and set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar over medium speed until well combined. With the mixer still on medium speed, slowly add the eggs, one at a time, until completely incorporated. You can even do this by hand, making sure you beat well after addition of each egg, so the mixture becomes light and fluffy.

Now add the coconut milk mixture, followed by the flour mixture, beating slowly after each addition so that the batter becomes white and fluffy. Finally fold in the raspberries and slivered almonds.

Pour the batter evenly in the prepared cake pan, and Bake at 350 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes or until the center springs back when lightly pressed. Remove from the pan and allow to cool completely, before attempting to slice the cake.

Serve a wedge with coffee for breakfast. For a more indulgent dessert, cover the cake with white buttercream frosting and garnish with more fresh raspberries.

Related Recipes
Raspberry Swiss Roll Cake
Mango Cake with Streusel Topping
Cranberry Orange Bread